How to Decorate Above an Arched Fireplace

Put decorative objects such as vases with fresh or silk flowers or family pictures on the mantle above the arched fireplace. If you have low ceilings, you can counteract that problem by placing something thin and tall on top of your mantle to elongate the visual space. Lower objects, such as framed family pictures, work well with an average to high ceiling.

Hang a mirror above the fireplace to open up the room and make it feel larger. Sheet mirrors are fairly inexpensive and can make a dramatic difference in a room. If you have a mantle above the fireplace that is straight, you may be able to buy a stock mirror from a retailer that fits your space. If not, you may need to have a mirror cut for your space to match the arch of your fireplace.

Consider painting the wall a bright color or having an artist or faux-finisher paint a design above the fireplace. Bright, bold colors, such as black, red and yellow, work well in contemporary spaces, and more traditional spaces can benefit from patterned stencils, such as fleur de lis. For even more impact, textured paint can give the space more depth. Country homes and rustic spaces can be painted with small outdoors scenes to give them an organic, charming feel.

Put decorative fabric above the arched fireplace on a curtain rod if you have windows in the nearby area. Doing this will create the illusion of windows behind the fireplace, which can make the room feel larger. It can also help to extend the pattern of the window coverings across a room with a lot of windows.