My husband and I are in the process of designing the fireplace at our new house.
There are our inspirations:
http://pinterest.com/jwcasa/casa-heart-h/
We will be using a gray tone porcelain tile with vertical lines in it. The tiles will be either 12x24 or 6x24 running vertical and we have vaulted ceilings.
I LOVE the sleek look of no mantel but a mantel will be awesome during the holidays.
So, hive, to mantel or not to mantel??
22 votes
GOLD / wonderful grape / 20289 posts
I love mantels, but if you don't I wouldn't get it just for one month of the year. Then you have to worry about it the other 11 months too.
honeydew / 7916 posts
There are other ways to decorate for the holidays, so it's really about how the space will look with the rest of the room! If it'll all look sleek and modern together I say go for no mantel! The houses in my neighborhood were done with no mantel, just a tile surround, which didn't look so hot and I'm glad the previous owner had a mantel put in to blend with the traditional interior.
wonderful olive / 19353 posts
I'm a fan of mantels. Plus, you can change up the decor for different holidays. When there's not a holiday in play, pictures and other decor can reside their.
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
I would say no mantel given the look you are after.
If you want to hang stockings, what if you did some kind of invisible hooks in the tile? I am no designer and have no specific product in mind though.
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
@artbee: that's what I'm thinking! It'll just be a dust collector the other 11 months.
@spaniellove: we've got a warm modern retro look going on. 
@looch: haha that was my initial thought. I want hooks that are hidden and flush with the tile when not in use. But my husband is installing the tile himself and he said that's beyond his skill set. Maybe I can convince him to ask one of his trade friends to lend a hand...
honeydew / 7916 posts
@looch: You have a good idea there with the command hooks. Maybe use them to hang a garland with the ends framing the fireplace, and then underneath that add some additional hooks for stockings?
kiwi / 733 posts
Is there such thing as a compromise solution on this one, like a skinny mantle that you can put some things on when you want to play it up...or leave empty and have it sort of blend with the fireplace at other times?
grapefruit / 4817 posts
I agree with Looch. It looks like you're into having no mantle, so I think you'd be happier without one in the long run. It's not worth it to not love it 11 months out of the year.
And I prefer mantles, but it's not my house.
pineapple / 12053 posts
since all the photos you pinned don't have mantles, then go without and do some temporary stuff for the holidays like removable hooks, etc. or you'll just find another spot to decorate!
grapefruit / 4056 posts
I know of someone who has a modern fireplace like that, without a mantel, and they had a woodworker build a wooden "mantel" that they can put in place when they want to decorate it, but most of the time the "mantel" is stored in the garage.
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
@MsMini: that's brilliant! How does the wooden mantel stay up?
grapefruit / 4056 posts
It had legs as well. It kind of looked like a really tall Malm over bed table from Ikea. I wish I could find a picture. It was just pushed up against the fireplace surround, it actually looked really good and didn't cost them much to make, since it was just painted MDF.
hostess / papaya / 10540 posts
I'm a huge mantel person. Do you have a picture of your space so we could vote better?
GOLD / papaya / 10206 posts
We have a small low profile mantle that I love. The only picture I can find of it right now is from when we JUST moved in a few years ago and I'm too lazy to walk downstairs and take a new one.
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