San Francisco Bay Area - What to do with this fireplace??

by Bridgett Simon

What to do with this fireplace??

Our house was built in 1959 & this fireplace is in our living room. We built the section of drywall over the brick to mount our TV too and to hide all the wires in, and we want to leave that how it is (except we're open to repainting it). Obviously the brass has to go, but since the fireplace itself it elevated about a foot off the ground finding a new frame for it without building a hearth seems difficult. I like the original slate flooring so I don't really want to build a hearth and get rid of it. Ideally I would love to convert the fireplace to gas, but that's not in the budget right now. Any low(ish) cost remodel ideas are welcome! We're handy, so we can do a lot ourselves. Thanks so much everyone!

Comment

Bookmark

herdfan05 You could at least spray paint the brass black, with the right finish it could look very nice. Paint that dry wall at the bare minimum.

4 months ago · Like

Carolyn Albert-Kincl Design I would tear out the hearth and drywall and start over, tiling over the whole wall and hearth. And of course get rid of the brass.

Modern House

Barton Creek Residence

4 months ago · Like

Interiors International, Inc. Don't paint the drywall it looks great white. Cover the brick with some rough cut stone (see attached photo) but you do need to change the brass and cover the slate.

Dakota Fireplace

Kitsilano

Family Room

4 months ago · Like ·

onthefence I feel your pain. We have that same brick and it feels a little lifeless to me. I really like the large format tiles that Carolyn Albert-Kincl Design posted.

4 months ago · Like

jansseninteriors I once had a very similar fireplace, and shown here was the simple fix (wall paint, roller, black spray paint for the brass screen) http://jansseninteriors.blogspot.com/2011/07/updating-fireplace-and-painting-brick.html Took about an hour and cost almost nothing.

4 months ago · Like

wmpj If you spray paint the brass, make sure you use a paint made for high heat.

4 months ago · Like

Bakersfield Carpentry I work with this scenario often. Photo below shows a job I built for a client where the design required developing a sense of symmetry while also dealing with the uneven spaces on each side of the fireplace.

For your job I'd recommend
Phase 1-
1) Flat black over the brass

2) New granite (or slate to match floor) over the brick on all 4 sides of the firebox. 10-12" wide

3) New painted wood mantel mounted over new stonework

4) Miscellaneous woodwork to cover all brick below the height of the mantel top.

5) Narrow bookcase to the left of the mantel (depth of all woodwork needs to be considered here to meet fire codes)

Phase 2
1) Continue framing and drywall above and below existing drywall area as necessary
2) Lower TV
3) Add additional woodwork and molding details i.e. crown and picture frame molding