You could have an awsome Halloween party with that fireplace, especially if you add the light fitting & table! If that doesn't appeal my advice is to first off get out the sage smudge sticks. :- )

Hi Sien, frequently tiles are built up covering either original stone hearth and/or concrete bases required to keep the fire away from timber so you need to figure out: a) Do you want to keep some sort of a fireplace b) Will it be functional and what kind of fuel do you want to use c) Are you prepared to put the work in on maintaining a traditional fireplace with wood fuel (lots of work - dirty, unpleasant work and chimney sweeping) or the cleaner gas/electric options. I don't think you need an interior designer - you can do it yourself - do your homework and talk to local fireplace retail specialists in your area so that you're making informed choices - this will help you decide what to pull out, what to keep, what to install. Then you can call in a fireplace maintenance expert (sweep and flue services) either to clean out your fireplace prior to pulling it out (stops more dirt/dust/soot from flying around your home then absolutely necessary) or doing the maintenance on it.

Attach are photos. I have been told by 3 different bathroom / plumbing co's it is not mould. They have scraped out some grout, put new grout in & the dark stain has come through again. The builders warranty expired Nov 2015. The builder passed away about a year ago but his wife is still alive & she was co-builder / co-vendor. But, as I'm out of warranty not sure if I have a leg to stand on. It has been suggested that the experts scrape out all the grout, silicon the bit where the stains are & re-grout & maybe the rusty nail stain doesn't break through the silicon / new grout. Can the wrong nails be used in wet rooms that has therefore rusted? Is there normally special nails for wet rooms? Has anyone heard of a 10 year builders warranty - standards & tolerances - for major defects; possibly like this? Thank You. It's very annoying I must say.

I agree with comments made. You need to do a large scale plan and put all your furniture needs in place and play around with various options. You can't put a TV over the wood fireplace so this will need to be considered. Do you want to orientate your living furniture to look outwards? In which case, you probably want the TV on the outside wall too, to reduce reflection on it and have a single direction of focus. You could have the fireplce central, between the dining and living room so the heat is easily spread around. It could be a double sided one in that location. Don't forget though that the kitchen is also a source of heat. Do you want it as a free standing fireplace or situated on a wall? Do you want it also to be a focal point or more functional with the possibility of putting the winter soup pot on top? Do you want to be able to sit on the hearth on those really yucky cold days? Do you need to keep children safe from the hot surfaces etc? Work out your priorities and the location will probably fall into place. Good luck, C.