I want to "brick" a small wall myself and even though I typically despise this stuff, I was wondering if it could be made to looks real by painting it, as old brick is often painted over. Can you post pics when you're done? I'd really be interested in your reviews of it once painted.

One of the greatest cautions to painting brick is that the paint, if not carefully selected can trap water and moisture in the wall assembly, causing deterioration to the brick and mortar and adjacent wall construction. This is especially true for historic and older structures where softer bricks and mortar, solid masonry construction, or veneer walls without modern cavity detailing and weeps, where paint could drastically and negatively effect the wall system. Similarly a wall that is showing signs of deterioration should not be painted as that means that water is already getting into the wall and can be trapped further with paint. The hardness of modern bricks, mortars, and cavity wall detailing has made this less of an issue in new construction, but it is still something of which everyone should be aware. It's something that would be worth discussing with the brick and paint manufacturers to make sure that the two are a good match both for durability and for maintaining the appropriate level of breathability.

Because the brick around the door is sheltered by the overhang you could probably paint it without having to worry about damaging its ability to breathe. However, there is an alternative way to change the color of brick and mortar. I've been fascinated by DYEBRICK since I first discovered the company. The non-toxic, water-based stain soaks in so the texture of the brick is retained. In addition to traditional brick colors they offer LimeLike that can significantly whiten even dark brick. Final color is determined by dilution rate with the fixative. HERE is a photo of one job. The only problem is that people from the U.S. and Canada have to order the product from England.

It's a bit more complicated than that. You need to clean and prep the surface, prime and then apply your paint. Same decisions as any other painted surface - matte finishes are easier on the eye and hide imperfections, glossy finishes are easier to wash and will attract attention. You can also do other brick finishes that do not totally hide the surface. Painting a firescreen is a separate process, since you need to prepare it differently and use a product that can tolerate heat.