Great space! So much potential.

I would first paint the ceiling white/trim color and leave the beams stained. I think that will be the biggest bang for your buck and you may decide that the ceiling change is all you need.

You can also add a large light fixture from the ceiling over the living area in front of the fireplace. That will visually break up the expanse of brick fireplace.

apple_Pie_order - yes, the wainscoting was originally dark brown, as was all the trim in the house. This is our last room to be renovated. We have three sources of power in the ceiling - where the fan is and also where the track lighting is on the lower beams. I had looked into a ceiling fan with lights but don't like the look. I had also considered a large chandelier but we feel that we need the fan for air flow in such a large room - it tends to run hot or cold in there. One electrician told me that we couldn't install recessed lights in the ceiling because there wasn't enough room, but I'm getting a second opinion on that.

d_gw - thank you. The beams are actually not that attractive, they are narrow and stained like the ceiling. So I feel that painting them so they blend is better. I had thought to wrap them in reclaimed wood (to match the mantel) but we are trying to keep the budget down and I don't think it would be best to highlight them. We are trying to not add too much electrical work to the budget, so we are trying to work with the three wired light sources that are in there, being the tall center one where the fan is, and the lower ones where the tracks are. Trying to figure out what to do with the track lighting is also an issue, because I don't love track lighting but it does add light functionally speaking. I don't think I could add hanging lights there at all, and if I do a large hanging light in the middle then it does away with the fan.

Oops, we posted at the same time. Yes, go ahead and paint the beams if they are "wimpy".

Do you have room for two ceiling fixtures? You could do a statement chandelier in the living area and a less obtrusive fan in another part of the ceiling.

More than anything I hate the looming dark brick wall and the heavy dark ceiling. I am a little worried that if I shiplap the upper fireplace over the mantle, it will be lots of lines and could be overwhelming (ceiling lines running one way, then wainscoting running the other). I would run it horizontally to match the wainscoting. I am envisioning something like this photo, but with the brick either painted white or with stone veneer on the lower part and below the hearth (again, stone veneer probably not in the budget right now but could be added later).

This is one of those rare cases where I'd paint, too, if I were in your shoes.

The suggestion of one fan and one chandelier is excellent. Same finish and overall style will unify them.

Shiplap is having its fifteen minutes of fame, so if you want to use it somewhere, make sure what you install is easily removed in a couple years.

An all white room with little additional lighting is going to still be dark. Fix the actual problem first. Get in an electrician to consult about adding additional lighting. You can not go back and unpaint either of those great original features to the home. They add value as is. Painted, not so much. Remuddles tend to devalue, not add value.

Ah, I see now that you have horizontal boards on the wainscoting. It'd be worth hiring a good interior designer to help with options about the fireplace. Duplicating the horizontal boards on the fireplace will not set off the fireplace as much as it needs to be, considering that it's the focal point of the room.

Interesting comment on the shiplap going out - another check mark for simply painting the brick? I can hang two fixtures from the top center beam - but how would I place them so it doesn't look off? And we use the fan often so that has to be incorporated.

and to make matters worse the walls are actually textured - like a very soft stucco - which I'd love to cement board over and smooth but that's not really in the budget either. If I had the $ I'd smooth the walls, add built ins, paint the ceiling and change the lighting and do something with the brick. But I'm trying to update and brighten for a reasonable cost for now. All of this input is so helpful, thank you! Lots of good feedback.

I think you will get the most bang for your buck if you paint that overwhelming dark brick. It is just too much. I also like the idea of painting the wood ceiling and beam to match.

What I would do is paint the room and the ceiling first and pause to verify on the beams (could be a partial pause, not necessarily having done the whole room -- just enough to check your thinking before you can't go back, though you could clad them to match the mantel or tie in with the kitchen cherry later).

After pausing, paint the beams if desired, change the lighting and fan (consider a fan with lighting in an updated style. You don't have to use it, but it can be nice to have it in a dark room). Hold off on the fireplace until everything else is painted.

If you pick a white that works with the grey in the stone, you may find that the FP looks great without doing anything further or with just an updated mantel. I recently painted my FR and was going nuts over what to do with my brick FP. I didn't want painted brick, covering it got into all kinds of trim issues and removing it would be a flooring issue. I was ready to white wash the brick after we painted the walls and ceiling but wasn't planning on completely covering it, so my paint was chosen not to fight the brick. When I got the room painted, the brick looked completely different. I'm leaving it alone.

I would not do shiplap. Not only is it a current fad that I think will be short-lived, I don't think it would look good with all the woodwork, the beams, the door to one side and a large TV to the other. You have more than enough going on in that room as it is. I think a beefier mantel look good, but I'd keep it simple.

All good suggestions. Thank you everyone. So we have had many discussions and have made some progress and now we are leaning towards the following. We are going to "cap" the ceiling at the triangle, just above the second beams. So we eliminate the high triangle, thus regulating the room temp better and allowing for lighting install. We will drop the fan lower, keep it centered, and add recessed lights on either side of the fan (front and back) on the flat/new ceiling. Add sconces above the mantle (wiring behind the new drywall). Rather than paint the brick and while we have scaffolding here anyway, we think we will box in the brick from new flat ceiling to the mantle (not with shiplap) and run trim down either side. We will then frame out a new mantle down each side and across the brick. We will keep the brick as is around the fireplace and on the hearth (I don't like the idea of floor to ceiling painted white brick and felt that since we use the fireplace we are better keeping natural brick so it won't show soot and dirt), but put a new piece of stone in for the hearth. Smooth the outdated plaster walls (since plasterer has to come for the new ceiling). Paint the ceiling, the trim and fireplace walls/mantle white, and the walls a soft gray (Edgecomb BM). Cap the track lighting unless we decide down the road we need it. I'd also love to consider refacing the brick with stone veneer but maybe not this time around. So yes, our budget is blown but it seems to be a situation of go all in or don't half spend.

Trying to resemble something like this but not with shiplap and with our brick not whitewashed:

Thoughts/feedback? Good news is that my contractor knows us and works slowly so I can modify as we go if something doesn't look right. I toyed with keeping beams but they really aren't nice beams. We've also done away with the wood beam mantle but I think if we keep the look more robust and less delicate that we might be okay -- more thick/shaker than formal crown. Also adding trim to the supporting beams that connect wall to ceiling to make them look more "finished" - they look like planks or 2x4s now and I never realized they were actually beams until we just put the window in and broke into the wall. They are just above the windows and you probably can't tell from the previous photos.

Any thoughts - would love to hear them. You've really turned me around on the shiplap - thank you!