Fireplace Makeover Reveal!

 

Oh, girls!  We have been so busy around here!  So busy, I didn’t even have time to post yesterday and share what we’ve been up to.  But if feels so good to be getting things done.

One of the major things that I have been wanting to get checked off our list was our fireplace makeover.

I have never liked our fireplace every since we moved in our home over a year ago.

fireplace makeover

I’ve wanted to get my hands on that thing for-eva!

Here is what it looked like exactly one month ago.  We were installing the hard wood floor at that time.

fireplace makeover

 

The fireplace had these four vents that were huge eyesores.  I knew I needed to get rid of them or paint over them.

fireplace makeover

I took them off and found a lot of cobwebs.

fireplace makeover

There also used to be a small brown mantle on this fireplace that had been glued down and was barely hanging on.  Adam pulled on it one day while standing on the fireplace, and down it went!   I wasn’t mad because I was wanting to get rid of it anyway. Smile

fireplace makeover

We only had a small ledge left.

So can you agree with me that this fireplace was in need of a makeover?

fireplace makeover

Well, my first thought was to white wash the brick.  I LOVED the wall my wall in my bathroom turned out (you can see that HERE), so why not try it on my fireplace?

Let’s just say that it was a project fail.  I didn’t water down the paint enough, and it went on the brick way too thick.

I disliked it so much, that I didn’t even take a picture of it. Smile

But I did find this one when Cy was working on the floor.  (Yes, my sweetie works in his dress socks.)

fireplace makeover

As you can see, it didn’t turn out like I had hoped.

So we moved on to plan B.  Which was really plan A, but I thought I would try white washing it first to see how it turned out.  I knew I could cover it up if I didn’t like it.

We were so excited when Kevin and Layla posted their fireplace makeover just a couple of weeks ago!  It couldn’t have been a more perfect timing, and Cy used it as his guideline.  He had to do some things differently because of the ledge and vents on ours.

Cy got busy on building a surround for the fireplace, and I will share the steps with you tomorrow. This long post would be even longer if I included all the steps in it!

fireplace makeover

He worked his tail off on this surround!

So are you ready to see it?

I haven’t decorated it yet, so it’s all naked, but it still looks pretty to me.

fireplace makeover

 

fireplace makeover

 

fireplace makeover

Now let’s look at the before and after side by side…

fireplace makeover

Yikes!  I love it!!!

Now I get to have fun decorating it.  Smile

I’ll be back tomorrow with a tutorial of how we did it.

 

Have a blessed day!

UPDATE:

Here is what our mantel looks like now:

Beneath_My_Heart_Fireplace

106 Comments

  6. Traci, it turned out great! It looks Fabulous!!!! My husband is handy like yours! What a blessing to have them!

    Reply

  7. LOVE!!! You just made my day!! I have an ugly fireplace that I have been wanting to change forever too and this is just the perfect idea!! Thanks so much for sharing all your amazing talent! it looks so beautiful!

    Reply

  9. Nice makeover guys..I had to redo my fireplace as well.
    Kevin those weird vents got me thinking if they were probably some heat vents (attached to the housing of the fireplace) so when the fireplace got hot it would push out hot air from the top vents. The lower vents were air intakes. This is kind of what the fans do in the gas insert fireplaces today. I have a blower at the bottom of mine it comes on by a heat sensor attached to the housing so when the fireplace gets up to a certain temperature the fan energizes sucking in from the bottom of the fireplace thus blowing out hot air from the top into the room maximizing efficiency.

    Reply

    1. The cold goes in the bottom one and heat comes out the top of my wood burning fireplace, too. Its ugly but functional. When the power goes out we can heat our entire one level home with it. Nice to hang containers of water on top vents for added moisture in air.

      Reply

  11. Woahhhhh! My mouth literally is hanging open at the after pic. A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. I can’t wait to see the whole room. You guys are so handy.

    Best transformation evah!

    Reply

  13. Oh good grief Charlie Brown …!!!!!!!!!!!! You guys NEVER cease to amaze me and I already know you guys are amazing … so you’d think I’d get used to it by now!!

