Mid-century modern is an iconic style that combines a classic vintage look and a modern aura. It gives a perfect visual aesthetic that transcends time. It is considered the epitome of style. When you decorate your living room with a mid-century modern style, it will instantly become trendy and stylish.
There are many ways to decor your living room with a mid-century modern style. However, one of the most popular options is using the right fireplace. The mid-century modern fireplace has elegance and sheer simplicity that goes deep into the living room design.
- Mid-Century Modern White Mantel For a Wood-Burning Fireplace
- Oak Mantel in a Mid-Century Modern Stone Fireplace
- Mid-Century Modern Metal Fireplace with Light Gray Mantel
- Tile Fireplace in Mid-Century Modern Style with Wood Mantel
- Copper Mid-Century Modern Fireplace with Crisp White Mantel
- Mid-Century Modern Natural Rocks Fireplace with Muted Gray Mantel
- Marble Mid-Century Modern Fireplace with Golden-Colored Mantel
- Brick Fireplace with Mid-Century Modern Narrow Mantel
- Mid-modern Century Corner Fireplace with Floating Mantel
- Gray Concrete Mid-Century Modern Fireplace with Barn Mantel
- Neutral-Colored Tile Fireplace in Mid-Century Modern Style with Metal Mantel
- Mid-Century Modern Style Fireplace with Black Strip Tile Around and Dark Mantel
- Mid-Century Modern Standard Fireplace Made from Native Alabama Stone and Reclaimed Wood Mantel
- Mid-Century Modern Wood Burning Fireplace with Black Mantel
There are endless designs of a fireplace out there. If you want to achieve a mid-century modern fireplace, it is highly recommended to add a mantel.
The fireplace mantel is a hooded piece that is designed to fit above the fireplace. It has various designs that can go along with any artwork or decorations. Mantel is considered a versatile fireplace accessory.
If you want to add or redesign your fireplace in mid-century modern style with a mantel, you should know that there are two mantel types: mantel shelves and mantel surround. Both are useful to enhance the beauty of your fireplace.
- Mantel shelves: this one is considered a more straightforward option. Mantel shelves are made to float above the firebox. They don’t have corbels or frills of legs. Generally, mantel shelves are finished in a different material from the fireplace but complementary, like plaster, tile, or brick. However, wood is the most commonly used material for mantel shelves. A floating mantel shelf has a perfect streamlined look, ideal for a minimalist or small living room.
- Mantel surround: this type of mantel is a unit that is generally made from the same material as the fireplace. It should be supported by matching pilasters or legs. A mantel surround usually has an apron or decorative corbels that support the shelf. The fireplace mantel surround frames the firebox and enhances its elegance. Bold surround can be made of carved stone for a traditional look, while sleek metal is for a modern style.
Here are some ideas you can get inspiration from:
1. Mid-Century Modern White Mantel For a Wood-Burning Fireplace
This wood-burning fireplace looks extra with a stack of stone surround. In this modern living room, a stone fireplace like this adds a perfect mid-century look. On top of it, there is a white mantel that looks in contrast with the fireplace.
The white mantel, due to its neutral color, enhances the contemporary look in this living room, making it appear trendy.
The white mantel is used as a single display rack because the homeowners decided to add a potted plant and a pair of decorative candle holders on it.
The white mantel blends harmoniously with the trim, the windows, and the door. It also looks great against the soft blue walls around it.
2. Oak Mantel in a Mid-Century Modern Stone Fireplace
This modern fireplace is surrounded by man-made stones in beige color. The textured stone gives a modern look to this fireplace. However, it is combined with wood mantel, which is a natural element that is often associated with mid-century style. Both combinations create an ideal mid-century modern style in this stylish living room.
The unique part is, the firebox of the fireplace is not that wide. However, the designer added the dimensions of this firebox, made it run along this sidewall. Thus, it features a wide mantel.
The wide mantel on top of the fireplace is also used as an open display rack. You can see there are several colorful decorations, combined with the bright artworks over them. They, along with the throw pillows and matching ottoman, serve as a beautiful focal point and a pop of color in this earthy-toned living room.
3. Mid-Century Modern Metal Fireplace with Light Gray Mantel
What a majestic fireplace. This one is included in a media wall. This built-in fireplace is made from metal.
The gray metal makes it look extra modern, especially in a neutral color like this. On both sides of it, there are mounted TV and display racks that are used to show the decorative stuff enhancing the look of this media wall.
The mantel was made similar to the hearth. Both are in a lighter shade of gray. Both the mantel and the media wall (with the fireplace in it) mix harmoniously with the gray tiles over it and the column in the room.
