Our Driftwood Fireplace Mantle

When we renovated our beach home, we decided to add a fireplace to enhance our winter evenings there. We decided we wanted a contemporary and unique look and chose a gas fireplace that used glass beads rather than traditional logs. Then came the decisions about how to enclose this fireplace into our space.

We knew we wanted something a little out of the ordinary so chose small, uneven quarry tiles in natural sand tones. It was still missing something and we kept thinking about what the next step would be. It needed some kind of trim finishing and it certainly needed a mantle. We tried different tiles as trim, along with regular molding. Nothing seemed to fit into our vision! Finally, an idea popped up. How about using a piece of driftwood as a mantle? After searching online we found a few websites that offered dramatic driftwood mantles, but at a substantial cost. Now I knew I wanted a driftwood mantle and needed to search for one. We ended up finding an incredible piece of driftwood at a local store for a bargain price and it happened to be the exact size we needed. We still kept thinking about the trim as the fireplace still did not look finished. We found a piece of old boat planking at the same local shop that we had a carpenter slice into molding pieces to fit the sides and bottom of our fireplace. Turns out it is exactly what I had in mind!

I love the feel of driftwood with its surface that has been washed away by winds and tide. Actually driftwood provides shelter and food for birds and fish while floating on the sea. When it washes ashore, it becomes a shelter for birds and plants. It can also become the foundation for sand dunes. Shelter and foundation, seems the perfect enhancement for our fireplace. Take a look at our finished product!

I have been able to collect a few pieces of driftwood this winter at our beach most likely because of the strong storms we experienced here on the East Coast. I recently purchased a tall ceramic planter vase that is going to become home to my collection. I am hoping to plant a small grass in there to highlight my collection. I love the fact that it was found on my favorite beach.

We have added a few interesting driftwood pieces to our coastal decor store, By the Sea Decor. We added a classic driftwood table lamp, a unique driftwood round mirror and a simple driftwood sculpture.