apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I'd paint the mantle bricks (and maybe fill in some of the grout) and clean and seal the floor bricks.

I"d be afraid of painting bricks that lie underneath a furnace. It seems like the paint would melt or even worse, catch fire! How about putting some new stone, like slate (which is reasonably priced) on top of the brick to hide it? Most WBS's are easily taken apart, you could lay the stone and rebuild. No more ugly brick!

if the problem is them just not matching, Colleen might be on the right track with modifying the upper ones rather than the lower. Might be easier. Cant see behind it but my guess would be you could do a lot with the area behind if the stove isnt touching it. You could refinish it as a new mantle made or a different type of stone or material. Or just cover it, maybe with something like that tin stuff a few posts down that someone put on their ceiling and you can always go back to the brick if you want to.

usually i hate painted bricks, but i actually saw a gorgeous painted-brick wall in toronto the other day that made me re-think my stance. the walls were a nice, rich mustard yellow. i also agree with the other commenters so far that the back bricks would make the better painted surface, in part because the floor bricks seem to be older and have more character. good luck - post your pics when you decide what to do!

I agree, I like the bricks on the floor best. But I agree with chaudy's idea to put stones in...since it keeps the room feeling natural (From the picture, I consider that a highlight of the room). Is it possible to put a stone backing over the mantle bricks, and keep the ones on the floor? If not, paint the bricks behind the stove a rustic color, and leave the bricks on the floor be! If you really dislike those the most, then I'd go for either installing new bricks or stones on the floor (not paint!) I don't think the paint will melt....but paint under the stove would look weird. I think.

Keep that charming floor brick. Change the brick on the wall!

Even though I just spent a month stripping paint off an old fireplace (Peel Away!), I'd be all over painting the wall portion, except for the lovely top mantel. Looks like blue stone, maybe? I think those bricks are more "eh" than those on the floor.

There are heat-proof paints; my mom actually painted a WBS and it was fine. But I think you'll be limited in your colors. Whether that matters will depend on your overall decor. I would go for something fun.

Hey all, I'm the owner of the awkward stove! Thanks for the feedback. I think my desire to coat the floor brick with something comes from having emptied the stove ash and seeing how all that dust works itself into the pores of the brick. They're perpetually dirty, and that bugs me. But you've convinced me to try to find a solution that preserves their rustic feel -- maybe I can find a heat-tolerant clear coating to seal them?

I love the idea of painting the mantel bricks with a fun color instead. Oh, the posibilities!

I was in the same situation as you. When we moved in we had regular red bricks in the back but tile on the ground. We used regular wall paint on the wall bricks and left the tiles on the ground. The paint hasn't bubbled or melted. It was far enough away for the back to where it wasn't hot enough (But we also have a fan in the back).

They also make heat resistant paint. so you may want to check on that.

Why not tile over the bricks? I'm envisaging an evocative Moroccan pattern, or a simple terracotta tile... or whatever matches your decor. It'll look neater and be easier to clean.

Speaking as somebody who grew up with wood heat, I just want to pitch in a little reminder. The shade of paint that will camouflage the mess created by a wood stove has not been invented yet. I'd recommend leaving the foundation bricks as they are.

Well there's always tinted cement also for a more modern feel and look.

a cement veneer is a fantastic idea.

or you can paint with high temperature paints, like for outdoor grills.

i love the way painted white brick looks - i would paint both bright white.

or could you distress the back bricks? i don't like how new they look compared to the bottom bricks. i'm not sure if it's possible to distress bricks, rub dirt on them? sand them? a stain? i agree that the back ones are very bright, and the grout doesn't match either.

Bright white paint = dingy gray smudges around a wood stove - no way around it.

I think tiling the floor would be a great solution, both for aesthetics and for cleaning. Whatever tile you choose, you can get coordinating tiny tiles to go around the vertical edges of the platform.

It looks like a small enough area that you could probably find a single slab of stone for it too if you wanted!

If you opt for painting, I'd suggest a dark green-beige neutral (it will make the floor pop and won't show smudges as much). However, I like the idea of just putting down some slate on top of the lower bricks.

I kind of like it as is, though. Very old world and pretty.