Accessorize your fireplace during the summer months with a hand-crafted fireplace screen. DIY Decorating & Design host Nancy Golden makes a decorative three-paneled screen, which would cost $100 to $200 at a home-decorating store, for less than $20. Materials:
Half sheet of 1/2" plywood (full sheet is 4' x 8')
Measuring tape
Pencil
Straightedge
Jigsaw
Clamps
Safety glasses
Fine-grade sandpaper
Tack cloth
Wood primer
Latex paint for top coat
Medium-width paintbrush or paint roller
Stencil
Painter's tape or stencil adhesive
Acrylic craft paint for stencil pattern
Stencil brush
Plate to hold paint
Paper towel
Four hinges
Drill
- Measure the fireplace opening to determine the size of the screen. To make a three-paneled screen, divide the horizontal dimension of the opening into thirds.
- Transfer the pattern and dimensions for the three panels to the plywood panel. Nancy added a decorative curve to the top of each panel of her screen.
- Clamp the plywood to a worktable, and use a jigsaw to cut out the three panels (figure A). Be sure to wear safety glasses.
- Sand the cut panels smooth with fine-grade sandpaper (figure B), and wipe clean with a tack cloth.
- Use a brush or paint roller to apply wood primer to the panels. Allow it to dry thoroughly.
- Apply two or three coats of latex paint to the panels, allowing the paint to dry between coats. Nancy used warm-ivory paint for her top coat -- a light and appealing color for summer.
- Set the stencil on one of the wood panels, and hold it in place with painter's tape or stencil adhesive (figure C). Pour blobs of paint onto a plate. Dip the end of the stencil brush into the paint, dab it off on a paper towel, and pounce the end of the stencil brush on the stencil pattern (figure D). Stencil the remaining panels, using the same method.
- When the stenciled patterns are complete, assemble the screen by attaching the panels at the back with hinges (figure E).
A handmade fireplace screen could also be hand-painted or embellished with decoupaged images. For a super-simple fireplace screen, hinge together a trio of window shutters. Safety tip: - Because these screens are made of wood, they're meant to be used only as a decorative accessory when the fireplace is not in use.
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