I’ve literally seen hundreds of fireplace surrounds in my neverending tour of new homes. The stacked stone design of the fireplace seen in the photo below ranks very high on my list of one of the most unusual and beautiful designs I’ve ever seen.
Its’ spectacular design must have been extremely difficult to produce. The stone mason that put all of these slivers of natural stone together on a vertical surface, in what I like to call a "stone sunburst" design, deserves high praise.
The keeping room fireplace, with it’s high cathedral ceiling and open web, wooden beams, makes for a wonderful place to gather with friends and family for fireside chats.
The intricately placed slivers of stone, to my eye, seem to replicate a sunburst. You may certainly see it as something other than that. Call it what you will.
When I first came upon this particular fireplace surround, I had to get close to it and place my hands on it to have it register that this was natural stone (looks and feels like it, anyway) and that each piece was hand-cut to fit in place for a one-of-a-kind design. The stacked stone inlay surrounded by its’ larger stone border rests flush to the surface of the remainder of the fireplace surround.
What is really nice about this fireplace surround is that it doesn’t overshadow the home’s overall design plan.
The foyer, the gourmet kitchen, the master suite, the semi-detached garage are only a few of the home’s feature that hold their own.
Thinking of doing this on your own? Think again. Unless you have time on your hands and a ton of patience, I suggest you leave this tedious project to the pros.
Hey! The stone mantel shelf and hearth aren’t half bad either!
Related:
More to see and read about fireplaces
Info on how to do it yourself
More how-to build your own stone fireplace
Reasons not to mount a flatscreen TV above a stacked stone fireplace
I started as a home-stalker… visiting brand new homes under construction in the neighborhoods near my house. That inspired me to write about home building and home renovation projects — chronicling homes during different phases of construction from a consumer's point-of-view. Basically, the tips you'll find in my articles are a collection of checklists for what I think should (and should not) go into building or remodeling a quality home.
