How To Paint A Brick Fireplace
After mucho requests for a fireplace tutorial, we’re here to deliver the goods. As you can see, we’re no strangers to a painted brick fireplace…
…or two.
In fact, painting the fireplace in the living room and the den was one of the first things we did when we moved in. Dingy brick can really suck the life out of a room if you’re not careful. Especially the ugly dark red kind that we had when we moved in- and especially when paired with lighter furnishings and wall colors (which just happen to be things that we adore).
Natural brick certainly has a place in many homes (and also in our hearts, it just didn’t work for our light and airy aesthetic- and our brick was especially maroon). So here’s what we did to bring some soft beauty to both of our brick fireplaces in a flash and on the cheap. Gotta love a makeover you can accomplish in an afternoon (no power tools required).
Step 1- Wipe down your bricks with a moist (not sopping wet!) rag to remove any cobwebs or soot.
Step 2- If your bricks are especially soot stained, you’ll want to prime them with oil based primer to ensure that no soot stains bleed through your paint job. Neither of our fireplaces had this problem so we skipped right to step three.
Step 3- Use a nappy roller meant for textured surfaces to apply two to three coats of flat or semi-gloss latex paint (the finish is up to you). You also may need to rely on a paint brush to get into those deep grout crevices. Brick is an especially porous material (which explains why your fireplace may call for three coats) so be sure to have more paint on hand than you’d usually rely on for such a small surface area (our den fireplace took over a gallon of paint, and the one in our living room took nearly half a gallon).
Step 4- Do the happy dance cause you’re done. Easy, right? If you can paint a wall you can definitely paint a brick fireplace.
Good luck with your big fireplace transformation! Oh and why not take before and after pictures for us while you’re at it? Don’t be surprised if your newly painted fireplace inspires you to continue the makeover with new art above the mantel or a few fresh accessories. Homes are never really finished anyway, are they?
Looking for more ways to spruce up your fireplace? A woven basket full of firewood (we love birch for its crisp look) will add even more inviting ambaince.
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Comments
A white fireplace would definitely accomplish that Cape Cod feel. As for picking a white, just bring home a ton of swatches from the paint department and see which one works best in your space. We always love Benjamin Moore’s Decorators White.
xo,
s
Wowwwwwww…love your blog. Totally compelled to look at every page! Came across it because I am now renting a house with the ugliest fireplace ever which was “rebricked” with that gross fake flat brick with BLACK grout(which, of course got all smeared on the paneling)!
Anyhoo, planning to paint it and your pics came up as I searched images….I am planning to leave the blond paneling because there is something fun about it, but(and here is my question finally) how the heck do I remove those awful black sloppy smudgies of grout on the paneling??
Thanks! ~~~di
Hey Di,
So glad you found our blog! We’re not sure if those smudges are removable, but our best advice would be to hit up your local home improvement center and see what the pros there recommend for the job. Maybe some stripping agent or even a chisel or flat-head screwdriver could do the job. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Nice blog, also many useful tips. I have brick fireplace and I assume I will need to paint it in cuple of years. Probbobly will use your technics
We have a very old house with dark crown molding all around, and two (very dark) built-in bookcases next to the dark brick fireplace. The room is very…dark! Plus we have trees all around the house, so we don’t get a lot of natural light. I’ve been debating on paining the brick fireplace just to lighten things up a bit, but am wondering how it will look with all of the darker wood. Would we also need to paint the dark bookcases next to it?
I’m a little nervous on how it will turn out, but feel I need to do something to the room to make it brighter. The walls are a light greyish/purplish color (which I love). Any suggetions? Do you think painting the brick a lighter color is the way to go?
Lighter paint definitely will open the entire room up and make it airy, so if it was our space we’d paint it all (the brick, the wood, etc). It’s really all about personal preference though, so if you only want to start out by painting the fireplace that’s your call. You can always paint the wood later but you can’t unpaint the fireplace, so just think it through and be sure you’re ready! We have never regretted painting the wood paneling, wood trim, and the dark brick in our house, but it’s all about what you like. We love a bright and airy room. Good luck!
xo,
s
Hey,
Awesome site guys, love it.
Thanks for the fireplace painting tips. We have a old brick fire place I want to paint but the bricks themselves are not smooth, they are those real textured bricks, quite rough and pretty ugly. I want to keep the brick facade but not each brick rough surface. Do you reckon there is any way I could make each brick smoother (using plaster or somthing?) before i paint them?
