apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

How about white paint? that will help it be less of a visual black hole.

Pieces of beautiful fabric on made-to-measure wooden frames will cover the holes. I would consider painting the bricks white for the meantime.

You could install floor-to-ceiling curtains (I think Ikea has some pretty nice brown velvet ones that would be awfully luxe) around the fireplace and use the empty fireboxes for storage in the meantime...

Make it match something. Anything. The blue wall. The dark brown overhang things. The white ceiling (you're already started at the top edge it looks like.)

Or, the brick seems kinda cute to me. Maybe put a shelf mantle on it, some cute accessories, and re-do some other parts of the room to get along with the fireplace!

I think the fireplace and brick look fine; what throws it off for me is that you have oh-so-obviously placed a sofa in front of it and hung a tiny (crooked) picture on the end of it. It would look much better if you treated it as a fireplace instead of something you're trying desperately to hide. If you want to cover it, even temporarily, make sure you have it professionally cleaned first to clear out soot, creosote and debris and any animals that might have taken up residence/fallen in.

I agree with white paint. Not only will it help the brick disappear, the shadows will create an interesting texture all while brightening up the room. Anything else you might do to it will almost certainly make the corner look more fussy than you may want. Good luck.

Oh, I forgot to say - no to boards and painting. It will look too Trading Spaces-y. Good from far, but far from good.

I know, I'd probably get a lot of flack about this but, Billy bookshelves. They have a flexible system that fits virtually any space and can wrap a corner like this one.

Instead of trying to ignore the fireplace and brick, I think you could have more drama if you make it a focal point. Resurfacing the brick to something more updated might be what you'll need. Like this one I saw on this blog: http://morewaystowastetime.blogspot.com/2007/09/mark-your-calendar-eichler-o-rama.html

Sell the house.

It's a beautiful fireplace as-is - I'd be thrilled to have that feature in my home.

i agree no boards, no painting...so many fp look so poor with paint...i vote for making it a centerpiece...if you dislike the color you can restain the brick

http://www.houserepairtalk.com/f2/staining-brick-688/

Hard to tell much with just one photo, but I can safely say that a fireplace is a pink elephant that can't be removed from a room. Then again, I agree with Dorothy Draper about using fireplaces as focal points...

Jerry-rigging boards over it isn't likely to look too great, so you might do better find some fireplace screens to cover the holes.

If it were my house, I'd take down the green picture, rearrange the furniture, and possibly paint the bricks to match my walls.

Lots of people would KILL for a fireplace like that, and I quite like it. I think the brick is neutral enough that it's fine. I agree that it's the furniture arrangement that needs to change.
Start thinking of it as an asset and treat it as a feature of the room instead of trying to hide it.

That fireplace is fine, and the bricks are crying out for a great piece of art hanging on them.

Try to embrace the fireplace by making it the focal point instead of making a clumsy effort to hide it, which only makes it more noticeable.

Slap on some clay paint, which is applied like plaster. It will probably cost under $100!

I agree too- don't ruin this fireplace, you'll ruin any resale value in the process, unless you upgrade it to something better (I love the version Gaytha suggested).

I think you should move the loveseat, add a mantle and a big mirror or a big bold canvas. That will make it a focal point while minimizing the amount of brick you see- you are obviously suffering from brick exhaustion, but don't despair!

Maybe a problem is also that your paint color clashes with the warm tones of the brick- if you had a colour that worked with the fireplace instead of against it, you might hate it less.

I agree with kimg924, white paint.

I painted my fireplace in light blue metallic paint from Sears. I think it is same blue as on your wall.

It's a very cool shape, really. Does it have two openings, or is that other hole supposed to hold wood?

I think your major problem isn't the fireplace - it's the colors of the bricks! Which I can understand that you don't like. That's some not so nice mottling.

I dislike painted brick too, so I'm not going to tell you to do that - but you might be able to save the entire thing with a good brick stain.

If you think you want to plaster over the whole thing anyway, then there's no harm in getting a little brick stain and testing a corner yourself to see if it can save the fireplace.

The sofa is not hiding anything, but rather just looks awkward in its current location. I would go ahead and place your furniture as you plan to when you will be remodeling the fireplace.
As for making it more bearable, I would go ahead and paint it. You mentioned hating painted brick, however if you plaster over it you would be painting that and I think it would be less of an eyesore if you really do not like the brick. Maybe add large fabric panels or prints as well.

Are you kidding???

From the image above, the fireplace is the best looking thing in the room.

