Fireplace makeover...


One of the things I've always loved about my living room is the fireplace. It's large, with a beautiful mantle, and provides a lovely focal point for the room. One of the things I've always hated about my living room is the fireplace insert. It's brass. Bright, shiny 80s brass ~ like a bit of day-glow in an otherwise great room. You can see what it looked like before in the photos below. It just overwhelmed the room.



Anyway, the further along I got in my living room redecorating, the more out of place the fireplace insert seemed to be. It just had to be dealt with. My initial thought was simply to replace it. Then I priced fireplace inserts and decided I needed a Plan B. A couple people told me you could paint them with a special high-temperature paint, so I looked into that. I found an online tutorial and it didn't look too hard, so I went and bought some high-temperature paint in black (you either get that or silver) and got down to business. I had to lightly sand the brass first, then clean it well. I then taped everything off and started painting. It went quickly and before I knew it, I was done.



As you can see, it's a huge improvement. And it only cost me a couple of hours worth of time and about $15 in paint. You can't beat that.

I am linking to:
Wow Us Wednesdays at Savvy Southern Style
Home Sweet Home at The Charm of Home
Inspiration Friday at At the Picket Fence


Photos by The Art of Living Beautifully

Comments

  1. It turned out great! I will keep that in mind while house hunting, in case I come upon a home with a brass fireplace....

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  2. I love the simplicity of this mantle. My problem is that we have a fifteen foot mantle over a fireplace with glassed in bookcases on each side. What to do?

    Best,
    Bonnie

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  3. I much prefer the insert in black but of course brass everything was popular years ago. I have a brass and glass shelf unit in my kitchen that I've been thinking could be painted. I thought I might have to prime it first but if a light sanding was all you did, sounds fine to me.
    Judith

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  4. GET OUT OF TOWN, GIRL....!!
    This is an awesome project that turned out even better than you thought, I bet.
    It looks fantastic...you are so smart to research and find something that didn't break the bank to improve your fireplace.
    I just love it.
    xoxo

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  5. It looks wonderful. I like picture on the mantel too! Thank you for joining me at Home Sweet Home!
    Sherry

    ReplyDelete

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