Fireplace Surround Recreation

[pykie]

Hey guys need a bit of help on trying to recreate this fireplace surround for
my house.



http://i48.tinypic.com/16ld7p1.png





I have some left over marble of similar colour.



Atm I have a standard red brick fire place, square, around 200mm deep off the
wall.



I plan to spghetti a sheet of MDF to the brickwork and recreat the beading
with some mdf/pine mouldings.





Anyone know of a place where I can find some mouldings along these lines?



Particularly the "half post" style upright etc, and a plan of attack on the
mantle peice.





Any suggestions would be great!

[SilentButDeadly]

Is Google broken again?

Fireplaces - Period Furniture Melbourne (http://www.perioddetails.com.au/fireplaces/timber-surround-reproduction.html)

http://www.perioddetails.com.au/fireplaces/images/ts-garrison.jpg

As for your marble....take it to a 'monumental mason'

[plum]

[Anyone know of a place where I can find some mouldings along these lines?
Particularly the "half post" style upright etc, and a plan of attack on the
mantle peice.]

Try A. Lewis in Jasper Rd Ormond

[seriph1]

All quite achievable and straightforward (the second time you make one)

:D

HINT: Always remember to state where you are (more than city) so folks can advise based on locality. A LEWIS and CO are excellent suppliers, but before that you will need to know what quantity of each moulding and which specific types of mouldings you need so a plan will help a LOT.

The show NEW YANKEE WORKSHOP, showed in detail how to make a couple of mantels - here is one New Yankee Workshop - Featuring the Craftsmanship of Master Carpenter Norm Abram (http://www.symionic.com/newyankee/index.php?id=53#ecwid:category=1855073&mode=product&product=7916568) - the way the site now displays its stuff has changed since I last visited and while I don't like it, at least they still sell measured drawings.

Here is another that clearly displays the principles - How to Build a Fireplace Mantel • Ron Hazelton Online (http://www.ronhazelton.com/projects/how_to_build_a_fireplace_mantel)

Anyway, it looks like you want to build something generally "Georgian" and painted ... If you are in the northern suburbs or willing to travel a little, two places that have a LOT of very cheap mouldings are MOTAWIZZA in Brunswick and A & R Building Supplies in Campbellfield just off the ring road's Sydney Rd. exit. As you are going to paint them, the grade and material doesn't have to be spectacular. As mentioned on another post, LEWIS's is great though their range is vastly reduced these days. But you only need 6 or 7 shapes and not much of it for that matter.

Finally, if it is for a period home and you actually have a chimney breast, make sure your shelf is bigger than the CB by around 70mm on each side ... many people think the mantle shelf sits INSIDE the edges of the CB but it is not the case on homes built between 1830 and 1930 and they look 'odd' if the shelves are made shorter.

Your idea about MDF is OK. DO you intend to make a "U" shaped piece out of a board or make the backing board in three pieces? On a regular table saw that's a LOT easier and neater. Personally, and from a Georgian design perspective, the pilaster bases (mouldings on the side half-columns) are too short but it may not bother you at all - I just think they should be taller by about 60% to achieve the grandeur. The 'reeding' in the columns can be done easily using a table saw (except if you must have rounded stop-ends top and bottom) but you may still be able to buy that material already routed out in Pine from her4e - R Cornall and Son (http://www.cornalls.com.au/store/page.pl?id=3312) - best of luck with it and don't forget the golden rule when making things of this nature (or any really I guess) .... design, scale and proportion are everything when trying to get a great result.

You can see some period elements I am adding to our home by going here - Image hosting, free photo sharing & video sharing at Photobucket (http://s1098.photobucket.com/albums/g364/Steve_Ansell/AA%20Kilmore%20Renovation/?albumview=slideshow)

.... have fun!

[seriph1]

sorry - I forgot to ask - is this going to be a fully functioning fireplace or not? It matters

[seriph1]

by the way again .... and sorry for the multiple posts

... it will be a LOT easier with basic tools, to 'return' mouldings for things like the bases, by simply using a fretsaw or jigsaw with metal blade. This is when you want the bottom of that pilaster (column) to look like it goes 90 degrees and returns into the backing board .... such small trims are hard to get right (no more gaps is a godsend but that aside) because they often fly off mitre saws etc. Of course, the Americans do all that another way in that they simply cut a block of square dressed material, then cap it with the moulded elements ... that's how they do skirting boards (called baseboards over there)

sorry if this is unclear - I am sure you'll work it out

[pykie]

sorry - I forgot to ask - is this going to be a fully functioning fireplace or not? It matters


Nah mate, just a bit of wow factor, its in the sitting room in the entrance.


Thanks for the advice on the various places, Il take a photo of it and let them have a look at it.

Im from the Sth East Suburbs of Melbourne, so the place in Ormond is good, I work Northern Suburbs, so I will have a look at all of them.

Thanks gents!