Your fireplace is fabulous! I would not add a mantle. I would paint the areas circled to match the walls and add a piece of art.

That would be ideal, but there is a ledge. So the art would not be flush with the top/back wall.

I thought that might be a ledge.

It’s hard for me to get ideas with all the stuff in front of it. Fireplaces can be decorated even if they don’t have a mantel.

I just got a fireplace screen and started playing with decor on the hearth. You might be able to decorate the top shelf. A mantel might be too high anyway since the firebox opening is off the floor. Mantels are required to be a certain height above a fireplace opening that produces heat.

Maybe more pics at different angles would help. Not sure what is going on with the holes or the top.

Do you plan to keep the furniture and plant in front of it?

What's on the other side of the glass, another room? Window films maybe?

So it’s the garage/car port. I really want a mantle. But I am struggling to determine the best position and type.

The area you have green is actually glass. It’s just become etched over time. I need to have it replaced.

I think the drama of your stone is remarkably good, and the whole architecture of the space is impressive.. I'm not sure the beautiul tropical tree goes with it, however, so I would either turn it so the tallest leaf creates an umbrella over the chairs, and if that doesn't work, find another place for it entirely. But it's too big to be shoved out of the way in the corner. Either make it part of the focal point of the fireplace deliberatey, or remove it.

Then before you do anything else, try arranging the two coral chairs into a conversational relattionship to each other across the front of the fireplace, moving both over more to the left. I think with a large rug underneath them, plus pillows for the chairs and a small table between them you'd have a much better sense of what (little) else you need.

I can envision a wood beam mantle going over the firebox, jutting past the boxes to the right, to keep the asymmetrical look and make it a virtue. Without seeing the rest of your room, I don't know what tone of wood I'd go with -- light, dark, black or painted.

After that, might be possible to find a an MCM wall sculpture to ornement the stone, but I'd stay away from generic junk.

(And can you lower the wonderful chandelier?)

We have elderly parents that live with us. The multiple chairs are necessary bc they can’t get in and out of the sofa or low furniture. Also the door to the left is the garage so I need to keep that space open for access.

Excuse the clutter. It isn’t always this way. But we were moving furniture etc.

With some art.

I'd treat the mantle asymmetrically too. Not sure of the color or size. This is relative to location. Continue it all the way over to the end on right.

Your house is amazing! Wow, love that fireplace.

Another idea is one like this, just over the fire box:

With yours, though, I’d extend to over the log storage, too. I think it would look most balanced that length.

On the left side, I wouldn’t have it touching the jutted out part, but just barely shy of it.

Thank you. This was one of my thoughts as well. We have a walnut counter top on the opposite side of the room so I would try to match that.

Great to see the rest of the room.

I'm sticking to my story that your 2 coral chairs would look better positioned across the front of the fireplace = one in front of the stick-out pillar on the left, angled in to face the other that would be pretty much right in front of the fireplace. I would do a very large flokati rug and flokati pillows on the chairs. Move the fire tools over to the other side of the fireplace.

I would want a beam mantle that went all the way across or maybe even more so that went 6/7ths across, stopping just a foot short of the right wall, behind the tree.

Then I think there are 2 possibilities for decor if you want more. Either a central striking piece that imposes a center, hung over the fireboxes

or smaller art that is positioned on the stick out pillar at eye level, above where I would move the leftmost coral chair. I think the art should be unframed scultural pieces that fit in with the stone. The stone is very busy, so I would just want to kind of humanize that left pillar

Something like this pair (both 10 inches)

or maybe just one MCM or post modern piece

The only reason we have them positioned the way they are is so my 90 year old father in law can walk to the door to the garage without angling around the chairs. He goes out those doors to take out garbage three or four times a day.

Got it. At least turn the tree around so the top swoops to the fireplace rather than the wall.

Would it be an obstacle to your father in law if the tree was at the left=, essentially in front of the pillar? I can't tell really from the photo how the lower leaves spread or how much passageway there is to get to the garage door.

^love the idea from Jilly - i think that looks balanced

@Brooke Olson I Love your lights!

@Jilly you made magic! Great the way you created symmetry from asymmetry by centering a mantle.

I agree with @ilikefriday in painting the two white vertical strips a mid-tone grey brown to make them blend with the stone better.

@Brook Olson I am glad you will replace the glass to the carport. That will be nice in so many ways.

People see things so differently. I think the worst possible placement of the mantle is just over the 2 boxes. Your space!

Because of it's configuration I'm a bit uncertain about mantle placement or even if it needs a mantle. Because it is so large and imposing I'm going to suggest that you tone it down with a German Smear technique. German smear is essentially applying grout to the stone in a way that deintensifies the color and pattern without obliterating it entirely. See the photo below.

I'd trim the highest leaf off the plant

Holiday decor, x-mas cards, etc?

Yes Paul. Thank you. And we do use the fireplace. I think I even posted a photo of a fire in the fireplace. Always has to be one in the bunch. ;-)

Holiday inspiration