The fireplace has been around for a very long time. Though fire places today are normally a perfect way to keep warm on a winter's night and a part of home decoration, they used to be an extremely essential part of the home. Long ago fire places weren't just a place good to snuggle up when when it got cold, it was the only place. Back then, indoor heat couldn't just be switched on, because electricity hadn't been invented. Additionally, fireplaces were the place that meals were cooked for the family. Those that could not afford an additional wood-burning stove did all the cooking using a fireplace.

Initially, fire place screens were all about function. They weren't handsome pieces of hardware, rather they were an important tool for keeping the home and family safe from out of control logs and burning embers. At some point, someone decided to build on the idea by making practical but also attractive pieces to safeguard the home and family from fire and burning embers. And why not? You're going to be seeing it a lot, shouldn't it be nice to look at?

The history of the fireplace screen in general explains the two reasons families have them: safety and beauty.

Where safety is concerned, there are a few reasons, some of which may be less obvious to you why you want a fireplace screen in front of your fire.

An obvious reason to invest in a fire screen is safety from logs on the fire. Logs will adjust, break and move without warning. Without a fire screen any of those smoldering logs might come rolling out of the fireplace and on to the floor. A well positioned fire place screen will control the burning log and can save your home.

The next reason for a fire place screen is a little less obvious. Although you may assume that the burning logs secure and controlled, there are always going to be ash and embers that try to fly into the air. This sizzling ash can can wind up in your house if you don't have a fireplace screen to hold them in. A fireplace screen will also keep other burnt ashes from getting into your house. That translates to less dirty air and mess in your house. And finally, fire place screens are a good safety feature for animals and kids, because it will create a wall between the fire and them.

beyond safety and cleanliness, another reason for fireplace screens is because they can be so attractive. It might surprise you how many people never use their fireplaces but enjoy the way a decorative fire place screen looks. If you would like fire light to accentuate your fireplace screen, you might want to consider one that is made using stained glass. The fire light will provide a vivid, colorful glow that will fill the room. Other possibilities are metal fireplace screens that have woven designs to form a picture or scene when the fire light shines from behind it. For those that never really use their fire places as they were intended, there are artist created screens. These are pieces of art that are hand painted and are placed before the fire place. For the most part, these aren't put in front of a real fire, because heat could ruin the screen.

For more information on fireplace tool sets and what they're used for, fireplace screens and how to measure your fireplace opening so you get the right screen size, or how you can coordinate your fireplace tools for a more unified look, visit www.fireplacescreensetc.com