Just because we don’t get snow, that doesn’t mean our fireplaces are redundant at Christmas time. In fact if you have chosen well and decorated your home using your fireplace as the room’s centerpiece then it can be a great feature at Christmas time, whether it’s snowing or not.
Because it’s the focal point of your room, your furniture is mostly likely positioned to make the most of the comfort and the ambiance that a fireplace provides. Because the seasons change, that doesn’t make your fireplace any less important. In September we wrote about ‘What to do With Your Fireplace During the Warm Seasons’. You could add Christmas Decorations to some of those design ideas.
If you’re a purist, traditional Christmas colours are red and green. Gold and silver are often used as a more stylized form of decoration. But there’s nothing wrong with alternative colours or natural palettes. In fact, Australian native flowers and Christmas bush acknowledge the bush Christmas tradition
If you happen to have a freestanding fireplace you could place your tree alongside your fireplace and decorate them in a similar way. Burning or not, there’s something very familiar and evocative about a fireplace positioned near a Christmas tree. Alternatively, you could dispense with a tree and use the shelving of your freestanding fireplace for ornaments and cards and partially cover it in decorations. If space in your home is at a premium or if you’re not hosting large numbers of people then that may be a more practical way to decorate.
Built in fireplaces are far easier to work with and to decorate. Most fireplaces have surrounds so you can run tinsel or a small decorative runner across the mantel or hang ribbons and stockings so they fall from the shelf and across the face of your fireplace. There is plenty of space on the hearth so you could have more decorations or some large pots with flowers, poinsettias, Christmas bush or Australian natives. That’s a great acknowledgement to the unique way that Australians’ celebrate Christmas .
The hearth is also a good spot for gift baskets and hampers. In fact it’s not a bad idea to buy some baskets and fill them with goodies just to create the effect.
If you clean out the inside of your fireplace, and that’s something that should be done over summer when you’re not using your fireplace, then use the inside for decorations. If you haven’t already, you should read our October article on ‘Spring Cleaning the Fireplace – Here’s Why it’s a Necessity’.
Tall candles that you could light at night time; or pine cones, ornaments or lights. All of them are very effective and decorative.
Ask a fireplace specialist at Fireside fireplaces about some unique and very Australian fireplace Christmas decorating ideas. Fireside fireplaces are the fireplace experts in the Hills District.
If you are looking for an architectural and decorative feature for the centerpiece of any room then visit Fireside fireplaces in Castle Hill. Whether it’s a gas or wood fireplace you need; it could be built in or freestanding, Fireside can show you the most functional, appropriate and attractive fireplace to suit the style, features and heating requirements of your home.
