What to do with this fireplace?

[mumdone]

We want to keep it but how can we make it look nicer on a budget?

Is the hearth stone or concrete?
I'd paint the bricks and tile the hearth

I’ve no idea :/ off to google hearth stone

The hearth looks like paving stones to me
I quite like it as it is but you could sand down and paint the shelf and use a watered down emulsion applied with a sponge to add colour the brickwork?
There are often reruns of House Doctor on 5 or Selling Houses with Amanda Lamb on 5 and that's what I've seen them do on there.

We have a pretty similar set up but I’m not sure if the white wall is too much of a stark contrast? Ours is a cream colour with gold, orange and brown on it.
Maybes a softer cream then some warm coloured Yankee candles on top? Or a warm rose gold coloured paint? Or if your colour scheme is more towards the greys?

Defintely don’t paint the bricks it always looks shite. I’d replace rhe wooden mantle, in fact you can just remove it and buy a proper fire surround and add that. Then add black base round the fire. Or put a wood burner in if you’re feeling flush.

I like it the way it is, TBH.

Plaster the bricks and paint? Plaster and tile the bricks? Same for the hearth. Paint the mantel whatever.

Take the mantle off and replace it with an oak plinth. It will transform it. Don't paint the brick you will ruin it. I would then invest in a log burner. eBay do gorgeous french ones antique really reasonably priced. Will look like it's from a magazine

It’s not too bad! Some of the expensive new builds near me have fireplaces not dissimilar to that! Do what a pp says and replace the mantel with an oak beam, or if you can’t afford that try and strip the current wood and revarnish in a lighter colour. Tile the hearth with terracotta pantiles. Put in a black wood burner or if this is too expensive buy an electric plug in one in the same style, the are only about £100.

i would change the slabs at the bottom to some nice proper fireplace tiles in a classic style, you could also replace the mantle company near me makes lovely oak ones custom made to size

Log burners bed 150mm air gap either side of them so that would require a lot of work

I would plaster and re-tile the brick work with something more modern.

I would be temped to strip the wood and then wax it and paint the bricks and hearth white. You could also go crazy and tile, the shape is similar to some on here - www.digsdigs.com/tiled-fireplaces/

Paint the bricks and change the hearth for granite. We did this in our rental, we asked a local tradesman who does granite kitchens to sell us an offcut (where he'd cut out a big sink) it looks lovely.

We changed it for granite, I mean. We plastered the bricks, but you could just paint them. It does look better if you're going to have a modern looking fireplace to plaster it.

I like it as it is. Wouldn't change it. Definitely wouldn't paint the bricks.

I like the idea of changing the mantle and tiles, also a log burner but we’ve limited budget. Thanks everyone

Perhaps you could swap one of your two dishwashers for some nice fireplace tiles? :D

I like it as is but if I were to change it I would stick a Victorian cast iron open fire in.

Once there is some coal burning nicely in their you may find you like it much more.