Why would you try to get rid of the fireplace and the brick?!
Embellish them! They are great features in any home!

That couch is what ruins the whole wall, it looks to akward and out of place.

I like the fireplace, too... and agree that you could hurt re-sale value by painting it.

Thanks for the comments! Just to clarify, that picture actualy goes in the kitchen and it is just there temporarily during the renovations. The couch was just moved there and it makes the living room much more open and welcoming- it is staying there. There is no resale value attached to the fireplace as it is much much worse than the picture shows- both esthetically and functionaly.

Can we see the rest of the room? And what the fireplace actually looks like? That would help a lot.

Maybe you could reface the fireplace with one of those stone veneer products, the look of fieldstone or those narrow layered stones... places that sell tile might be able to help. Or how about beach pebble tiles? That would be pretty modern looking!

I lived in a house made from that yellowish brick -- I don't much like it either, no matter what other people may say.

Wow- exposed brick- I would die for that... move the couch out of the way (that is what makes the room small) use a masonry drill to hang a large mirror to balance the side with the large opening... do NOT paint it... bring the rust and charcoal color of the bricks into your design elements with accent pieces, throws or pillow is that color.... if you make the fireplace a focal point and move the couch out from in front of it it will make the entire room more open... and get rid of the teeny crooked picture on the thin side... sheesh!!!!!!

I agree with Mlle Kate.

Why try and hide the fireplace, it's great. Like others have said, putting a couch in front of a large brick structure only make it looks like you're hiding a fireplace, it doesn't make it look like a fireplace isn't there.

Go rummaging around a lumberyard and look for a thick, chunky slab of wood to use as a mantle.

Maybe go with a deeper red for the bricks, a more "natural" brick color. I think the only thing I'd do is change your curtains. I personally like them, but I think the modern look of them clash with the great old look of the brick.

I'd work with it instead of fighting it, and the person who commented on your cool color scheme was dead on. Warm colors in the room could make the fireplace look like the cool focal point it was meant to be.

A fireplace like this adds interesting architecture to the room, and putting a couch in front of it is almost never a good idea. The room had to have been designed with furniture placement in mind that faces the fireplace.

Give it a chance - I wanted to demolish our rock fireplace (with a 20' long rock bench) when we bought our place, and now I love it. However, I had to change my plans to paint a cool grey/white on the walls because of the warmth of the rock.

I'm with SeanG.

The turq-brown 50s thing does not work for that brick color, so you'll have to paint it at any rate. The turq-brown 50s thing does not work for that couch shape, but without additional pictures it's hard to tell how much more of the room might be getting wasted with your chosen configuration. That is, I'd try as hard as possible to turn the couches toward the fplace after you resurface the brick to get that white paint off of it.

"Open and welcoming" rarely-if-ever trumps the overall Look.

If you don't like paint, stain it! Just a surface cleaning is needed. The uneven colors of the bricks will show through the stain giving it a a "Modern Deconstructed", look. I would use a light to medium brown stain.

second the stone veneer idea.

I would totally paint it white. It would hide it while not completely taking it away. Then put some great piece of artwork there. That should totally do it. Of course, if that is just white and everything else is a different color, that's a problem. Paint it all white. It will help.

"The couch was just moved there and it makes the living room much more open and welcoming- it is staying there."

So the misplaced sofa's going to stay there after you reface the brick and install the gas insert???

"There is no resale value attached to the fireplace as it is much much worse than the picture shows..."

I doubt that sincerely...
...But then again, who has any resale value left these days anyway?

If the brick is damaged beyond repair and you definitely want to plaster over it, beware of paint! It can make plastering over brick much more difficult.

Create a bar / buffet / desk area circling around the fireplace.
Run the valance around the fireplace.
Put low book cases in front of the holes.
Hang mirrors above the bookcases.

Until you can do what you really want.. Attach furring strips to the ceiling all the way to the floor and then attack very thin Luan or 1/4 plywood you have wrapped in batting and fabric.. Do this on all sides.. So now the focal pint will be a great fabric wrapped column... Now nail gun the wrapped panel to the strip on the ceiling. Now move the couch, This will not ruin the brick nd give you a great fabric wrapped column! I might use chocolate, as It would match your other stuff .

I think the fireplace is the nicest thing in that room, quite frankly!

I think the brick is nice, but if you're not into the fireplace, just put some shelves along the sides wrapping around the corner. It will give the idea of a mantel, maintain the brick, and cover over the holes of the actual fireplace.

The fireplace isn't the problem -- it's the turquoise and 50s fabric next to it. They don't go together. Personally, I'd try to work with the fireplace instead.

