Lighting a fire under the old dollhouse mantle...

The matching china dogs are attached with
museum wax.

       The trick to updating an antique fireplace mantle like this one is to make the fire look as though it has always been a part of the toy miniature mantle. This lit fire may be easily removed. I did not paint or shape it directly onto the open hearth.

Supply List

• thin scrap cardboard 
  
• masking tape
• tissue paper
• Mod Podge
• acrylic paints: red, orange, yellow and black
• china dogs (came with the dollhouse furnishings)
• museum wax
  
• white school glue

Step-by-Step Instructions:

1. Cut a piece of thin scrap cardboard to fit neat and tight into the open space under the mantle. If this cardboard is cut right, you should be able to remove it with a dull edged butter knife. There should be no need to insert it permanently.
2. Remove the cardboard to make the fire on top of it without running the risk of touching the antique mantle with paint or glue.
3. Now crush a bit of tissue to look like logs and fire flames. Glue these bumpy textures to the cardboard.
4. Use masking tape to cover the tissue layers.
5. Decoupage a layer or two of white typing paper on top of the tissue and masking tape layers. 
6. Now you are ready to paint. Using acrylics, carefully matched the edges around your fauve fire to look the same as the overall mantle piece. 
7. Then layer, with a dry brush, a bit of black looking soot color. Let this dry completely.
8. Next, you can layer in fire colors: orange, red, yellow... around the logs.
9. Seal the fireplace insert with Mod Podge. 
10. Push the fireplace insert into place under the mantle.
11. Our china dogs were then attached using museum grade wax. This prevents them from being 'knocked about' during play and insures that they won't be lost over time.

Left, the antique fireplace mantle for one of our doll houses. It is kind-of a strange purple color.
Center, the backside of the mantle is painted black. Right, here you can see how I updated it's
appearance, keeping it true to the original design, but adding a lit fire and twin china dogs to
 it's mantle piece, just in front of the mirror.