Our fireplace makeover begins {stage 1 framing}

I hope you all had a great weekend! I took a break from our laundry room project over the weekend as I am at a stand still waiting for the new washer and dryer to be delivered. Hopefully it will be here soon so I can get started on the shelving. I spent the weekend with my dad trying to figure out how exactly we were going to bring our 1970’s fireplace in our existing playroom into this century. I won’t lie, we had a few moments where he was yelling at me because he said it was impossible to do.

If you follow our blog, I have been trying to convince him for months that we can do this, all he has to do is open his mind to the possibilities. He is so dramatic and negative sometimes!

 Last week I showed my dad a bunch of inspirational fireplace designs and mantel ideas. He is a visual person and this is usually what I need to do to get him thinking. Finally, I knew he was on board when he said, lets go get some wood! If you follow us on instagram, you may have seen this update last week.

We started by removing the baseboard on the wall that abutted the fireplace.

We started by framing the bottom hearth area with 2 x 10’s.

We essentially boxed in the existing hearth.

Of course, it rained all weekend so we needed to setup “shop” in the garage which is where my grandfather parks his car. I think he told me 15 times, I better clean up the mess to his liking. He can painful at times. I thought about putting some sawdust in a baggie and then leaving it for him on the seat of his car. hehe

After an hour or so of figuring out a game plan and showing my dad about 20 pictures of gorgeous fireplaces with beautiful wood surrounds, we came up with a plan. The new fireplace will have a complete wooden surround with the existing stone remaining on the hearth. We are using 2 x 10’s below to create a studded frame around the edges.

The beginning of our fireplace makeover was a little rough but we made tremendous progress this weekend and I honestly cannot believe the transformation. Do you know what he said last night before he went to bed?

He said, “I am so glad I thought of this idea.”

I said, “what idea?”

He said, “to reface the fireplace!”

Really dad? It’s always his idea when he can see it’s going to turn out fabulous! My mom just rolled her eyes and gave me a wink.

UPDATE:  See steps 2 , 3 and full fireplace reveal here.

*be sure to check your local fire codes prior to renovating or working on any fireplace.