Thanks for the example. We are planning on the window being cased with a header and sill. The part I have the hardest time with is that just seems so out of balance. The tv is going to be off center. I am at the point of just drywalling in the firebox opening and starting fresh!! So frustrating.

I JUST saw an HGTV show with this dilemma! Paint the built in, white if you can. Can you make the fireplace look larger? Raise the mantle? Make it look more substantial.

Oh wait, you ripped out the built in already? Hmmmmm.

Yes, everything is ripped out. I can do whatever I want to. I work at a moulding store so I was going to have them build a mantle floor to ceiling which would encase the tv above the fireplace and then build a shelving unit of some sort in the niche that would connect with the legs of the mantle (am I making sense?) My hesitation is that it might still seem out of balance with the tv to one side.

People put them side by side all the time!

The windowcase is your solution. You knew it all along ;)

Oh wait, the bookcase has been torn out?? Then I'd connect all the lines from window to niche and make one nice framed whole, with the fireplace a little forward. The niche is about two times wider than the window, so I guess two doors would look great.

well I have another question then (actually I have a ton but I will ask this one) if I build cabinetry on the left and a floor to ceiling mantle with tv over the fireplace which will connect with a window all cased out then my problem is this...the three pieces are all a little off center to the whole room. I have an empty spot to the left of everything. Would some sort of decor on the left help to complete/balance the look?

Include a false door below the window to make it look like a huge closet/bookcase, such as in the pictures posted above.

Can you open the wall up there too? Make it one longer shelving unit?

Of course it will look better once your furniture is in there too. Maybe some seats and a table with a lamp?

I would frame the entire wall from the fireplace to the corner on the left, and floor to ceiling, to make it look like one unit. Then I would put drapes on the window from ceiling to floor. And what about putting the TV in the niche area so all the "big" stuff isn't all on the right side?

I would start over and move the fire box to the center with the TV above the mantel centered. Ad beautiful moldings etc, Of course this would be fairly simple if you go with a gas fireplace with a direct vent. You might spend twice as much maybe but over the years you will always be glad you corrected this poor choice the previous builder made. Unless this is a masonry fireplace on the outside. Then I would go with ptmathews idea. Retired decorator,Kevin

Try this. Paint that entire wall, cabinet, mantel woodwork one color, different finishes. Matte and semi gloss.. Purchase a Hunter Douglas Plantation shutter for the window. Hunter Douglas will paint the shutter any color you want, if one of their tones doesn't match your decor (it may have to be a Benjamin Moore color, not sure). Then you entire wall is ONE, with no borders.

I would enclose all the way evenly around fireplace & built in together making one unit of the whole thing &fireplace inside ......put another bookcase on other side of fireplace too really enclose &repeat pattern

Everyone I know that has a TV above their fireplace does not like it, because its to high. Seems like that only works well when you have a huge space & trying to see the TV from all different areas. Some have finally moved the TV to the side & have hung something over the hole or closed it up. Your fireplace does look small so maybe that want be a problem. If it was my space I would paint all the wood the same. Put the TV in the space in the cabinet & add drapes the same width as the cabinet. Then get a wonderful piece of art to put in the middle above the mantel.

I hate TV's over fireplaces. If you must do that, try to cover it with a painting or something when not in use. If it is in constant use, I'm sure you'll be happier with it somewhere else.

I have to agree - TV's over fireplaces are generally too high for comfortable viewing, unless your furniture is on the other side of a large room. And if anyone in the household wears glasses, they will get a stiff neck just trying to watch the TV!

You might make the bookcase smaller, make it the same size as the window. Enclose all of that to look like one unit. It will still be off center but put a nice reading chair in the left corner by the book case so that part of the room has a different function from the tv part.

Paint the fireplace and the cabinet the same color (or get a mantel in the same wood as the cabinet) and then put a large mirror on the mantel that goes up to the top of the bookcase. Make sure the mirror is painted in the same color as the fireplace and mantel.

If you read the original post again, the bookcase and mantel have been removed.

Agree with same color throughout. You may think about tying in the entire space from the left of the build-in to the right side of the window. Step out the entire piece or portions 4-6” from the wall. Try to change the height in one of the elements so there is not a continuous line and include crown throughout the design and ad crown around the room. You could step out 9” with a column on the left of the built-in and the right side of the window. Before you do anything make a scaled drawing or even tape an outline directly on the wall.

We all keep agreeing on this one...for a change! Ha. Same color. I actually detest painting hardwood unless it is all scarred up, but in this case, it should all be white.

One more thought - floor to ceiling drapes over the window with a matching drape at the other end of the wall, even though there's no window there. TV in the niche next to the fireplace, and cover over the opening above the TV, creating a smooth wall over both the TV and fireplace. This would balance the space.

Do you really need that window? I would get rid of it, and have another bookcase built in place of it and paint everything the same shade of white. You have to live with it, so you should love it. We actually had two windows put in on either side of our fireplace and it was the best decision. If you really need the window, maybe you could have the bookcase removed and have another window installed. It's just a matter of how much you want to spend now, to be happy later!

Judyg below gives you the best solution to your problem. Much less expensive than some of the others and looks great.

I didn't realize those items were already removed. I think you should call in an interior designer and pay 50-100 dollars to get an opinion from an expert before you make a huge mistake that you won't be happy with. Designers are keen on solutions to all sorts of placement problems like that. Do it right from the start, so you aren't looking for another solution a few months down the road.

Paint the cabinet and wall the same colour. Maybe a mantle over the fireplace same colour as painted cabinet would be better. Position tv Centre above fireplace.

Paint the cabinet and wall the same colour. Maybe a mantle over the fireplace same colour as painted cabinet would be better. Position tv Centre above fireplace. Make the window blind same colour. Add mirror and light in the unit to bring brightness to wooden unit.

Paint the cabinet and wall the same colour. Maybe a mantle over the fireplace same colour as painted cabinet would be better. Position tv Centre above fireplace. Make the window blind same colour. Add mirror and light in the unit to bring brightness to wooden unit. White is nice and bright.

Just for fun I thought I would I attach a picture of how my project is coming along. The floor is pretty dusty in this pic but you can kinda get an idea. I decided to drywall in the niche and the window. We purchased a new firebox and centered in the room. I will post another as we get further along.

it resembles our fireplace now. is that slate, marble or granite around the firebox?

P.S. I like it much better than before!

Thank you! I am liking it also!! Its Basaltina around the firebox. It looks so good in person. The pictures don't do it justice.

Wow !!! Now you have a perfectly designed fireplace. Sad you had to spend the money but it looks so nice. Timeless , Classic and better for resale if you ever want to move. Great Job !!!

The new floors are beautiful too !

Good solution!