The mid-century element in this modern fireplace is its wood-burning type. The combination of a wood-burning fireplace with metal material delivers a perfect mid-century modern look.
4. Fireplace Tile in Mid-Century Modern Style with Wood Mantel
This tiled fireplace looks gorgeous due to its unique pattern. The tiles are in grey color, which radiates a modern look perfectly. This fireplace complements the whole room because it’s a vintage look. This is a 1960s room featuring a wood-burning fireplace.
Similar to the previous picture, the mid-century element in this fireplace is the fact that it is a wood-burning fireplace. It is combined with the wood mantel in a medium to dark tone.
The polished wood mantel with a round edge is a perfect type of mantel to display some art. Like in this one, there are some artworks and decorative stuff on top of the mantel, making the fireplace look more stylish and trendy.
5. Copper Mid-Century Modern Fireplace with Crisp White Mantel
This wood-burning fireplace is surrounded by dark red copper. This fireplace is unique because the red copper is combined with a black polished hearth and crisp white mantel.
This is not a common combination because dark red copper seems to turn the black hearth off. However, the white mantel cancels it. It becomes a “bright” element in this dark fireplace. The copper fireplace delivers a mid-century look, while the white mantel gives a modern style.
The white mantel overhangs from the wall. It blends with the white wall in the background and the bookcase on the right side.
The white overhang mantel is used as a display spot, which is a common use of a mantel. This way, the homeowners added white decorative spots in the middle and gold and brown decorative stuff as a pop of color.
6. Mid-Century Modern Natural Rocks Fireplace with Muted Gray Mantel
A fireplace that is surrounded by natural rocks in gray color like this never fails to deliver a mid-century look, especially if the fireplace is the wood-burning one. That is so medieval. There is a mantel above the fireplace in muted gray. The gray color matches with the natural rocks around. In order to give a pop of color, the homeowners added a turquoise vase to it.
Unlike the other mantel you’ve seen before, this one is considerably minimalist. There is no line of decorative stuff in it. No clutter like this creates a modern look because, in order to achieve a modern style, the golden rule is “less is more”. The beige framed artwork over the mantel completes the whole look.
7. Marble Mid-Century Modern Fireplace with Golden-Colored Mantel
In an all-white room like this, having a golden-colored fireplace will give a touch of elegance to the room.
This wood-burning fireplace is made from marble called Jerusalem gold. Even though it is made from marble, the lines and the structure of this fireplace look classic, perfect for a mid-century look. It features a wide hearth in front of it that is used to store the wood and a lantern.
The mantel surround features overhanging edges. There is a line of decorative stuff put nicely on the mantel, which clearly indicates that this mantel is meant to be a single display rack. The artworks over it complement the decoration well. They create a modern look in this mid-century fireplace.
The nice thing is, there are a pair of tall classic vases made from a similar marble on both sides of the fireplace. These vases accentuate the fireplace. They also add a touch of classic style to this living room.
8. Brick Fireplace with Mid-Century Modern Narrow Mantel
Basically, this living room features a lovely eclectic style. However, the fireplace shows a different style. It has a perfect combination of a mid-century and modern element in its design.
Similar to the fireplace before, this one is also a wood-burning one. The box is framed with a polished and exposed brick. Exposed brick is one of the natural materials used to achieve a mid-century look.
The brick fireplace is also framed with a white mantel. This polished white mantel looks brighter than the beige walls around it, making the fireplace the focal point in this room.
The mantel is narrow, though, unlike the usual mantels. So obviously, this one can’t accommodate usual decorative kinds of stuff like vases, lanterns, or such. Instead, there seems to be a tiny sculpture and a single piece of artwork places against the wall on this mantel.
9. Mid-Century Modern Corner Fireplace with Floating Mantel
Installing a fireplace in the corner is the best way to decorate a small to mid-size room because we need to optimize every space as best as possible.
This corner fireplace, though, has a lovely mid-century style with a touch of modern look in it. It seems that the fireplace is surrounded by tiles in gray color. The firebox itself is black, and it is mixed with grey. Tile, especially in a neutral color like gray, always radiates a modern look.
The gray tile fireplace is also combined with a floating mantel. A floating mantel like this is also known as a mantel shelf. It is because this can also be used as a shelf to decorate the room. As you can see in this mantel, there are some decorative kinds of stuff on it, like usual mantel shelves.