Hey Tristan,
Yup, you could definitely skim coat them with plaster to smooth them out beforehand. Just visit your local home improvement store and ask the experts there what they recommend. Good luck!
xo,
s
I am thinking of painting my brick fireplace white. I noticed in the rooms where you painted your brick white that you also have a lot of white accent pieces…i.e., white frames, furniture, etc. I cannot and really don’t want to change my whole room. I just really want to paint the brick to freshen up the room. In this room the top of the walls are a light tan (it’s a Restoration Hardware color)and the bottom is a wood that we painted white. The mantle on the fireplace has already been painted white, however, a lot of the picture frames on my walls are darker wood/black, the lamps are black, the entertainment center is tall black (and a bit distressed). The furniture is light tan like the walls, med. brown leather chair and light green chair. Do you think it will look okay to have a white fireplace or maybe the darker brick helps to balance the dark and light pieces I have in the room??? Thoughts???
Absolutely! And even just one or two more pops of white could be added if you think it needs a bit more balance (you won’t know until you see it). Thankfully, an inexpensive white throw on the sofa or even some $6 white floor length curtains from Ikea (we love their Vivan panels- we have them all over our house!) would also add to the airy ambiance. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Okay, thanks! My kitchen flows into the room w/ the brick fireplace and we have wood cabinets in the kitchen. I’m wondering if I may want to paint my cabinets white after the fireplace…this may turn out to be a bigger job :). BTW I live in Richmond too (and have a much older daughter named Clara). I was looking at your sight and loving it and then realized your are in Richmond too.
Mmm, white cabinets sounds lovely! And our Clara sends a big “hi” to yours! Maybe we’ll bump into you guys in Richmond someday…
xo,
s
Did you guys use the same white paint for your fireplace as your trim???? You gave the option of flat or semigloss. Which one did you use??
The fireplace is actually a super soft gray color (Glidden’s Ruffled Feathers) since we wanted the mantel and the shelf above it to “pop” a bit for some layered interest. All the trim in our house (and the mantel) are Benjamin Moore’s Decorators White. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Hey! Thanks for this blog. I have a dark maroon fireplace that goes all the way to the ceiling, and this behemoth overpowers the entire living room and puts me in a bad mood just by looking at it! I have seen “masonry paint” at Wal-Mart and home improvement stores, and I’m wondering if you used this type of specialty paint, or if just regular wall paint does the job. Thanks!!
P.S. I love your style!!!
We just used regular latex paint to cut down on the fumes. Worked like a charm!
xo,
s
Your fireplace looks great! I also want to tackle this project but had a few questions before I get started…
1. Did you paint the inside of the fireplace too?
2. The mantle on my fireplace is white. Do you think it would look good if I painted the fireplace white too, or should I use a contrasting color like light gray or cream? In picture #2 did you paint the fireplace the same color as the walls?
Thanks so much! Looking forward to following your blog and learning more tips, love your style!!!!
We did paint the side of our fireplace. And as for the color, we’ve seen lovely all-white fireplaces as well as gorgeous cream and white or soft gray and white fireplaces so it’s really all about personal preference. You can’t really go wrong either way. As for our den fireplace, we painted it one shade darker than the walls so it subtly draws the eye in and shortens an awkwardly long room. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
When a free weekend finally comes my way, I plan on painting my brick fireplace white. A friend of mine scoffed at my idea after I had strongly argued against her doing the same thing. But, what can I say, your final results have made me do a 180! Anyways, I was hoping to pick your brain about how to go about painting the mantle. Currently, its wood and varnished (a light oak color, if I had to guess). How do you suggest I go about painting the mantle to match the fireplace… am I going to need to sand it prior to painting, or will a layer of primer prior to semi-gloss paint suffice?
Keep up the good work, and thanks in advance for your suggestions!
Yup, we would sand it to rough up that varnish and then follow the sanding with oil-based primer (one coat) and then two coats of semi-gloss paint (so it’s nice and wipeable). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Thank you for this post… I have really been wanting to paint my brick fireplace (I have painted all the horrific wood paneling and moulding and now it is time for the fireplace and I am stumped. Our brick goes all the way up to the ceiling, it doesn’t stop at mantel height….. and our mantle is pretty pathetic.. I am at a loss. I have a photo of my fireplace on my blog in this post… HELP
http://4ourkiddos.blogspot.com/2010/05/i-love-paint-and-regrets-about-last.html
We would paint it the same color as the walls of the room for an integrated and cozy effect- it’ll feel a lot less disjointed and jarring!
xo,
s
Quick question: I don’t have the paint chip because it doesn’t exist anymore, but you guys might have it, so…would Sand White walls work with a Water Chestnut-painted fireplace? Thanks!!!
