If you have an earthy stone or brick fireplace and the room never quite comes together, the problem usually isn’t the fireplace itself. This fixed element often dominates the room which is why so many homeowners assume renovation is the only solution.
In this episode of Decorate or Renovate? I walk through a real one-day makeover and show three ways to decorate around an earthy fireplace so the room finally feels intentional, without touching the stone.
Watch the full transformation on YouTube before you change your fireplace.
And don’t forget to sign up for my free live class January 8 at 1:00 pm PST: The 5 Steps to a Beautiful Bathroom (Without Renovating) Most bathrooms don’t need a gut job. They need creativity, clarity, and the right colour direction.
I’ll walk through a curated selection of reader bathrooms and show you exactly how I decide what can stay, what needs updating, and how to use paint, lighting, mirrors, and styling to create a bathroom you actually love. You’ll walk away full of new ideas and inspiration for your bathroom!
Save your seat here:
Register for the January 8 Class
How To Decorate Around An Earthy Fireplace:
Related posts:
Read This Before your Stone Fireplace Makeover
Curious why you did not end up using the orange pillows.
That is a great question, because in the end we didn’t have enough orange to balance it in the room since we only found it in the pillow and throw. Here’s a link to my throw pillow module that will teach my Colour Balancing Method to get this right in your home: https://mariakillam.com/product/styling-school-pillows/
Nice upgrade! I think the fireplace could be improved with some lighter mortar piped in – nothing white, but a pale gray green like the walls perhaps.
I have a rustic double height, peach and caramel colored lava rock fireplace – thankfully the great room is paneled in mahogany stained wood planks and the reddish undertones work well with the rock! It’s bossy for sure. I have some terra cotta in my soft decor accents (along with jewel blues and greens and cream) to pull the tones around.
I think this new approach to Decorate or Renovate? Is a great opportunity to show people how easy it can be when you see before and after! Wonderful
Please do not call mass-produced framed pictures “art.” Art is made by an artist; it is a unique piece, made by hand (except in the case of a photograph). Though they may look good on a wall, have pleasing proportions and colours that relate to other elements of a room, pictures from a big-box store are not art. Please call them pictures or wall hangings or anything other than art.
Art reproductions are still art. Someone originally created it before it was reproduced for a market. Original art is ideal, although there is some pretty bad “original art”. Not all “artists” are talented. Art, regardless of its quality, value or origins, has the sole purpose of bringing visual , even emotional, enrichment to the viewer. To assert otherwise is to limit the purpose of art in our lives.
I appreciate the distinction you’re making. In the fine-art world, “art” often refers to original, one-of-a-kind work created by an individual artist.
In the context of decorating and helping people live beautifully in their homes, I use the word more broadly to mean visual pieces that bring beauty, balance, and cohesion to a space. My goal with these makeovers is to make finished, welcoming homes accessible to everyone, not just those collecting original works.
Many people feel paralyzed by blank walls because they believe nothing can go up unless it has deep personal meaning or museum-level provenance. Dispelling that belief is part of the work I do.
I’ve written more about this perspective here, if you’re interested:
https://mariakillam.com/art-meaning/
I love this makeover. I love that you work with what the person has and needs. Was hoping to see the dog! 🙂