Yes. It looks rather dead. Go back. See if you can scrape some of the black paint off, since it probably hasn't cured.

Could you find a better space for the TV? Even if it is off centered, but closer to eye level when sitting. I think TV's over the fireplace are too high. I would rather a great piece of art there.

The rest of your space look good.

Go back to the original paint job or just the fireplace? 
I will think about what we could do with the tv. ὤC

It's hard to say if it's a mistake. I'd be inclined to paint the brick, too. I'd leave it and live with it and maybe someone will come along to photoshop the brick black for you. You can go back to white on the mantel any time, so I'd live with it a bit. Is there any other black in the room? Or maybe a very dark charcoal would be a bit softer?

Yes, this is a bonus room with a black cement floor. So their is plenty of black. Yes, I probably should at least wait until morning and see what it looks like in the daylight. ὠ6 And yes, I'm wondering if a different shade of black would look better. ᾑ4

Would doing shiplap on the wall make it look a little more interesting? I just don't really know ble that would look with a chair rail and removing that doesn't seemike something I could do on my own. 
I could do a plant on either side on those benches as well as some art above those.

No shiplap! I think that area could be gorgeous if you could move the tv and add a large piece of art over the fireplace. If you don't actually use the seats, perhaps have bookcases added in those sections so there isn't so much blank wall space.

I wish we could move the tv!! I don't see any other place we could put it unless we put it on the opposite wall but that would mean the back of the couch would be to the built ins. ᾑ4ᾑ4 We have a more formal living room with no tv and this is where everyone gathers to watch, so I'm not sure where I could put it where it could still be seen easily. I totally agree with you though! One of those TV's that look like art isn't in the budget right now, but that would be nice! We hate putting it on a stand like that too, but there are no studs on the wall behind it. ᾓ7‍♀️

Go back to the white. paint the rectangle on the mantle front the same color as the wall. If you have a steady hand, do one layer of the routed shapes around the top of the mantle in the wall color, too.

The brick is the big problem.

Definitely paint it back to what it was, It rather looks like a big black hole, right now. I also agree, that tv, needs to be moved. Not only is it too high, it is sitting on the stand, and is not straight up and down, because, its too high. It just doesnt look right on that fireplace. Some nice art and accessories would look better. The tv should be at eye level when you are sitting.

The TV is a huge eyesore there. The black makes the orange of the brick really stand out. I liked the white better.

Or, how about a blue you pull from the rug?

I prefer the original look, in your first picture.

Bookcases nailed to a wall, does not a built in make. ???? Nope. Nope they do not. The tan paint color elsewhere? Show more of the space : )

I would keep going and paint the brick and the bumped out part of the wall too.

Yes -- no to the black mantel.

There''s no Novocaine for truth.

Connect the pieces that were never ever built ins. Sorry, that's just truth. Whomever.....furred out a brick face hearth......didn't know what to do with the raised hearth, which should have come out before flooring ( was probably carpet prior ) . Even then, there would have been issue with a RECESSED fire for true built ins . So......make lemonade from a lemon.

It is what it is....and to look half right? Trim, paint, reduce the visual clutter. add sconces, even if NOT electrified and show more of the space. .....: ) You're focused on one wall.

I kinda like it and yes i also dont like tvs over fireplaces !!!!!! but it is there so lets work with it. if this is just a simple tv watching room, then dont over think

it. I love the hearth cause sitting by a fire is the best!. maybe just add a few tall greenery on either side. clear up some clutter in bookcases and havea cup of tea and love it and the hard work you did!

Going to throw it out there! Given your floors and thinking outside the box, painting that whole wall a soft black (to work with floors) could be stunning.

You also solve the Tv issue, as it will fade away.

Remove the chair rails (no matter what you decide to do) and take advantage of the indents.

While I think that is beautiful @Maureen, the warmth of the floor makes it stunning, I am not sure her black floors would do that for her.

I am also going to throw this out there, let me know what you think.

I love black.....Could just painting the back of the shelves black work?

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I like that idea of just bringing more black into that space but not all black because your floors are already dark. I also think adding greenery on both sides along with sconces would be really pretty. If it were me I’d paint the brick white too. The other option is going all white, reducing the amount of shelves, add in greenery and bring in some black and pops of color with your decor.

Thank you for the great ideas! And I certainly wasn't trying to trigger anyone by calling these that were put into a garage turned bonus room built ins. They are what they are and I'm not looking to do anything other than paint in here for the time being. I tried a lighter more matte paint and especially in person, that helps. But I'm still questioning. I like the black behind the cabinets as an idea too. Maybe white mantle and black on the backs? My husband really doesn't want to touch the brick. The rest of the room is painted BM Cotswold. I just painted that and hate to change it just yet. Does it work okay with the black? I will for sure remove the clutter. I'm in project mode! Haha

Is it very, very weird to move the tv in front of the fireplace opening? I agree with all of you, but this is our tv watching room and I'm not sure what else I could do. It would be nice to have this as a working fireplace, but our keeping room/formal living room has a fireplace as well, so it's not a deal breaker.

On either side of the fireplace...how about thick 4" cushions, in a print that matches the color of the fireplace? ♥ Make it a little bench seat on either side, with black scones up high. Cute!

Hi Chelsea! I really like the lighter more matte paint you chose. I’d just add some black sconces on both sides of the fireplace, add in some greenery and terracotta pots to match the brick (if the hubby doesn’t want it white) and call it done. Using that same black behind the shelves would be pretty too but it just depends on how much more you feel like doing at this point. Lol.

I like the original the best. But to me part of the problem is scale. The mantel is too tall. Especially with the tv on top. Because that is only emphasizing the height. Drop the mantel down and mount the tv so it can be closer to the actual mantel. As a second option consider removing one side of the bookcases to allow the tv be at a more comfortable height.

I tried to use an emoji but I guess you can't on this forum and it translated it to those weird symbols. I tried to edit, but it wouldn't let me.

Re: tv in front of the fireplace, one thing you could do is to mount the TV with a pull-down mount, so that when you are not watching tv it is up high (and you can use the fireplace) and when you want to watch tv you just pull it down. It swings out and down so it clears the mantle. That's what we did. The mounts are kind of pricy but it's a good solution. Attached are some pictures from when I first mounted it. The TV actually can go a bit lower, with the bottom of the TV going entirely in front of the mantle.

My brother did the same thing! It works great

sorry, but the brick is the oddman out here.

why doesn't he want to paint it? Romabio is simple and easy to do, and good for the brick.

the tv needs to be mounted to the wall with a hole cut in the back to run the cords down.

try something like this across the wall. do the front of the benches like shown here and just expose the brick below the firebox.

plenty of how-to's on how to do this. those tangle of cords and computer monitor look on that tv does you no favors!

It's a great spot though! you just need some tweaking.

I like maureens idea. redo the trim behind the bookcases and the molding, paint it all black.

I would remove that chair rail molding on the wall portion and do a plain wall, or try some board and batten or even wood slat molding

if you like the white, then paint it all white, do some beadboard paneling behind the bookcases and paint those a contrast color. above the mantle surround do some other type of wood trim molding from side to side. mount the tv like this mirror

Or, remove that weird mantle, and do a wood mantle like this.

If he still doesn't want to paint the brick, then just fir it out,

attach some cement board, and do a diff tile or slab or even shiplap or some other wood trim

can you take a picture from the front angle, dead on , and i'll play around w/the photoshop?

I would have painted the wall above the chair rail in a satin finish that's the same black as the TV and the rest of the wall and the part below the chair rail white.

Wow, you all are amazing! I appreciate all this feedback so, so much. I will take a picture straight on first thing in the morning. 

I really wish we could mount the TV or do the pull down mount, but for some reason there are no studs above the fireplace. Thank you all again!!

chelsea, in a wall, there should be studs every 16". if you open up that wall, could you tee in a support cross stud somehow?

or, just get some heavy duty toggle bolts. you don't HAVE to have a stud to mount it to since they do make brackets for no studs. holds up to 110lbs.

lots of videos on youtube.

or:

https://mount-it.com/blogs/articles/how-to-mount-a-tv-on-the-wall-without-studs

https://hometheateracademy.com/mount-a-tv-without-studs/

With the help of Houzz I painted my yellowing shelves all white then a few weeks later painted the back of my shelves. What a difference it made. Good luck!

@roby J that looks wonderful!! I sure wish I could figure out why mine isn't looking like this. ὠ2 Maybe the white mantle and losing some shelves will make the difference..

@Robi J I actually did the same with the help of Houzzers !

I used Sherwin Williams Black Fox as the paint for the back of my shelves. Love it! I am using White Accessories. Looks Awesome. I even painted some accessories white that I already had. They were inexpensive, so it was an easy decision to make and worked perfectly.