For an easy fireplace upgrade you can do yourself, take a (web)page from Terri Klemm. The design pro and blogger transformed her dark and dated fireplace into something bright and beautiful by whitewashing the brick. Here’s how: White paint with an eggshell finish was brushed on in small sections, and then wiped down with rags to remove most of the paint. (She did two coats like this, to achieve the lightness she was looking for). For a finishing touch, she sanded over all the bricks with a medium grit sanding sponge. This brought touches of the original color through and gave her the rich texture she felt was missing after the whitewashing.