Stone Fireplace Surround Gets a Farmhouse Facelift

I loved the look of my stone fireplace surround, however, it needed a little love.  Something that would give it a little more presence in my farmhouse style home.   You want to see how I transformed it into a farmhouse style stacked stone fireplace?  Keep on scrolling!

When we initially built our home, we had someone install our stone fireplace surround. We have 2 of these fireplaces, one is in my upstairs family room and it runs all the way to the ceiling, with a built in mantel that is perfectly rustic.  There are no plans to remodel that space.

Our plan for our downstairs stacked stone fireplace and stone fireplace surround was to temporarily throw up a left over piece of wood beam until we decided what to do with it.  You see, I was pregnant….like 9 months pregnant when we were finishing the building of our home.  And I wanted, more than anything, to be in this house before our second baby came.  We made it by 7 days!  

But, that meant doing some quick fixes, in hopes that we would change it up later.  Well, 10 years later, we still hadn’t changed it, and it has bugged me every single day. 

You see, this beam that we installed, decided to warp a little while after being we put it in.   So not only was the mantel of my fireplace  now warped, it was the wrong color, the rough cut exterior made it impossible to clean, and the scale of it was wrong.  This fireplace had a large hearth, and it needed a mantel that could balance it out, and this little baby beam just was not enough.

So the decision was made.  I decided I wanted to change it up.  We were turning it into a farmhouse style stacked stone fireplace.

How we transformed our fireplace into a farmhouse style stacked stone fireplace:

We decided that we did not want to tear out our previous mantel, since it was actually strapped to the wall and that strap was under some of the stacked stone fireplace.

So, we decided to wrap the old mantel with the new one.

Wrap your mantel?  Did I say that right?  Yes, yes  did.  It actually worked really well!

So let me tell you a little story about how my stacked stone fireplace got a farmhouse facelift!

We started by wrapping the actual mantel.  

Here are all the supplies we used for our farmhouse style stone fireplace surround:

• 1 by 8 inch generic wood boards at least 8 ft long
• miter saw
• brad nailer
• cordless drill with drill bit and philips head screw driver bit
• grinder
• table saw
• measuring tape
• level
• wood putty
• compressor

Building the mantel for our farmhouse style stacked stone fireplace:

We started by measuring the front of our beam mantel. We then added 1 inch on each side.  Then we cut both ends along with the bottom at a 45 degree angle.  

Since the old mantel was warped, we had find out where the beam was actually level. So before securing the first piece in to place, we had to hold the level up on top of the new wood piece and get that piece level.

Once we found the level spot, we temporarily nailed the piece of wood in to the beam and then screwed this piece directly into the front of the wood beam.

Now, cut one the same length and cut on long side with a 45 degree angle.  This will be the bottom of the mantel.

 We then measured from the corner edge of the piece we just installed, and then measured to the wall. 

We cut 2 pieces one end with a 45 degree angle, and the other end with a straight 90 degree edge.

Now connect the 45 degree ends together, and make sure they line up with the wall.  Now  add a few nails to hold it into place. Then screw this piece into the beam

Now we measured the top piece, cut and installed it.  Since the top parts of the new mantle do not have 45 degree angles, and there should be an inch overlap at the top, we were able to set the piece right in between the side pieces.

The last part of the mantel will be the actual top to the mantel.  We cut a nice piece wood 3 inches wider and longer on all sides and them screwed this to the top of the mantel. This gives the mantel more presence, and balances out the top.

 

Now the base is done, I wanted to add more to give it a more substantial look.  We decided to build some faux columns.  This is where things got interesting.  

Adding faux columns to our farmhouse style stone fireplace surround:

In order to install our faux columns to our stacked stone fireplace, we had to get a nice tight, flush fit along the stone.  

Now, anyone that has seen stacked stone knows it is not a smooth, even surface.  So, we had to make a smooth surface.

In comes our grinder.  

We measured how large we wanted the columns and then marked a line down the rock.

 Next we used the grinder to cut out a 1 inch gap through the stacked stone.  This is where the piece of wood will rest.

This is where you have to decide the dimensions of your column. I decided I wanted it a few inches more shallow than my mantel(we will get to the reason for this later)

Using the same method that we used to create faux beams in our master bedroom, we created a U shaped piece of wood with 3 separate pieces.  We had to be very careful about the measuring so that the inside piece of the column rested directly in the 1 inch channel we cut with our grinder.

Next we dry fit our pieces for the columns, just to make sure that they were going to fit into the stone fireplace surround.

 

Since we needed to screw the column into the stone fireplace surround to keep it secure, we cut 2 blocks.  One was secured to the bottom part of the mantel, and the other was secured into the hearth at the bottom of the fireplace.  

We predrilled holes into the stone on the hearth and then were able to screw the block into the hearth.

Now we were then able to install the column by screwing it into the blocks that are secured to the fireplace.

Looking at the stacked stone fireplace, it was looking pretty good, but it wasn’t finished yet!

I wanted to add some corbels to the columns as well as another piece that will round out the appearance.

We cut our corbels with a jig saw.  I don’t want to get too into how we did these since I didn’t take many pictures of it.  But we were able to draw the profile on a block of wood, cut it with the saw and then sand them both down.  

We made sure to keep them at the correct thickness so it would fit on top of the column and not stick out.

Once we had that done, we decided to add a 2 inch by 4 inch piece of wood between both columns, right below the mantel.  This have the mantel a beefier look and balanced it out.

Next, I thought that the mantel needed a transition from the top piece to the bottom piece.  We added a triangled piece under the top piece of the mantel.

 

We also added the same trim to the bottom of the columns and a small trim piece where the mantel and the columns come together.

The last thing we did was putty the screw holes, and paint.

 

I decided on mat white paint, because I did not want a shiny finish.  I sanded the edges and gave it a bit of an antiqued look.

We also added some shiplap above the fireplace and the rest of the wall, just to round out the farmhouse style I was going for.

 

 

Well, what do you think?  I am in love with this fireplace now, where before, it drove me crazy.  

Obviously I could have lived with the more rustic stone fireplace surround, but I cannot believe the difference it makes when you just put a little effort.  Make it your own!  

You don’t have to answer to anyone.  What moves you, what makes you tick, that is all you, and nobody can take that away.  

So, while my mantel and fireplace may have been good before, it just wasn’t me, and since I am willing to put the hard work in to change it, then I can transform it into the fireplace I wanted.

I love the way the white trim brings out the stacked stone, creating a feature, instead of overwhelming the space with it.  I love my farmhouse style stacked stone fireplace!

Our handmade corbels are so fun!  I love the way they turned out!

You really should check out how I had it decorated for summer!  This mantel is the perfect addition to my farmhouse!

I cant wait to decorate it for fall.  But for now, we will enjoy the late summer theme.

Now, make sure you save it for later!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

If you like this transformation, check out these other farmhouse projects:

DIY Faux Farmhouse Style Fireplace and Mantel

 

DIY Ikea Tea Towel Farmhouse Pillows 4 Ways!!

 

Farmhouse Style Painted Church Pew

 

Bleached Wood Barn Doors