A CHRISTMAS MANTEL PIECE

Back in my homebuilding days, fireplace mantels got no respect.  By the time we got around to building them, we’d have already run out of money and patience, so we’d slap together any old mantel we could. Maybe we had some scraps of crown molding and a few leftover floor tiles . . . alright, there’s your damned mantelpiece—now shut up. And those were the award-winners. Others were just two-by-fours with mitered corners.

Prefabricated fireplace units such as this one typically have
smaller fireboxes than their masonry predecessors.
Here, a stone veneer surround helps gives
the small firebox more oomph.

If only I knew then what I know now.  If there’s one place you shouldn’t cut corners, it’s on the mantelpiece—it’s the focal point of any room (and often, the most important room in the house). As penance for the many dreadful mantels I’ve built, I humbly offer these suggestions to keep you from treading the same path. First, though, some fireplace terminology: 

Strictly speaking, the mantel is only the shelf or lintel across the fireplace opening; the mantelpiece is the entire structure including the side elements. The recess in which the actual fire is built is called—surprise—the firebox. The material on the floor in front of the firebox is the hearth, and the facing around the edge of the firebox is the surround.  

Both the hearth and the surround must be of noncombustible materials (such as brick, tile, stone or stone veneer, marble, or cement). Consult your local building department for the exact requirements.  

Now the suggestions:    

A full-width raised hearth makes a small firebox more visible and provides
a lovely place to sit as well. This trick works well in contemporary
home styles, but may look out of place in traditional homes.

•  Use materials in keeping with your home’s style.  In a rustic home, for example, a lustrous marble surround edged by complicated moldings will look too fussy. Likewise, a mantelpiece of massive boulders will run riot over a delicate interior. The choice of surround material is especially crucial, since it must be noncombustible. The safest course is to echo some noncombustible material used elsewhere in the home—perhaps the brick used on the porch, or the tile used in the foyer floor. 

The mantelpiece itself can be of any appropriate material—wood, marble, plaster, vitreous tile, and stainless steel have all been used to good effect. The mantelpiece can be nearly flat against the wall, or it can project from it. The projecting portion can be topped with a mantel shelf or continue up to the ceiling (in which case, the part above the mantel is called the "overmantel"—reasonable enough, no?  

•  Mind your proportions. A common mistake is to design a really wimpy mantelpiece that looks entirely lost in a large room. Because today’s prefabricated fireplaces have smaller fireboxes than their masonry predecessors, you may need to  use a big, bold surround to bring the mantelpiece into scale with the room.  

You don't need fancy materuaks to create a
perfectly charming fireplace—this one is just plain red brick
with a big slab of lumber for a mantel shelf.

Another trick to make the fireplace look bigger is to raise the firebox off the floor a foot or so; this also makes it easier to view the fire. Think twice about raising the hearth, however—doing so eats up a lot of floor space, and it’s out of character with many traditional home styles. 

•  Finally, if you’re hesitant to design the mantelpiece yourself, you can choose from among a great variety of stock mantelpieces and surrounds. Remember that the same cautions regarding proportion and material still apply.   

And speaking of fireplaces, don’t forget to leave Santa some cookies.  Merry Christmas.    

COMING KITSCH CLASSICS

Conversation pit of the 1970s, as illustrated in The House Book,
an influential design compendium published in 1974
by the Englishdesigner Terence Conran.

History has shown us that the bigger a design trend is, the harder it falls—and the more sought-after it later becomes as kitsch. For example, tailfins were the hottest automotive styling fad of the '50s, and the stegasaurus-finned ‘59 Cadillac topped them all. Though the Caddy’s reputation sank to abysmal depths soon afterward, it’s now rebounded to become the most beloved automotive icon of the '50s.

This curious law holds equally true in architecture. Given enough time, the odd and the excessive inevitably develop great appeal. In the early 60s, for example, countless kitchens contained that ubiquitous gold-flecked Formica pattern known as “Gold Lamé”. For two decades afterward, it was considered hopelessly gauche by designers. Yet Gen-Xers who grew up in these houses seem to remember the stuff with great affection—so much so that it’s actually being offered for sale again. It’s a case of “so uncool that it’s cool”.

Flock wallpaper: Instant Dodge City brothel.

Given that many products of the Mid Century era are already considered classics, do you ever wonder what kitschy treasures the more recent past might hold?  I do. Herewith are a few of my candidates for the kitsch hall of fame. Most are culled from the 1970s, which have now receded into that soft-focus distance that lets us remember even the crummiest things fondly.

•  The 70s brought us that immortal and un-scrubbable classic, flock wallpaper. With its velveteen texture and rococo patterns, it could magically transform any living room into a Dodge City brothel. I’m confident that genuine flock will soon be a cherished rarity, since hardly any of it survived the “all-white” rage of the '80s.  The largest single concentration can now be found in men’s barber salons.

