We took down the top half of our stone fireplace facade, and will be putting in a barn wood mantle and shiplap above. When we took down the stone, we found horizontal supports for the stone wall. They are nailed into the side framing but not very well. Now we are debating what to do.

One idea is to install metal supports cemented into where we have to fix cement work on the top stones left and also attached into the top framing. Another idea is to install 1x4 (or so) in the same manner. To note- youll see in the photo the uneven stone- we have to reinstall three stones as we had to take out the stone shelves that were in the facade. Any advice on where to go from here?