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Home Decorating Fireplaces Design Dilemma

What to do with this brick wall?

last year

Hi! We just bought this home and we are thinking of making this family room into a playroom/ den. All the furniture in the picture will be gone (previous owner). we are taking out the tile floor, replacing with dark hardwood. I love the wood beams on ceilings- so that’s staying as is, track lights would be replaced with something more current (suggestions pls). The wood paneling (not showing in the picture) on the walls will be painted white or taken down and placed with wall (if it’s not to costly). Big question is what should I do with this brick wall/ fireplace? The color of the brick is just too dark and has to go. Should we white wash or paint it all white? Also, how can I incorporate a mantle? Thanks!

Comments (3)

Paul F.
last year
last modified: last year
Show us the whole wall and the rest of the room with some measurements. Turn your camera phone sideways. That would be the best way to get the pros involved too.
ShadyWillowFarm
last year
Those are real wood beams? And OMG the plastic on the couch!🤣. Slid off a few of them as a youngster. I know it’s not your furniture. What is your overall style? With the brick, the tile floor, the beams and the (unseen) paneling you have a lot of texture and lines and patterns going on in one space. I normally like to paint brick the same color as the trim. But in your case, it may be better off the same color as the walls if you are keeping the beams. Indoor brick is easy to paint and it does not harm the brick at all. You just need to prime it and use masonry paint, which can be tinted to whatever color you want. Use a thick nap roller to apply the paint. Will you be using the fireplace? You can get a simple flat screen that will look better. If you are not using the fireplace, you can put pillar candles in there.
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I agree with Joanie to work with the fireplace. One problem I see is that the white window treatment to the left suddenly cuts off that brick wall. Could you post a picture of what it looks like behind the verticals? And use different window treatment? Maybe also paint the walls a different color? Also, the white blinds on the window of the brick wall seem very jarring. If you had a glass window hung there and art work above the fireplace, it would look a lot more cohesive. Also, a gas insert and mantle would be great. If you don't like the brick, you could also try white washing it. The other thing --- and I can't find anybody who's done that -- -would be to try built-in shelves. maybe someone can play around with photoshop.
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Mad_gallica: central Colorado All: The brick half wall goes into the brick about 8 inches at the points that are truly attached. It stretches across the left portion of the house where it becomes unattached again. At that point, It serves as a fence for the left 4 feet of the house in front of the dog run on the side. There is actually a real fence behind the brick wall there, so that's no concern if we were to decide to take it down. Attached are some additional pictures. The 3rd picture has an arrow showing where the wall is not attached again. To the comments about the downspouts we actually had gutter work done to correct gutters that were hung incorrectly. Out of 3 quotes, they all gave us two options either having the downspout where it was originally (running across the porch as you see in the first picture, which drove me mad) or moved along the side of the house in front of the wall as you see on my previous close ups. Running across the porch was awful and there was no way to paint it to disappear so I went with moving it. The middle pictures are old. The cedar is gone. The right cottonwood is also dead and removed (part of the reason for our working on the exterior).
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We took a walk through the neighborhood this past weekend , and I finally figured out why the rock wall is there (sort of). Almost all the homes have some sort of rock wall formation on their property, and I believe it’s because the neighborhood is built on a mountain top, so the various builders all seemed to have utilized in some form or fashion all the rock that was excavated during the building process. I think once we find a solution for the red brick, the wall won’t be as big of an eyesore and flow a little better with the lot and the neighborhood. And agree absolutely about the landscaping! We’re working on it now!
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I disagree about cutting the bushes in half. They need to be removed completely. They are not at all attractive, and they are planted too close to that brick wall, and may be causing damage to it. I would not paint the brick. Paint the stucco and the the regular siding the same color. There is way too much going on there. I like the idea of painting it all gray. Once the house is all one color, the brick will be a nice accent, both on the house and the wall. Once you have all that done, then, its time, to do some much nicer landscaping.
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PRO
Diana Bier Interiors, LLC
last year
I love brick but not that brick! I would paint it. However, I would have an overall plan for the room before selecting a color. I think you're making a wise decision by replacing the tile with hardwood flooring--a medium neutral brown wood would be classic and go with anything you choose to do.

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