Faux fireplaces get UAE homes all fired up: How residents have created fake hearths

If you fancy getting crafty with some cardboard boxes, you can replicate the festive favourite with no need to bring in a builder

Amanda McLennan's cardboard fireplace is crafted out of an old TV box, Ikea packaging  and a plank of wood for the mantle. Courtesy Amanda McLennan

Lucy Gregory had a faux fireplace installed in her house for the winter season. Chris Whiteoak / The National

Rhiannon Downie-Hurst's Christmas theme this year is 'very British, with blues, reds and whites'. 'I guess it is because I am feeling quite homesick,' she says. Courtesy Rhiannon Downie-Hurst

A handmade wooden fireplace from Natasha Smoljo: 'It's not the fanciest decoration but our little elf loved it very much.'

Chiara Saadi's faux fireplace is decorated with twinkling lights and stacked with wooden blocks. 'It provides no heat at all but gives us all the Christmas magic we need.'

The Trafford family from Downtown Dubai printed a stock image and stuck it in front of the TV unit. 'We didn't have space for the traditional faux fireplace so we went with this instead,' says Natalie Trafford. Courtesy Natalie Trafford

Eugenia Cotelli created her stylish faux fireplace to give her Dubai home a cosy, welcoming feel. Courtesy Eugenia Cotelli

Adina Strachan's Dubai fireplace was made by Al Madina Carpentry in Ajman, with a cast iron insert found on Dubizzle and logs from For the Love of Wood at The Makers Guild. Courtesy Adina Strachan

A hand-made cardboard box by Jeanette Lanopa-Buley, complete with a roaring 'digital' fire. Courtesy Jeanette Lanopa-Buley

Lucy Hudson was delighted her Arabian Ranches villa came with a fireplace. For the occasion, she painted it white and filled it with wood and pine cones. Courtesy Lucy Hudson

Abu Dhabi resident Mani Mathur's fireplace was made using three different wallpaper patterns. Courtesy Mani Mathur

Maria Makonnen’s faux chimney in Dubai features mahogany imported from England. Courtesy Maria Makonnen

The Christmas trees are up, presents wrapped and we've begun debating which cookies to leave out for Santa.

But, for UAE residents looking to add to the festive spirit this year,  faux fireplaces are also "lit".

A number of families around the country have commissioned – or simply DIYed – artificial fireplaces for their living rooms this year, as part of a trend that is rising in popularity around the world.

The thought of having any sort of fireplace in the UAE – where temperatures rarely dip below double digits – may well seem almost alien, but for these residents, it's not about functionality.

Scroll through the gallery above to see 12 festive faux fireplaces by UAE residents.

“I had my fireplace made and delivered at the end of November. I wanted a large white one that reminded me of the gorgeous townhouse fireplaces in my home town of Hampstead, London," says Rhiannon Downie-Hurst, founder of Brideclubme.com. "There is something so comforting and cosy about a fireplace, even the fake ones, and they are great focal points in homes to be styled seasonally."

Maria Makonnen’s faux chimney in Dubai, meanwhile, features mahogany imported from England.

“I grew up in a Victorian terrace house which had an original fireplace as the main focal point in the living room. To me, having a fireplace is what makes a house feel homely, so I was keen to replicate that here in our Meydan South villa,” she explains.

While some villas in the UAE do come with fireplaces, many have chosen to commission fake fireplaces in the living room for the festive season.

Adina Strachan, for example, enlisted the help of Al Madina Carpentry in Ajman to create her white fireplace. However, it is possible to create a beautiful faux fireplace by using materials around the house, such as spare cardboard boxes.

Dubai resident Jeanette Lanopa-Buley got creative with her hearth by wrapping textured brick-design wallpaper around empty boxes.

“I added big hardcover books inside the boxes as weights to make it more stable and used a computer monitor to play a YouTube fire video to make it more realistic,” she adds.

Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi resident Mani Mathur took inspiration from Pinterest and created her fireplace in November using boxes, three types of wallpaper from Amazon and a hot glue gun. The whole process, from start to finish, took her about a week, with her daughters also helping out.

Scroll through the gallery above for a look at her creative process.

“I’ve always been good with arts and crafts, and I knew exactly what I wanted,” she explains. “I’m from the UK, and I’ve always loved fireplaces – I've always felt like they bring something special to the room, especially around Christmas time.

"This year, with us spending more time at home, we’ve tried to make every celebration here – from birthdays to Diwali – a little over the top.”