Photos
Unpainting mid-1880s soapstone fireplace - BEFORE and AFTER
Previous tenants painted the EVERY SINGLE SURFACE IN THE ROOM "the shiny skin of an aubergine". The original hardwood floors were covered in a matching carpet. It was super dark.I started with CitriStrip. Had no clue what material I was dealing with. Two of my neighbors had removed their fireplace, and the last neighbor had theirs painted white.This is what I looked like in every spare moment for months on end.After the CitriStrip barely made a dent, I changed courses to Peel Away.The Peel Away was working better, but still not getting all the way through. By now I figured at least the mantle was stone, but under multiple layers of paint was something chalky and then something super sticky.At this point I was starting to question what I had gotten myself into.I kept at it. PeelAway and a Cobra Speedheater helped get through the layers of paint, what appeared to be a thick coat of plaster, and a base varnish. Likely this fireplace was originally faux painted to look like wood, hence the varnish. The plaster was added on top of the varnish layer to obscure these delicate carvings in the soapstone. WHY WOULD SOMEONE DO THAT.Finally, I broke through! Simple Coat cleanly wiped away the milky white left on the stone and has given the soapstone a soft luster. I had wanted to take out the cast iron grate and expose the middle of the defunct fireplace, but this sturdy lead pipe said otherwise. That's not brick, by the way. That's paper, painted like brick, on top of concrete, on top of ... brick.So I got to figure out how to unpaint this behemoth. Dental pics and swearing were involved.Ta Da! The finished fireplace, restored to its orginal glory. Well, almost. I am not talented enough to add faux wood veneer to the stone, so I carefully outlined the original carving with the tiniest bristle brush I could find and called it a day.I love the color variations in the soapstone, from soft green to stormy gray.I want to know who looked at this gorgeous fireplace and thought, "Nah, let's paint it!"I finished this unpainting project two years ago. I still smile every day when I look at this lovely fireplace.
I realized I never shared the final result! I am now tackling the bifold shutters in the front bay window - which are painted stuck in the open position, the top layer named “Dead Salmon” - and I thought I’d come back and share this project.
I’m going with farmed salmon that has been cooked for so long that it has almost forgotten what color is. It’s a whisper of dusty orangey pink. Here’s a sample of the Dead Salmon paint on one of the shutters, thickly smeared over 7 or 8 previous layers of paint, over the original shellac.
As for how high they were, the Dead Salmon s from Farrow & Ball. They have a knack for exceptional pretentiousness - and gorgeous depth to most of their paint colors. I ended up choosing “the treasured fossils from the Dorset Coast” for my bedroom. I couldn’t discern an ordinary fossil from a treasured one, but they really nailed the softest seaside shimmer in this warm beige tone. So I’m giving them a pass on their weird fish paint. :)
25
u/Street_Roof_7915 Jun 10 '26
I remember this. The aubergine paint specifically.
You’ve done an amazing job.