In the past few decades, the hearth was a place at home where a fire was lit for heating the house and cooking food. They were traditionally made up of masonries such as stone or brick. These fireplace hearths have been an integral part of houses for centuries.
However, in modern times with the advancement of central heating, fireplace hearths are not very functional in people’s day-to-day life as in comparison to their old glory. Nowadays, heating is carried out by a stove or a furnace. Whereas, cooking is done over the kitchen stove, microwave, toaster oven, or other home appliances. Thus many of the houses constructed in the 20th and 21st centuries exclude fireplace hearths simply due to their lack of functionality at the time But many houses still use hearths that help to fulfill the functions of warmth, comfort, and cooking.
Fireplace hearth helps to bring a comforting feeling while also forming a common gathering space. Also, it helps to protect your family and household from having a fire in the home. For centuries, friends and families have been gathering around the fireplace hearth almost making this element a celebratory aspect of our history.
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Before the industrial period, a common notion was to have a hearth of fireplace in the center of the room, and the smoke used to rise up through the room towards a smoke hole situated above. The modern designs have a more solid continuous roof, thus the fireplace hearth is placed at one side of the room and supported with a chimney. Now, you might have questions like what is a hearth or what is the hearth of a fireplace? Where can we add one to our homes? We have it all covered for you, let’s find out.
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What is the Hearth of Fireplace?
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A hearth is a non-combustible floor of a fireplace. However, over time the fireplace hearth has been referred to as the firebox, or a raised portion around the fireplace. It is usually the portion at the base of the fireplace over which a fire is lit or a stove fireplace insert is placed.
It usually consists of fire brick masonry at floor level or a higher level, below the fireplace mantel. Traditionally, hearth of fireplace was used for heating as well as cooking. But, nowadays, fireplaces are usually only used for heating or decorative uses.
Fireplace hearths are constructed from non-combustible materials such as stone, cement, marble, granite, slate, or ceramic. These materials help to keep the fire’s heat away from the home and also provide an aesthetically appealing platform for the fireplace. It can be specially designed as per the decor style of your home.
There is a diverse range of options to choose from when it comes to hearth for fireplace. Following is a list of 9 trendy hearth fireplace ideas that would inspire and help you choose your ideal fireplace hearth.
1. Rustic Hearth of Fireplace
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The rustic style evokes images of country lodges, log cabins of industrial lofts, and lake houses. Stacked stone is one of the popular outdoor and indoor fireplace materials. Its rough edges and variety of colors help create a stacked stone fireplace hearth that would be perfect for all kinds of rustic dwellings.
You can use a rustic mantel for your fireplace hearth. To add a cozy vibe to your fireplace, you can add wrought iron brackets and bolts for metal embellishments.
2. Modern Hearth of Fireplace
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Modern fireplaces are simple, streamlined, and are devoid of unnecessary details. However, this does not make it dull and boring. Instead, a modern fireplace hearth decor becomes the dramatic feature of any room.
For example, in an all-white room, an oversized and glossy black marble fireplace can form a strong statement look.
3. White Coloured Fireplace Hearth
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A white fireplace, mantel, or hearth will work efficiently with any home décor style, be it modern or classical. You can easily paint your brick or stone fireplace hearth with white paint. It is a great way to refresh your old hearth to match your new décor.
You can also use black-and-white encaustic tile for the hearth in the case of an all-white fireplace. You can even add a black wooden mantel to balance the colors.
4. Marble Hearth Fireplace
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Marble is one of the most elegant materials that you can use for the renovation of a fireplace hearth. It comes in a variety of colors such as pink, brown, green, black, and onyx. Among these, white marble-like Statuario or Michelangelo is a classical natural stone that can be used to design an all-white fireplace hearth. It has several veining patterns ranging from subtle to dramatic to add the much-needed oomph to your spaces.
If you are finding that marble is expensive as per your budget, you can use adhesive tiles to design a faux fireplace hearth that would look like marble. You can also attain a similar look and finish with heat-resistant paint.
5. Hearth of Fireplace using Tiles
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Tile has always been a great material to use for fireplace hearth be it a small or big, plain or detailed tile. If you are having tile flooring, that same type of flooring can be used for a raised hearth. The floor tiles look great when used for the wall around the fireplace opening.
If you have large hearth tiles, you can go with a glass tile that will give an elegant vibe to your fireplace hearth. For Spanish or Italian hearths, you can go with hand-painted tiles. And for a modern fireplace, a chevron herringbone-patterned tile would be suitable adding subtle detail.
Thus, there is a large variety of styles of architectural tiles. It helps to add depth to a modern hearth or a mantel fireplace. The granite, marble, and other materials of tiles come in a range of numerous geometric shapes and textures. They are a great solution to add detail to a plain monochromatic modern color palette.
6. Stone Hearth Fireplace
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Attractive fireplace hearth can be made from river stones, stacked stones, and flagstone. If you want to go for an original masonry, it would be recommended to hire an experienced mason. You can even go for a prefabricated stone fireplace and it would also offer a similar look.
For a rustic décor, you can go with a roughly cut stone, and for a refined experience, a polished stone would be preferred. However, for a brick fireplace hearth, you can go with brick-shaped stones that would offer a unique hearth. For enhancing the heating efficiency of an older stone fireplace, you can have an upgraded fireplace insert.
7. Freestanding Hearth Fireplace
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A freestanding stove or fireplace may or may not require an actual fireplace hearth. However, if you have a fireplace or stove with wood burning, a hearth would be required to protect the house from flying sparks or falling embers. But if you go for gas fireplaces, they are less hazardous and those units with zero clearance would not require a hearth.
However, many people are fond of the look of a conventional fireplace that includes a raised or flat hearth. You can add a brick, stone, or marble fireplace hearth below a freestanding gas fireplace or electric fireplace. It will help to turn it into a real focal point of the respective space.
Also Read: The Best Time for Glass Fireplace Door Replacement with Some Helpful Tips
8. Mosaic Fireplace Hearth
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Mosaic art has been in trend since the third millennium BC. It has a classic beauty and is a great choice for having a fireplace mantel and hearth. Mosaic is a naturally heat-resistant material. It is also a nice way to add artistic value to a stone or concrete fireplace.
A masonry fireplace design enhanced with mosaic is often seen in Mediterranean-themed homes. Mosaic fireplace tiles can be formed from any number of items, ranging from broken dinnerware to small porcelain tiles. It can be used in most of the areas of a hearth or mantel such that it embraces the interior design style.
9. Victorian Style Hearth Fireplace
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The most popular mantel material for the fireplace was wood in Victorian times. Although it sounds simple, Victorian wood mantels often consisted of highly intricate carvings and trim. If you want to have an artificial mantel, wood would be a perfect material to go with for a fireplace-like accent for any space.
In Victorian homes, you might also find metal fireplace hearth combined with intricate iron inserts. Another material used in these houses is decorative tile with floral and greenery patterns making it a classic choice.
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All Set for your Fireplace Hearth?
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We’re sure that all your questions on what is a hearth fireplace are answered through this piece. Till now you would have been familiar with what is a hearth fireplace and its other purposes and benefits of it. There are numerous distinct materials that can be used for making hearths. Each material has its pros and cons. You have to choose that one material that would meet your requirements. Also make sure it works well with the fireplace, as some of them might not be durable enough to withstand wood-burning fires.
Hopefully, these 9 amazing ideas inspire and encourage you to find an ideal fireplace hearth for your space.
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