With spring still a few months away in the northern hemisphere, this is the season to snuggle up in front of an open fire. For our latest lookbook, we’ve rounded up ten cosy living rooms where the fireplace is at the heart of the interior design.
This is the latest roundup in our Dezeen Lookbook series providing visual inspiration for the home. Previous articles in the series showcased living rooms with calm interiors, peaceful bedrooms, Japandi interiors and domestic bathrooms designed by architects.
116 Sorauren and 118 Sorauren, Canada, by Ancerl Studio
The living room of 116 Sorauren Street in Toronto, one of a pair of twin townhouses designed by Ancerl Studio, has been made cosy through the use of natural materials and plenty of textiles.
A black steel fireplace sits on a cast concrete plinth against the back wall. The plinth extends to create a comfortable nook has where the owners or their guests can warm themselves.
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Three Chimney House, US, by T W Ryan Architecture
This modernist white-brick house in Virginia (above and top image) has three white chimneys that define its external form. Inside, one of them opens up into this starkly elegant, brick-clad fireplace in the living room.
Here, tall white walls and ceilings create a contrast with the more traditional upholstered furniture. Warm colours ranging from pale aubergine purple to a mustard yellow were used on the seating by the fireplace, which is practical during cold winter months as well as being a decorative feature all year round.
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Pound Ridge House, US, by Tsao & McKown
Tsao & McKown drew on Japanese architectural principles when designing Pound Ridge House. The influence that can be seen in the pared-back fireplace built onto a square stone hearth that sits between the living room and the dining room.
The design references an irori, a traditional Japanese sunken hearth which is often square in form and set in the middle of a room.
Smoke is extracted by a bronze flue in the form of a truncated pyramid that hangs from the ceiling of the lounge, which is filled with wood detailing and cream-coloured textiles. A generous skylight lets the light in during the daytime.
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Teton House, US, by Olson Kundig
With views like the ones from Teton House (above and top) in the mountainous terrain of Jackson Hole, Wyoming, you don’t need art on the walls. Olson Kundig used floor-to-ceiling windows to take advantage of the vistas. But the view is almost upstaged by a substantial black fireplace in the centre of the glazing.
The simple form of the fireplace is complemented by leather chairs in warm brown hues as well as wood surfaces and woven textiles, creating an inviting, relaxing atmosphere.
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House for Grandparents, US, by Dash Marshall
The renovation of this California farmhouse was informed by the state’s Spanish missions, and its geometric forms and spartan material use reference these religious structures. But there is nothing ascetic about the house’s comfortable living room, where a broad brick fireplace sits on one wall.
A colourful painting and rug add vibrancy to the room, while two cylindrical metal coffee tables pick up the warm glow of the fire.
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Smith Residence, Canada, by MacKay-Lyons Sweetapple
Inside this holiday home on the Nova Scotia peninsula, a massive fireplace keeps the living room toasty. Made from granite that was sourced from a nearby quarry, the fireplace features one aperture for the fire and one for storing logs.
Its sits underneath the black steel trusses that support the exposed roof. In front of the fire, a soft high-pile rug and two brown leather sofas complete the design of the living room.
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Wasatch House, US, by Olson Kundig
An enormous bronze flue dominates the library in this Utah home by Olson Kundig, which has the feel of a living room thanks to a wide leather sofa and two cognac-coloured leather chairs. These sit in front of the unusual portrait-shaped fireplace, which is set in the monolithic flue and fronted by double doors.
A colour palette of dark browns and greys create a pleasantly laid-back atmosphere in the capacious room while ceiling-height bookcases flank the fireplace.
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Lincoln, Belgium, by Notan Office
Modernist architect and designer Alvar Aalto inspired the design for this fireplace, set in a rooftop extension in Brussels by Notan Office.
It wraps around a corner and was built from concrete and ceramic construction blocks in warm orange and pale grey hues. “A fireplace is a kind of artifactual element in a house,” architect Frédéric Karam told Dezeen. “I wanted to express a sense of organic and rough feeling for such a function,”
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Little Peek, US, by Berman Horn Studio
Little Peek is a holiday home in Vinalhaven off the coast of Maine, designed by the Berman Horn Studio founders for themselves.
Designed to be used in all seasons, the house nevertheless has a summer feel thanks to its light interior and many generous windows, as well as an enclosed patio.
But in the open-plan kitchen and living room, a built-in fireplace set in a narrow stonework flue helps keep the room warm during cold New England winters.
Find out more about Little Peek ›
Casa Prè de Sura, Italy, by Casati
A freestanding fireplace in the form of a trapezoidal prism decorates this living room in Italy, set in a gabled house by Austrian architects Casati that has rough limestone interior walls.
The white fireplace functions as a decorative piece as well as a heat source. It has been cleverly designed with a side ledge on which the owners can stack wood. Beige and cream hues were used for the colour palette, matching both the fireplace and the limestone walls.
Find out more about Casa Prè de Sura ›
This is the latest in our series of lookbooks providing curated visual inspiration from Dezeen’s image archive. For more inspiration see previous lookbooks showcasing peaceful bedrooms, calm living rooms and colourful kitchens.