How to Make a Pretend Fire Place
Fireplaces add a cozy warm feeling to any space. Even false fireplaces can add an imaginary glow. Cardboard is a good medium for constructing large decorations and play pieces, and it is readily available for free behind stores in most shopping centers. Choose one large box that is at least 30 inches square and one smaller box that is 18 to 20 inches square. Gather up a few fireplace images from your favorite decorating magazines or books to use as inspiration.
Things You'll Need
- Cardboard boxes
- Fireplace pictures
- Masking tape
- Utility knife
- Paint
- Paint brushes
- Cups
Instructions
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Place the large box with its bottom facing up to provide a solid face. Tape over the joints with wide masking tape, working to keep the tape as smooth as possible.
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2
Cut out one side of the smaller box with a utility knife and place the cutout side on the face of your large box as a template. Center the template in one long edge of the fireplace, with its long edge flush with the edge of the box. Trace the outline of this piece onto the box. Draw a second rectangle inside of this outline, 2 inches in from each side of the outline.
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3
Cut out the inside rectangle with the utility knife. Cut a diagonal line at each corner from the inside rectangle to the corners of the outside rectangle. Fold these four tabs down into the box. Fit the smaller box onto these tabs from inside the larger box, so that the open side you cut on the smaller box is visible from the bottom of the large box. Tape the two boxes together.
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4
Stand up the large box with its bottom and the smaller box inside, facing you. Draw brick, wood panels or stone on the face of the large box, depending on the kind of fireplace you want. Use the pictures you chose as a guide for drawing your fireplace.
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5
Paint the details using acrylic latex paint---house paint works well. Choose colors that match the style of your fireplace and block in major areas of color first. Mix your base color with a little black in a cup and a little white in a second cup. Use these colors to add shadows along the bottom edges of the wood panel details, stone or brick and highlights along the top edges to give your work more dimension.
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Paint the inside of the small box black, including the folded tabs. Cut several 3-inch-thick cardboard tubes into sections long enough to fit into the smaller box and paint them with streaks of light and dark brown as fire wood. Cut orange flames from construction paper and tape them to the backs of the firewood so that they stand up in the box.
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References
- Photo Credit Fireplace image by Mistik from Fotolia.com
