DIY Fireplace Surround

The fireplace installation took a detour once I injured my knee, and I had to put off the crown molding and finishing touches.  I'm showing how it turned out, although it isn't flawless, that's for sure, I'm so pleased with the end result and I love how it looks next to my staircase redo!  I am just a little bit proud that I did the whole surround, mantle, hearth, and crown with my own two hands!!
Last Winter, we opted to buy new furniture because our sectional ("Big Brown") didn't fit anymore once the fireplace went in, but oh how I miss her :(  
This tiny set was new to Ikea this Fall, it's part of the Stocksund collection.
We went with cheap because of the five kids and the dog. ( Okay, really it's because I change stuff too often to invest in anything pricey). 

This is where I left off before my knee surgery...  
My fireplace was the never-ending-story.  I couldn't get the darn thing finished thanks to my torn ACL and the fact that I HATE to do crown molding.  I slapped up some of the trim and really didn't care about how imperfect it was,  and I actually had to get this done because it I knew it would be months before I could climb a ladder again.

I needed to attach the crown molding across the front of the fireplace- here's the pre-crown shot (complete with dry wall mud all over the ceiling).

Since I stink at lining up the corners, and in this case I discovered that our house is really, really crooked, I decided to attach the corners before I hung the crown. as if I were trimming a piece of furniture.

I found that this technique worked a bit better and looks good enough for us.

  And because I spent the greater part of a 10 day stretch, laid up on the sofa, across from this very fireplace, in a post-op stupor, using my continuous movement machine like a good little patient, I enjoyed the view so much that I thought I would share the finished project!

It's closure people...
Thanks for looking!