It seems a little strange that you could actually have a fire directly under your TV, doesn’t it? But that is exactly what a fireplace TV stand offers. While the fire is clearly electric rather than a real wood fire, it can still produce heat and offer great ambient lighting for your space, setting the perfect atmosphere for a cozy holiday movie, a family favorite or a romantic date.

With a fireplace television stand, there are no chimneys, venting or gas lines required. There are no messy ashes to clean up and no stacks of wood to chop or stack. You just need to plug in your fireplace and turn it on with the push of a button.

Plus, an entertainment center with fireplace usually provides shelving or cabinets for entertainment hardware, like a gaming console, a DVD or Blu-Ray player and a streaming media player. You get practical storage and great atmosphere all in one piece of furniture.

Choosing the right fireplace television stand largely comes down to picking the aesthetic you like. Look at the style of the room, the colors, the shapes and the layout to start imagining what kind of stand will work best. Other considerations of course include size, height and the kind of storage available in the TV stand. For some setups, you might want a TV mount in addition to your fireplace entertainment center. This will allow you to position your TV higher if that works better in the space.

In terms of the size of your fireplace TV stand, take audio equipment into account. Choosing a soundbar or other home theater speakers can improve your movie-watching experience.

Once you have your TV cabinet with fireplace set up, make your life easy by programming a universal remote control to communicate with all your entertainment and audio equipment through one device. Then, flip on the TV and the fire and start watching your favorite movies and shows.