INTERIORS / The Open Fire Directory

OLD AND ANTIQUE FIREPLACES

Arbon Interiors, 102 Golborne Road, London W10 (081-960 9787). Mostly 18th-century and Victorian wood and marble surrounds; good reproduction Victorian cast-iron fireplaces.

Architectural Heritage, Taddington Manor, Taddington, near Cutsdean, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire (0386-73414). Decorative fireplaces and surrounds from 18th century onwards.

Au Temps Perdu, 5 Stapleton Road, Easton, Bristol (0272-555223). Excellent and knowledgeable salvage company specialising in old ironwork - some good Edwardian fireplaces.

Fairfax Antique Fireplaces, 568 King's Road, London SW6 (071-736 5023) and Langley Green, Langley Burrell, Chippenham, Wiltshire (0249- 652030). Mostly decorative Victorian cast-iron fireplaces and surrounds - 70 or 80 in the London showrooms and over 200 in the country.

The Fireplace Shop, 108-114 Glenthorne Road, London W6 (081-741 5013). Fireplaces and surrounds from Georgian to art nouveau and beyond, with an exciting contemporary range.

The House Hospital, 68 Battersea High Street, London SW11 (071-223 3179). Mainly Georgian and Victorian fireplaces; wooden surrounds from about pounds 125.

House of Steel, 400 Caledonian Road, London N1 (071-607 5889). Owner Judy Cole specialises in salvaged metal and cast-iron - 5,000 square feet of warehouse space with hundreds of tiled and cast-iron fireplaces, fenders and all the trimmings.

Lassco, Mark Street, London EC2 (071-739 0448/9). London's best-known architectural salvage centre is always a good source for fireplaces - the best current bargains, according to on-site fireplace expert Les Smith, include French 18th- century stone surrounds, good Adam reproductions with marble inlays and solid Victorian chunky stone pieces from about pounds 300.

Marble Hill Fireplaces, 70-72 Richmond Road, Twickenham, Middlesex (081-892 1488). Specialises in 19th-century French carved marble surrounds, also a good reproduction range.

Robert Mills, Unit 2, Satellite Business Park, Blackswarth Road, Redfield, Bristol (0272-556 542). Good range of large fireplaces, starting at 6-8ft wide, especially nice carved wooden Gothic and classical surrounds.

Andy Thornton, Victoria Mills, Stainland Road, Greetland, Halifax, Yorkshire (0422-375595). Many old fire surrounds among the architectural salvage displayed on four floors.

Westland & Company, The Clergy House, Mark Street, London EC2 (071-739 8094). Victorian and Edwardian fireplaces from pounds 400.

Architectural Salvage Register, Hutton +Rostron, Netley House, Gonshall, Surrey (0483- 203221). National index of salvage dealers who can search out a given fireplace for a fee of pounds 10.

The National Fireplace Association, 8th floor, Bridge House, Smallbrook Queensway, Birmingham (021-643 1133).

NEW FIREPLACES

Acquisitions, 4-6 Jamestown Road, London NW1 (071-485 4955). Specialises in reproduction wood, marble and cast-iron surrounds, with cast- iron inserts made from original Victorian patterns.

Anglia Fireplaces & Designs, Anglia House, Kendal Court, Cambridge Road, Impington, Cambridgeshire (0223-234713). Huge showrooms and an imaginative design service.

Fiona Bates, 52 Park Street, Bristol (0272- 252343). Ceramicist who makes spectacular unglazed earthenware fire surrounds to commission - bristling with spiky shells or swarming with shoals of gaping fish. Weird but wonderful.

British Artist Blacksmiths Association, c/o Richard Quinnell, Rowhurst Forge, Oxshott Road, Leatherhead, Surrey (0372-375148). Can advise on commissioning modern iron fireplaces and surrounds from the best contemporary designers.

Fred Brodnax (Blacksmith), The Glasshouses, Church Lane, Tickenham, Avon (0275-855090). Young artist blacksmith with a clean, contemporary style; also interested in traditional vernacular work. Works to commission.

Classical Lines, 122 Dawes Road, London SW6 (071-386 8071). Plaster reproduction fireplace surrounds from as little as pounds 45; worth checking out as the firm can make surrounds to customers' own designs.

