It looks so wrong!!

Pic?

Can it be painted?

I too am wide awake unable to sleep Lizbethann55 .

I wondered if maybe you are looking at the new fireplace in an empty room with blaring white lights ? In which case I suppose it will look all wrong . Could it be that when your carpet, curtains and new units are fitted the whole “look” will be softened ? Lighting can make all the difference to the appearance of “white”. Maybe you need to use some warmer white bulbs ? If you are still unhappy Is the fireplace free standing or built in? Is there any way it could be returned or exchanged ?

I do hope the room comes together and you are happy with it.

Awake too, and have to be up and cheerful 5.30.
Oh, deep joy.

Oh Liz I do feel for you. I’m looking right now at my console table that arrived last week, it’s supposed to be dove grey, it’s taupe ! Of course DH says it’s fine, but I’m not happy with it either. Is it too late to change your mind with some of the other things you’ve ordered? if not ring the shop and see if you can choose something else . Good luck .

I've been up half the night fretting about wrong and expensive choices in my house too so I know how you feel Lizbethann; it's miserable isnt it? As another poster suggested, is it too late to change the other items that haven't been delivered yet? It's a rotten feeling knowing that we save so hard to get new items for our homes and then find that they're just "not what we expected them to be". I've had a new bathroom fitted, at huge expense, and was encouraged to have pale grey tiles instead of white textured ones. I hate the grey tiles; they're so gloomy. Nothing to be done about it.

Oh I sympathise ladies.

I haven’t made a mistake yet as far as I know, but we’re having a complete makeover of one room, and due to unforeseen circumstances, the kitchen needs some major and expensive work.

I’ve got a lot of things on order, but because I’ve had to think on my feet a bit, I’m worried I may have made some costly mistakes.

Hope in the warmer light of day, it will look nicer Liz.

Liz this may all feel worse because it’s the early hours of the morning.
I know that’s my key time for making everything feel dreadful and sometimes worrying needlessly.
Wait until after breakfast, gather yourself together positively and then think about your options.

I think Shakespeare said something about ‘the dark night of the soul’ and in my experience it’s true. My experience also tells me that everything looks more manageable in the morning ??

We are in the middle of completely redoing our lounge and I am finding it really stressful and time consuming!!

Like sara, we have also got to redecorate somewhere else too. The hall ceiling fell down last year and we now have to redecorate there too.

Lisbethann55 I know how you feel.
You have this sinking feeling that you've made the wrong choice in a very important decision. But I agree with Nortsat46 - things seems worse in the middle of the night.
And often it's just a panic and when whatever it is, is in place it looks lovely.
The hearth is only a part of the makeover. Your room may very well come together when everything else arrives.

If you still don't like it, perhaps buy some really nice things to display on the hearth or mantle.

Night time thoughts are the worst lizbethann, As *gilly says lighting can make a huge difference as you may have found in the shop as can things like cushions and rugs but you know once the room is populated the fireplace may blend beautifully. Do you have any carpet/fabric samples - or anything the same shades as your other purchases - you could put alongside the fireplace to see if a contrast (if that’s what it will be) actually works very well. If you’re still worried today and convinced it’s not going to work then talk to the fireplace provider, see if they will consider a swap, yes it may cost a little more but better than being unhappy. When we moved here we started from scratch with every room. A mix of fun and terror. Some things I simply had to get used to, it was all so different. and you know after a few months it was ‘home’ and now I don’t regret any of our choices. Good luck. Let us know how it works out.

Lisbethann , Don't lose any more sleep worrying about your fire place , I bet once the carpet and curtains are up and they sound lovely by the way. It will look so much better , as others have said the right soft lighting, some nice things on the mantle and some plants it will look so much better, My DD and SIL had a new marble fireplace fitted last year she worried it wouldn't look right with the new sofa and carpet but it really does, in fact I am a teenybit envious. I want one !! We have these mood light bulbs that you can change colour and dim with a remote control. You could try one , Stop worrying. All will be well x

The fireplace is the focus of the room so having a white one will emphasise this and it should look fine with more subdued off white and cream furniture and furnishings.

