Over-mantel begins! - Classical fireplace build

*above are affiliate links

[FinishCarpentryTV]

Thanks for your patience with this series everyone. We have been absolutely busy at work. I've currently been handling about 3 projects at a time. My goal is to at least make progress on my mantelpiece once a week! Thanks for all the feedback and support. I truly appreciate it!

[TehBeliefs]

I remember watching your videos and being so inspired when I was miserable at my old job. One day i just got a gut feeling to check on indeed and there was a custom home trim crew looking for someone. I had no experience and they were willing to teach me so I quit my job for them…and from then on i’ve been loving every bit of what I do. Now i’m an experienced trim carpenter and still watching all of your videos, thank you for the years and years of inspiration and knowledge transfers.

[FortressFineWoodworks]

Dude its looking AMAZING. I just bought that book - Traditional American Rooms. Thanks for adding some classical design to the modern internet!

[moneymakingmikeg.]

Yo Richard, I really appriciate you priming after every step. It does help us visualize the project coming together. It's looking fantastic Bud. Hoping all is well, Dirty Jersey out!!

[DoraDominguezCarey]

... All good things are worth the wait. Great work on the mantel. Btw, the opposite of boring is drole. Lol. You're right, though: most trim work these days is much to be desired. I've been an avid fan of Brent Hull forever. He's in my woodworking anthology series & epoch of skillsmen, carpenters, and authors alongside the great Norm Abram. Keep up the excellent content. Novice carpenters are watching. Hugs from Midland, Texas.

[danajoseph]

Man, your skill with Brent’s guidance is a thing of power.

[jfinaz]

You make me smile to see how much you're enjoying your new occupational therapy. My appreciation for the ornate moulding and trim is slowly coming 'round. Nice work as usual and I look forward to all of your next videos. 👍👍

[jmario]

I love this series. The progression and how meticulous the process is. Every time you add somthing it looks more and more beautiful.

[lindacgrace]

Have you considered using fabric? Particularly an extremely fine white mesh fabric. I have seen that used as a cover - it reduces air flow for air vents, but would do very little to muffle or diffuse sound. Think about sound proofing a room - you need to use heavy, thick fabrics in multiple layers to get any sound dampening. A single layer of a tightly woven fabric wouldn't interfere with sound quality but would provide the illusion of a solid surface. Just a suggestion - your mantel looks AMAZING - job well done!

[mariodegrazia]

I don’t know many people who get such joy out of work like you seem to. That’s inspiring. I have been watching g for a while now and you progressed so much. Good for you. Absolutely beautiful work

[RStaub]

Amazing work and your skills have refined so well. One tool suggestion that I recently purchased and has been a lift, is a flat back tape measure. Makes it so much easier to mark out measurements as it has no curve. Glad to see the house coming along!

[FullArmageddon]

Looks awesome! I would definitely buy a second one of those TVs and just keep it stored in its box somewhere in case that one dies years down the road. Eventually they'll probably change that TV's dimensions in a new model or maybe discontinue it, and it'd be a shame if you or the next owner had to jury-rig some other TV to fit there on a different mount, maybe overlapping some of the framework around it if it's bigger.

[ARandomTrex]

Dude, you killed that. I remember stumbling on your channel a few years ago when you were still using mdf. It's cool to see your craft progress. I only do trim jobs on occasion, but i definitely appreciate these more technical jobs. I dont even care for a lot of trim stacked and like the minimal look but, man that looks good. 👌

[JuanSanchez-mkro]

I did something similar in my house, building the mantel and picture framing the flat screen years ago! It’s very unique and you won’t see it in many houses unless you’re a carpentry and molding geeks like most of us. Great job, can’t wait to see the top piece go up.

[elonmusk]

Richard, thanks for the video. Can you make a videos showing the speaker cover? Thanks again.

[jeffhowden]

For the speaker, instead of using a piece of wood, instead build a wood frame and stretch some white mesh (thick enough material and small enough mesh that the speaker behind is reasonably obscured) over that frame, stable it in place on the back, and "fasten" it in place with some magnets. If you pick the right color, it'll blend perfectly with your final paint color and almost seamlessly blend in to the rest of amazing trim work.

[hansangb]

A whistle of approval for sure! (But I bet Ashley is happy that it's almost done 😁)

[brianheddy]

The opposite of inspiring is boring. Thank you again for another inspiring video on a subject that I really enjoy doing.

[danieljames]

Bravo! Thank you for sharing your journey of this fantastic project. Love that you’re providing historical, documented sources. This is next-level mill-working. If you are looking for more books of decorative arts, try a book of Hepplewhite (furniture design and detail) and something more didactic Vitruvius’ The Ten Books on Architecture. It’s architectural detail along with theory. Looking forward to viewing more of your work.

[jamesfajfar]

Awesome videos as always, I've learned so much from you. I gotta say though, the fact that the only size tv that space will fit is that specific tv was a terrible mistake. But it works for now and it looks great. Nice work brother, wish I had your skills and knowledge!