Proof That I Will Paint Anything

Never in my life had I lived in a house with a fireplace. I dreamed about it since I was little. To me , fireplace was synonymous with "home", and "comfort" , and "Christmas".

When I finally got one of my own, it was a little scary. This was not the grand , beautiful hearth I had wanted. It looked like you would get all dirty and smudgy if you leaned up against it. And there's that dark wood stain again.

We gradually got to thinking about how we could improve upon the look of the "black hole", as it came to be known.

My husband removed the rusted metal bi-fold doors and chain mail curtain..we got a proper screen and that helped a little, but it still didn't fit the picture I had in my head.


Being of limited budget, we agreed that we would have to tackle the beastie in stages. Paint is our friend. It covers up a multitude of problems, sins, and DIY mistakes. A little Warm Muffin on the walls and Swiss Coffee on the mantle, by Behr did the trick...

Tah-Dah!!

But I could not take my eyes off that brick. It was more glaring than ever. I had this sick obsession with it. I thought about tile and a new surround. Bleaching the brick, sealing it, yadda yadda. That damn budget held me back. It was time to suck it up and experiment.

2 coats of Kilz. Burnt umber, watered down and sloshed on with an old t-shirt, and some of the wall color dry brushed on and FINALLY something I can live with!!

Buh-bye black hole beastie!