Hi! So I'm not much help with paint color, but wanted to share two things that we did which you might consider: first, we got a high-heat black spraypaint (Rustoleum from Home Depot) and painted the fireplace face plate (the brass part) black, which instantly updated our fireplaces for about $10; second, I did not care for our red brick fireplace, and hand-painted it to look like a different color of brick. Without priming, I hand painted each brick Benjamin Moore Eagle Rock, then sponged on a lighter grey (Willow Creek) and a darker grey (Ironhorse, I think). Later, I decided it needed some brown, so I sponged on a bit of watered down brown paint (can't remember the color). I took care not to get paint on the mortar. The whole project took about a day. It came out great and I get tons of complements. If you are at all hesitant about getting the "painted brick" look when you do it all in one color, I would consider tying this method first. 99% of people would not know that the brick had been painted. If you don't like the way it turns out, you can always go back to your original plan!

If I were you, I would put the tv on the end solid wall and float a pair of sofas in the room perpendicular to the tv wall. Then you'd have your tv and your fireplace at opposite ends of the room and you could enjoy either of them equally. I'm not sure how large your room is, but there may be room for another chair or two. You are best to draw up the room to scale and experiment with furniture dimensions to see what nicely fits there. Allow enough room for a coffee table or a large upholstered ottoman in the centre. Does this help?

A fireplace there would look out of balance. If your FP is only for decorative purposes, how about one like this? Then, you can install it below the tv.

Hi, There are a number of ways in which the area under a staircase can be utilized. In case of a cramped house or space restrictions, this space can be used for providing storage, services or even a powder room as elaborated below : In case there are no space constraints and all the other areas are taken care of, the space below the stairs can be used for add ons such as a library, study, cellar or a minibar. In case there are any dogs in the house, this area serves as a spacious and compact kennel too : Apart from this, if the space is to be treated solely considering aesthetics, it can be livened up using a bit of indoor landscaping, sculptures and water body : Hope these ideas help. Do let us know what you decided to choose. All the best! Regards, RnD Atelier Nagpur