Jean, I'm so glad you made this post. We have a very similar fireplace and have debated the same paint or no issue for YEARS. We both like brick - I just dislike our particular brick. If it were a more rustic/reclaimed looking brick, painting probably wouldn't even be a discussion.

Ours is an 8 ft long island fireplace (floor to ceiling). One side faces living room, the other faces kitchen/dining.

Looking at the photos that have been posted here as well as your own pics, I really think I'm leaning toward painting as well.

After looking at your pics (and looking again at our FP) I'm firmly in the paint it camp!

Also, I'm sharing a link for a FP painting technique that I've had bookmarked. One of my concerns is that when painted, the FP is going to look monolithic. I'm thinking this may help soften the look a bit.

http://www.lowescreativeideas.com/idea-library/projects/modern_fireplace_1010.aspx

Also, I think I'd leave the wood mantle as is. I think once the FP is painted a lighter color, the wood is going to be more visible and your going to see the wood floor and mantle more.

Def consider whitewashing, its not too stark or plain and keeps the character of the bricks yet gives them an updated look. We done this as a compromise in another house...beautiful!

I vote for covering the brick. Give it an updated look by covering with some type of tile, 8x8 or 12x12 in a neutral warm tone. The whole room will look more open and spacious. Frame with some wood if you want a more traditional look to the fireplace.

We removed the hearth and tiled this one. We screwed on backer board for the base which could be removed later .

We're still finishing up this renovation so no trim along the top of fireplace yet.

Paint, paint, paint. It's cheaper and easier than refacing with another material. The big, red brick monolith in the middle of your rooms is making its own dominant statement instead of being an attractive architectural element.

I had red brick in my kitchen. I used a San Marcos lime wash product that we tinted the same color as the walls (Sherwin Williams Alpaca). I really like it. It's a softer look than paint, and you can remove the lime wash if you ever want to go back to the red brick. Removing paint would be much more difficult.

I'm Glad you added the extra pics. .It appears storage is as much of a problem as the Fireplace decor. So here's a couple of thoughts-
-the dining rm. side appears to offer a "little room" for adding a storage area. I ghosted in a set of upper wall cabinets and a set of base cabinets in front of the brick wall. and a long counter surface ( could be granite or formica..) This is a ghost so you can almost see the existing wall behind. Cabinets can be custom or DIY from the Lowes or Home depot- depending on your skill levels. ( Yes, Mom you most likely will need to pitch in too. :)
Now , bear with me on our imaginary journey... Let's assume the walk space going into the family room is wide enough to....say, place a small child's desk...what if that wall area became a planning center; with a small writing surface cork board/ and bead board or drywall behind and that new surface extended out just beyond the existing mantle... A handy person could easily build over that existing mantle with new wood to make it thicker (about 6'' ) and with a little planning design shelving on either side of the fireplace. That shelving, built out of plywood or framed with drywall could be painted an accent color and the shelves could be white along with the new mantle covering. Of course you can add crown molding in both rooms. And the shelving front edges can be "thichened by attaching 1x2"" to make it look substantial.
Hope this give you some talking points about surround the wall area of the firebox with shelving and display space for all those great pictures you are going to take of the munchkins.. Also you NEED a space for SANTA'S COOKIES !

putting cabinets in the dining area and leaving a section of brick between bottom and top is a good way to use the brick as an accent but not be overwhelmed by it,... i liked the whitewashing effect and i think if dark paint scares you the white washed effect might work for you and the storage would be handy for toys and give you a shelf to use as a bar when entertaining... if you really want to lose the brick in the drm put mirrored tiles as a backsplash ....

Paint it and build storage along the backside. I don't think white is the right color for your space though. I would go with a greige color.

I'm not the OP, but have a couple comments about the storage idea.

First, it's gorgeous! Really a great design tareyc.

As the owner of a FP really similar to this though, I'd be really concerned about the heat. We use the FP a lot in the winter and the back side (the side that opens to the dining area here) gets warm....VERY warm. As a result, we personally have held off using that wall as storage simply because we didn't think wood cabinets would hold up well there unless they were really well insulated.

Re-grout the brick in a color similar to the red brick so that it doesn't look like a checker board with all those white lines. It will look much simpler all one color. Once it is all one color, it will be easier to find a room color that works with it.

I have plastered over and painted quite a few fire place bricks. Exterior, premixed stucco patch works well. It gives a much more finished look than just painting the bricks. The trick is to trowel on the stucco patch in several thin coats.

I just finished a fireplace for a client with a similar situation. We painted the brick off-white, and then I took a palm sander and hit the brick surface intermittently to scratch the paint up and let some brick show through in random places. It gave it a rustic look, but softened the "big red monster" in the middle of the room. It turned out great!

Another option is a similar look - but not with paint! Mix white mortar and sand, and trowel it over your brick. Then use a stiff brush to drag some of it off - the end result is very Old World- only a little color shows through, as much as you like, and the masonry mortar appears as if it is plaster... a little practice (when it's wet you can wash it off with a wet sponge) and you can get the appearance you like! You are in control - whether it looks like a whitewash, a solid plaster, or you can even completely remove spots to show the brick beneath (like the side of an old building). It's a fun and unique technique!

Second Glance Design - Would love to see the photos of the job you're talking about. I too have a Big Red Monster that is 10' tall and 7' long. I'm looking toward the whitewash mentioned above. But would love to see other ideas.

This is in regards to cleaning soot off fireplace surrounds. The best product is "Simple Green" and a soft brush. Very non toxic, and soot comes off like a charm.

