Living Rooms - odd without a fireplace?

We ditched the plasterboard fake victorian grecian columns in our 70s house when we decorated our lounge and although the room looks better (and bigger) without it I'd love a proper fireplace, even if it had no fire in it for the time being (ie just a mantlepiece). We ran out of money as it just wasn't a priority, esp with v. young children in the house. I think the room looks fine but a fireplace does make a nice focal point.

Is keeping the exising fireplace an option (and decorating around it)? Will funds allow for a new mantlepiece?

When I get Lune Towers I'm having an open fire.

We have a fake fireplace in our living room with a tiffany lamp in it, a mantlepiece and a mirror above it. We couldnt have a real fire in it as 1. we have no chimneys (theyve been removed) and 2. its an internal plasterboad wall with the downstairs cloakroom behind it.

I was tempted when we first moved in to rip it out, however Im glad we didnt as it does give a focal point to the room and I love the mirror above mantlepice type of set up.

As others have said, the fireplace does provide you with a focal point. However, that point is fixed. Without a fireplace, you have a choice as to where you want the focal point and have more choice about how to group furniture and hang art, put lamps, knick-knacks, etc.

I do think a living room needs a fireplace tbh, although i can't quite explain why. so much so in that i actually put one in my flat (it was just a wall mounted gas flame thing) which didn't have one when i moved in (70s build purpose built flat)

i just think it makes the room so much cosier

We don't have one. Had toyed with it in our last house (even though we never got one, just got a bookcase and hung a picture above it) and in this house, we never even considered it. The wall where we'd have a fireplace, we have that wallpapered and have the TV on the wall (that probably makes us really common but we think it looks nice and due to the fact we have a corner sofa it was really the only place we could have the tv) and just some dark wooden units going along the wall underneath it. If I can be arsed tidying the living room I'll take and post a photo ?

We don't have a fireplace in our living (sorry no pictures at the moment). Our living is a rectangle with windows at front and back walls, a chimneybreast along the long wall. When we moved in there was an old electric fire, so we binned that and have never replaced it.

We considered putting a fireplace in but I could never find anything that I liked. So we are going to put a picture the full length of the chimneybreast wall.

When we get our sideboard, which will sit further along the same wall, our mirror will go above that.

Hmmm I see what you mean about a focal point. It's not a real fireplace, just a fake one stuck to the wall, which is why I can't decide if not having one is better than a naff one iyswim

It looks like this: (although now minus the old saggy sofa and attractive 70s glass hatch in the wall...) Hoping the pic works...

Hmmmm, that didn't work

Since leaving home I have never lived in a house with a fire place. I'd definitely prefer no fireplace to a fake one (possibly because my parents have stunning real ones, with an open log fire in one and a stove in the other).

We don't have one at the moment, and you have another think coming if you think I am going to share a photo of the state it is currently in! ? If i get round to tidying it up you might be in more luck.... ?

We don't have a fire place- the only reason I ever miss one is when I want to display cards or decorate at christmas.

Here is our living room,

We currently have a fireplace (well, an electric one) in our sitting room but it's going. I was determined that I wanted to keep it but the room just doesn't work. We ended up getting an interior designer in and the layout she's come up with doesn't have the fireplace. I was dubious at first but I think she was right.

My concern was that the TV would become the focal point but because of the furniture layout that hasn't happened.

We're building a new house atm and we agonised over the fireplace issue.

Our new living room is open plan and the gable wall is a massive french window - so where f/p would go seemed like it was in the wrong place, as that should be where the telly goes.... Also, it doesn't have a chimney so it'd be a gas fire anyway and frankly we decided they weren't our taste but we figured we go for it anyway as-every house we've had has been v traditional with a fireplace so we just though we should.

HOWEVER - as soon as the block work for the fireplace was in, we decided it definitely looked like an intrusion in the room and pretty unnatural. We jsut said oh sod it, and ripped it all out. It will feel oddi not to have a mantlepiece, but i have a lovely little piano that will do the job! I don't know yet if we made the right decision or not. ?

Monkey fingers your living room looks lovely - really cosy, I wouldn't have even spotted the lack of fireplace if that wasn't what I was looking for, iyswim!

I'm so undecided on this. I LOVE proper traditional fireplaces, but our house is a modern(ish) house which doesn't even have a chimney so it just doesn't 'go' and the fake ones just look a bit naff. But then again minus the fireplace would the room look even more boxy than it already does? Aargh.

Thank you for all your replies, it's really interesting to hear your thoughts. Even if I am no further on with a decision!?

Oh, a fireplace... It always reminds me about my childhood. It raises also my memories about my dad...