Step Up Your Décor With A Copper Fireplace Screen

Have you ever had one of those days? You know the kind I mean. You make your way across town in a whipping wind that throws freezing rain in your face with every step you take. By the time you arrive home, your umbrella has been turned inside out, your hair is soaked, and your raincoat is sopping wet.

When you step inside your home, wouldn't it be nice to push a button and light a cheery gas fire, glowing behind a copper fireplace screen? Let the fireplace warm up while you get out of those wet clothes and pour yourself a nice glass of red wine, or maybe put the kettle on for a cup of tea.

Copper Fireplace Screen For A Warm Interior

There is no warmer toned metal than copper. Shiny, gold brass tone fireplace screens look old fashioned, as their popularity peaked in the 1970s. Flat black fireplace screens have a fresher look, but they also look cold, and make the fireplace, when it is not in use, look like even more of a black box than it already is.

A copper fireplace screen, though, gives your interior a fresh, updated look that is also warm and welcoming. Copper is a natural metal. As such, it is a "hot" material among interior designers, as the most popular finish surfaces in interior designs today are natural surfaces, like stone, wood, iron, and copper.

Copper can be treated to retain its warm color, or it can be allowed to take on a patina of turquoise as it ages naturally.

Three Styles Of Copper Fireplace Screens

There are three basic styles of fireplace screens, and copper is one finish that is available for all three. The first type of screen attaches to the fireplace insert of a wood burning fireplace. Often this screen can be used interchangeably with hinged doors that open and close. The main advantage of this type of copper fireplace screen is that it does not take up any space on the hearth.

The second basic style of fireplace screen is a three-piece screen, usually consisting of a large center piece with smaller "wings" on either side. Often two different tones of metal are used, one for the frame and another for the mesh screen inside the frame. The primary advantage of this type of copper fireplace screen is its versatility. It looks good against many sizes of fireplace openings, without looking too big or too small. With all the different points of contact on the hearth, it can be easily adjusted to accommodate an uneven surface. Finally, this type of screen can be adjusted until it seems secure, making it unlikely to fall over.

The last style of fireplace screen is a fixed, freestanding screen with attached legs. The entire screen must be lifted out of the way to get to the fire. Recent innovations have made all this lifting unnecessary, as many of these screens now include doors in the screen itself, so ashes can be emptied and logs added without moving the copper fireplace screen.