Stoneworks and Stoves

I have been dying for the fireplace/stove area to be finished so I could post the progression of the sitting room.  It still is a work in progress but there's enough done to justify a dedicated before and after posting!

So remember again, our living space area developed from knocking through a hallway between an original bedroom and sitting room.

Original bedroom

Original sitting room

Bedroom and hallway walls knocked out

Working space for the living room

We closed up the access to the 'study/office' on the left side of the fireplace and ripped out that awful built-in unit storage unit to the right of it, as well as the fireplace surround.  The brickwork around the fireplace doesn't look so bad in pictures but TRUST ME, it was not a pretty sight.

Creating a blank space and opening up the right wall to access the kitchen/diner
(above and below) 

Now with all the walls that came down there was A LOT of rubble and stone that was taken out and just sitting outside, so we thought we could use some of it to create a bit of a feature!  At first we thought maybe we would stone the whole fireplace/mantle but then thought it would be a bit too imposing.  The room is open but it's not huge so we thought a touch of the stone on either side of the fireplace would be a better option.

And we really love that all the stone came from the original house!

A new pedestal was created for our little black stove (it looks really little here doesn't it!).  And as you can see the floors are poured and we're waiting on them drying out.  Walls are painted a base white but they'll soon be ready for their final coat of 'French White'.

An off-white on the walls will warm up the space a bit and flooring is to go down next Tuesday, so I think that will help remove the current 'clinical' look of the place.  The fireplace is a bit sparse at the moment but I think we're going finish it off with a simple wood beam or shelf just to dress it up a bit.

It sounds crazy to think that we're aiming to be moved in in 2-3 weeks time!  Now baby ... where are you???