I would rip out the brick and replace with a wood fireplace surround with the 6x6 tiles from the backlash.
Another idea is to paint the bricks white and replace the orange tile on the floor with 12x12 tiles. Good Luck.

I say you should consider facing it with new drywall and paint it a color that works with your furnishings. The orange is not working and the sheen is pretty bad. Add ing a simple wood mantle would be handsome too. Good luck!

Rip it out -- and create a wood surround (paint it white) with a good mantel -- and use slate tiles to create a fire surround and your hearthstones. Don't forget to check fireplace regulations and codes in your area before you start to renovate it!

Even painting these bricks would not work because of the way that they set the brickwork. So -- it really best to start fresh ........

I agree that ripping it out and building a wood fireplace surround would be the best choice. The brickwork itself is unattractive with it's boring up & down pattern. There's no saving that one!
That said, how wonderful to have such a great second home on a lake . . . anywhere! I hope you'll post more pics on this forum as you progress. I also wanted to say that your kitchen cabs look wonderful; you did a great job refinishing them.
Lynn

Thanks for the advice! I was pretty sure everyone would say RIP IT OUT...... but was hoping there was something about it I was overlooking - something so charming that we'd instantly change our opinion of it and ---- OK - it's awful.

I think we might take off the top bricks that stick out so that it's all flush, build a wood mantle & posts/columns, paint it white & cover the remaining brick with tile about 1' around the opening with the same tiles as the kitchen back splash. Replace the hearth with a dark gray/black stone of some sort - hopefully a solid piece not tiles - DH has a friend that's GM of a stone yard - must be done cheaply & not look it- haha! My goal!

lynninnewmexico - thank you very much for the nice comments on the kitchen cabinets! They were stained dark brown when we got them & the door panels are kinda dated but they are solid oak & we've grown to really like them. Kinda goes with the house - built in 1964 with walls of metal casement windows. The hardware was another score at Lowe's - marked down to 98¢ a piece. They were shiny silver & we wanted more of a brushed look, so took a scotch brite pad to them & now they look like the more expensive ones we really wanted.

Any other ideas - comments much appreciated. I am un-offendable & really appreciate any input!

Well - we're almost finished with the fireplace reno. Since I posted this, we've laid down the flooring, changed out the fridge & added a dishwasher (more craigslist finds - people moved into new house & wanted SS so they sold us the "old" white ones for $350/both), changed out the furniture (yep - you guessed it - Pottery Barn on craigslist!)

On the fireplace, we took off the top rows of brick that jutted out. DH built a wooden surround (cost = one sheet of plywood + free odds & ends of trim we've been accumulating for accent). We filled in the deep grout joints with mortar, intending to paint it, but kind of like the way it dulled down the bright orange color & sheen to a sort of antique brick look. For the time being we plan on leaving it as is. We re-tiled the front hearth with the same tile as the kitchen back splash & it ties in nicely since it's all one big room. Still needs some touch up paint.

Oh the woodgrain flat panel thing that's in the fireplace hole came with the house. It's metal & covered with contact paper. It works really well at blocking air-flow so I think we'll end up keeping it until we come up with a nice screen or something - maybe with a different covering & updated hardware?

Here is a link that might be useful: new fireplace look + living room /kitchen

What a great transformation. The fireplace is looking so much better. You two do great work and at bargain prices. I really like that you put a mirror over your sink to reflect the windows and view.

Thanks lyban! That back wall is built into a hill & we thought about moving the water for the sink to an island, but it's a slab & that would have been too hard & costly for this project. They had an old unframed mirror up there - we just replaced it with a framed one. I see the whole lake behind me when doing dishes - so it's sort of like a window...

it looks great !

What an amazing job you have done! You have to be thrilled when you are in the space.

Just a couple of thoughts. I think I would paint out the frame on the mirror over the sink, to make it look like a part of the cabinetry built-ins. Or, do a brushed silver finish to match the hardware.

I would think about running the backsplash tiles up behind the stove, and topping off with moulding to match the level of the cabinets. I think it would make for a wonderful look there, even more finished than it appears now.

