Cottage Fireplace Makeover Finale! No more bling!

I stayed extremely busy working on projects this weekend. Boy, am I tired! Today, though, I'm excited to say that our fireplace makeover is finally complete! If you remember, I started by replaceing the tile, then I added a little age and texture with the use of glaze, paint, and extra grout. The last step, which I completed this weekend, was to paint the brass insert black...buh bye bling! Here are a few before, during, and after shots...(Click to Enlarge)











So there you go:) This fireplace was a lot of work but I'm very pleased with the result. About the painted insert...I first bought a can of American Tradition high heat paint. The finish was called BBQ black. I *thought* it was going to be a matte finish. I applied the first coat with a small foam roller brush. After a while I discovered that it was a very high gloss finish, which was NOT the look I wanted (read: "I was practically freaking out.") I ran back to Lowes to see if I could find a matte finish, but they didn't carry it. What I ended up buying was Rustoleum High Heat paint (satin finish) in a spray can. This worked SO much better. I regret that I didn't use it for the first coat! The spray produced a nice, smooth coat that dried to the touch within minutes - it looks great! So my advice, if you're going to tackle the bling on your insert,is to use Rustoleum High Heat in a spray can...cover and tape everything that isn't to be sprayed, and open the windows!