First, a serious question...can a fireplace be sexy? I'll let you decide.
I warned Joel when we moved into our new house that I was finally going to make my black and white dream house become a reality. When we first toured our house, we fell in love with the fact that there was a fireplace, because It is something we both always wanted in our home. The only problem was that the look of it wasn’t exactly “our vibe”. We weren’t worried, as we are no strangers to home improvement and putting our stamp on something. So, what were we going to do about the yellow-hued sandstone focal wall- yes, focal wall- we are talking stone ceiling to floor, and wall to wall?? Cue the paint.
My first thought was to go white- bright and airy, blending in with the wall color on the majority of the main floor. Enter, Pinterest. I was scrolling through Pinterest looking at inspiration photos and getting excited about what OUR fireplace would look like when all was said and done and then…there it was. This beautifully BLACK-painted brick fireplace (now I know our fireplace was stone and it would look a little different) and Tt. Looked. Awesome. It was bold and definitely made a statement. I just had to make sure Joel was on board. I showed him the picture and he gave the green light on his side, so the next day I picked up my supplies.
Bulls Eye 1-2-3 Gray primer (going from a natural stone color to black requires a gray primer, not white. Really any time you are going to a deep, dark color you should use a gray primer instead of white).
Flat black, premixed paint- specifically Medallion Exterior Flat Black 45515 (getting premixed black paint is the way to go, or so Joel tells me and he is the paint expert, because no matter how much tint you put in base, it if very hard to achieve a true black).
A brand new paint brush- I prefer the Wooster Shortcut (it has a comfortable, nubby handle and it is very easy to control).
Paint roller and cheap 3” roller covers- I don’t rinse them out- I just toss them at the end of the project or they wear out (for when I smartened up on the painting process ;))
Drop cloths- I prefer cloth (canvas). Reusable and they stay in place without the use of tape.
A husband and a sister for when your arms are completely dead and you can’t paint anymore, but you want to finish the project! 😉
Next up, I prepped the stone by brushing/dusting it off. Then began the painting. I only did one coat of primer, and I hand-painted it all (with some help by the aforementioned husband and sister). It took me awhile- not going to lie. There are so many nooks and crannies in stone and the key, or so I found, is to have PLENTY of product on your brush (just make sure you don’t leave any drips). Let dry for the recommended amount of time- or for a few days because your arms are dead and you can’t bear to start the process all over again.
Second step, grab your black paint and wise up and use a roller for the flat areas and really anywhere else the roller will fit. This will cut your painting time down to a third of the time- no joke. Go ahead and pat yourself on the back because you are one smart cookie, but don’t gloat for too long, because now you need to go back in with your brush and finish painting out the areas that the roller wouldn’t reach. Finally, beg your husband to paint the spots you couldn’t reach because it is SO close to being done and you don’t want to see the paint can/brushes/drop cloths in your house any more!
Step back. Admire your hard work. Schedule a back massage, and try not to pay attention to those couple of spots where you accidentally painted the ceiling. Those can wait for another day.
Seriously. I couldn’t be happier with how our fireplace turned out. It is rich, and moody, maybe a little sexy, and I love it. It is the focal point of what we have dubbed our lounge. We’ll be finishing off the whole look with a thick, live edge wood mantle, but for now I will just sit back, throw on a record, start a fire and enjoy.
Comentários