Hi Bossy,
I love your blog and I was hoping you could steer me in the right direction regarding my fireplace wall. As you can see it is very dark and very dated.
I am thinking of painting it but wanted to know your opinions on colors, etc. Do I paint the brick and woodwork white? Or do I paint the brick the same color as the wall?
I have painted the trim in the rest of the house Benjamin Moore [OC-65] Chantilly Lace…Notice how the crown molding is dark wood too. This room is very dark…
I would love your advice. Thank you so much!
Katie
PS, you’re probably wondering why there is so much stuff on the mantle. We have a 2 1/2 year old and a 9 month old, enough said.
Dear Katie,
PLEASE paint. You are raising young children in this environment: you deserve – nay, you MUST HAVE – a bright, cheery, up-to-date space. Please strap those ankle-biters into their car seats RIGHT THIS VERY INSTANT and go to the Benjamin Moore store for some more off-white paint.
The Youngsters over at Young House Love have had great luck painting their fireplaces white. The picture above is one. They’ll even tell you how to do it.
And here’s another before/after picture you’ve seen before, in a recent post involving a less-than-stellar fireplace:
Can you believe the difference some white paint can make? It’s crazy!
In your room, I suggest painting the bricks, the mantle, and the bookshelves an off-white, but in different finishes. The Chantilly Lace looks ever so slightly pinkish – is this how it looks in your house?
Go ahead and try it in here, but I’d also be inclined to try OC-17 White Dove and OC-38 Acadia White – that one is much creamier. Use matte or eggshell for the brick itself, and semi-gloss for all the woodwork.
I can’t quite tell what your wall color is…if it’s tired, consider re-painting it a warmer color, such as Benjamin Moore’s 204 Woodmont Cream.
Then paint the crown moulding and all the other trim in the room the off-white, semi-gloss finish.
And THEN, to distinguish your beautiful white brick fireplace wall from everyone else’s beautiful white brick fireplace walls, paint the inside – or just the back wall – of your bookshelves a color.
A blue would be lovely, if you plan to keep those blue and white ceramic jars on the mantle. (Maybe last week’s questioner has leftover blue paint she could give you.) The interior of these shelves are Farrow & Ball‘s Cook’s Blue, which has a nice kick.
Talk about low risk, high reward, Katie. Painting your fireplace wall – and the rest of the trim – will transform this room completely. Good luck!
P.S. I hope you know that when I say, “[You] paint,” what I mean is, “Please hire someone to paint,” or “Please ask your husband to paint,” or “Please promise your friends an excellent take-out dinner if they paint.” Please do not try to do this yourself. Not with 2 small kids. If you have the time and childcare to paint a wall, go take a nap instead. That’s an order.
I need help on the painted brick subject as well. I would love to paint my fireplace (white or maybe even another color; gray?). But in every picture I see of a well done painted fireplace, everything (furniture, walls, etc) is WHITE! And as beautiful as that is, I have a 5 year old boy and a 2 month old daughter. White doesn’t always work well with kids. Advice?
I need help on the painted brick subject as well. I would love to paint my fireplace (white or maybe even another color; gray?). But in every picture I see of a well done painted fireplace, everything (furniture, walls, etc) is WHITE! And as beautiful as that is, I have a 5 year old boy and a 2 month old daughter. White doesn’t always work well with kids. Advice?
Hi, Vicki! If your walls are a richer color, your instincts are right: you can do a darker neutral, such as taupe (check out Benjamin Moore’s HC-45 Shaker Beige) or gray (Revere Pewter; I forget the number). You don’t need to live with icky red brick if you don’t want to – kids or not! Good luck!
Love the blog. But, I admit it, I'm a bit painted brick phobic too. Although, I think the pictures here look great and I agree that in many cases it is best to paint. My question is are there cases when it it best NOT to paint the red brick fire place? I have a 1928 Dutch Colonial with a red brick fire place in the living room. It has white built-in shelves on both sides and a white mantel. I was thinking of painting the room Philladelphia Cream (HC-30) and then painting the built-in shelves and the mantel Bleeker Beige (HC-80). My goal was to blend the wood work around the brick a bit better so that it's not so harsh against the white. Not sure what color to paint the back of the shelves. So ARE there things to look for that can tell you when leaving the brick unpainted would be best?
Almost makes me wish we had a big old brick wall to paint. Oh well.
Great advice as always, Bossy!!
Thanks Bossy!
I am still laughing at the ankle biter comment, you are a hoot! Like the above commenter, my husband is painted-brick phobic too. I think this is just what I need to show him. Look, honey, this is what an expert says!
I will be sure to send along "after" pictures. My husband is currently painting the guest bedroom so hopefully the fireplace room will be his next adventure. Also, I do plan to paint the walls in the room a different color. Still in the process of choosing…
Thanks!!!
Thanks for the AWESOME comments, everyone! So glad the solution appealed. Now Katie needs to weigh in!
Anon, I love your suggestions of doors and pillows – lovely AND practical. Thanks for those.
I agree that painting the back of the cupboards another color is a great idea. If budget allows, I would also add doors to the bottom half of the shelves to provide storage for all the little one's items and add a couple of colorful hearth pillows on either side of the firebox for softness, color and pattern. Would love to see the before and after and agree…go take a nap!
I love your style of giving advice!
I do love the idea of painting a different color behind the shelves to match the vases on the mantle currently. There is also the growning trend of pattern wallpaper that could work behind there if she had time to find the right pattern. With two small kiddos that might be a tall task though!
I hope she sends in after pictures!
"Please do not try to do this yourself. Not with 2 small kids. If you have the time and childcare to paint a wall, go take a nap instead. That's an order."
And this is why I adore your blog. I love designers who realize that there's the beautiful still art of the coffee table book, and still have a clue how it all has to translate into the reality of people with small children. (I don't have a coffee table, much less coffee table books.)
Thank you thank you thank you!
BTW, if you have other ideas of how to live beautifully with small kids, please post!!!
I have loved that YHL picture ever since I first saw it. It's such a great inspiration for this project. I hope she sends "after" shots!
http://40daysof.wordpress.com/2010/06/01/the-back-porch-back-from-the-dead/
I am sending this to my painted brick phobic husband.
Oh Annie, You crack me up!
But you sure know your stuff when it comes to how to fix a dark room.
Paint, paint and more paint! And the idea of painting the backs of her bookcase is genious!!!
The more haste, the less speed.......................................................