I have always had a love affair of old brick! It’s so beautiful to me. I moved to the South when I was 19 and I think it began there. The beautiful homes there were all made of brick. I am guessing due to weather conditions such as Hurricanes and such. Growing up in California it was a lot less common to see. There’s just such warmth and character in a room when it has exposed brick. You know the feeling when you visit that cute coffee house with the exposed brick wall? It’s a feeling it gives. You can incorporate it into any space. Whether your style is modern, cottage, industrial, or farmhouse. Whether its rustic, minimalist, maximalist, you name it, it still compliments the space beautifully! It really accents any and everything in my opinion! In this post I will go over an option you have to create that exposed brick look on a budget!
I really wanted that traditional red brick with the white wash that I always loved. I was also craving that texture that a faux wallpaper just didn’t have. So eventually I looked into the brick paneling option. We found the panels at Home depot for $43 per 4 ft. Even though they are panels they still have that 3D texture to them and feel like brick. I decided to stick with that same little hallway I had used the wallpaper on. I figured if it went well I could add it to more spaces but this was my first attempt at this so I figured we would start small instead of covering a huge main wall. My husband measured and cut the paneling to fit in the hallway around our door using a skill saw. He then used a nail gun to hang it. Here is the paneling all hung.
It definitely has the texture I was looking for. If your going for that traditional red brick you can stop here you’re all done. This is too red for my liking. I personally gravitate to the old looking brick that peaks through the drywall. I looked up quite a few different options on how to white wash brick. You can use techniques like covering with watered down paint or joint compound depending on the exact look your going for. I chose to go with the joint compound for additional texture. I wanted it to look real and almost old. The joint compound gives it that look. I used DAP 3-LB Premixed Finishing Drywall Joint Compound. We grabbed it from Lowes for about $10 and a drywall joint knife to apply it. The drywall joint Knifes run about $15.
The technique I used to apply was I would get a big glob on the putty knife and smear it across a section and then I would scrape it off to uncover as much brick as I wanted. I personally let the darker bricks show through a little more and covered the brighter bricks with just a little more putty to get the look I loved. You can play with your technique and add more or less depending on your style. This is after adding the joint compound. It looks pretty authentic huh?
I decided to add some pictures of our town to pay homage since our little downtown had been part of my inspiration for this project. I Was able to find some pictures of two Historic buildings in our downtown from the early 1900’s. I downloaded them and printed them at Walgreens for a couple bucks. The 3rd picture I framed was The blueprint of our house. I opted for simple black frames to pop against the brick and I matted the pictures to look a little more professional. It’s kind of a little history corner paying homage to our town and our home. I hope to one day add some cursive lettering with the name of our town above the door. I absolutely love this little corner of our house. It’s such a small little corner but has so much character!
I think all in all this little project was completed for around $100 bucks. This was fairly easy, super budget friendly, and a great way to add a statement wall I must say! I finally have a little piece of that brick I love in my home!
I would love to hear your feedback and see your projects if you decide to go forth with one! Comment below or tag me in your photos!
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