When most folks think about marble in their homes, they think of kitchen countertops or marble floors. Well, there is another area that marble can make an excellent choice of materials, and that is with a marble fireplace mantel.

As one of natures natural stone products, marble has been a popular item used in construction projects for literally thousands of years. In ancient history, the Greek's would use marble for not only decorating with, but also as floors, support columns, statues and so much more. In fact, some of these marble structures are still standing today. Why is marble so popular?

Marble gives off the feeling of elegance and class. It withstands time. Marble is used throughout the world and utilizes the benefits of having an unbelievable selection of colors and patterns, not to mention some very competitive pricing structures. Just as no two snowflakes are alike, no two pieces of marble are alike as well. Over the course of time, the stone has developed it's own unique characteristics and creates an everlasting beauty that is unmatched by anything that man can produce.

Marble is not only a great choice for use as kitchen countertops, floors, and bathroom countertops, but it makes a really good choice for a fireplace mantel and surround. It used to be that years ago, a marble fireplace mantel had to be custom made, which of course made anyones remodeling budget go through the roof. Today, this is a different story. An entire industry has been formed that produces marble fireplace mantels. There are now marble manufacturers all throughout the world. You can purchase marble fireplace mantels in most every high end home remodelling center. They have been made to be easy to install by the do-it-yourselfer. In fact, most home handymen can figure the installation out pretty quick.

With all the elegance and beauty that a marble fireplace mantel can add to any room, there are some added maintenance and care issue in maintaining its uniqueness. Most all natural stone pieces need added care taken with them. Marble is a porous stone and it has to be sealed. It is an excellent idea to apply a penetrating sealer once every 12 months. What a penetrating sealer will do is to prevent dirt and anything else from getting into the small microscopic cavities that are in the stone.

For those people who have a very high remodeling budget, you can have custom crafted marble fireplace mantels made in a variety of different designs. Your imagination can be your guide with fireplace mantel ideas. Today, most marble fireplace mantels are hollow on the inside, which goes a long way in reducing the weight of these pieces.

Adding a marble fireplace mantel will create a room with an incredible atmosphere. It can take any old room and turn it into a showpiece. And since you're adding a marble fireplace mantel, go ahead and put in a marble floor to give it that perfect touch.