Cheap and Easy Fake Fireplace, Perfect for Christmas or Halloween!
by Kelly D.
There are always so many wonderful decorations out there for the holidays but the more
complicated or fabulous the decoration, the more expensive it can get. That's why finding
simple, inexpensive projects is one of the best ways to get into the holiday spirit. Not
only do you get into the holiday spirit by making a great craft, but you also save money on
the cost of decorating your house. The best part about this craft project is that you can
add so much to it to personalize it for whatever holiday you're celebrating.
what you need:
- cardboard boxes (as large as you can get a hold of.. an appliance box or two would work
best)
- scissors (good ones, strong enough to cut cardboard)
- construction paper (lots of red and brown, some yellow, orange and black) and glue
- tape or stick tack (putty substance used to stick pictures to walls without ruining paint)
what you do:
Basically, you want a 3 foot by 3 foot piece of cardboard to work with, so if after opening
the seams and flattening out the largest of your boxes you don't have at least 3x3 to work
with, you'll need to piece it together with separate pieces. Like taking 2 boxes that open
out to at least 1.5X1.5 feet each and taping them together at the edges, or whatever you
find that works for you.
Take your scissors and your brown and red paper, and cut the paper into pieces that are
brick sized/shaped (basically a 4inchx8inch rectangle). You'll want to cut out at least
32-35 bricks so that you can space them whatever way looks best for you (the spacing thing
is just to make it look more authentic, as bricks have spaces between them where the mortar
that holds them together sits.) The big thing is just to set them out on the sheet ahead of
time (without glue) and move them around until you're happy with the spacing and pattern of
the bricks, and then start gluing them down.
When you have all the bricks glued down, its time to make the firebox. If your construction
paper is of a regular size (approximately 9inchesx12inches) you can put pieces of paper
together to make a larger size sheet. What you want to end up with is a black piece of paper
that is about 1 and a half feet by 1 and a half feet. Place it on the "bricked" background,
move it around until you're happy with the placement (it should be halfway between the 2
sides and all the way to the bottom) and then glue it into place.
Now for the flames of the fire. The effect you're going for is like underwater seaweed in
different shapes and sizes. When you cut your flames, you want to try and get wavy, random
strips in different lengths and widths, some curly, some straight. Arrange them against the
black paper firebox until you get a fire and you're happy with how it looks, and now glue
them into place.
For a final touch, you can cut out strips of brown that are about an inch or so wide and
however long until you can piece together a full mantle (basically a brown strip across the
top).
Your basic fireplace is done, but if you're still feeling crafty or artistic, or the
fireplace just looks like its missing something, you can add other touches to make it more
holiday specific. For example...
Halloween:
-a black paper caldron (with a green oval towards the top of it for a strange potion brewing
inside)
-green, purple, or blue flames instead of red/yellow/orange
-a black cat shape
Christmas:
-paper stockings (red sock shape with white trim at the top, or you can use ribbons, origami
paper, tissue paper, dress it up however you want, you can even write the kids name in
glitter glue)
-use wrapping paper pieces in square or rectangular shapes with bows or ribbons on them for
presents
-a small version of a Christmas tree, using colored or specialized papers (tissue, origami)
in small shapes for ornaments, bits of tinsel, or lightweight garlands to decorate it
You could even make one for Easter with a basket of brightly colored eggs.
Another option, as far as making the craft goes, is to sponge paint the bricks to the
cardboard, and hand-paint the firebox and flames.
If you're worried your paper isn't big enough, stop. Another great thing about this craft is
that because you're gluing paper to a cardboard background, you can piece whatever you want
together from smaller bits. Like if you have the end of a roll of wrapping paper and there
isn't enough to wrap a present, you can cut a square or rectangle shape out of it and use it
as a present. A small stack of presents next to the fire could look very cute, especially if
you added little bows or nametags as a final touch.
This craft is truly fun to do, and because its simple, it leaves you to do whatever you want
as added touches for the holidays, its only limited by your imagination.
One word of warning, don't put any candles or anything with open flames near this craft
project as it is completely made of paper and is very flammable.
About the Author-
Kelly D. is a staff writer and site editor for HolidaysDot.com.
© Kelly
D.
There are other ways to make fake fireplaces but I find the one above to be one of the most
simple and inexpensive (as well as taking up virtually no space). Here are a few links to other versions of this craft:
http://jas.familyfun.go.com/arts-and-crafts?page=CraftDisplay&craftid=10160
http://ourhouse.ninemsn.com.au/ourhouse/factsheets/db/craft/02/203.asp
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