How can I make my living room cosy with no fireplace?

[starrychime]

Have a small living room and on the wall where the fireplace used to be it's been removed and boarded and papered over with a sort of vent thing at the bottom. The tiles are still along the bottom of the wall where I guess the cast iron fire surround used to sit. How can I make my living room cosy without a 'glow' to focus on? I've got a floor uplighter in one corner which gives quite a nice warm light but the rest of the room seems 'cold' IYKWIM? Don't intend to open up the fireplace but should I put a mantlepiece in do you think and sit a lamp with an orange bulb or something where the fire would have been? What would you do?

Ive seen things like this done and always admired it.

Mantle piece and candles on the tiles

I know you said you didn't want to but I'd open up the fireplace, chimney breasts with no fireplace in look strange in my opinion! How old is your house?

I've got a lovely fireplace. Fake. The chimney's blocked up and the wall covered.

I got a huge fireplace. comes halfway up the wall. (above it is a huge mirror that is the width of the chimney wall and goes to about 6 inches above the ceiling ) I bought black shiny paint and painted the wall behind the fireplace so that it looks like there's a hole. There's a grate, I got a poker set and I have a dried flower thingie in front of the grate on the hearth.

If you just glance at it, it looks like an open fireplace.

We don't have a fireplace. We have blinds and curtains, and I use candles with a couple of lamps. Soft furnishings are key, so a couple of throws or blankets, cushions etc. Christmas tree helps too!

I would remove the board and install a nice mantelpiece and surround, and get an electric stove for the middle. They are quite stylish now, not like the horrid 1970s bar fires.

Calor do a living gas fire called Provence ,sorry cannot link at moment
It does not need a flue and is portable so you can move it from room to room
I have one and gets used most days when it is chilly

You could put a big mirror in front of where the fireplace used to be & put LOTS of candles on a dish or plate in front of it? A friend of mine did that in an apartment in front of the gas fire in the summer & it looked great.