Okay, I’ve got another design dilemma as we are nearing the home stretch. Like many remodels, ours has taken about double the time and double the money than the original budget. As such, we’ve very little money to finish up the lingering projects, one of which is the double-sided fireplace in the center of the room. I love this fireplace. We spent a lot of money opening up the house to create an “open concept” with the fireplace as a centerpiece between the living room and dining room. It used to look like this, with a closed wall and cabinetry: 
We demo’d the wall and the extraneous brick: 
And now it looks like this:
My original plan was to cover the fireplace in a monochromatic stone cladding. I’ve always loved this look, and I thought it would add a nice focus to each room to have this kind of stone around the fireplace.
Stone Cladding:
The problem is, this idea is way out of our budget. Stone cladding is really expensive, and it’s also hard to find. I think this idea is out of our reach at this point. So, here are the options that we can afford:
Stucco
Doing a smooth coat of stucco could give us the look of concrete without the expense, and could be a quick and simple solution.
Drywall
It seems like a lot of new construction homes have drywalled fireplaces. I think this could be an easy solution to wrap it in drywall, but I also think it’s a little boring.
Painted Brick
The easiest solution would be to just paint the brick. But because the fireplace was cut on one side, we would have to repair it, and it’s possible the patch job will look a little . . . patchy. So, wrapping it might be easier. Oy vey. Any ideas I am missing? What would you do?
If it's a wood burning fireplace I'd avoid the stucco and drywall unless you're planning on surrounding the fireplace in tile as well. It will get sooty and be impossible to clean. We have painted brick (it's cream colored)and I like it, but it gets dirty too most of the marks come off easily. But definitely easier to clean than the other options. Plus I like the texture of the brick rather than the flat surface of stucco or drywall.
I personally like painted brick. It will be monochromatic without the cost of cladding, and you can change the color whenever you want. I say it's your best option. Down the road, if you really want to change it to cladding when you have more money in your budget… then go for it. 🙂
Painted brick, even patched, will give you texture and be easy on the budget. Paint it white for a monochromatic look or completely the opposite with an outstanding complimentary color.
I like the painted brick, too!