fireplace screens – Ask the Chimney Sweep

In the past, fireplaces were used as the primary source of heat inside the home. With modern heating appliances and central or under floor heating, fireplaces have become more of a pursuit in architecture and made a decoration rather than the primary method of heating your home. Fireplaces can become the focal points of living rooms with the help of beautiful yet functional fireplace accessories such as screens, irons, log racks, and more. From among these hearth accessories, be it an off-the-shelf or custom designer solution, a fireplace can become more attractive and have more character with the installation of fireplace screens. Fireplace Screen Design Traditional Fireplace Screen These are fireplace screens that are simple and classic in design. These are usually clean to look at and can work with any interior theme decoration. Traditional fireplace screens are made from brass, copper or can also be made from wrought iron fireplace screens. These could have a single panel to several ones. They come in various sizes, styles and finishes and you can never go wrong with them. Antique Design Fireplace screens categorized as antique are usually associated to rooms that are Victorian themed, rich in tapestries and are characterized as elegant. These types of fireplace screens are designed with rounded designs such as those that represent elegance such as swirls, flowers and scrolls. These screens designed for formal houses with fireplaces should be matched with other coordinating fireplace tools and log rack to make them more attractive. Designer Fireplace Screens These functional types of screens are typically stylish and are designed to set a balance and harmonize with a room's décor. These screens are recommended to be displayed and used with their accompanying fireplace tools and log rack. Outdoor Fireplace Screens These screens are versatile and give tribute from their design the different outdoor activities such as fishing, golfing, hunting, hiking, etc. These usually have a black finish and can blend into any theme or decorations. Just like the other fireplace screen designs, makes sure that its coordinating accessories go with it. Fireplace Screen Color Be it a designer, traditional or antique fireplace screen, choose those that complement the dominant color of the room where you are going to place this. For rooms whose dominant colors are considered cool such as green, green-blue, blue, violet, blue-violet, violet and violet-red, the best fireplace screens would be the ones finished in black, white, aluminum, pewter, stainless steel and brass. For rooms whose dominant color is warm such as red, orange, red-orange, yellow, yellow-orange and yellow-green, the ideal fireplace screens will be those that are finished with black, gold, rust, bronze, copper and any shade of brown finish. Fireplace Screen Size There are so many sizes and shapes of fireplaces. They can either be single paneled or have more to create a curved effect. The simplest fireplace screen would be the single panel because this can simply be placed in a straight line across the fireplace while a multi-paneled one seems a bit more complicated especially when you want to get this as your fireplace's screen. How Do You Know What Size Is Right? - Measure the width of your fireplace - Add 10 to 12 inches to the width taken above. This is the ideal width of the fireplace screen you should get. - Measure the height of your fireplace. - Add 3 to 5 inches to the height measurement you took above. This is the ideal height of the fireplace screen you should get. Both extra inches added to both measurements ensure some allowance for the screen to fold and to avoid it from tipping over. Always make sure that you compare the dimensions that you were able to derive from the measurements to the dimensions of the fireplace screen products you are interested in purchasing.