Home Color Palettes & Paint 14 Painted Brick Fireplace Ideas To Keep Your Home Cozy And Stylish By Hallie Milstein Hallie Milstein Hallie Milstein is an Editorial Fellow for Southern Living covering food and culture. She has been published in Modern Luxury magazines, Our State Magazine, and Hudson Valley Magazine. Southern Living's editorial guidelines Published on October 30, 2022 Share Tweet Pin Email Trending Videos Photo: Alexandra Rowley; Styling: Olga Naiman While we still love the look of a raw, exposed brick fireplace, we can't help but see them as blank canvases. "You don't have to keep the brick bare!" says interior designer Grey Joyner of Grey Joyner Interiors in Wilson, North Carolina. Add a little paint, and brick fireplaces can reach their full potential. To brighten up your home, opt for a soft white that will instantly open up the space. Or, up the cozy factor by painting your brick fireplace a moody black or charcoal gray. If you're looking to add pizzazz to a plain living room, try a bright color like home blogger and DIY-er Cassie Bustamante who took painting her brick fireplace into her own hands. "When it came to painting our brick fireplaces, I wanted something deep and had already used black in our former home and was ready for something different," she says. From colorful fireplaces like Bustamante's to warm neutrals and a few other tips and tricks, here's our favorite painted brick fireplace ideas to inspire your next refresh. 01 of 14 Don't Fear Color Cassie Bustamante "We wanted to create a look that was cozy and earthy, but still bold," shares Bustamante. "In the end, I selected Sherwin Williams Secret Garden for our brick fireplace because it still felt rather nature-inspired but was also unique and complemented the existing neutral palette." Blues and even trendy pinks are also excellent options to highlight the flames. 02 of 14 Favor Timeless White Laurey W. Glenn, Styling: Matthew Gleason It's hard to go wrong with white paint, especially on brick, and the fireplace is no exception. White paint can have the dual function of brightening up the space and still having a softening effect. Choose a crisp white for a sleek design, or a warm white to lean into white's coziness potential. 03 of 14 Add Embellishments Courtesy Grey Joyner Why stop at paint? Brick fireplaces are a site of such great potential to hone in your style and create a focal point that sets the tone for the entire room. "If you are seeking a more relaxed look, add a bit of stone to the frame of the brick fireplace to soften it," recommends Joyner. "Or if you want something more formal looking, it might be good to add a bit of wood paneling to the brick fireplace to create a bit of formality." In this beach-side home, she chose seashells as a natural adornment for a framed brick fireplace. 04 of 14 Peel It Back Smooth, bold paint is a strong choice, but so is stripping it. Stripping the paint with a removing solution is a fun way to add dynamic, eye-catching texture that will emphasize the bricks' composition. 05 of 14 Go For Gray Still neutral, but significantly moodier than white paint, gray is another excellent choice to paint your fireplace like in this Southgate Homes Dallas-Fort Worth living room. Use a creamy, light gray for sophisticated airiness or a rich, charcoal gray to add depth. We're not opposed to a warm greige either. 06 of 14 Embrace Asymmetry Playing with dimensions and placement can add interest to your fireplace display. This wayward hole-in-the-wall fireplace is balanced with a left-skewed mantle and uneven decor to fill the space. 07 of 14 Raise The Contrast Using both black and white paint creates a striking contrast that will draw the eye to your fireplace. To make things even more interesting, opt for a bold color for the exterior of your brick fireplace, then choose its color wheel polar opposite for the interior. 08 of 14 Leave The Inside Bare A polished exterior and raw interior is another way to add interest and contrast to brick fireplaces. A little bit of red brick peaking through maintains its rustic charm, while fresh paint on the outside cultivates style. "I painted my brick fireplace to brighten up the small den so that the room would seem bigger," says Caroline Gibson, a North Carolina DIY-er, designer, and owner of this gorgeous fireplace. "I left the inside of the fireplace unpainted as I didn't want to draw the eye to this part of the fireplace. I also considered safety factors as it is important to use paint that is safe for high temperatures and I wanted to ensure I could us the fireplace in the future." 09 of 14 Paint From Floor To Ceiling Don't shy away from a floor to ceiling painted fireplace display like this one. They're bold, clean, and sophisticated, yet prime to keep you cozy through the winter. 10 of 14 Black It Out Set the mood with rich, dark paint. Dark paint can open up a space and be an accent in the room. Black fireplaces look especially gorgeous with wooden mantels and earthy decor as shown. 11 of 14 Take It Outside Courtesy Grey Joyner A fireplace will be the centerpiece of your outdoor entertaining, especially during cool-weather months. Add a little paint, and you've got a picturesque and functional fireplace. 12 of 14 Match The Walls Alexandra Rowley; Styling: Olga Naiman Blend your fireplace seamlessly into the walls by matching the paint colors. This will create a clean, elegant look that emphasizes textural changes from the smooth wall to the brick fireplace. 13 of 14 Directionally Challenge Photo: Hector Manuel Sanchez; Styling: Lilt Floral Design With just a simple twist and turn, this fireplace is both classy and fun. Installing the bricks in strategically different directions is a unique take on a classic that we hope to see more of. 14 of 14 Layer It Down Photo: Laurey W. Glenn Go for a subtle painted brick look with a single layer or bricks. A row of painted bricks around the fire pit enclosed by mantle of another material leads to a gorgeous color-blocking effect. Was this page helpful? Thanks for your feedback! Tell us why! Other Submit