Warming Trends

Linda Horton says she had no feeling for the fireplace that came with her Newport Beach house. “It was high-gloss white and too contemporary. I like an Old World look. “

She hired a tile subcontractor to replace the white tiles with soft green- and salmon-colored ceramic ones. A faux finisher painted an antique wood look for the mantelpiece.

“It took him two days and many coats of paint to get the exact look he wanted,” she says.

“The furniture in the living room has the same jewel tones as the fireplace surround and the hearth, so now the room looks as if things go together,” she says. “I think of the new fireplace in my living room as a piece of furniture.”

Instead of refinishing an existing fireplace, some people search architectural salvage stores for antique pieces. At Ruins in Laguna Beach there is an early 19th century carved sandstone surround from India and an American-Victorian wooden one with mercury-backed glass and fluted columns.

“Most of the antique fireplace surrounds are small--about 36 inches [wide],” said Ruins’ co-owner Lisa Genesta. “But you can create your own surround from architectural ruins like shelves.”

Genesta also suggests:

* Cementing old Catalina or Spanish colonial tiles to the fireplace surround.

* Decorating with unusual accouterments, such as screens made from iron window grills or iron fire backs.

* Dressing up the hearth with tapestry screens in front of the fireplace when it’s not in use.