Former owners Mark and Stephanie Erceg got their initial inspiration for this stunning fireplace from admiring unique chimney stacks on their walks around Mission Hills. “We were also influenced by the considerable time we spent in England while living in Geneva, Switzerland,” Mark says. The couple had always loved Edwardian-era homes and wanted to incorporate that aesthetic into the design.

They were introduced to Caleb Kangas, owner of Third Space Design Build, and charged him with creating a fireplace to complement their stately brick home. The house is more than 100 years old, and it was important to the Ercegs that the fireplace look like it had been built alongside it.

To achieve this synergy, Caleb used a variety of bricklaying patterns, herringbone patterns, inlays and angles. “We put the stone on the sides of the fireplace and limestone caps in different elevations, so it has a turn-of-the-century gothic styling,” he says.

The Ercegs’ design was greeted enthusiastically by the city. “When we went before the architectural review board, they said they’d never seen anything like it and couldn’t wait to see it built,” Caleb says.

All the limestone used in the piece is Indiana limestone carved specifically for the fireplace.

“The hearth opening was fashioned along the lines of what you might see at Biltmore House in Asheville, North Carolina,” Mark says. “We wanted to capture in some small way the size, scope and scale of some of the fireplaces on display there.”