I think it would be a real mistake to lose the raised hearth structurally and design wise. You're taking a very nice piece of handcraft and replacing it with something that could end up looking off the shelf generic. What does the rest of the room look like?

If you want to reface the hearth with new materials that could work, but removing it entirely could be a real loss.

@mytwo cents Thanks! Great photos. The decision to remove the hearth is primarily a safety one. We have small children, and the sharp stone edges have, until recently, been wrapped with foam edging. Our dog chewed the foam edging off, so that leaves us with nothing to protect the kids from bumping their heads on the stone. I also find it a but intrusive in our fairly narrow living room. I’m adding an additional photo.

My two cents worth is that that fireplace as is adds a lot of warmth and character to the room. If you wanted to go white and light in the rest of the room, you could use two wooden objects such as bookcases, chests, or chairs on the opposite side of the room to balance it off.

@fori i like the idea of stone on the floor, but the hearthstone that’s exisiting is actually in pretty rough shape. It needs to be replaced either way, so I’d rather not keep it. We also love the fireplace and burn in it regularly during the winter, so we’re definitely keeping the fireplace.

You should definitely prioritize safety. But don't totally toss the hearthstone -- put it in your garden if nothing else.

There are many DIY ways to re-do a fireplace but you really must make sure you follow all the local code -- also for safety reasons, and that includes all your choice of materials. Sometimes the easiest way to get all that straight and done safely is to call in a local fireplace pro.