I spent the first 18 years of my life in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, growing up in a red brick home. And when we were in Pittsburgh last month renovating a kitchen, we did a drive by of that home. It wasn’t the fanciest house and my parents were never concerned about home decor trends–I slept on the third floor in a wood-paneled room for at least a decade–but I really loved that house and I still do. Maybe, it was even my first love.
It’s always kind of nerve-wrecking to visit childhood homes, right? I’m worried it will be so changed and look so different than the loving memory I have locked in my head. But this house, minus a few hedges, looks just the same.
I told Chris I’d love to live in a red brick house again one day and every time we pass one, he points it out, “Do you love that house?” And I usually do. But I’m also pretty particular about the red brick color. For instance, pink or maroon brick is not the same as red brick, which, unfortunately, is what our house sports. Exhibit A:
Exhibit B:
The truth is, I’ve never cared for the color of the brick on our home. I believe the original door was chosen to match the brick, or maybe the brick was chosen to match the door, but either way–they were both maroon to start with. The good news is, it’s only on the bottom half of the front of our home and lately, we’ve been talking about painting it.
I know this might be a polarizing topic, and there are brick purists reading this that cringe at the idea. We, ourselves, have gone back and forth on the idea for the past three years, and I can’t shake it. Would it make me love the outside of my house more? Would it make me feel more comfortable here? Would it hurt any potential resale? Help it? Would it look better?
I had my sister help me mock up what it could look like and it made me want to run out and get paint this weekend!
However, this photoshop rendering doesn’t take into account the bricks will no longer have the variance. If we did paint it, they will be one solid paint color that matches the siding. Chris talks about replacing all the siding and brick down the road but I don’t know how realistic that is.
Other things to note: The wall sconce and camp chairs are also on their way out. (Ha!)
Ps. Check out the before and afters of that Pittsburgh kitchen we renovated right here.
What about doing that german schmear thing that was on a episode of Fixer Upper?
haha. GREAT idea! i just came across this old post and it turns out you DID the schmear in your new place!
a lot of my house is sided in beige or almond how would this look if not close to the color>?
I love the painted brick and there is a way you can paint them different shades – it will be more time consuming but worth it in the end! Check out my post on my blog for details on how I painted my faux brick wall in the basement.
http://www.homeofdiy.com/painting-a-faux-brick-wall/
DO IT!!! :)
Have you ever heard of white washing? I am sure you have but go on pinterest and look at others who have done it. I think you might be happier w/ white wash rather than paint.