Progress on the fireplace!

Today was very productive - I painted out the fireplace for Nella ( my girlfriends place I am decorating )
and painted the living room - just have the trim left - and the windows and doors -
Then the fun part starts - decorating - what I live for really.

Here is a photo of the fireplace in progress ( has since been finished ) I did not take a picture of before
but it was RED BRICK - picture Santa Claus coming down the chimney red.
By the way - out of the 3 colors on the wall - she has chosen the soft gray blue on the top center of the mantel I was literally holding my breath on this one, I really did not like the 2 yellows - but she kept saying she wanted warmth - I know enough by now to know that any color can work once you accessorize, but I can't help it, I am always drawn to cool colors - grays - blacks - whites - that's who I am I suppose - I see everything in black and white, lol

And here are a few photos of the room which I absolutely love

That Ikea t.v. stand will be painted out black - and hopefully the t.v. will kind of fade out - uggh - mentionned before I hate t.v.'s in living rooms?

and her window wall - I just love love love this - this is very common in the section of the city that she lives in
( N.D.G. for fellow Montrealers - where I lived until last year ) the radiators are so special, we both had a glass of wine on the weekend perched on 1 each - discussing plans for the room - with really warm tushes.

my plans include incorporating this stencil work somewhere in the room in white

and I am hoping she goes along with it - have yet to discuss it with her because she gets very overwhelmed by all of this - and I have to mention things 1 by 1 to let it absorb, lol - for me it's nothing - I would do it and if I didn't like it I would simply change it - but I know most people put a little thought into things, lol.
I once painted my living room 4 times in a week until I hit the exact shade I was looking for - no joke.
I may pull a Suzan on her and just do it while she's at work - thank God she's a friend - can you imagine doing this with a stranger client?
Too bad - I like it ( lol )

She is looking for sconces for above her mantle ( the original ones from the 40's or 50's are there - and they are homely - so I directed her to Elte Furniture ( one of my favorite furniture stores - check them out online - you'll see what I mean instantly - oh and check out their rugs - to die ) and she found these,

love the circular pattern, they are a contender for sure but we haven't made a decision yet on lighting.

That's all for now folks, won't be going to her place today - it's hair day - sit in a salon and have my hair washed, dried, and straightened - so that tomorrow I can put it up in a clip - and put my painting clothes back on. Do not try to figure me out - nobody can.

xxx

Painting a fireplace

One of the first things I painted when we moved in here was the fireplace - it was an old reddish brown brick and I could not look at it ( we have an exposed brick wall in the living room which is original brick - but the brick on the fireplace had been replaced and was newer and a completely different color and it darkened an already dark room.  I suggested we paint it white and John kept saying no, he wanted to have it resurfaced in a slate, soooooooooooooo, one night when he was sleeping I crept out and opened the paint tin and painted and painted and painted ( it takes a lot of paint to cover brick ) so that it was done when he woke up,  if he hated it we could always cover it after, right?
He liked it!  I liked it! ( notice I say liked - past tense - will get back to that at a later date - but suffice it to say that my disorder includes getting very bored with things very fast lol )

It really made a night and day impact on the room for very little cost.

So this is what this leads up to.
My girlfriend just bought an apartment - with a brick fireplace - and again the brick is reddish brown and dirty with soot stains and really quite an eyesore so she asked if I thought she should paint it.  YES!!!!!!!!!! ( she has hired me to decorate her house - so this is now my job ) and off I ran with the tools of my trade.

Got to her place - pulled out the tarp - and began this very very simple job.
OH MY GOD - her brick does not have mortar between it ( grout ) so every  brick stands out on it's own,
which means you have to paint each brick - and then try to get BETWEEN each brick - with it's gouges and holes and all - and the brush was just not cutting it - I then tried a tiny foam brush which I could just sort of poke into the spaces - no good.
I than had a stroke of genius - I would put the tarp all around the fireplace - and then get inside it - and spray like crazy -
DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME - I am actually peeing myself thinking of this - somebody should really lock me up - no mask - you have to try to visualize this - as I was darting in and out with this bloody spray can - and choking to death - and as you know you cannot spray up close - you need to be at a distance with sweeping motions - but desperate times call for desperate measures and I was determined ( determination can definitely kill you ) and I was literally attacking this fireplace - and complaining non stop - why didn't they put mortar between the bricks - who lays bricks without mortar - this is the stupidest way to lay bricks etc - etc.
as I ran out for air every 2 seconds -
And guess what - the fireplace got done....................

I forgot to take pics of the before - which is a shame - but I will post pics of the after.  Off today to paint the rest of the room - this apartment has huge potential - so it's exciting to be a part of it's transformation -

Have a good day all,

xxx