Our corner floor-to-ceiling fireplace in the living room was in desperate need for a makeover. This is what I’m talking about:
I did this picture right after we moved: in mid-70’s style, the bricks were dirty, red colored and made the room look even darker than it was.
The easiest way to give it a quick makeover was to paint it. I went to Home Depot and talked to the guys there, to see what are my options. Their advice was to use brick paint and avoid the latex paint for walls.
Why? Latex paint used for walls doesn’t let the bricks “breath” so to speak, and the paint might peel off if you plan to use the fireplace during wintertime.
So, I went ahead and bought white Masonry, Stucco & Brick flat acrylic latex paint from Behr. It is self-priming, so…yoo-hoo…one less step for me to do :)!
Other materials I used:
-an old paint brush( don’t use a good one; it will get ruined by the end of the project)
-a little bit of grey, cream and beige paint to color the brick paint. These are the colors I chose, but it’s totally up to you to get different ones if you want.
-plastic sheets( to cover the parts you don’t want to get painted)
-a paint roller and a paint tray
-painter’s tape
-old cloth
-sponge
3 Easy Steps for a Quick Fireplace Makeover
Step 1: Thoroughly clean the fireplace with a damp cloth. That should take care of all the dust and dirt. With a bucket of warm water and an old brush, clean all the grout and remove any loose mortar. Let it dry.
This step took most of my time, but I’ve learned( the hard way) that a good prep will save you lots of time and headaches!
Step 2:I mixed the brick paint with some of my black acrylic paint I use for my artwork, to make it a light grey. With the old brush I painted all the grout lines grey, and with the paint roller, I painted the bricks the same grey.
You can see the grey grout here:
This will be the “background”, the undercoat for the next 2 colors.
Step 2:With the sponge dabbed in cream paint, I painted the bricks here and there, in no particular order or pattern. I let it dry.
Step 3:For the last coat, with the sponge dabbed in beige paint, I did the same thing as in previous step, but chose different spots.
Why 3 colors? I wanted to avoid a “flat”, painted look and give texture and dimension to the fireplace.
And…ta-daa!! This is the result:
We also changed the colors of the walls from green to light cream, and replaced the old, stained carpet with vinyl hardfloors :). I painted the mantel white, to match the molding my husband installed. Yes, I know, I still have to get rid of the brass fireplace screen. It will happen soon!
Again, the BEFORE picture:
And the AFTER one:
Total cost of the project: $20 CAN( the price of the brick paint), as I had everything else already at hand.
I’m really happy with the end result and the “new look” of my fireplace!
