» Light my fire
Period fireplaces and stoves to make your home hot
A wash-out August and sunny September may have left you somewhat seasonally maladjusted, but we’re sure that cooler evenings must be just around the corner. Nothing warms the toes or cockles quite like a roaring fire. This week, Latest Interiors checks out some fashionable fires to get those chestnuts roasting…
Como flueless gas fire, £500
www.next.co.uk
The real thing
Many Sussex properties have managed to hang on to one or two original fireplaces. Often a selling point, a well-proportioned period fireplace and surround really finish a room.
If your period home has no fireplace remaining, find out the position and style of fireplaces in neighbouring properties and try knocking on a few of your walls: you might just find the original hearth lurking behind some plasterboard, or at least be able to re-fit a working fireplace.
When re-instating or replacing fireplaces, be guided by the period of your property. You can pick up reclaimed Victorian and Edwardian pieces in markets and salvage shops. while finding replacement Deco, Nouveau or arts and crafts fireplaces is more difficult, it’s not impossible. If you can’t find the real thing, several local specialists stock reproduction pieces to suit a variety of styles, with stone, cast iron and wood surrounds, and some will make a bespoke fireplace or surround. For a contemporary look, keep it simple – ’hole-inthe-wall’ type fireplaces with no detail or surround look great and go with almost any period style. If you want your real fire to be
green(er), invest in an eco-friendly ‘logmaker’ that recycles household waste into compact, easy to burn ‘logs’.
Chiltern electric fire, £425
www.next.co.uk
Super stoves
Stoves are an economical, clean and stylish alternative to open fires. Styles vary, from quaint, period ‘potbellied’ stoves to the very sleek and modern. They can easily be adapted for use with a variety of different fuels, and their enclosed design can mean less mess and greater safety.
Brayford electric stove, £119
www.next.co.uk
Hot alternatives
If you’ve no fireplace or even chimney, you can still have a roaring fire this winter. So-called ‘living flame’ gas and electric fires have come a long way – you’d be hard-pressed to tell many of them from the real thing. Surrounds can be period or modern, and even stoves come in gas and electric varieties. The more popular designs use stones and pebbles rather than wood or coal effects. Gas and electric fires produce no smoke or waste in the home.
For something really different, check out gel fires – fume and smoke-free fires suitable for indoor or outdoor use, powered by a flammable gel. A clean, green alternative – but can you toast marshmallows on it?
