DIY // A Budget-Friendly Fireplace Update

We recently bought a fixer-upper and with most fixer-uppers there are both things you love and things you hate about it.  The fireplace is one thing I feel that way about.  I love it's potential, but am having a hard time living with the way it is right at this moment.  It is all brick, has copper trim and copper vent plates, a cast iron insert and then a tile hearth.  The top half is painted the same color as the walls (a cream color) and the bottom half is high-gloss white.  Absolutely nothing matches.

 Here is the photo that was included in the listing.  Not really my idea of a focal point.

Our plan is something similar to this:

We love the built in bookcase, the wood mantel and the two windows flanking the fireplace.  The addition of the windows would add so much natural light to our space, especially since this is a southern facing wall.  I just can't wait until it looks like this!  But there's just many other more pressing issues that we have to deal with first, so our dream fireplace has to wait.

Yesterday, while I was redoing another chalkboard (this time with white paint around the trim) I had a brilliant idea to paint the fireplace and I am so glad I did!  I used my Behr Polar Bear White in a satin lustre to paint the metal trim and vent cover and then did the rest of the brick.  I went in knowing that it is just a temporary fix, so wasn't too concerned with priming the metal beforehand.  There's still work to be done with the tiled/metal-trimmed hearth, but with the addition of a quick coat of a greige (with more emphasis on the beige) coat of paint on the walls, this quick little update has made all the difference.

So, what about you guys?  What areas of your home were eyesores before, but with a simple change has them looking a whole lot better?