Fireplace Makeover: Part 1 Goodbye Stone, Hello Timeless Design

Fireplace Makeover Pt. 1 

New Mantel Build

for Under $100

Watch the whole makeover on YouTube!

This is the first step in a big makeover my husband and I are doing on our downstairs area. We will be updating the fireplace from a stacked stone wall to a timeless craftsman brick design. Along with the fireplace we will be laying Luxury Vinyl Plank flooring throughout (bye bye orange tile!) and the final project will be updating our kitchen, I'll be updating this post with the links to those blog post once available!

We have to do the fireplace first because the new floors will be going directly overtop the tile and if look at the before picture you will see we had a raised hearth and that had to go. Also, I knew I wouldn't want to be doing stone demo on new flooring.

Demo Time

After staring at this wall for over four years (and never liking it) I can not tell you how much I wanted to just start throwing hammers and sledge hammers at it! lol Unfortunately my husband wouldn't allow it because of the mess...lame.

So the best and less dusty method was to take a hammer and chisel out the large sections. Each piece came off like big legos and some even came off in huge chucks with the paper and chicken wire backing.

It took about two hours to get everything off and be aware everything in our home was covered in dust. 

It was very messy...

I was thrilled to find the drywall was in perfect condition except one hole Scott put in.

A little patch and paint is all I had to do on this wall to get it looking better than it did with the stone

The Mantel

I wanted a very timeless craftsman design that matched some of the other details we have added to our home.

Materials:

Mantel build cost under $100 

if you already have larger supplies on hand

1 4x8 sheet of 3/4 inch MDF

crown molding of choice

Nail gun

wood glue

table saw or chop saw

primer

paint

caulk

wood filler

sander and/or sandpaper

The mantle consist of three rectangular "boxes"; two legs and the middle section. We used 1 sheet of MDF to create the whole structure and trim pieces which made it very affordable.

(it is hollow on the inside)

The trim was created with 1 1/2 inch strips of the MDF

Everything was glued and nailed

Scott and I had a miscommunication on height of the actual part that would be the mantel and the legs were shorter than needed, so we had to add height with the four block pieces and then placed a piece of the mdf on top to create the top of the mantel. 

In order to figure out the correct size of the mantel we had to purchase the crown molding ahead of time because we wanted a slight overhang and we had to figure out those measurements before cutting the MDF.

Crown molding does not sit flat on the surface so it's important to visualize your mantel when selecting your molding.

We attached the molding with the nail gun

We will be laying LVP flooring once the fireplace is finished so we did have to add tiles to this area that was the raised hearth just to have a level surface here.

I filled all the seams and nail holes with wood filler and then sanded everything with a 220 sandpaper

I then caulked all the areas that needed it

 (this should be done after primer if priming but I forgot)

I did two coats of Kilz Premium Primer 

&

two coats of Behr Cabinet & Trim Enamel in Bright White Semi Gloss 

(it's the base color not mixed with anything)

About Kilz Primer:

 a superior quality, interior/exterior, fast drying, low odor, water-base, primer-sealer-stain blocker. Formulated to minimize problems caused by color changes, minor stains, surface textures and porosity differences, it offers excellent adhesion and provides a mildew resistant coating. KILZ PREMIUM can be used on furniture, drywall, plaster, woodwork, stucco, paneling, wallpaper, masonry, brick, painted metal and properly prepared glossy surfaces. Color: White.

About BEHR Premium Cabinet and Trim Interior Semi-Gloss Enamel:

it offers excellent flow and leveling and dries to a hard, durable finish. Its outstanding block resistance allows for quick return to service, making it ideal for use on cabinets, trim, doors, windows, shutters and woodwork. This product can also be used on other properly prepared and primed substrates, such as drywall, masonry and metal. Color: Ultra Bright White.

*Use a paint sprayer or foam roller for best results and sand in between each coats with a 220 grit sandpaper*

to attach it to the wall we placed cleats on the studs and nailed the mantel it that, we also nailed around the legs into the drywall but this definitely needs to be attached as many studs as you have.

I then used a white wood filler to fill the new nail holes and it honestly covered well enough that I didn't have to do touch up paint!

 (helps we put the nails on the inside where brick would eventually cover the holes)

(yes we covered the gas hole up but we have never used that and we did measure where it is so we can add a hole in the future to get to it)

Next I caulked all the places that met the wall and this part of the project was finished! 

Now its Brick Time!

If you have any questions about this build please leave me a comment or DM on Instagram and I'll be more than happy to answer it!

There is always a project to do so I hope you follow along on my social media accounts where I share my life as a Mom of 3 and all things DIY Home! 

Instagram

YouTube

*Links may be affiliate links and if you choose to buy a product through my link I will make a small commision, helping to support these projects. Thank you for being here with me!