i would wait on painting the brick until the rest of it is done. you never know, the new floors and paint may make you like the unpainted more. if not, break out the paint and brushes! no harm no foul.

as for the asymetry, i feel like that open space was probably for holding firewood, so if yours has been converted to gas or electric, maybe go for some decorative accents? you could do a small bundle or 3 of logs and then it wouldn't seem so bare and out of place.

i feel like a mantle that goes the whole way across might also help with that feeling.

here's the wall color?

and the flooring will be something 'marbled' ? like, the marble tile that goes in a bathroom? could you be more specific?

what about your furniture?

first thing I'd do is paint the gold insert a matte black. use this stuff and follow on line instructions

if you want to paint it white, you could do that and add a chunky wood mantel

you could do a lime wash or white wash

The fact that it is so skinny on the one side really throws me off. Hubby and I have talked about removing some of the brickwork from the right side.

I forgot there there was no mantle. Getting one up there would definitely look really nice!!

@Rachel I do too!

@Beth Perhaps marble was not the correct term. The carpet will not be solid but have flecks of other colors in it. Helps to hide dirt and whatnot (especially with little kids around).

I love your suggestions! Thanks for also including examples and stuff! You rock!

I recently painted mine and couldn’t be happier. Wish I did it years ago. Brightened up the whole room.

I had the same color brick as you do, and I painted mine a cream color. I wish I had done it a long time ago. As Beth suggested, I also painted my fireplace screen a dark grey...updated it immediately.

I will probably wait after we get carpet and paint in there. I’ll have to post an update and then re-poll this question. Lol But I’m glad so many of you have mentioned the asymmetrical fireplace. I honestly didn’t know that could be a GOOD thing!! But seeing some pics makes me reconsider removing brickwork.

I personally don't like the look of painted brick. so my suggestion would be to either change it completely or leave it alone. the brick color you have gives a rustic but comfortable look to the room. not sure if your into that look though.

I definitely think I want to at least paint the brass parts to black. I'm not feeling the brass right now - feels a bit outdated at the moment.

100% yes paint the brick. My inlaws recently painted their bricks then took a chisel to the corners & edges. It took awhile, but it really added the texture they were worried about losing when painting it white.

I'm not a fan of painting brick for the most part. Some brick is hideous and nothing can be done but to paint it. This is beautiful brick and appears to be a key feature of the room. Painting it would make it just another wall. I do love the assymetey and agree that a long, centered mantle would be perfect. I generally don't love bright brassy surrounds and would say paint it black for sure but yours looks like it might be cool-can we see a closer picture?

Another thought about the asymmetry: the otherwise nice bookcase may need to move. It may be wrecking the beauty of the asymmetrical FP

This fireplace would definitely benefit from being painted. A word of caution though - once painted, brick can really never be unpainted. Also, if you actually use the fireplace there will be some discoloration above the firebox which will require repainting in the future. Good luck!

You should really take advantage of the fact that the fireplace is asymmetrical.

Our advice is to leave the brick as it is right now (pant it later if needed). Add a nice mantel and create a sitting space in the right side - there's enough space to create a cozy reading nook, for example. Plus, the brick will create a beautiful contrast with the rest of the colors you picked for the space. However, you can paint the brick at the end, if you are not satisfied how it looks.

If you want to get more ideas, check out some of our projects at www.gialluisihomes.com.

BTW the asymmetry doesn't bother me at all. It's more about balance. Beth H. has done a beautiful job of achieving balance in her rendition. Her use of accessories "balances" out the asymmetry in a very successful way. In fact, it makes very good use of the firebox being asymmetrically placed. Whatever you do please post photos of the finished project. Good luck!

We would wait to do anything to the brick until after you paint and have the carpet put in. That way you can come back and add another picture and we can see if everything works together or not.

Update: So I’m thinking of keeping the brick unpainted for the time being. I like the color of our walls. I tried taking a close up of the brass of our fireplace but I don’t know if the pics uploaded properly. I will definitely need some advice down the road for more fireplace ideas. I love what you all have shared so far.

Is hanging a mantle pretty simple?

Love it pained in white!

depends what kind of mantel it is. you can drill in lag bolts in the mortar joints of the brick, and match those up w/holes in the back of your mantel. slide it on. (this is for a floating wood mantel).

you could always do some wood millwork around the brick like they've done here

As for that gold insert, please, just paint it. there is nothing nice looking about it's current state

get this spray paint as pictured, tape off everything, and give it a few light coats.

I defin like the look for a floating mantle!!! Will have to work on that down the road

Here’s the floating shelf we did :)

Sushistew, nice mantle.

now, replace the ancient gold insert

or remove it

I would keep it as it, add a mantel and add the decor as shown below which is very nice.