DIY Faux Fireplace Tutorial

Welcome to my ever changing room :) I just can't keep well enough alone in here. I've been planning on how I'm going to decorate for Christmas and decided that I wanted to make this room a little cozier this year. The best way to make it cozy is a fireplace, right? Well, it didn't have one. So, I decided to make a fake one instead.

 I looked at a ton of tutorials on how to build one, but ultimately decided to go with my own design. I wanted to build it quick and as inexpensive as possible. Didn't want to use any fancy tools either. I wanted to get it done fast.

I drew up a few ideas in my head. Graphed it out to see what sizes would work best, and came up with a design. Not too big, not too wide, not too deep. I then bought all the materials and laid them out on the garage floor and thought....oh crap. This is going to look ridiculous lol

 Luckily, it turned out a little better than that. So, to start off, let's look at the materials I used:

1 1x12 (6')
1 1x10 (6')
2 1x6 (6')
1 4x4 (8')
1 1x4 (6')
1 1x3 (8')
2 1x2 (8')
1/4" plywood half sheet
(see cuts in tutorial below)

The first step was to cut the 1x10 into two pieces at 30.5" each. I also then cut 4 pieces of 1x2 at 30.5". I secured the 1x2s onto the top sides of the 1x10s. See below:

 You can either countersink a screw from the front of the 1x10, wood glue, or use a jig.

Then for the top piece, I used three different pieces of wood. One 1x6, one 1x3 (you can use a 1x2 if you don't want it to jut out as far) and one 1x12. They are all cut 36" long. I secured the 1x6 to the 1x3, having the 1x3 jutting out. I then secured the 1x12 to the other two pieces on top of the 1x3. (see picture below if that's a little confusing)

I then cut two 1x2s at 36 inches and secured them to the back of the piece like I did the above side pieces. I also secured two 1x2s to the other sides at 9 3/4". I glued these on, so I 'clamped' them down with the 4x4s.

 Okay. So, now you have your 5 pieces besides the mantel top. They should look like this

 And look like this turned upside down.

 Now, secure the two side pieces to the 4x4s. I used wood glue and screws. The 1x2s should be flush with the ends and sides of the 4x4s.

 Now secure the top piece to one of the 4x4s with the 1x12 part on the top.

 I then secured the top piece to the side piece with a single screw into the 1x2s.

 Now add the other 4x4 and secure the top piece to it.

 Cut your 1x4 at 43" or the length of the whole piece, post to post. Secure to the top of each 4x4, countersinking the screw. This is so the top mantel piece will lay flush against the 1x4, so make sure you countersink it ;)

 Before adding the last piece, paint or stain the piece. I painted my Behr's Swiss Coffee in satin.

 For the "fireplace" insert part, I used some smooth quarter inch plywood. It comes in this size, so there was no need for cutting. Just ask for the half pieces at your local hardware store. I'm eventually going to add some cut birch to this, but until then, I decided to paint it with some chalkboard paint.

 I then secured it to the back of the whole piece using screws and drilling into the 1x2s.

 Now I added the mantel piece. This is a 1x6 piece (I would do a 2x6 if I were to do it again). It's 55 inches long and stained dark walnut. I screwed this into the whole piece. I made sure to get the most beat up piece to give it some rustic charm :)

 I think this is dying to have corbels on it! I just have to find the right ones :) I also drew some fake flames onto the chalkboard just for fun.

 This only juts out from the wall about 5", so it's super low profile but the mantel is wide enough to add some decor. Also, I attached this to the wall so it wouldn't fall over using an L-bracket on the top. You can do it on the two sides also if needed.

 I can't wait to hang stockings on this and decorate it for Christmas!

 Next time you see this, it will probably have the birch slices in it, but I'm really digging the fake flames.

Had to throw this cute little pup in here. He used to be in like every one of my pictures, but he's getting so old now he can barely get up and follow me :(

The total cost for this is about under $50. My cost was a little cheaper since I had some of the wood on hand from other projects.