How To Update A Large Stone Fireplace

We had an ugly fireplace! Our basement was finished well-nigh ix years ago and we tried to cut too many corners. We hired someone that took a lot of liberties with the projection at a "bargain" price. He came upward with a stone and stucco creation that looked like information technology came straight out of the 70's.

Information technology was definitely time for a stone fireplace update!

How to paint a stone fireplace before and after images

My DIY stone fireplace update has been a existent difference-maker in slowly transforming our basement into a more modern space. This was a adequately simple project that looks a flake intimidating, but is so worth it. Only, let's beginning with a before shot!

Before Outdated Rock Fireplace Wall

It was pretty ugly.

Yous can run across the portion that is brick fireplace is around the hearth while the remaining is existent stone.

When our carpenter suggested he was going to use stucco in addition to stone, the image he described sounded amazing. However, the finish outcome was non smashing at all.

The stucco and stone combination look a bit like misshapen breasts. Non my idea of the perfect basement characteristic wall / focal indicate.

Information technology is so of import to get ALL of the details documented before committing to a domicile renovation project. A good salesperson can convince you of a lot of things, but you have to protect yourself. You will be the one living with the end result.

Learn from our mistake!

My husband really wanted a stacked stone fireplace, but nosotros idea the carpenter knew more than we did. Requesting a simple sketch might have saved us from having this crazy wall in the starting time place.

Merely, what was done was washed. Afterwards living with it for nine years, I decided it was time to go for a painted rock fireplace for our basement living room.

Materials for Painting Stone Fireplace

Grey paint (The paint color I used was Intellectual Grayness latex paint by Sherwin Williams on the stone and Mindful Gray past Sherwin Williams on the stucco).
White pigment or very light gray pigment to dry brush highlights in small-scale areas (I used a can that the paint store had on clearance for $1.00 that is just a tad lighter than Revere Pewter past Benjamin Moore).
Fleck castor
Rags
H2o
Painter's Tape
Roller brush if painting stucco
Drop cloth to protect flooring and other surfaces

More than Before Pictures of Brown, 70's-Looking Stone

Painting outdated stone wall gray with white wash.

The above picture is on the wall opposite of the stone fireplace, behind our bar.

70's style basement with stone wall and stucco.

As I mentioned, information technology looked straight out of the 70's!An up close look at the orange/chocolate-brown rock used on the walls and the fireplace environs:

Brown stone prior to painting with gray wash.

After searching Pinterest for weeks and weeks for stone fireplace ideas, I decided to paint the stucco and fireplace.

Why not?!

It wasn't in our budget to do a total remodel of the infinite. I decided a lilliputian sweat equity could brand the space much more modern and I was right! I completed the painting of the rock and stucco in an afternoon.

Seriously! Why did I await so long for this easy rock fireplace makeover?!

Little effort with a big render!

RELATED: 25+ Painted Article of furniture Before and After Makeovers

Steps for Rock Fireplace Update

i. Water downwardly the gray paint

If y'all've been following Love Our Real Life for very long, you know I paint all the things. Considering of this, I take a ton of leftover pigment from various projects. I grabbed some left over Intellectual Gray from our great room wall color.

Simply, you exercise demand much paint for this project. A sample size of greyness and white paint should be all you'll need for the whole fireplace.

NOTE: Y'all could hands use chalk paint (such every bit Annie Sloan chalk pigment) for this instead of latex paint.

I mixed l% paint with 50% water. This was plain very runny, but I didn't want full coverage of the rock.

The stone was pretty porous, and I knew some of the natural look of the rock would prove through with the watered downwardly paint later it dried - exactly what I was going for!

Use watered down paint to create a wash to update a stone wall or stone fireplace.

2. Pigment the stone

Using an cheap scrap brush (any paint brush volition do), begin painting the stones on the entire fireplace.

Due to how runny the paint volition exist later watering it down, ensure yous cover your floors well with drop cloths. Also, you might demand to employ painter'south tape if painting stone that is near walls, etc.

The scrap brush did a great task of getting into all of the little crevices of the stones.

