I took a marble herringbone and spruced up the front of it.
My house is very rustic in appearance. The previous owner really wanted to go with a country vibe. A part of the vibe was a working fireplace. Technically my wife and I could chop wood and burn it in the fireplace. That would serve as a heating system for the living room, dining room and kitchen. I tried it one time just to see. We don’t exactly live in the woods. Sourcing wood was a huge pain in the butt. I also didn’t realize how quickly fire burns it. I thought I had wood for the entire month and it lasted maybe a day for us. Also, smoke, ash and soot are prominent with fires. Even having a grate keep the fire in didn’t really stop all that gunk. The smell was horrendous too. Our whole house smelled like a campfire. The two of us hated it and agreed we were more traditional heater people. Ever since then I have been trying to do something with the fireplace. I cleaned out the whole area to make it look new. The front of the fireplace used to be a cracked tile. I took a marble herringbone and spruced up the front of it. I added a wood frame around the fireplace so that it can serve as a shelf and mantle to hold stuff. The fireplace now looks cute and quaint. Sometimes my wife will put seasonal decorations in the fireplace and it looks really good. It is kind of annoying to have a functional heater and not use it though.