I like the white painted fireplace idea. The white wash is great also. It really depends what you are looking for,rustic or clean and sleeker.. Either is a good choice. What color are your walls?

I like the white painted fireplace idea. The white wash is great also. It really depends what you are looking for,rustic or clean and sleeker.. Either is a good choice. What color are your walls?
Red brick is very dated.

How about a nice wood mantle piece, brick painted white, but a nice chunky piece of wood, the break it horizontally . A nice wood Mantle piece would look nice, an old beam from a barn

Hi, there's actually another option that would cover the brick to make it look like STONE, a faux finish technique that makes it have a stucco or stone look, they can even add "seams" like groute lines.

For before/after photos & interior designer tips:

http://www.interiordesigngreensboro.com --- this blog has a SEARCH box (top left corner), just type in "paint fireplace"

You can type in any phrase such as:
"how to select wall paint" or
"window treatment ideas" or
"how to layout bedroom furniture" (whatever your delima is)

http://www.transformingrooms.com - the web site with before/after photos

For those who are willing to invest the time and money, you can also cover it with sheetrock or real stone.

Continued - It wouldn't let me add photos to the above reply, so here's an example of the before/after

Sgsehgwgwwgwgwgwg

Here is a different approach. Consider sandblasting the brick. This will make the brick look 1000% better. Then, consider a different treatment for the mantle. From your photo, I can't quite tell the material, but it looks like concrete. Personally, I would lean toward a custom steel mantle, perhaps making visual connection to the steel screen at the firebox. Blackened steel and sandblasted brick is a great combination.
Good luck!
Nils Finne, AIA

Very cool!

Wow!!! I didn't know there were so many different options. I wish I had done something about it years ago. I LOVE Tarey's storage solution. Something I would definitely consider down the road. For now, I think we are going to try whitewashing or Lowe's FP painting technique :) Thanks everyone for sharing your thoughts.

B

Have you considered the comment by FINNE Architects? Check out his work. He's very talented.

Definately clad with stone tiles

Even before I scrolled down and saw the additional photos of your fireplace (back and side view) I knew that the suggestions of painting the fireplace "half way" would not work. Where would you stop the paint, at the corners, do you paint half the brickwork all the way around? I don't think so. That was suggestion doesn't the consider all of the visible brickwork.

I would not paint the brickwork. I would consider either changing out the mantel as some have suggested or furring out the masonry work with metal furring and drywall or Durock. Then paint the drywall or find a nice tile and clad with tile.

Paint it! As a Realtor and home stager, I can tell you that no future home buyer will object to painted brick, whereas an unattractive brick will make your house look dated.

Jean, PLEASE post photos when you get rolling. I had never heard of the whitewashing products until this thread and I'm curious about them too. It seems it would lighten the brick a lot -- but you'd still have the feel of brick. A win-win for lots of people!

I'm curious too about the process if you end up with traditional painting. I've seen a lot of 'how to' info - but never really followed the process of someone actually doing it!

I too would like more info on whitewashing. :-)

Absolutely whitewash with a White Mantle added. this looks more natural than the paint. Also...putting in new inexpensive hearth tile would make a big difference. the picture of the wihitewashed fireplace was amazing!!!
fran

Also you could put a stone veneer (sold in Home Depot and other home stores) right over the brick.

Who would have thought so many people would take the time to "vote" on the brick fireplace solution? Please post after photos, whatever you decide to do.

Since you're leaning towards whitewashing, I'm attaching before and after pictures of the brick we had limewashed. We're still in the process of finishing. We have to replace the old oven and add cabinet hardware, but you can get an idea of the look. As I mentioned above, the limewash is tinted using the same gray as the wall color.

I know it's been said so many different ways in all of these posts, but one thing I would keep in mind is the fact that the brick you have is actually quite unique. I don't think there are too many manufactures that make that size brick anymore. Once you paint it - you're done. There's no real easy way to get back to the original without some type of paint stripper, and that doesn't always work.

Painting will lose the historic value. Of course it's your home so you should love what you have, and make sure you are 100% on the change.

PAINT - then, reclad with tile if and when you renovate.
Some ideas on accessorizing with painted fireplace...give you a lot more options and it doesn't feel like such an elephant in the room -

Update: just wanted to come back and leave a picture of our updated fireplace. Thanks everyone for helping me finally paint this thing! We are very happy our new fireplace :)

Looks great :)

The white paint looks SO good! Woo HOO!

Looks really good! A great updated look.

Looks soooo much better! If you ever get bored with the white look you can always try painting just the bricks and not the grout lines using a roller and a darker color.

wow! Turned out great! yeah, painted fireplaces are always a win win!

I believe the fireplace would look good either way. However, I believe you need to bring everything in the room into a better scale by installing fairly wide, white-painted crown molding around the ceiling/wall junctures. The crown molding should be extended to every room, of course, to make the style consistent There is a sort of white molding around the top of the fireplace, and this could stand to be the same style and width I suggested for crown molding.

This is from 2012!! Please check the dates before you respond to old threads as most of the OPs are long gone, and the threads are dead.

Whitewash It. My husband and I did this to our dark 1980's fireplace and it was the best thing we did to make the fireplace more modern while not totally doing away with the look of brick. Cost was $11 worth of white, flat paint and some (free) water for the mix. Done in three hours. Apply the paint wash with big sponges by dabbing the surface of the brick.

I would paint it. It would make your room look bigger. That kind of brick to me is outdated.

What type of paint would one use? Does it have to be anything in particular because of the heat from the fire?

I am pretty sure I used regular interior paint. I think the color we used was Benjamin Moore White dove in matte finish. Hope this helps.