This floating mantel is seeming to be made out of wood. Wood is a natural material commonly used to deliver a mid-century look. The combination of neutral-colored tile and wood unites classic and modern nicely.
10. Gray Concrete Mid-Century Modern Fireplace with Barn Mantel
This gray fireplace is made out of concrete. The concrete was poured into a board form.
We can see that the gray color in this living room delivers a modern look. However, the whole room itself was designed in a mid-century design. We can see from the exposed wood of posts and ceiling combined with the dark wood floor and the wooden frame of doors and windows.
The floating mantel over the fireplace is also made of wood. This barn mantel gives a clean and smooth line to the fireplace design. On the contrary to the smooth lines, this barn mantel delivers a mid-century look, too, as well as the other wood elements in this room.
There are no decorative kinds of stuff on it, giving a super clear, free of clutter, and minimalist design.
11. Neutral-Colored Tiled Fireplace in Mid-Century Modern Style with Metal Mantel
This is another neutral-colored fireplace that has a modern style. This fireplace is surrounded by tile called Porcelenosa tile in soft gray color. The hearth is also picked in the matching color.
What makes this fireplace even more modern is the fact that it is illuminated by a pair of ceiling lights. Both lights radiate warm yellow light that makes the Porcelenosa tile look softer.
The mid-century part of this modern fireplace is the fireplace screen. The screen and tools here are from SF Design Center in LA and Philip Nimmo Ironworks in LA. This freestanding screen is put on the hearth.
There is a metal mantel above the fireplace. It is pretty uncommon to use metal for a mantel, but according to the designer, this one is the inexpensive one, so it is perfect for a mantel.
The metal mantel may be meant to match the screen, which was also made from metal. We can see here that the mantel is quite narrow, so it is not possible to put heavier stuff on it. Two decorative sculptures are enough to avoid clutter and to make the fireplace look clean.
12. Mid-Century Modern Style Fireplace with Black Strip Tile Around and Dark Mantel
This fireplace is a built-in one, installed in a media wall. The media wall itself is the most unique element in this room. Clearly, this one was custom-built and custom-made.
The media wall is in gray color, even though it is actually a black strip tile from Stone Source. The firebox and the mantel, on the contrary, are in pure black color. So, both create a contrast.
On the contrary, the shelves on the right side were made out of wood, and it seems that those were not painted. The medium wood tone and the gray tiles are juxtaposed to create an excellent combination.
The mantel was also specifically designed by the designer. That is made from blackened steel. To create a simple yet stylish look, the homeowners decided to put only framed pictures on the mantel. The other decorative stuff, along with books, were put on the wooden shelves.
13. Mid-Century Modern Standard Fireplace Made from Native Alabama Stone and Reclaimed Wood Mantel
This is actually a standard fireplace, which is a typical fireplace in many living rooms. What makes this extraordinary is the fact that it is surrounded by stone.
The wood-burning fireplace surrounded by stone never fails to give the look of mid-century. The stone here is a native Alabama stone, which looks great if you want to achieve a mid-century look.
The mantel above it is made from reclaimed wood. This is a mantel surround, so it is attached to the stone. The reclaimed wood gives a classic look. It complements the stone surround.
The only modern element in this fireplace is the minimalist design and the earth-tone color. There is no clutter on the mantel. We can see that there are only three decorations on the mantel. This way, the fireplace is not overwhelmed by the decorations.
14. Mid-Century Modern Wood Burning Fireplace with Black Mantel
This stylish living room features a lovely stone fireplace. The fireplace, however, looks in contrast with the whole room. The fireplace is made out of stone.
There is also a stone hearth that can be used as an additional space for seating or for decorative stuff. And since there is no decoration in it, it seems that this hearth is used for extra seating space.
The modern element in this fireplace is the black mantel. This surrounding mantel looks in contrast with the stone, especially when juxtaposed with the red wall over the fireplace. It seems that the mantel is not that wide to accommodate heavier pieces of stuff, so the homeowners only added a framed picture and placed it against the wall. There is a classic candleholder on the mantel, too, to balance the modern mantel.
Closing
So, what do you think now that you’ve seen the various fireplace mantel options presented earlier? They look stylish, don’t they? They’re meant to make fireplaces look better, after all.
You definitely should try drawing some inspiration from them if you plan on giving your fireplace its own mantel. The mantel materials should complement the fireplace wall and match your living room’s style.
No matter what materials you choose for your mantel, make sure that it is non-combustible because the fireplace will radiate heat and flames. The mantel should also be installed appropriately, far enough from the firebox opening to avoid the flames and heat but close enough to complement the fireplace.