By Danielle Peterson

Lacey Howard was fed up with looking at her circa-1984 fireplace, so she decided to do something about it. After hearing about the new heat-resistant spray paints for grills, Lacey thought she would give the product a chance and use it to eliminate the cheesy brass look of her fireplace doors. 

First, Lacey used fine-grit sandpaper to rough up the brass on the doors. After cleaning up the resulting dust, she masked off all surrounding areas with newspaper. Lacey then used painter’s tape around the edges, making sure to tape on both sides of the doors’ glass inserts. She wanted all of the trim to be black so if the fireplace doors are open, the color on both sides would be uniform. Take your time on this step; accuracy is key to making this project look perfect.

Next, Lacey sprayed three coats of black heat-resistant paint onto the doors, letting the paint dry between coats. When the final coat was dry, Lacey removed the tape and newspaper to reveal her new fireplace doors.

The total time spent on the project? Less than an hour—including the time at the store spent to buy paint. “It’s amazing what a difference a seemingly small change makes in my room,” Lacey says. “Awesome quick fix!”

A tip from Lacey: Take your time. This project requires multiple coats of spray paint, not one thick coat. “If you go for the quick, thick coat, you’ll get drips,” Lacey says.

Click here to see the paint that Lacey used on her fireplace.

Click here for more ideas on how to give your fireplace a new look!

Need a surround for your fireplace? Click here for our detailed project plan.