Once over again notation that various types of paint would piece of work. I do not think a special paint is required. If you accept paint colors you love, attempt a small section start and ensure you love it if you are having hesitations.

As you lot can see the original stone was a very dark color that fabricated our family room feel dark all of the time, even in natural light.

3. Wipe off stone slightly later on applying watered downward paint.

Equally before long as each stone was painted, I immediately took a slightly dampened cloth and lightly wiped the stone.

This took intendance of drips from the runny paint, simply also ensured the stone didn't have a total coverage look of a solid colour.

Although this is an easy project, it is really messy due to how thin the pigment is.

Every bit I mentioned earlier, protect your floors (or anything else in close proximity to the project) with drop cloths.

In the above epitome, you can see that some of the natural stone color is still peaking through, but is no longer orangish.

This layer / showtime glaze dried relatively quickly since it was so thin. After most an hour, it was ready for the side by side step.

Gray chalk paint on fireplace stone wall.

4. Dry Brush white or light gray paint onto rock.

To add together a picayune scrap of dimension to the stone, I dry brushed each stone with very low-cal grey paint.

Highlights could besides be added with a pure white or other white color paint you might take.

If yous've never dry brushed earlier, this post gives more details on how to consummate this.

Super easy, I promise!

Here'southward the jist of it:

Dab a dry fleck castor in a tiny bit of light greyness paint, then off-load the castor on a paper plate to ensure very piffling pigment on the tips.
Then, paint / highlight the raised areas of the stone to add depth.
Start with a tiny amount of highlights. Add more highlights if desired.

Keep in mind, if you get also many highlights, it'southward easy to set. Just dry castor over it with your initial base of operations colour (in my instance Intellectual Grey).

I addressed the fireplace brick the exact aforementioned way I did the balance of the stone.

Dry brush white on stone to give it demension and high lights.

5. Simply If You Have Stucco: Paint the Stucco

I seriously doubt that many of you have this specific stucco and rock combo (if y'all practice, you must transport me a photograph!;-)

Simply, if you lot happen to be considering painting stucco, it's easy. I grabbed some left over Mindful Gray in eggshell finish. Flat cease would be fine, too.

After taping off the expanse I would be painting, I used a bones paint roller to paint all of the stucco. One coat covered pretty well. There were only a few places that required modest touch ups.

The Later on - Stone Fireplace Update:

Update stone fireplace wall with gray paint.

Giving old stone fireplace an update with paint.

Take a peek at our bar space higher up. The wall is done, but the dark brownish decor is going to be changing presently. Stay tuned for that in the upcoming weeks every bit well as my bar transformation.

Update: The bar space is finally finished, likewise! Take a look at the new DIY wood shelves I made!

BAR / STONE WALL Backside BAR Later:

Rustic heavy duty shelves hung with dry wall anchors.

Updating a basement bar area can be done with patience, very little money, and lots of paint.

A FULL BAR Before (Notation THE Rock WALL CHANGES BEHIND THE BAR):

Orange wood and 70's stone make our bar very outdated!

Also notice I painted the brown tile countertops, bar stools, stenciled the floor...pretty much everything got a fresh coat of paint! While it was a lot of hard work, information technology was and so worth it.

Pigment tin can fix only about anything;-) Plus, paint is upkeep friendly when comparing with the cost of trying to replace.

I love it!

It's certainly not perfect, merely I'g definitely happy with the change. Painting the stone was a footling scary. But, since I didn't like it before, I was willing to give it a go.

I'm beyond glad that I did as information technology has a much more modern wait .

We would beloved to add a fireplace mantel, but one projection at a time.

Painting a stone fireplace to make it look like new!

A FEW OTHER BASEMENT UPDATES:

New lights, Sennett ane-Light pendant from Wayfair (Dearest them!)
Shelves (How to Install Rustic Shelves using Dry out Wall Anchors)
Changed outdated home decor on characteristic wall
Stenciled tile floors (Wow! I love this, but man, it was a ton of piece of work.)
How to Paint Tile Countertops

Don't forget to pin for subsequently!