hi Neryl and others, I love fire pits and we have a special area in the yard with stone seating around it. we love it and it is great for the kids and when they have friends over. we often burn these funny hexagonal 'logs' which are made from recycled something (I cant remember whether its paper or woodchips). we got them from Bunnings but I can't find them on bunnings website right now. they are called ecologs or something like that. they are slow burning and good. we have the chappala sun god fire pit from bunnings and it has been good. the metal parts do rust tho. the good thing about it is the screen lid which I feel is a bit safer. but the lid does get hot so you need an oven mitt or similar to lift it to roast marshmallows or add more wood or anything. downside is it has no drainage hole so fills with rainwater. good luck

While we have never had an open fire place before, we have had a wood burning stove/heater and are planning to put one in the house we are building this year. They are just beautiful and give that gentle, bone-warming heat throughout the house. They are possibly easier to clean than an open,with the fire and ash being behind the glass door, though I guess I can't really comment. I would strongly recommend you buy one with the fan attachment as this greatly improves the throw out of the warmed air and certainly, the difference can be felt. They are beautiful visually too and nothing is nicer on a cold Winter day, than to have the fire going and be warm and snug inside. Good luck; I hope that helps.

Finished product! Glad I switched the rug the other direction, and the round table kind of plays off the circle window. Truly thankful for all your help! This was fun and I am so happy with the end result. :)

Lovely little fire! I feel like the room feels smaller with all the vertical lines - the fire flue, the floor lamp, the door, the tall bookcase, even the high backed dark chairs make the room feel tall but narrow. The bookcase is lovely, but I feel it towers over the small space. Replacing with a hip-height longer bookshelves or console would still make it feel cosy reading nook, but open the room up a bit wider. Then you could put a lovely mirror or picture/wall hanging on that wall above the bookshelves. Then a large rug (in a tactile smooth sisal?) that reaches almost to the hearth and beyond the armchairs will make it feel cosier and more like a designated area than a thoroughfare. Then possibly paint the door the wall colour, I feel there's too many odd shaped elements on that wall to do a nice feature wall well, I think it would just look odd and busy! And having the door blend into the wall more will allow the lovely woodburner to be the focal point.