Fireplaces and fires for Shirley

Start with the showroom

Shirley is only a short drive from our Earlswood showroom, so it is simple to see the marble in person before you commit to anything. Bring photos of the room and we can point you to the surrounds that suit it.

Whether it is a 1930s semi off the Stratford Road or a newer town house, we make each fireplace to measure so it fits the room properly rather than close enough.

A short drive from Shirley, heading down towards Earlswood.

The showroom is at Unit 6, Earlswood Garden & Landscape Centre, Forshaw Heath Road, Solihull, B94 5JU. Thursday to Saturday and Monday, 9:30 to 3:30, and Sunday 10 to 2. Closed Tuesday and Wednesday.

Fireplaces and stone in Shirley

Shirley runs along the Stratford Road, with bay-fronted 1930s semis through Hall Green and Robin Hood and newer townhouses and apartments around Dickens Heath. The older houses usually keep a chimney breast, which sits well with a classic marble surround and a gas or electric fire. The newer homes tend to have flat walls, where a media wall or a clean inset electric fire suits the room better.

It is a short run down to the Earlswood showroom from Shirley, so it is easy to bring a floor tile or a paint sample and match the marble to what you already have in the room.

For the older Shirley semis, we usually start by looking at what is already there: the breast width, the opening, the hearth and whether the room still wants a traditional fireplace shape. A made-to-measure marble surround can keep the original feel without forcing you into a standard size, and the fire can be chosen around the chimney route.

For newer Shirley homes and rooms that have been opened up, electric fires are often the cleaner answer. A wider panoramic fire, a media wall or a simpler electric suite can create the focal point without a flue. The Shirley media wall case study is the most relevant published example because it shows the electric-fire route rather than a traditional chimney-breast project.

The practical detail is usually the wall around the fire. If a television, shelving or storage is involved, the fire should not be chosen on its own. We look at viewing height, cable routes, socket positions and how the finished wall will sit with the sofa and floor.

Because Shirley is close to the showroom, many customers use the visit to compare the two routes side by side: a traditional marble fireplace for a chimney breast, or an electric/media-wall route for a flat wall. Bring photos and rough measurements, and we can narrow it down before anyone starts building or decorating.

Solihull · Dickens Heath · Monkspath · Hall Green