And here's a '70s kitsch two-fer—a shag-carpeted wet bar.

•  Shag carpet is also bound to be a coveted rarity soon enough—it was so hard to keep clean that not even dogs could stand it after a few years. Hence, a nice big expanse of original shag will be a precious commodity indeed. If you have any left rolled up someplace in your garage, don’t throw it out. It could probably net you some serious money on eBay.

•  Conversation pits—coolest architectural fad of the '70s—will be a virtual nexus of kitsch in the few homes that didn't rip them out long ago to create more floor space. My prediction: not long from now, '70s revivalists will be pulling on Angel Flights, polyester shirts, and platform shoes and slouching into the conversation pit to drink Harvey Wallbangers.  Gold jewelry optional.

If you think the present is immune from future kitsch classics,
think again.

•  “Butcher Block” plastic laminate is my nominee to succeed Gold Lamé in the “God, remember that?” category. It’s rarer than Almond, the other popular laminate finish of the '70s, and for sheer shameless artifice, it pretty much takes the cake. In short, a classic in the making.

•  The wet bar—the only architectural fad to get even less use than a whirlpool bath—was another '70s must. Wet bars have been more long-lived than most architectural gimmicks, but only because ripping them out involves some nasty plumbing work. Consequently, most people just let them sit—a memento of the days when getting sloppy drunk in your own home was considered really cool.

•  Lastly, some advice for the hipsters among us who like to plan ahead: Take good care of that '90s-era concrete countertop, not to mention that vessel sink you installed last year. They'll be kitsch classics soon enough.

SPECIAL WINDOWS: Use Them, But Use Them Sparingly

The Palladian window, a favorite of Colonial-era architects,
is a relatively easy-to-achieve "special".

Unique windows have always been a hallmark of great architecture. Anyone who’s seen the rose window in a Gothic cathedral—that enormous wagon wheel of stained glass—can attest to that.   

A number of other distinctive (and more manageable) window designs have come down the road since then. The sixteenth-century architect Andrea Palladio lent his name to a handsome triple window with a “lunette” or half-round lite topping the center section. The Palladian window remains a favorite choice when architects want a feeling of understated elegance.  

The "Chicago Window" in its original
setting—an early Chicago skyscraper.

Toward the end of the nineteenth century, Modernism gave us the Chicago window—a large, squarish fixed sash flanked by double-hungs.  This practical arrangement was originally used on skyscrapers;  later, with the addition of decorative muntins, it became the trademark front window of the Bungalow style.

A special window in a special setting:
Think of "specials" as
jewelry for your home. 

In the 1920s, a fascination with exotic architecture brought us Mediterranean, Moorish, and Provincial cottages with eye-catching window shapes such as triple arches, round “bulls-eyes”, and Arabic pointed arches. After World War II, however, these quirky designs lost out in favor of the uninterrupted “window walls” preferred by Modernist architects.  

Today, due to the resurgent interest in traditional architecture, special window shapes are once again widely available. Most lumberyards carry “specials” such as circles and octagons, as well as half-rounds and quarter-rounds that can be combined with standard rectangular units for unusual effects.  If that isn’t enough to float your boat, there are legions of custom window shops that can build pretty much anything you care to dream up. Unusual window shapes or combinations are a great way to add interest to a home. Like anything else, however, they have to be used with some finesse. Here are a few suggestions:  

Now that's a special window!

•  Keep your window designs consistent with the architectural style you're working in. An elaborate triple arch may look great in a Spanish Revival house, for example, but it’ll look pretty weird on a Rancher. Likewise, a trapezoidal window (one with at least one acute-angled corner) will blend right into many Modern home styles, but will look jarringly foreign in a traditional one.

A window seller's dream, though possibly
an architect's nighmare.

  • Even if special shapes suit the style of your house, don’t go overboard with them. Specials should be used as a focal point, not as a relentless theme. In particular, specials such as round-tops, circles and octagons can quickly become cloying if they’re overused.  Think of such windows as jewelry for your house, and use them just as sparingly.

•  If  you plan to “gang” or combine several windows side-by-side, use an odd number of them. Even-numbered combinations are less pleasing to the eye because the window’s visual center is obstructed by a mullion.  You want glass at the focal point of the window, not wood.   

• Lastly, note that window manufacturers love to come up with huge and outlandish window combinations in their advertisements, not because this represents good design, but rather because they’d love to sell you a whole truckload of expensive special shapes. Over-the-top design is one thing in a sales brochure, but usually, a bit more restraint is advisable in your own home. Quality, not quantity, is the key to memorable results.