Wait until everything is in and if it still looks off to you fit a light which sends a softer spot light onto it. Say a three way light fitting with two white and one pinky cream light heading in that direction.

There are so many different shades of 'white'. Any shade will look quite different depending on what colours are near it (or reflected on it).

So, it seems that you have blue white and cream white, then cream, green and pink too. What colour are the walls and ceiling? Near colours/shades are tricky compared to contrasts and complements.

Lighting is everything! as you said ‘in the showroom it looked fine’ , get some lamps and maybe some fairy lights with warm white bulbs, to go around the mantle, with all of your other furnishings I’m sure it will look lovely.

I remember someone who decorated her room in 10 different shades of white ,deliberately and it looked amazing.Give it time when you start adding bits and it will all come together .Dont stress ,enjoy .

How you change the colour of the fireplace depends on what it is made of. If it is solid wood it can be stripped or limed

If it's ceramic , metal, laminate, or plastic it can be painted. Neither of these options would be expensive and can be done again if the colour is still not quite right.

Depending on the mood of your room the paintwork might be chalky or glossy or rag rolled, or stencilled. It is your own fireplace so why not be creative?

A picture over the fireplace and cushions should tie it all together. If not then look at painting the wall around the fireplace or using a wallpaper with fireplace white, creams and the colours in your curtains or gold/greens to warm that wall up. I am sure you will make it nice in time

Thank you all so much. It is so true that night time worrying is the worst. In the cold light of day the fireplace is still not the colour I had hoped for, but hopefully like so many of you say, when everything is in place, it will look better and I can put lots of candles and photos on and around it. Although it was reasonably expensive , it was cheaper than our original choice had been and no more expensive than a two week holiday so I will give it a year and then, if I still don't like it, I will change it. Wishing you all a good night's sleep and thank you again. Xxx

I painted ours because it looked grubby, no amount of scrubbing could get it cleaner-looking as it seemed to absorb stains. I used masonry paint as it is a natural stone and it came up well.

However, yours may all look fine once the rest of the furnishings etc are in and softer lighting will help.

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202002/medium-60849-e301178f-b24f-4323-ab57-b121ad662caa.jpeg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202002/medium-200903-6ac676b8-20b8-45ec-ad8d-0531e67b9b0a.jpeg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202002/medium-711022-a03ecf36-dba2-4120-a703-32f647e8b501.jpeg

I do sympathise.
I bought two new sofas a couple of years ago and as soon as I saw them in situ I hated the colour. I had chosen cream like the previous sofas, but this looked like butter and was quite wrong.
A good friend who has an eye for design and colour came round, removed my fireside rug, added a throw and different cushions and once I had chosen a new rug, bingo!
Still regret the choice but just don’t notice it any more.
One pic “before” and two “after” below.
PS I didn’t change the colour of dog as a style statement, lovely Gracie died 3 years ago and Hattie joined the family the following summer.

When our new suite arrived a couple of years ago I questioned whether it was the right one because I was sure I'd ordered a different shade.
They assured me it was the one I'd chosen so I had to adapt my choice of colour scheme.
I still wish I hadn't chosen that but we've got used to it now.

What a difference your new rug makes Ma Broon. Your lovely new room has inspired me. We bought a new lounge carpet 2 years ago which I never liked once it was laid. We are about to buy new sofas and I have been contemplating biting the bullet and going for a new carpet before the sofas arrive.

We don't usually change things once we've chosen them for years and I can't help feeling that a new carpet just because I don't like the one I chose would be a terrible extravagance. On the other hand I didn't fancy having the new sofas on a carpet I don't like. Your lovely room has provided the perfect solution. I will have a lovely new rug. Thanks for sharing the photos

Mine's a similar colour, Maw!

No dog though

I really sympathize Lizbethann55. It is really annoying to wait a long time for a new look room Take time, trouble and expense planning it and then finding it is not how you imagined it would look. Judging by the comments on this thread many of us have been there at one time or another. It may well look much better once you get the whole room together. I do hope so