Short days, long nights

In preparation for the first winter in my new to me home, I have been trying to finish a few of the inside projects to keep me warm and snug in the chill of the cold (not that it really gets all that cold here in Southern California, but still, I could see my breath the other night, so that counts for something). I picked the fireplace as a great place to get started, not because the fireplace wouldn't work without making it prettier, but because if I have to look at it, and it really is one of the first things to see upon entering the house, I want it to be done, and it is one of the projects I could do myself.

I found some really beautiful slate and I love the idea of slate tiles to the ceiling (which changes the whole look of the livingroom since it was previously only half way up the wall). One oddity was that the slate I found was 16x16, and that was really too big to look right in the small space, so I cut all of the slate down to 8x8 which made it far more reasonable to work with as well as far more interesting. Attached are the pictures from before (way, way before - when I was waiting to close on the house) and one of after the tile is up, but before the grout goes in...that will be this weekend. I do love my fireplace.