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If your home was built during the early to mid-1970s and it has a brick fireplace, chances are good the brick is dark. During this period, it was common for fireplaces, carpeting, tile, and other home amenities to be dark or dark-colored but today, homeowners want a home that appears more open, light, and airy. No matter the style of home or indoor decorum, a dark brick fireplace would be more of an eyesore than a focal point or at minimum, a beautiful feature of the room.
Many people simply paint the walls light, have light-colored flooring installed, put up window treatments that are softer, or use accessories as a way of working around the outdated fireplace but we wanted to provide you with a much better solution. With this information in this article, you will discover that the overall appearance of your fireplace can be transformed. All it takes is about $100 to $150 worth of materials and a few days of your time. The result is a room that looks completely different, one that is fresh and new.
For starters, you will need to purchase a good primer. While many different brands are sold, we suggest Kilz in that it covers so well. You also need quality paint in white or off-white depending on how much you want the fireplace to stand out. A number of brands work best but we like Kilz. The paint is affordable and extra thick so it provides great coverage. A satin finish is recommended, which would provide subtle light reflection and make cleaning easy. Additionally, since the exterior of the fireplace is being painted, fireproof paint is not mandatory.
Although you could leave the fireplace mantle and surrounds as is or paint them the same color as the fireplace brick, for a unique look use different colored paint. For this, you could choose a hue similar to the color of paint that would be used on the brick, or go with something bolder to add a pop of color. For instance, cream paint color on the brick and taupe on the mantle and surrounds would create an elegant look. However, white paint on the brick coupled with terracotta, red, or cobalt blue would enhance a contemporary style room.
To get started with the transformation of your fireplace, fill a bucket with warm water and mild dishwashing soap such as Dove or Palmolive. Then, with a soft cotton cloth, wipe down the entire surface of the fireplace to remove any built-up dirt and grime, as well as small insects. You do not need to spend a tremendous amount of time cleaning in that you simply need a relatively clean surface on which to apply paint. After the fireplace brick has been wiped down, allow the brick to dry overnight.
The following day, apply the primer using a thick paint roller. For the areas around the ceiling and floor, as well as to get into some of the tighter areas such as grout lines, a soft bristle paint brush would work great. In most cases, two to three coats of primer would be needed. If you still see a little of the dark brick coming through the primer, you could always add another coat but remember that the paint coverage would hide these areas.
Depending on the number of primer coats used, you may need to let the brick dry overnight again but sometimes even three coats will be thoroughly dry in several hours. Once the primer is dry, the fun part begins in applying the paint. If you plan to paint the mantle and surrounds a different color paint or leave them as is, place protective paper over them, securing with blue painter's tape. Now, make sure the paint is well stirred or recently shaken and again, using a thick paint roller and soft bristle paint brush, start applying the paint from the top down.
It is important to allow each coat of paint to dry before applying the next coat, and just as with the primer, if the brick on your fireplace is extremely dark, three coats of quality paint may be required. As each coat of paint dries, you will be shocked at the transformation taking place. By the time all coats of paint have been applied and dried, and the mantle and surround painted, your entire room would have a different look and feel.
If inside the actual firebox is also drab, perhaps stained with soot from years of use, this too could be transformed. Start by cleaning the interior and then allowing it to dry. The only difference from painting the brick on the exterior of the fireplace with the firebox on the inside is that inside you must use fireproof paint. This can be purchased at hardware, home improvement, and most retail stores. In fact, many brands of paint are available specifically for the firebox.