    Absolutely stunning!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Reply

  14. LOVE it! Great job…
    I enjoy reading your blog so much! always excited to see a news update on your home!
    Thanks of being who you are!

    Reply

  20. You have outdone yourselves once again! WOW is all I can say.. and GORGEOUS!! I’m loving it.. can’t wait to see the tutorial.. our fireplace is pretty sorry and could use some sprucing up. Thanks again Traci for another beautiful, inspiring makeover :-)

    God Bless,
    Jeana

    Reply

  26. It’s beautiful! I saw that same post from Layla and wanted to do the same thing to my fireplace, but mine would be harder to do. We would have to cover three sides of it with board and that could be pricey/time consuming/hard. Our fireplace sticks out quite a bit from the wall. Your finished product definitely makes me want to try though…it’s beautiful!

    Reply

  32. I love it! What an awesome job Cy did! What a lucky lady to have a hubby that can do everything you want to your house! I can see the wheels spinning in your head as you decide how you want to decorate it! Oh, how fun!

    Reply

  36. Oh Traci (I’m making a long, loving sigh right now.) It is absolutely beautiful. That turned out way better than I was picturing as you were going along in your post. All I can say is WOW! I love it. I really cannot wait to see you put your decorating touch on it.
    Very nice job.

    Reply

  39. love the surround! Now you and Layla and Sarah make me want to do some sort of treatment to the wall above my mantel. I don’t have brick and the bottom is fine but I love the molding on top! :) Not sure I am in love with the black brick but I think it it will grow on me as you decorate the mantel and the rest of the room. ;) Great job, Cy and Traci!

    Reply

  40. I love it Traci…. even better than the white-washed brick! Looks sooo good! Can’t wait to see it decorated… esp. for Christmas! :) Blessings!

    Reply

  43. Traci, this absolutely made me giddy! It’s so beautiful! I love how it turned out. Great job!!! The colors of your home inspire me. I am currently transforming my kitchen. The cabinets are going from barn red aged with black to creamy white uppers and beige lowers. I cannot wait to have it all finished. :)

    Reply

  46. 1st word that popped out of my mouth when I scrolled down to the ‘After” – WOW! Nothing else really covers it. FAN. TAS. TIC.!!!!

    Reply

  49. Love the boards above the mantel. I too just redid my fireplace – 12″ wide of dark brick with ledge is now travertine tile and some wall space, and the mantel was remodeled to work in the new tiled area. Love the inspiration.

    Reply

  51. Wow! That looks SO GOOD! I love the color you painted the bricks. I don’t know if I could ever talk my husband into painting the bricks of our fireplace, but I’m definitely considering it now. Great job, Cy!

    Reply

  52. It is so beautiful….you have a great gift. I never can visualize how things will look when done, but you do a great job. My hubby is much better at diy than I and I’m thankful for that. Can’t wait to see it decorated. Just in time for Harvest Time

    Reply

  53. Oh my gosh, Traci!!!! It’s BEAUTIFUL!!! Your Cy is truly an amazing craftsman, girl! I can see why you’re head over heels in love with it…..and him. lol! GREAT job!!!

    xoxo laurie

    Reply

  54. Oh I love the fireplace re-do. I am never surprize to what you can do, I gave that up a long time ago. Beautiful… Thankes for sharing.

    Reply

  55. It’s beautiful! I love love love it. I have a question for you. I have a GIGANTIC brick fireplace that takes up a huge portion of our front sitting room. It comes 4 feet out from the wall and goes all the way up to the vaulted ceiling. I love it for it’s uniqueness but it does not fit my color scheme. It is cream and the rest of our home is white, taupe/grey, black. Would white washing cream brick be a good look or just awful? It is so huge & such a focal point in our living/dining area that I don’t want to mess up. Thanks Tracey! You’re amazing!!!!

    Reply

  61. WOW! You guys did an amazing job! I love the colors and just the whole look of the area. I cant wait to see what you use to decorate it with – I have always wanted a mantle like that to change with the seasons :) Great job!

