13 Faux Brick Wall Ideas for Industrial Character

Exposed brick gives a room instant industrial character, but few homes have a brick wall hiding under the plaster, and fewer still can take the cost of a real brick veneer. Faux brick wall ideas solve that gap with panels, stencils, and plaster techniques that look close to the real thing. The thirteen ideas below are ranked by realism and difficulty, so you can match the method to your skill and your patience.

1. Faux Brick Panels for the Fastest Result

Interlocking faux brick panels are the quickest way to a brick wall. The panels are molded from polyurethane or PVC, they cut with a handsaw, and they glue straight to drywall. A full wall takes an afternoon, and the result reads as brick from normal viewing distance. Choose panels with varied brick tones and uneven mortar lines, because uniform panels are what give the trick away.

Stagger the panel joints like real brickwork and caulk the seams with a matching mortar color. Panels suit living rooms, bedrooms, and home offices, and they are light enough for a single person to install. For a similar peel-and-stick approach on floors, our peel-and-stick flooring ideas that look like real wood show how far printed surfaces have come.

2. German Schmear Brick for Soft, Old-World Character

German schmear spreads a thin layer of mortar over a brick surface and wipes most of it away, leaving soft white mortar in the joints and on the brick faces. The result looks like a centuries-old farmhouse wall. Apply it over real brick veneer, faux brick panels, or a brick-look tile, using a grout bag and a damp sponge.

Work in small sections and wipe as you go, because dried mortar is hard to remove. A light schmear keeps the brick color visible, while a heavy schmear turns the wall almost white. This technique suits kitchens and living rooms where you want brick character without a strong red tone.

3. Brick Stencils for a Painted Effect

A brick stencil lets you paint a brick pattern directly onto a flat wall. Tape the stencil level, roll paint through the openings, and shift it along the wall in a running bond pattern. A brick stencil wall reads best in rooms viewed from a distance, such as hallways and large living rooms.

Use two or three brick tones and vary them randomly so the wall does not look printed. A light mortar-colored base coat underneath gives the joints their color for free. Stencils are cheap and renter-friendly, since the whole effect is just paint. For more paint techniques that add texture, our paint techniques that add depth to flat walls cover sponging, ragging, and color washing.

4. Thin Brick Veneer for Near-Real Results

Thin brick veneer is real clay brick sliced to about half an inch thick, so it looks and feels like the real thing at a fraction of the weight. It glues to the wall with mortar and gets pointed like a real brick wall. This is the most realistic option on the list, and also the heaviest and most expensive.

Plan the layout dry before you mix any mortar, and cut bricks with a wet saw for clean edges. Veneer suits a fireplace surround or a single feature wall, where the cost stays manageable. Hire a mason if the wall is large, because a bad pointing job is visible from across the room.

5. Peel-and-Stick Brick Wallpaper

Peel and stick brick wallpaper gives you a brick wall in an hour with no tools and no mess. Modern prints use photography of real brick, so the color and shading look convincing at a glance. It suits renters, bedrooms, and accent walls that you may want to change in a year or two.

Apply it to a smooth, clean wall, and line up the pattern at each seam. The flat surface is the giveaway up close, so pair the wallpaper with real texture nearby, such as wood furniture or a woven rug. Avoid it in steamy bathrooms, where the adhesive can fail.

6. Whitewashed Brick for a Lighter Industrial Look

Whitewash thins white paint with water and brushes it over brick, letting the brick color show through in patches. The result is lighter and softer than raw brick, and it suits Scandinavian and coastal industrial rooms. Apply it over real brick, veneer, or faux panels with a brush and a rag.

Test the mix on a spare brick first, because the ratio of paint to water controls how much brick shows through. One coat gives a light veil, and two coats move toward solid white. Whitewash also brightens dark rooms, which makes it a good choice for north-facing walls.

7. Brick Tile for Kitchens and Bathrooms

Brick-look tile handles moisture, so it is the right choice for kitchen backsplashes and bathroom walls. The tiles are thin, glazed or unglazed, and they install like any wall tile. Use a dark grout for a strong industrial look, or a matching grout for a softer one.

Seal unglazed brick tile in a kitchen, because grease and splashes stain it fast. Brick tile also works as a fireplace surround, where real brick would be heavy and hot. For more industrial surface ideas, our DIY concrete decor projects for modern homes show how concrete pairs with brick for a full industrial look.

8. Exposed Brick Effect With Limewash

Limewash over a brick-look surface softens the pattern and gives it an aged, chalky finish. Brush it on thin and uneven, and let the brick tone show through in the low spots. This suits bedrooms and dining rooms where raw brick would feel too hard.

Limewash is not washable, so keep it away from kitchens and hallways where hands touch the wall. It works on real brick, veneer, and faux panels, and it is one of the cheapest ways to change the mood of an existing brick wall.

9. Brick Wainscot for a Partial Wall

A brick wainscot runs brick up to chair rail height and leaves the upper wall painted. The partial height adds industrial texture without overwhelming the room, and it protects the lower wall from scuffs. Cap it with a wood ledge for a finished edge.

This suits dining rooms, entryways, and mudrooms, where the lower wall takes the most wear. Use thin veneer or panels for the wainscot, and paint the upper wall a warm white so the brick stands out. A brick wainscot also pairs well with wood floors and black metal fixtures.

10. Faux Brick Wall Ideas: Painted Brick in Bold Color

Painting brick a bold color keeps the texture and changes the mood completely. A charcoal brick wall reads as modern and moody, a sage brick wall reads as soft and vintage, and a navy brick wall suits a study or a bar area. Use a masonry paint that bonds to brick and tolerates heat if the wall is near a fireplace.

Paint is hard to remove from brick, so treat this as a permanent choice. Test the color on a hidden corner first and live with it for a week. If the wall is a fireplace surround, check that the paint is rated for the heat it will see.

Three Quick Extras Worth Trying

Brick-look foam tiles glue up in minutes and suit a kids room or a temporary display wall. A brick arch or niche built from panels frames a doorway or a fireplace with more character than a flat wall. Mixed brick and wood pairs a brick wall with a wood beam or a wood shelf, which warms the industrial look and stops it feeling cold. These three small moves round out the thirteen ideas, and each one takes less than a day.

Before you start, order a sample of the material and tape it to the wall for a few days. Faux brick looks different in morning light and lamplight, and the right choice is the one that still looks like brick when you walk past it at night. If you want more ways to use industrial materials at home, our concrete countertop ideas for industrial-style kitchens show how concrete and brick work together. For a focal wall that mixes brick with a media setup, our TV wall ideas from gallery style to built-ins show how to frame a screen against a textured wall.