I've always thought natural brick walls in homes (especially kitchens) are so charming. Please don't paint that lovely brick! You might feel better if you installed a few can lights aimed at the brick focusing on a pretty colorful piece of artwork! Also, that sliding door seems a little dingy. Replace that with french doors or remove it all together since the room beyond is enclosed.

hi...love the brick wall....i think you shoul paint them using faux paint...paint them white...it will brighten your space and go for black accents...will look very elegant

I think white washing brick looks fantastic if you can get it the right shade that you like. We have 3 walls of red brick in our living room and are about to white wash it to look similar to this: Anything besides leaving it alone will brighten up the room.

The Whitewash example is great! Still natural but not overwhelming! Now I can't wait to find a house with "bad" brick walls! :)

I am not sure the whitewash look really goes with your kitchen plus you have black mortar which may not look good white washed, my other concern is that you can see the exterior brick from your door. I would paint it the wall color. Could you paint just the mortar- this could change the wall dramatically.

I also vote for a white wash. That way you can control the color intensity and preserve the beauty of the brick. There are many people who come to Houzz trying to find out what to do with their painted brick...

Also, you can put a large art panel there as others have suggested. Check out my artwork for ideas. I have hundreds of configurations of canvas prints that I can print to the size you choose.

https://www.etsy.com/shop/katshoa

Enjoy decorating!

I shall need to tackle my own brick fireplace wall and post soon. I really do not want to paint the brick but have started considering whitewashing but I have just found out about a product called brick-anew http://www.brick-anew.com

And that I can also lime wash the brick to the desired colour/wash/hue/tint/stain I want http://www.sydneyharbourpaints.com/world-of-colours/shpcs-colours/neutrals-browns-greys?product=1306

You would definitely find a suitable grey in the range above IMO

Both products sound like they will offer me the change I want without the need for drastic steps like resorting to painting bricks. Lime wash seems like a great option for me too and price point seems good too.

This is my wall as it is now pictured left
and the look I am wanting is pictured right

If anyone knows a sure fire way of achieving this please holler!

I like the whitewash since the texture remains. I am looking to do that to a hulking fireplace in a small den with a low ceiling, where the brick is too dark for the room. My question is what happens to the group when you whitewash the brick?

HI -- This looks like that DIY cheap pretend brick and if it is ,maybe think about taking it down . You might have to re -drywall that wall - small price to pay . I think it would look better gone instead of painting it . You said you didn't like it anyway . I think it looks cheap and ugly . The kitchen is really nice !

Pretty sure it's real lefty, look outside kitchen boor.

simipa, if you look on the link I provided, you could paint that wall and it would look more like a washed look, but the grout would be light, not black as yours is.

This doesn't look like real brick, more like a fake brick, so I'd paint it a soft gray to go with your countertops.

No, it matches the exterior of the home.......at least I think I see it from the patio door.

yep, this is real and whether itis or not it adds character and interest It will look fabulous gray - sherwin williams grays that are true grays (often read blue) - best guess for you from here - Light French Gray - not brown gray/platinu, or green gray. You might like to test sw jubilee - has a blue undertone another to look at sw tinsmith /

Use masonry paint when you go for it / semi gloss is easiest to clean/ highlights the texture / reflects light well.

Thank you everyone for u comments and great ideas..
Yup handyman and crew of two, that is as real as brick gets ;)
The project on Lowe's is cool- just don't know what colors to use because I want grey tones...
Also the I was wondering if there was a way to whitewash them with grey tones?

Check out this link. How would you feel if the brick was just more attractive? I think painting the mortar a softer gray and then softening the oranges and blacks could do the trick. You would need to layer colors to get the desired effect. http://www.thebrickpainters.com/content/view/77/90/

I like the white washing idea.

HI --@ handymam -- No,- pretty sure the brick in the kitchen is the cheap stick- on kind --not the same brick out side . That out side room is posted on another thread . I recognize that faux brick from the 70's when it was all the rage - remember some used to be called " Z-brick " . It came in boxed sets and you would just stick it on and then squeeze the mortar in. I have one small area on my house by the door that is the same stuff, that was painted white which didn't improve the look .And it will be gone soon.

Lefty that's exactly what I thought the brick was a Z-brick, maybe you just have to be a certain age or come across it in travels from one house to another to recognize it. It's meant to give the appearance of it though as I can't see it in person, hard to tell. I'd just paint it in a color I wanted and be done with it as opposed to trying to make it look attractive.

Not to belabor this, but simipa said it is real brick. As it is their home, I am going to believe them when they say it is real brick. It matches the brick on the outside of the home, see the view outside the patio door.

What would be some suggestions in Benjamin Moore paints?

Maybe try to think outside the box here. Kitchen is kinda bland with grey and white maybe a grey wall would look institutional. Yellow????

What about a soft color like this, SW glimmer, for the wall and white for brick? It would be so cheerful and light filled in that space. :)

mforr, can you recommend in BM for them?

This is the closest
BM In Your Eyes

Pretty song :)
If they posted a better picture, with more daylight, I could paint it for them to preview.

Do you hear that simipa? mforr is good at showing a room in colors! Post another pic for her!

If you wanted to do the brick painting technique that handyma'am suggested with her first post, and you wanted to use benjamin Moore paints, the colors would be BM Pearl Harbor for base and BM smoked oyster for the sponged top coat. It's really more of a taupe grey look, but would look lovely with the color I suggested and your very attractive kitchen. :)

gray from ben moore - http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/graytimberwolf gray timberwolf for the brick wall - love mforr's wall color for the rest

I like the idea of a bright color. Yellow looks great with grey.

This posting is 2 1/2 years gone !!!

Lol. Better late than never !!