    Reply

  62. I’m so excited for you! I love the new fireplace surround. It really compliments the other updates you’ve made and flows so well with the rest house. You must be feeling so proud!! Can’t wait to see the final living room reveal…

    Sharon

    Reply

  63. Fireplace looks awesome. It makes me want to change mine but my ceiling is so high. I have to admit, when I saw the exposed brick painted in black I was shocked initially…..but now I see how it ties in with the door. You are so smart!!!

    Reply

  67. Oh Traci–this has to be my favorite project so far–at least I think so, there have been so many. You guys have really outdone yourselves. Congrats–Belinda

    Reply

  68. Cy and Traci, What a great job you have both done. I also was a little shocked at the black brick, but immediately noticed the refreshed black front door to tie it together. Do you two realize if you could clone yourselves and put that listing on ebay, you could be independently wealthy!! Oh wait, there are those four handsome, well-behaved boys coming up the ladder!! Lucky you.
    Linda S. in NE

    Reply

  74. As usual Traci, it’s absolutely gorgeous! Cy certainly does beautiful work. It’s certainly worth having to buy dress socks a bit more often when you get results like this! If I had a fireplace, I’d probably be copying this idea, but alas I don’t. Still waiting to see what you do with the window in the bathroom. I just saw an idea on Stay at Home-ista. They put in a normal window, but it looks like they have marble around the outside of it and then they installed a frameless piece of glass on the inside edge on hinges so it can swing open to wash the window. She says it works wonderfully. Sharon

    Reply

  77. You should check out Camille Roskelly”s fireplace makeover at Simplify blogpost. The top part of your makeover is identical to hers. Nice job

    Reply

  79. WOW! What a beautiful transformation! Yes, I just did give my fireplace a dirty look for looking so…blah. haha! Thanks for the inspiration! I’ve had materials sitting here for a year to do something with it. Maybe the fireplace glared right back at me since I’ve neglected it. lol

    Have a great weekend, Traci!

    Reply

  82. Wowzers! Great transformation Traci and I bet you can’t wait to get started prettying it up some more!. Have fun and I can’t wait to see her all decorated.
    xoxo,
    Kim

    Reply

  84. Thank you!!! This is exactly what I have been looking for! Our fireplace is a BIG project right now ( along with many others)!! I cant wait to try this!! Thank you again <3

    Reply

  85. On my gosh you are so lucky!! It is so beautiful and so is the entire room! We are in a stinkin rental and feel like we will never find a house. You are so blessed! What a gorgeous job! Kudos to Cy and also to you!

    Reply

  86. I also have a fireplace with the four vents and everything I read says not to cover them. Do you use your fireplace and if so, have you had any problems?

    Reply

  87. Hello Beneath my Heart
    Saw ur fireplace redo on Pinterest. What color gray/black is the brick painted? Thanks! It looks great!
    Shelby

    Reply

  89. Does the fireplace still work even though the 4 vents were covered with wood? I love how it turned out! Did you learn any other options for removing the 4 vents? My fireplace is the same. Thanks!

    Reply

    1. Cristina,
      We currently do not use our fireplace because we need to get the chimney cleaned, but yes, it still works without the vents. :)

      Reply

  90. Love love love the new look. What did he use for the ceiling moulding? Looks nice but simple to let the fireplace get all of the attention.

    Reply

  91. I know I’m about four years behind, but holy cow that is an amazing transformation! I am totally copying you! Thanks for posting.

    Reply

  93. Unsure if anyone else addressed this but if your house is older, then I probably know what those vents are. They’re a passive draft system that heats a room beautifully. Basically the (original) firebox would be a heavy gauge steel or iron that conducts heat well and behind/around it is a series of ducts. Once you get the fire hot enough, this heats the air inside the ducts, which double back on themselves, and forces it to rise and be expelled out of the top pair of vents while creating a draft that sucks air in through the bottom set. My house, which dates to the 30s, has an unmodified fireplace with this design and you can get the room as hot as if you had the central heat on with a well-built fire.

    Reply

    1. Taylor thanks for your post. I have a house with a fireplace like this, too. I wasn’t sure how common they were, but I appreciate that you posted your information.

      I do like my fireplace, but the makeover that was done her looks very nice.

      Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *