The Easiest & Cheapest Way To German Schmear [Like A Pro]

If you are looking to do a little fireplace makeover but don’t want to spend a lot of money, German Schmear is the way to go. I just finished this little DIY project that only cost me $25 and what a difference it made in my living room.

Here was my fireplace before… Not bad at all but I was curious about how I could brighten it up a little. I have seen some whitewashed brink in the past that was beautiful but I didn’t want to cover up all of my red brick so I chose to do a German Schmear technique.

This is something I have never done before but I am pretty courageous when it comes to DIY projects because I want the look without having to pay a professional.

If you want to create this same look, here is what you need to get.

1. White Thin-Set Mortar

You can get this from Lowes or Home Depot but I purchased my bag off of Facebook Marketplace for only $10. I guess someone had a few bags leftover and decided to get rid of them but either way, I would check there first so you can save some money.

2. Big Bucket

I went big on my bucket and probably didn’t have to purchase a new one since I don’t have a bunch of brick. If you have something laying around just use that. If not, this one was $3.99 at Harbor Freight.

3. Heavy Duty Rubber Gloves

Please use heavy-duty rubber gloves. Trust me, you will need them. These were $5.99 at Harbor Freight. You will be doing lots of schmearing.

4. Drop Cloth & Spatula

Again, these are super cheap and you can get them anywhere but absolutely necessary for this project.

5. Sponge and Water Bucket

This will help get the amount of exposed brink you are looking for.

Here is a video I literally threw together. It will show you how to get started with your DIY fireplace makeover using my German Schmear technique.

A little progress pic…

And DONE!!! I love it! It really brightens up the room and adds the finishing touches to my modern farmhouse decor.

Again, I can control how much brick you want to be exposed by using the sponge and water.

Tell Alexa to put on some good music, do small sections at a time, and have fun!

You really can’t mess this up.

I hope you found this helpful. I would love to see your before and after pics! Email them to me at [email protected]

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