This baby was a long time in the making. I started thinking about changing out our fireplace tile almost two years ago and labored over the decision for months. Our old fireplace tile wasn’t awful – it just wasn’t my style and kinda stuck out like a sore thumb in our space. And our old mantel was a measly 5″ deep which made it hard to decorate since there wasn’t enough space to layer art or accessories. After finally deciding to say bye-bye to the old fireplace, picking out tile for the new one, designing a new mantel, and painting and styling it up, our new fireplace is finally done!
Do you guys remember the “before”?
As much as I love blue and white, this tile just didn’t do much for me (and it wasn’t original Delft tile – it was a reproduction). And the old fireplace surround was dated and pretty much flat as a pancake in profile:
The new one has a whole lot more dimension:
And of course the star of the show is the tile – it’s Sterling Row Wingtip tile c/o Walker Zanger and I’m pretty much obsessed with it.
The colors, pattern, and natural feel of the wood grain finish are all right up my alley.
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And since my fireplace is all fancy now, it needed a little mantel styling makeover too. I raided my hoard closet of accessories for most of what I ended up using – some of you long-time readers might recognize the background of the horse photo as a bulletin board I made for the kitchen in our old house. Swapping out art or prints will be as easy as pinning them to the board – love that! I stole the botanical print from our home office gallery wall (now I need to find a replacement!) and snagged the pair of stirrups from the saddle I still have from my riding days.
The round mirror was an IKEA find – I sanded it a bit to lighten up the finish:
The feather art was a two minute DIY (the feathers are stuck on to white textured cardstock with glue dots) and the deer print was a downloadable print bought on Etsy.
The star seed pod was found {here} (affiliate link) – it usually sits on my living room ottoman but I like it better in its new spot:
I think I’m probably the only gal in blogland with a fireplace that hasn’t been decked out for the holidays yet so guess what I’ll be doing tomorrow? I need to get a move-on because my Christmas house tour is on tap next week!
Hope you all have a great weekend!
Morgan says
Loved this post Kris! Is there a way I can personally purchase this tile? Thank you!!! ?
Kris Jarrett says
If you go to Walker Zanger’s website, you can find a local dealer that carries it!
Janine says
Please help with ideas to my old marble fire place I would like it tiled or even tin yield in light grey
Ashley says
Love the fireplace! Want to do the same tile with mine but trying to determine costs. What do you estimate your tile cost to be?
Thanks!
Kris Jarrett says
If you go to Walker Zanger’s website where the tile is linked in my post, you can find a store near you that carries it and give them a call with the square footage of your fireplace surround – they’ll be able to quote a price for you!
Danielle says
It looks beautiful! How much is the tile? What is it made of? Marble with wood boarders? I can’t tell. Thank you!
Kris Jarrett says
Hi Danielle – Thank you! The tile is a combination of porcelain (the part that looks like wood) and marble. The best way to get pricing is to contact a local tile shop that carries Walker Zanger products!
Anonymous says
Thank you:))
Andy Morgan says
Hi Kris,
The fireplace looks awesome! We are getting ready to start our home renovation project and was wondering if you would be willing to give us the manufacture and style name of your fireplace tile?
Andy
Kris Jarrett says
Sure – there’s a direct link in the post but if you missed it, it’s from Walker Zanger’s Sterling Row collection!
Iya says
Looks beautiful!!! May I ask how you secured the round mirror on your mantle? Or is it free-standing and just leaning on the wall?
Kris Jarrett says
Yes, it’s just free-standing and leaning against the wall!
Anonymous says
Thank you ?
Lindsey says
Did you find that your wood and mantle around the fireplace got discolored from soot and smoke? We want to do something similar with our fireplace but we have dark tile around it right now and after I wipe it down my rag is just black so I’m worried if we go white it will look soot stained!
Kris Jarrett says
Hi Lindsey! I haven’t had any problems with that. I used semi-gloss paint around the fireplace and any soot residue seems to wipe off easily with a damp cloth!
lindsey says
Awesome! That’s great to hear! Thank you!
Sher Brown says
I love this surround tile! Is it hard to work with? How many sq feet did you need to order? Thanks!
Kris Jarrett says
Hi Sher! Unfortunately I can’t remember how many square feet of tile we used since it’s been almost two years since I did this project. It comes in sheets which makes application easier – I had it installed by professional tilers and they had no problem but it might be a challenging do it yourself job!
Claudia says
Can you please tell me where you found that gorgeous tile (and maybe the name of it or the manufacturer)? I am in LOVE with that tile and have never seen anything like it!
Kris Jarrett says
Claudia it’s from Walker Zanger’s Sterling Row collection!
Rebekah Jones says
Hi,
You have got some skills in dressing your home. We would like to create a replica of your new fire place. The tile colours will match our suite, so it’s perfect. Can I ask, did you make the surround or purchase it. If you made it, what was the process please?? Did you for example buy a basic surround and then add the architrave type bits? We love the beef’d up-ness of the surround. The fireplace whole isn’t actually that large, but you have made a really large feature fireplace. I look forward to your response!!
Kris Jarrett says
Hi Rebekah! My contractor built my fireplace surround for me – I looked at premade surrounds but none of them fit the size and style of what I was looking for so he built it based on my specifications and my molding choices. Good luck with your project – hope you love the result!
Melissa Plotts says
Hi! I love your fireplace and everything else you do! Your site and your ideas have been my guidepost for our house makeover and renovations. Our next move is a new fireplace. What is the depth of your new mantle shelf?
Kris Jarrett says
Hi Melissa, our new mantel shelf is 9 5/8″ deep which is close to double the depth that we originally had. Good luck with your renovations!
Melissa Musser says
Love the whole look! Would you mind sharing the name of the paint color on the walls?
Melissa says
Oops…I found it in an earlier post. Thank you!
Kris Jarrett says
Sorry it took me a while to get back to you! Sounds like you found it but just in case you didn’t see the post with the exact formula (if you want that) it’s at the bottom of this post: https://www.drivenbydecor.com/house-tour-dining-room
melanie sarro says
Hi Kris,
I’m actually about to redo our fireplace surround as well. I had picked out some tile similar to yours that I love. The existing tile is a boring square ceramic tile that they had actually taken into the firebox a couple of inches. Is the inside edge of yours tiled in a solid blac/dark gray or is it painted ?
Kris Jarrett says
Hi Melanie! I had the same situation where there was tile on the inside edge too. We ended up putting in one solid long rectangular piece of tile on each side – it’s a dark color so it just kinda blends in. Hope that helps!
Gina Zadlock says
where did you get the white Mantel? I love it!
Kris Jarrett says
Hi Gina! My contractor built the mantel for me – it was a basic framework and then I chose some decorative moldings to dress it up!
Tracy says
It looks like you have 8 foot ceilings. What is the height of your mantle? I am trying to decide how high to mount mine? I love what you did! Hope mine turns out as wonderful!
Kris Jarrett says
Hi Tracy! We actually have only 7 1/2 foot ceilings (it’s an older New England home) – our mantel is about 56″ up from the floor. Good luck with your project!
Jenny Randolph says
Your fireplace is gorgeous. I have a mirror above mine but have been wanting to add a few frames around it for a while. I LOVE your feather piece you did…can you tell me where you found the feathers? They are the perfect colors for my family room! Thanks!
Kris Jarrett says
Thank you Jenny! I actually had found those feathers at the Country Living Fair a while back. I know Michaels sells feathers but I’m not sure if they’re similar to mine. You might also want to try http://www.etsy.com. Have a good night!