Both the mantel and hearth are shown off so nicely, now - very glad you trusted your gut, and did not whiten - lovely!

Just beautiful! You have inspired me.

Nicely done!

Thank you all for your input, your positive feedback, and your support. I will post a photo of the whole room when i can catch it in the light. I actually love the results now. I checked with a company that sells barn beams like mine, for mantles. I asked about bringing up the natural colour of the wood. They said clean it and nothing else but I chose to dab some lemon oil on it. The trick is to apply it evenly but it did make the wood look better and made it stand out better.

Didit20, I promised you a photo of the rest of the room. It is nothing special but cozy and comfortable. The first, of the fireplace, is taken from the arched doorway; the second is looking from the fireplace to the arched doorway; and the third is standing in front of the glass door to the back of our property. Does this cover it? And yes, i know the pics behind the couch are high but my husband is tall and tends to knock things off the wall behind him! Function before form! Thank you all for giving me the courage to embark on this most gratifying jouney!

WOWWWWWWW!!! Very very nice!

awesome :) :)

I beg your pardon, "it IS something special"! You betcha!

The secret special things: Speed skates on mantle in corner, were already old when my father acquired them in probably about 1920. The "horse" lamp is from probably the same era and has been in my life forever, and the overhead light is the same or maybe older. :-)

Oh my word. ..all in a very special place, your heart for the memories and your home to surround you. Blessings :-)

Wow...speed skates in the 20's...unbelievable...wow...makes my thoughts spin with imagination.

Gorgeous! Great job!

What a difference! I actually had to look at the before picture again because that gorgeous mantel was blending into the red brick, I thought it was new...looks great!

i really like it. what an improvement!

Very beautiful!

Did you do a new hearth too...or just look different / better with the paint?

The mantle and the hearth are the same. I cleaned them both (and the brick where it was sooty,) with TSP. I especially tried to clean the hearth to make its true colour come out but it is the grey paint that is helping. The mantle I tried to even out from the soot and although I was told not to, I applied some lemon oil to the front face of the wood to again, try to enrich its true colour. I dabbed it on and then used a spray furniture polish to very lightly try to even out the colour. It worked quite well but make sure you use a very light hand with it. Because the wood is rough hewn you can't just rub on the oil . I suspect the mantle is very old and was once a beam in the original barn on our property . There is another just like it (but slightly shorter) on a fireplace in the building I use as my office on this property.

Awesome job!

Good for you! That beam is beaming now. I love your old things, hope you've had the handsome horse lamp rewired for safety, and...is that an iron gate on a hinge? How cool is that? (And who might you be corralling with it?)

Ummm, not sure re the lamp but seems good! Yes it is an iron gate...to keep the dog out when there is food out etc. he's pretty good but we have had the gate thru many large dogs!

Great result !

BTW does anyone know anything about the horse lamp? It is very old and I love it but know nothing about it.

I'm usually not in favor of painting brick...but WOW! This was one very nice transformation! I absolutely love that color & it makes the room so much more warm & inviting. This one project has made me a believer.

This is gorgeous! I love it :)

Wow! Looks great!

I am not usually a fan of painting brick, but this is simply AMAZING!!

Wooow! Sooo much better. Great idea and a very nice job! Love the color.

I like the split coffee table!

I don't know anything about the horse lamp, but I love it. I picture it though with a more substantial manly, equestrian style shade that would show it off better. Maybe a black shade with slight gold trim? Or a weathered old looking linen shade? Lovely job on the fireplace too. We did a similar Reno with a barn beam mantle. I stained it darker to make it richer, and used a coat of matte varathane, turned out awesome.

What did you paint the brick with? It looks like a grayish/mauve almost. I love the fact that it isn't a glossy paint...that fireplace is a big one and nearly impossible to give it a treatment to make it actually blend into the room, but you certainly pulled it off.

I have come back to this several times & shown a few friends the great job you did.

The paint is grey. I wanted something warm and found one with just a touch of red in it which adds a slightly brown tone. It is a grey that could easily be the colour of stone. I first cleaned with TSP then covered it all with primer, then put on the paint. It was recommended as a very washable, durable paint that can be used on floors. It is almost like a thin sheet of rubber. I will attach the photo of the can and the colour. The make is C2 and it is supposed to ve good for the environment.

Doesn't it have to be heat resistant paint?

Apparently not. I have used the fireplace since painting and it has not affected the paint. The bricks do not get hot at all.

In the photos, it almost seems to have different depths of color. No doubt from the texture of the brick. Just so happy for you the way this turned out! :0)

Beautiful job and great choice of colour!

The brick is quite "rough" with many indentations and extrusions (sticky outs!). Also, the mortar joints is very defined and deep (making it harder to paint) and so the light reflects off differently making it look like different shades.

My den is similar in layout with wood beams and brick fireplace to yours,. I love the mantle that name with it.

Sbrustein, are you looking to make changes?

Elaynment- I am not sure. It's a traditional den in a traditional center hall colonial house. I was thinking of maybe painting the brick , but no stone or tile. What do you think?

I would paint the brick if you are not in love with it. I would get rid of the "gold" screen and although you love the mantle I would consider thickening it by putting boards under it so that what you have now becomes the top but it becomes more substantial looking.

Thanks, Elayne. I need to think about it. I really sort of like the brick- what I am not crazy about is the dark mortar between the bricks. I wish they had used a standard light gray or beige rather than a charcoal gray. The doors need to be updated. There is a black screen behind it, but the doors keep a draft away. I should replace the whole thing and I will.

you dared and succeeded! Well done. Well done.

Sbrustein, tedious but just paint the mortar. You like the bricks...don't lose them. Yes,change the screen. And I think the mantle can be enhanced. I am glad that I painted the bricks but I didn't like them and it took me a long time to decide to do it. Try the least intrusive approach first. You can always go further. You cant go backwards once you paint.

I love this transformation, great choice on the color.

I started the process very uncertain. Now I am so glad that I did it and as one reader suggested, wonder why I didn't do it long ago .

Beautiful transformation - and it looks like you have a lot of seating in that room - without it feeling cramped at all! Nicely done - wish I had a fireplace to paint! LOL

That new color really makes the mantel pop.

Great job! Looks so fresh

Beautiful, great work!!

Great job. Enjoy!