by Sarah
Whitewashed Brick Fireplace
2 Materials
$10
1 Hour
Easy
If you are looking for an easy update with a lot of impact, a whitewashed brick fireplace is right up your alley! This update is fast (like 1-2 hours), cheap (free even if you have leftover paint), and crazy transformative! Below I’ll share with you the process I used to whitewash this brick fireplace.
Before and after of whitewashed fireplace! Makes such a huge difference to modernize a space!
First thing you need to do is prep the surface. With brick, there really isn’t a whole lot of prep. I would recommend just going over the brick with a broom or a vacuum to remove any dust or debris. Then use painters tape to tape off the edges between the brick and the walls and/or floor surface. And that is it for prep! Doesn’t get much better than that!
Next up is making your whitewash solution. I had some leftover white satin acrylic paint on hand and mixed that with a little water. The ratio I use is approximately 75% paint and 25% water. If you want less coverage, use more water and less paint. This isn’t a super strict ratio, so just play with it a little to get the mixture you want. Keep in mind here, a little goes a long way! Like literally a red solo cup worth of whitewash should do your whole fireplace. I mixed in an old Easter bucket here and had way too much and had to find a way to dispose of the extra. Learn from my mistakes people.
Now it’s time to get started with the application! So so super easy. Just take any paintbrush, dip it in the whitewash, paint it over the bricks and try to get into all the little cracks and crevices. Before it dries, use a clean cloth and dab away any extra paint. This allows some of the base color of the brick to show through which gives a nice color variation. If you want more coverage with your paint then you can either skip this step or go over all of it with a second application of whitewash.
Because you are wiping away the excess paint, work in small sections. That said, this process goes very quickly! Just keep trucking along and you’ll be done before you know it!
That is literally the entire process. It honestly could not get any easier. I did my sister’s large fireplace, start to finish, in about an hour and a half. It cost us zero dollars. And, I must say, I think it completely transformed the way her living room looks! If you’d like a quick video tutorial on the whitewash application, check out my Instagram story highlight s to see the process.
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2 of 34 comments
![Carol Cole]()
Carol Coleon Jan 1, 2021I hate red brick inside a house. I love what you did to it. Great Job.
![Debbie Petrilli]()
Debbie Petrillion Feb 7, 2021Oh my goodness it turned out absolutely gorgeous!!! It looks like a whole new fireplace!
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Have a question about this project?
If you don’t like how it looks what can you do to restore how it was?
Good question. I don't know that you can remove the paint from the brick after it is applied (unless maybe you power washed which would be very difficult to do inside). I wouldn't recommend trying this technique if you aren't committed to a painted brick look one way or another. You could always paint over the whitewash if you don't like that look, but going back to the original brick may be difficult.
I have a large stone fireplace. Do you think this paint solution will work. I would most likely test in a corner
Yes, you can whitewash most stone as well.
Did you whitewash the grout/mortar also?