Paint the fireplace brick?

[Ayles]

We have a huge room dominating fireplace. The hearth has green slate tiles from the 50s. My wife is on a bit of a kick looking to refresh/update our kitchen and living room.

She wants to paint the fireplace white, but I am not sure its a great idea.

[Rusty Heap]

cover it with wood plank T&G to match your ceiling.

[McLovin]

We had a similar brick fireplace (although it was more of an 80s style brick, that looks a little older).
My wife also wanted to paint it white. I also was hesitant!
I ended up doing a “lime wash” white finish.
She was right! It looks much better.

[RobFrost]

I think if you had it plastered smooth and painted it could look better. Also, pretty sure those aren't bricks. They're slips.

But it would depend on the rest of the room and style of the house.

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[Gretch]

a seasons worth of smoke and soot and you will wish you had not chosen white.

[rusnak]

That is some mid-century modern greatness. I would leave everything as is, including the clock. Especially the clock.

[McLovin]

I agree, it really depends on the style of the rest of the room and house.

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by Ayles

..


She wants to paint the fireplace white, but I am not sure its a great idea.

I am clueless about interior design, and even more clueless about wimmins and what they want.... but I know this much....

She is right !

Mebbe break it up so it's not all the same of whatever you choose.... err... she chooses . My friend's artistic wife did some amazing stuff with a painted faux mantle years ago... stuff that I can't even comprehend beforehand.... 'cause I be clueless .

[fanaudical]

I've painted a couple of brick fireplaces (never white) to adjust the tone of the brick. My method for painting: Dilute latex paint with water and apply with a large-bore airbrush.

I agree that this is a great example of MCM and I would be hesitant to change it if it were mine, but you also have to keep the wife happy.

[Ayles]

Its def an mcm house built in 1956. Also agree, its prob an uphill battle keeping it as it is…

Heres the rest of the room.

[masraum]

I haven't read the whole thread. We had a fireplace of dark red-brown brick that dominated the room (smaller than yours, but smaller room too). No windows in the room but the dack door, so it made the room very dark. We painted the fireplace white and it was definitely an improvement.

The only thing that might make me reconsider is the fact that some of the brick above the fireplace is darkened from fire/soot. Granted, cleaning it after painting it should be 100X easier.

[Scott Douglas]

Our family room is of the same design, dark beams, knotty pine tongue and groove ceiling, red brick fireplace.
My wife wanted it mono-chrome. She got the ceiling and beams, walls, flooring, but I stopped her from touching the bricks.
Removing the paint if it was not liked would have been too much work/mess/dirt to put up with.
She's fine with that now.

[rusnak]

Ayles, I love your house. I hate to go in a different direction, but I think it would be better to just add some new furniture.

You already have such a lovely high-end aesthetic. It needs to be made more awesome along the same already established lines. To change the theme to something like Eddie Bauer or Crate and Barrel would be super odd looking. Maybe a few Herman Miller or Eames pieces? I would troll some sites like:

Design Within Reach
Allmodern
Houzz
Bauhaus2yourhouse.com
Wayfair

[911 Rod]

This is a fireplace we painted in our old house. I was hesitant, but it looked nice.

[crustychief]

here was my thread from years ago. https://forums.pelicanparts.com/off-topic-discussions/962842-photoshop-help.html

[aigel]

Once painted you can't go back to brick surface. The white washed look is a fad and it will pass and I bet you money, brick will be back. As others have mentioned, with that corner setup, you have a lot of soot licking up the walls, which will look like hell qucikly. Of course this is tough to explain to a wife that watches the home improvement channel. It may be a loosing battle. If I had to redo that, the firs step would be a fireplace insert with glass, then rip out the brick and go with a more neutral look, mostly regular walls.

[craigster59]

I'd either keep the brick or "faux finish" the brick to keep the contrast with the rest of the room and hold on to the "natural materials" feel of the fireplace. If you paint it white it will disappear with the walls and light floor. Maybe go with something like this:

[craigster59]

You could use more light in the room but due to your location larger windows (thermal loss) and skylights (leakage) would probably be out. I can't tell you how many Craftsman homes I had to strip white paint off of bookcases and built ins made from quatersawn fiddle back oak that were "upgraded" from the 40's thru the 70's.

[berettafan]

Man i dunno, seen a lot of painted over brick fireplaces in houses that look pretty dated. And how do you undo that? Kinda like the idea of a non permanent covering such as boards.

[berettafan]

I think the fireplace screen/grates and that clock set the tone. If you want a different vibe maybe try changing those things. Let the natural brick be your canvas!

What about some big art hanging from it?