Can you move the dining table down to the window area on the right, and hang a chandelier of some sort there? I would think being able to sit over by the windows, rather than in the middle of the cooking space, would be very relaxing.

What a difference and you didn't spend a fortune either. Great re-do. I'll bet you can't wait to retire there!

Thanks for the nice comments!

We plan on putting in a large island where the table is - for more work space, seating & storage - also to break the room up a bit visually. Maybe then adding a small sitting area by the windows. The table is the last bit of furniture still there from the previous owner - it will eventually find a new home!

Yes - we'd thought about tiling behind the stove. We hope to find a newer white stove to match the other appliances & we want some sort of wall mounted vent-a-hood there too. We'll probably wait until we have those items to make final decisions on that wall.

I know many here do not like laminate. I had real wood in my kitchen, breakfast area and hall in the last house. I would never recommend real wood in a kitchen if you have dogs and kids. I worked my tail of keeping that floor nice, and it wasn't perfect when I left either. The new house came with laminate in the kitchen, hall and dining area. I have to tell you, I love it. it looks perfect and is easy to keep up. Also we have shower one piece inserts in the bathrooms and linoleum or whatever they use now-decent brand on the bathroom floors. I love these floors. A quick mop, and you are finished-no cleaning grout and resealing grout, no cracked tiles from the kids dropping things. Also, we had a tile leak in our bathroom in our old house. Out beautiful tile in the master was installed incorrectly and leaked between the shower stall and the tub. By the time we found out we had to replace the entire floor, including some joists and sheet rock the entire garage. Naturally, we had to replace the sheet rock in the bathroom and tile again. It was a nightmare. I told my husband I didn't ever want to look at tile again. Also, when we put the house on the market, I spent hours on my hands and knees touching up that floor. Laminate and linoleum are out of style right now, but they were introduced as a modern convenience years ago-these materials are very durable and easy to clean and very convenient.

gbrenna - I agree about the laminate flooring. We just installed it and it looks pretty good & as with everything on this house, got it for tons less than hardwood. I never considered going with real due to cost alone - it's a weekend house at this point.

You bring up an interesting point with the tile shower in the bathroom. The bathroom is our next project & we started the tear out this past weekend. We were all set to put in a tiled shower, but stopped on an episode of Holmes on Homes last week where he was having to repair just the kind of leak you mention. Wow - there a lot of damage!! We had done lots of research and had a plan to do it - however it was exactly the way he said NOT to do it... so now we're thinking about just doing a one piece insert like you mention.

Unfortunately we forgot to take a before picture before tearing out the vanity, etc.

I just love it when people come back and show the before and after!

You have done a terrific job.

Wow. Thank you for showing us the "afters." The transformation is amazing!

Incredible!!! Just wonderful -- very inventive -- and the results really show all of your hard work!

Fresh, comfy and cozy -- just a marvellous transformation!

Very very well done indeed! :)

Thanks SO much for sharing!

Jan

Thanks everybody for the kind words! I really respect your opinions and it's made us very happy to see that you like what we've done so far.

Next up the bathroom, then the 2 small bedrooms. We're moving one bedroom wall about a foot to accommodate a stacked w/d unit in the bathroom. We plan on using the same $.04 tiles we used in the kitchen & on the hearth to do the floor in there and hope to find some bead board for the walls. It's a pretty small space so we should be able to find enough material somewhere to do it. We're also going to frame in 2 pocket doors to save space. We got 15 old doors for free on ....craigslist... and 2 of them matched & are cute with glass panels that we plan to replace with some sort of etched or frosted glass.

The bedrooms will be the same painted paneling as the living room & I think we'll just carpet both rooms for now. Both of us are ready to be able to just go & enjoy it instead of working all the time!

Again, thanks so much for the input & the encouraging comments - it's really going to help keep us motivated.

Guvnah your house is lovely. I found inspiration-especially the painted paneling. We are on the move again-less than a year. My husband was transferred (GM so we are happy to have a job). The house I bought in Cortland Ohio was built in 1966 and has dark paneling in the family room. I plan to paint it. I like that casual look anyway. Good luck and enjoy, you earned it!

Need information on Black Friday sale for hanging fireplace