That's why it's such a surprise to enter the simple brick house on Dikeman Street and find pleasingly proportioned, light-filled rooms, with the original woodwork, pocket doors, tin ceilings, and fireplaces set off by ornate wooden mantels.
While plucking a family photograph from the mantel of her dining-room fireplace, she set off an avalanche of picture frames, kids' drawings, candlesticks, Christmas ornaments, an Irish American Writers & Artists crystal award plaque, and a mysterious plastic soda bottle containing a slip of blue paper.
On his orders, his live-in employees burned incriminating documents in his fireplace, but the fire set off smoke alarms that brought the town Fire Department and, later, the F.B.I.
Designed for entertaining, the open-space floor plan features a chef's kitchen with a wine cellar, a living room with a fireplace and a formal dining room, set off by pendant lighting and custom zebra-wood cabinetry.
Doric columns guarded the entrance to the upstairs living quarters, Ms. Bundles reports, set off by an intricately carved fireplace and English wall tapestries.
Far from being a problem, he said, a nonworking fireplace can enhance the price of your home, particularly if it is set off with an attractive mantel.
It's all that red (the carpet, the walls, every major piece of furniture), set off by a starburst chandelier, a midcentury-modern suspended black fireplace and a silvery aluminum Christmas tree.
The bar is set off from a cozy living-room-style lobby at one end, with a fireplace topped by a stainless-steel mantel.
A few minutes later, I was checking into the casita -- one of cluster of well-appointed suites set off from the main hotel, with separate bedroom and living room areas and a working fireplace.
