SFGate

carolins I can't see anything wrong with it. Honestly. Don't particularly like the painting (sorry) and you could put the red bowl that's on your table on one of the shelves, together with some other nice ornaments and some books. But I do like your fireplace surround. So... I'm not of any help to you :-)

Ironwood Builders I'm on that bandwagon. Unless you are going some other direction in your decor from what we see here?

Judy M Are we talking about the black granite??? I like it, too! Not a fan of the fake flowers on each side but I like the whole fireplace, mantel and surround.

Barbara Griffith Designs Like the mantle..picture not so much, fake flowers..got to go. Try painting the indented rectangles in the wood and the long "out" piece on each side and the back wall where the picture is your tan wall color..try it on Photoshop first.

3345navy Great ideas...and agree. When I remove the picture, what should I replace it with? A mirror the width and height of the opening?

bdennison check out this rendition - this is my parents home. they used to have the same columns. My dad did all the built-ins and my mom decorated

carolins Hmmm... I'd go for artwork, but something that you really love. Etsy.com could be the place to find something or to decide what style you'd like. Also if you browse houzz under rooms/accessories and decor, you'll find some lovely things.
And I wouldn't think too much about 'will it go with the colour of my sofa'. If you really fall in love with it, it will probably go with the other things you love.
A mirror could work, but I wouldn't fill the entire space with it. I like Barbara Griffith's idea of painting the wall.
Love what I can see of your sofa, cushions and rug. Looking good. Perhaps you can liven things up a bit with some silver ornaments or turquoise or green coloured accessories on your shelves. Some nice glasswork perhaps. Combined with the dark red bowl and plate it will look lovely. Don't go overboard though. Some books and/or stack some (interior decoration) magazines on a shelf.

Bottle Vases
Mercury-Glass Vases
Green Mercury Glass Bud Vases

Good luck :-)

3345navy Thanks mountaincobra!

3345navy Your dad did a great job bdennison...wish I could see the before. I also like the idea of including some great glass jars/bottles. I will send another pic with the sofa.

Promethean Remodeling, LLC When talking about the surround, you are referring to the black stone and not the mantle itself, nor the surrounding bookshelves. I am not a fan of the gloss black stone. I am also not a fan of busy patterened stones with lots of veining. That being said, less is more. Simple traditional stones like white cararra marble, limestone or sandstone are good choices as they are naturalistic and will go with any color scheme that you choose to paint the walls and woodwork.
I am attaching acouple of images for you to consider. The larger cherry mantle/overmantle has a synthetic limestone surround. The other has a honed black stone. The last two have a very vibrant highly veined surrounds so you can compare my meaning. The owner loved the vibrant and colorfull surrounds. Just not my taste.

Cottage Craft Tile If you think the granite is too "cold" or "formal" looking, I'd invite you to consider our hand-crafted Arts and Crafts Tile. It's definitely a look that brings you back to a particular period, and is miles away from polished grainite. You can check out our photos on houzz or go to our Cottage Craft Tile website at www.jvtile.webs.com Good luck with your project!