Hey Jennifer,
We have adjoining rooms painted in those two colors and they really work well together! Just do a little sample pot painting first to make sure they work in your space (since paint looks different in varied lighting situations). Good luck!
xo,
s
Your fireplaces look GREAT!
One question though. Did you actually use a flat finish paint or a semi-gloss? I am leaning towards the semi-gloss because it would be easier to wipe down if necessary. Although, I would prefer the flat finish. Maybe, a satin finish?
Satin would be perfect! We used flat and ours still look great but we don’t use one fireplace and the other is gas (so there’s no soot). Keeping the mantels semi-gloss was really helpful for us though!
xo,
s
We have a first floor family room that is covered in dark paneling, and a wooden mantel that is medium colored wood that matches built in wooden shelves next to it, and also the wooden door to the patio, which is on the other side of the fireplace. The fireplace is multi-colored brick that goes to the ceiling. I would love to dry wall over all the panneling to lighten up the room, but it’s too expensive. So I thought about painting the fireplace, and possibly the shelving.
Painting the brick white would stand out like a sore thumb.
We have hardwood floors and a deep red oriental carpet, a brown leather sofa and loveseat, and we have a whole wall covered by teak furninture/shelving that we love. The fireplace makes it look really “busy”. It’s the view you see when entering the room.
How can I submit a photo and get your advice???
Thanks!
We would suggest something in the tan or mocha range because it won’t look too stark and will fit right in with your richer tones and hardwood floors. Just bring home a ton of swatches and tape them up to see which one you love best. Good luck!
xo,
s
Just painted my fireplace on Monday, after you commented on my post on June 28th. IT LOOKS AMAZING!! My husband commented that he thinks it is like having another light in the room. It is so BRIGHT AND CLEAN!! LOVE IT!!! Thanks for the advice. I need to send you a picture… How do I do that?
So glad it worked out so well! We’d love to see a pic! See the sidebar button with our faces on it? Just click the contact us link there.
xo,
s
My living area paneling is a white. I want to paing the red brick fireplace white. Will that look good.
If its a wood burning fireplace that we will be using come winter, will latex paint work over my brick or do I need to use a high heat paint? The high heat paints only come in a few colors, none of which I love. Id love to use latex paint but am concerned about the area of the brick just on the inside of the fireplace that would be painted – There is the 2 or 3 inches of the side of the brick that are on the inside of the fireplace that would need to be painted it would seem. You said you guys dont ues one fireplace and the other is gas though, whereas we use ours a ton in the winter. We’ll put a screen on it like the one you have in your white fireplace. It will be spray painted black or nickle
You should definitely be able to get away with a regular latex paint for the outside bricks (we just suggest using a high heat paint for inside of the firebox or on something like a screen or door in front of the flames). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
When I “googled” ‘painting fireplace brick,’ your site came up. As I was reading, it all seemed so familiar. Then I remembered . . . you’re the daughter of one of my high school classmates!! Claim to fame . . . my mother taught your mom sewing in junior high school! I see much of Eileen’s talent continued on!
Love the tips re: the fireplace, which I plan to use.
Love the site! Will pass the link on to my new daughter-in-law — your tastes are very similar, and the pictures of your wedding remind me very much of my son’s wedding! :)
Hi Sherry…my sweet friend Sarah Tozier thought you were my daughter….I told her you are my sweet and very talented niece….: o )
That’s so funny! We figured that’s what happened. It’s such a small world!
xo,
s
love your blog and all the things you’ve been doing to your home! i think on of my favorites has got to be the flower wall. why didnt i think of that!
i had a question about the mantle/trim of the fireplace. the face and hearth are made of brown marble, the mantle and trim are your basic cookie cutter style of white wood, and our walls are an olive green with windows on both sides of the fireplace. i wanted to spice it up and do something with the mantle/trim to make it more of a focal point. maybe paint it in a way to add some age to it or …anything. i dont know what to do, or how to do it =) any help would be greatly appreciated!
We haven’t taken on any project like that personally, but maybe if you google around you’ll find some ideas? Good luck and happy hunting!
xo,
s
LOVE the BLOG!! I just found this today!!
I am currently looking to redo my family room. It is a “Willmington Tan” color, however looking to go with the a VERY soft blue to brighten it up. We have very few windows in the room. I have a dark brown mantle and built in bookcase in the room. Looking to get a cape cod feel. Should I paint the brick on my fireplace white? How do I pick a white?