What a find! Usually fireplace mantle height will depend on whether or not you're installing a tv above the fireplace, the height of the ceiling and the width/height of the hearth and firebox. How big is the firebox? Are you installing a tv too?

It's great to find natural materials when renovating an old house. I second the motion to take out the dated insert, and recommend Brazilian black slate with matte sealer for the hearth. Stay away from shiny finishes here to let the natural stone stand out. Paint the walls one of those gorgeous stone tones, like a deep, muddy mauve. As for the mantle, I'd keep it low for a modern look or skip it all together. With the busy pattern of the rock, add only what you need to.

We did remove the insert and hoping to turn it back to wood burning. I'll post the dimensions when I get home. No tv above but going to box out the hearth and face with Douglas fir (same as mantle). What should the hearth material be and what colour? Going with cil beachcomber colour on walls.

I'm thinking about painting it white and then hanging a reclaimed wood world map from the ceiling in front of it. Thoughts?

I wouldn't paint it white, I think it would just look like a jumbled mess. Im not a big fan of dark stone fireplaces, I would probably a large neutral piece of art and hang it.

I would not paint it either.

It has a lot of character as it is.

Ask the person selling and or installing the wood stove if there is code for placing a mantle over wood burning stove or if they have a suggestion. Another Houzz person posted that they placed a TV over their gas stove insert and the TV was melting or something to that ilk. Be smart. Get good advice then go for what looks pretty. Good luck!

A carpenter can trim the wood piece so it meets code and then scribe the back side of the wood piece so it fits against the stone perfectly with your raw edge forward - I would keep the stone (definitely no painting stone) but do get a large piece of art in a portrait orientation to hang - the map you mention might be too busy for this spot, but if you are on a budget, you might buy yourself a large canvas and do something very simple in the beachy colors you want to focus on here. Creams and tans and soft blues in an abstract modern way will work. Art.com will have something you would like too.

This is what it looks like now. We have it sealed off because of the smell of smoke from the down draft even though the last wood fire we had was Jan 3rd. The chimney was cleaned but our house still smells like a smokehouse (barely smell it now that the top has been sealed and it's taped up but that's another project). My husband is making a raw edged floating shelf for under the tiny Pebble Creation picture on the left. I'll look for neutral portrait piece of art for the fireplace until we renovate and take it all down. I watch a lot of HGTV and they seem to paint many fireplaces white so I thought I might (until now lol!).

Would this work?

Without knowing much about the rest of the room and your decorating style here are a couple of ideas from allposters.com

Vintage posters can be fun and add some lightness to add a room also a light nature pic might work

I like that your print brings together all the colors in the room. I almost want it to have a little more dark element, referencing the dark stones. Are there others in this artist's series that have have more of the dark streaks? What size is the print?

This is what it looks like now. We love it and we will redo the hearth next (it was a quick fix for Christmas). Thanks for the comments!

Interesting look. I'm trying to get a closer look at what we call the "hearth stone extension", commonly referred to these days as the hearth. It appears that you have tiled it, what is surrounding the tile?

Also, I'm hoping the infrastructure of the fireplace, i.e: firebox, smoke chamber, throat, damper and flue were all inspected before burning :o

Most important factor when installing your fireplace mantle is to follow the code compliance to meet a safety clearance and as long as you meet the code compliance guideline, you can have your mantle at the height you prefer. Here is the chart that you can follow, it basically indicates the depth of your combustible material and the minimum safety height it should be placed above your fireplace so it doesn't melt or catch fire.

Good luck

I don't like to see a tv over a fireplace regardless of the "trend". The tv would/could be effected by the heat from the fireplace, and most of the time the tv is too high for comfortable viewing.
Mantel placement (and any other flammable material surrounding a fireplace) will be covered by local code requirements. Failing to follow those code requirements may void your fire insurance. Don't finish your fireplace without consulting the building and safety office. Inspection may also be required for the job.