fireplaces revealed

there are two old coal-burning fireplaces in the apartment above the store space.  for years now, they have been blocked off.





last week, the mantels were removed to be cleaned up and stripped of their many, many layers of paint. we think they're oak, but it's too hard to tell at this point. i just love how they're both relatively simple and have built-in mirrors.

further work with a crow bar revealed the best surprise yet. beneath the planks of wood were original tiles.


it's hard to tell in the blurry picture on the left, but the tiles are green. they kind of remind me of a rorschach test.

the other fireplace is has white tile with two little floral motifs in each corner.


i always wonder why people choose to cover this kind of stuff up, but in this case, i am so glad they did.  between both fireplaces, not a tile is missing or cracked.