How To White Wash Your Fireplace

When we first moved into our house one of the big things I wanted to do was white wash the fireplace and paint out the wood shelf. This was what our fireplace looked like which was so dark and not what I was going for in this room. I wanted to lighten everything up and make the room look bigger & brighter. Therefore I did some research on how to white wash and I couldn't believe how easy it actually was. I wanted to share the steps I took incase you are thinking about doing the same :)

Step 1 - Before painting you have to prep the area. Cover the wood, fireplace, floor, and whatever else is near the fireplace with drop cloths or plastic so it does not get hit with any paint.

Step 2 - Make sure the fireplace is clear of any dirt or debris before applying any paint. You could use a scrub brush to scrape off all the debris, dirt, soot, etc. and then vacuum up the mess if necessary. Then take a damp/wet cloth and wipe down all of the brick and let the brick dry.

Step 3 - Once the brick is dry, it's now time to start the whitewashing technique. You can use any white paint you would like but it needs to be watered down to give that translucent look. I purchased a quart of White - Benjamin Moore - Satin finish paint, a paint cup/bucket from the hardware store to mix the paint and water in and a bag of rags. Once I started to mix the paint and water I went based off of how it looked on how much to add in of each. The more water you put in the more see through the paint will be. The less water you put in, the more solid coverage you will get. (An example would be to do a 2 to 1 ratio - 8 ounces of paint to 16 ounces of water but it also depends on how much of it you need based off the size of your fireplace). Once you figure this out, you can begin!

Step 4 - I would say test it first in a small area - I tested it in the back corner of my fireplace to make sure I liked the consistency and the look of the finish. If you want to add more paint you can add more or if it needs more water, you can add more water before moving forward. Once you're satisfied with how it looks, you can begin the rest of your fireplace! When applying you will use a paintbrush to brush on the paint and then use a rag to remove some paint from the areas to give it some contrast. Follow up brushing the paint on immediately with the rag and if you take too much paint off, then you can go back and brush more paint on to get to the finish you would like. It is really based off personal preference on how solid or translucent you want the finished product to look.

***IMPORTANT*** - DO NOT PAINT THE INSIDE OF THE FIREPLACE SINCE IT WILL BE IN CONTACT WITH THE FLAME.

Step 5 - Working from the top down worked well because the paint is very runny and watery. I used a normal paint brush, medium sized, and made sure to have multiple rags on hand. Once you are done applying the paint to the entire fireplace, you are done! Let the paint dry and hopefully you love how it came out! I also painted the shelf on the top of my fireplace with the same white paint just not watered down. This was an extra step I took but very easy to do. Sand down the wood with a sanding block, wipe off all sanding dust, and paint! You can use painters tape to tape off the shelf from the wall and the rest of the fire place if you feel it is necessary.

This is how my fireplace came out and I couldn't be happier. Love this look and how you can still see the brick coming through. It's not as dark and gloomy and this made our family room look much brighter. Super easy to do and YES, you can do it too! :)