Craigavon Marble, Unit 9, Ulster Street Industrial Area, Ulster Street, Lurgan, Co Armagh, Northern Ireland (0762-326736). Magnificent hand- carved marble surrounds which are based on classical designs.

Design Fireplaces, Design House, Walnut Tree Close, Guildford, Surrey (0483-503333). Among all the ghastly stone cladding are some quite decent Adam repro surrounds and a clean modern raised hearth design in Italian marble.

Fireplace Designers, 157C Great Portland Street, London W1 (071-580 9893). Modern wood and marble surrounds made to commission; specialises in Thirties and art deco-inspired designs with coloured tile designs.

The Fireplace Shop (as before). All sorts of traditional and modern designs. Some lovely simple surrounds in stone and marble that would look good in a modern interior.

Gas Log Fire Centre, 232 Fulham Road, London SW10 (071-352 2560). Some jolly realistic gas- flue log fires and all the latest modern grates and raised hearth designs. Also, surrounds in all styles, including simple stainless steel, brass and matt black frames.

Hallidays, The Old College, Dorchester-on- Thames, Wallingford, Oxon (0865-340068). Well known for good reproduction carved wooden fireplace surrounds in traditional styles (Georgian, Adam, etc).

Modus Design, 16 The Warren, Radlett, Herts (0923-210442). Almost alone in specialising in truly modern fireplace design. Clean, angular, no-nonsense pieces, mostly from Holland - popular with architects.

Norwich Fireplace Centre, Woodside Road, Thorpe, Norwich, Norfolk (0603-36944). Some restrained classical-style surrounds in stone and marble.

Stonecraft Fireplaces, 3 Lower London Road, Edinburgh (031-652 1464). Clean, simple designs (both traditional and contemporary) in marble, stone, granite and slate.

TONGS, TOOLS AND OTHER FIRESIDE ACCESSORIES

Acres Farm, Bradfield, near Reading, Berks (0734-744305). Hand-made club fenders to fit your fire; the company will also repair damaged fenders or copy a much-loved original to order.

Architectural Components, 8 Exhibition Road, London SW7 (071-581 3869). Nice twisty-handled tongs; all sorts of traditional and contemporary fire tools, fenders and other accessories.

Fred Brodnax (Blacksmith) (as before). Simply stylish fire dogs and tools - a modern twist on traditional designs. Will make poker, shovel and tongs sets to order.

Delftfield Company, Coulsknowe Farm, Dunning Glen, Dollar FK14 7LB (0259-781379). Wonderful Delft reproduction fireplace tiles, with figures, flowers and landscapes.

The Fire and Iron Gallery at Richard Quinnell, Rowhurst Forge, Oxshott Road, Leatherhead, Surrey (0372-375148). Stylish grates, firebacks and all kinds of tools (even toasting forks and chestnut roasters), hand-crafted by contemporary blacksmiths. Surprisingly reasonable prices.

The Fireplace Shop (as before). Scuttles and tools in a variety of styles.

John Lewis, 278-306 Oxford Street, London W1 and selected branches (071-629 7711). Sets of fire tools start at around pounds 75.

Marble Hill Fireplaces (as before). All sorts of old and new tools, mainly traditional styles.

The Platonic Fireplace Company, 20 British Grove, London W4 (081-741 9721). Fireproof cement shapes in the form of standing stones or fragmented classical pillars provide an unusual alternative to fake logs. Designed for use with a gas flue, they sit on a bed of sand and the flames leap around them. Cost pounds 150; simple frame surrounds also available.

Samuel Heath & Sons, Cobden Works, Leopold Street, Birmingham (021-772 2303). Streamlined chromium-plated fire tools and log carrier; ideal companions for a modern fire surround.

Scarborough & Company (0235-862244 for details). Can supply very large fir-cones equally suitable for kindling fires or just looking beautiful in the empty grate. Sets of six are available from branches of Crabtree & Evelyn and from department stores.

BOOKS

The English Fireplace by Nicholas Hills (Quiller Press pounds 7.95). Authoritative and fascinating, incorporating history, architecture and interior design.

Fireplaces by Alexandra Edwards (Chronicle Books pounds 12.95).

The Victorian Society recently published a booklet on the care and restoration of fireplaces in Victorian and Edwardian houses - pounds 3 (including p&p) from The Victorian Society, 1 Priory Gardens, Bedford Park, London W4 (081-994 1019).

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