That is fantastic! Congratulations!

This is lovely! Great job!

This is great! And so economical...you really got a lot of bang for your buck!

Thank you, thank you, thank you! We have one of these too. I was thinking all that could be done is to sledgehammer it! Yours has gone from big, brash and boring to beautiful.

yes I pondered the sledgehammer as well- the thought of lugging all the brick out was very scary. The job wasn't bad. Since we did this we have spotted a few mantels on Craigslist -which building it was the most time-consuming part. We ended up gluing the veneer on the lower part- under the hearth- that was much easier than using the mortar mix up top.

Thanks for product information. You did a great job!

Looks good. A real difference.

Such a great idea!

Less painful and costly than a full demo and with just as much style but really it's even better because you've got 'original detials' :)

LOVE it!! Looks very nice!!

That is a very nice job! I had to laugh at the "eyeballs" comment...had to go & take another gander at the pic! 2 eyes & a gaping mouth to boot!

Nice job on the re-do. Looks sweet! Mine needs a good scrub & the brick is fine, but I think someone snagged the original mantel years ago...mine is a thick, heavy piece of warped oak. :0( Certainly not original or proper to the house.

Excellent transformation.

Nice

What an amazing transformation!! Your original fireplace was really ugly( and there are a lot of unattractive brick fireplaces shown on Houzz, but this was one of the worst). But everything about this fireplace is stunning now- hearth, mantle, and stone. You should be very proud.

Yes it was sooooo ugly and we were so pleased that we could "just cover the ugly" and not demolish the brick structure- so much easier. Thanks for your comment.

Super job~looks great!

Kudos to hubby for wonderful carpentry and to both of you for your vision of a more beautiful fireplace. I did a similar project but it cost thousands more for a professional carpenter. Still, end result is happiness.

Love the transformation & the wicker chairs are so fitting
For the space. Wonderful job!!

Great job! Bravo!

Amazing. We have an ugly fireplace like the before picture. Great job.

We are in the middle of completing the same project! Yours turned out great! What color white did you paint the surround?

Lovely transformation..

Hi smladz the color is a Restoration Hardware paint shade called Mediterrian White - SW can copy the color for you- if no RH nearby. I looked at many many creams - most are white with a beige or gray undertone which I thought had a "dingy" look - this shade is white with a gold- umber undertone so more like a sun washed white if that makes any sense. Please post when you're finished would love to see it!

Very effective change - Mantels are a great way to add accents.

This is such an upgrade, and a wonderful change! Looks great!

I'm showing this to my husband right now - I've waited 25 years too long for a change!

Bennie, we finally bashed ours out and put in beautiful French doors there were doors there before someone put our big ugly brick behemoth in and we don't miss it a bit. we waited 20 years so Go for remodeling it!!!!!!!!!!!!

OMG...your house must've been designed and built by the guy(s) who did mine! Your original fireplace is identical to mine. I really, really dislike it. My husband loves the brick. I will definitely show your magical change, and maybe he will agree to redo our ugly "focal point." Great job, and thank you for sharing it with us!

nice job!

You did a marvellous job, congrats.

Great transformation!

Great job

Beautiful!

That is fantastic!

We are struggling to pick a veneer.

Will definitely check out Norstone!

Thanks.

Beautiful! Bookmarking this to show / inspire my husband

Great job!

Wow what a transformation, in Australia we have a product that is called stacked stone, this will give me the inspiration that I need to update our fireplace that looks exactly like your before picture without the expense of having to buy a granite or marble facade to have a very classy and classic look. Thanks very much. Your husband is great inspiration to others.

What was the height of the mantle. Looks great!

byseign the mantle top is 64 inches off the floor- thanks

Where is the "after" photo? I have a similar monolithic FP except mine is a see-through that sticks out two feet into my family room. I was quoted over $3000 to add anew veneer. So am interested to see what you did. Can you repost the new photo please? Thanks.

Your "After" picture is not showing up for me. Could your please re-add to your post? Thank you.

click on the second small photo under the large photo at the top of the thread. That one is the after photo

Sorry have been slammed -here is pic- so sorry

Great job.

Love it. Great job.

Stunning!

Love this - Great job!

This is beautiful! Can you tell me where you found the MDF panels to build the mantle? Thank you so much. Love love love it!

Bought at Home Depot- got in 4x 4 panels and husband cut to size.

Wow thank you so much!! That’s awesome and again so beautiful!!