Making good

Shortly after moving into our house we went through each room attacking all manner of hideousness, such as wood chip wallpaper that had been liberally applied throughout the house, electrical trunking on walls, crazy carpet and combos of salmon pink and sap green. But, as often happens, we got side-tracked by boarded up fireplaces in the bedrooms. Perfectly plastered, lovely smooth surfaces and yet we couldn't resist doing this...



Which means we're left with two fireplace-shaped holes in two of the bedrooms that need some serious dressing up. Three years later and we still haven't properly tackled this project. Except a wee bit of temporary window dressing in our main bedroom:



The original tiled fireplaces that would have been in our bedrooms are long gone, but the brick tiled hearths have survived and so will stay. Both fire backs look to be in good nick, so all that appears to be required is a surround. Should be simple, yes? So far all I've managed to do is a bit of research and be fantastically indecisive.

Wandering around local reclamation yards and a cheeky peek around a house for sale on our road reveal that the original fire surround would have probably looked like this...



Not a good look! Although on closer inspection those look like tile transfers (why would you do that?) and the plain cream tile fire is actually quite cute. There's something similiar here.

Like the rest of the house we are trying to choose features that compliment the house's 1930s origins whilst trying not to make it look like a homage to the past. I would love to find a pair of art deco enamel fireplaces... but they seem to be as rare as hen's teeth and just as pricey. So after a good year or so of mooching around the internet and procrastinating I've tripped over these cast iron reproductions being offered up on Ebay:



Right style, right price (less than £90 each) , and I can buy a pair. Please, please, please let them be the right size. Where's that tape measure?