If you are set on covering the brick. I think you should paint it dark brown or dark gray and cover it with wood slats spaced about a half in or so apart to let the color show through.

A Birch or something in the same color tone as the bricks are now would be good.

While its not easy to see the fireplace completely, it seems like the best answer is to try to remove the black and other stains on the brick. Asside from doing that, satins would also be a cheaper solution.

You could continue your curtains/pelmet around the whole corner... not that I especially like them, but it would hide the brick.

But personally I think the fireplace is great! It just needs a bit of fixing up... scrub up or stain those bricks, add a great rough mantelpiece (I'm thinking driftwood!), someone else suggested a dramatic piece of art, and fill up the little hole with a stack of chopped wood.

I also like the idea of cladding the whole thing with stone, if there's no way you can live with the brick... it seems a shame though.

And definitely move the couch away... it doesn't hide anything.

Why don't you try putting up some proportional art?

Take down the green thing and put something large on the right side of the FP. And hang it at the proper height (57-60" to centre).

At first glance, I really thought this question was about your sofa and loveseat.

I agree with the above comments who think the fireplace is the nicest thing in the room. The overstuffed and stained sofas against the interacting dark brown and light turquoise colours are your problem.

Paint it white. If it's as ugly as you say in real life, it isn't adding much to whatever resale value the house might have. White painted brick on a corner fireplace like that could look really nice. You have those big black header beams running along the ceiling--it will look really graphic and bold.

And FYI, it's not the fireplace that's jutting out into the room and making it look small--it's all that furniture you have crammed in there. In fact, based on what little I can see of the space but noticing your choice of "atomic"-patterned curtains, I'd say the couches are your biggest problem. They are too bulky and ponderous for the space. But they look to be in good condition--try putting them up on Craigslist and buy something else (maybe also on CL) instead.

Use a reversible technique and cover the fireplace. Tack furring strips in the MORTAR to glue drywall to. Use construction adhesive on the furring strips, cover the whole thing with drywall, spackle, sand and paint to match the walls. The original, undamaged fireplace is underneath and can easily be restored should the desire arise.

http://kayingleside.com

make a fitted bookshelf and put it inside.

The fireplace is the best thing happening in the above picture.

well, to be frank, i really think that the couch is what's making this disastrous.

this space has a ton of potential. if you hate the color of the brick, paint it.

i'd say get rid of the couch and the table that are on that wall, and replace the table with a round one. the square shape makes it appear really jagged and boxy. if you are looking for more flow, a round table will definitely help you out.

Whitewash the brick, extend the valance on the right so that it wraps around the fireplace and connects with the one on the left and get rid of that god awful picture and those curtains. Have sheer mesh shades the same whitewash color of the bricks installed in front of the windows....Then get rid of the couch, the side table,coffee can, mop and bucket, pillows, and maybe consider going shopping to Ikea.... oh yeah! Then paint all of the walls in a Benjamin Moore white.
Have I forgotten anything?

Good Luck!

Agree w/ 7:23, Get rid of those curtains and go to Ikea! also agree with cobble on everything else, someone knows their stuff!

I agree with the comments about incorporating driftwood and adding more brown with the blue. I would try adding some shelves and trying to go with a tan, brown, and blue theme and incorporate beach/nautical themed elements into it:

driftwood
blue, tan, and white sand art in decorative bottles
shells

i mean no offense by this at all, but the fire place is gorgeous. the couch is not. just go with it! the bbw affect would look very nice, although i like it how it is. place some mirrors & candles in the fireplace. it really is very, very cool.

oh, i forgot to add something. i think one reason the fireplace looks off is because what you have around it clashes. when you have something like this, you have to work with it. i have a fireplace that is pretty much neon yellow & green. i worked around it instead of fighting it & now it's pretty much what people love in the whole place.

i would suggest changing the wall color to something that is either neutral or warm. i know you're going for the blue/brown tiffany look, but the contrast is a bit much. a soft gray would look pretty. if you love the brown/blue trend that was popular a few years ago, that's cool, but in this case, you're better off keeping it to accessories.

get rid of the valances! it is making the room look shorter/smaller. it's also really dating it. you need to replace those curtains with something a bit more neutral. if you did this, the fireplace would not seem as crazy. there is a reason everyone on here is saying it's great. that fabric would make for fun throw pillows or a cute shower curtain though.

the other issue is that your furniture is a bit early 90s while the fireplace is on trend & minimal.

please, embrace it.