A crafty mum built a life-size Christmas fireplace and chimney breast out of cardboard after her little girl panicked Santa "wouldn't be able to deliver their presents".
Kate Mills, 29, tried her hand at some festive DIY after her six-year-old daughter Chloe worried about how Father Christmas would get presents into their fireplace-free home.
The thrifty mum, who also has two stepdaughters with her fiancé Paul, visited nearby shops and her local dump to ask for cardboard boxes so she didn't have to spend a penny on it.
Once the floor-to-ceiling cardboard fireplace and chimney breast were built, Kate covered it in some leftover red brick-effect wallpaper before adorning her creation with fairy lights, Christmas stockings and a giant Santa hat she had lying around the house.
Kate, of Andover, Hampshire, said: "We don't have a fireplace in our home and we started to get questions from my daughter asking 'how does Santa get in the house?'
"She was telling me she was worried Santa wouldn't be able to get in and we wouldn't get our presents.
Continuing: "In all the films, books and TV programmes, Santa comes down the chimney into the fireplace and we didn't have one so I thought 'let's try and make one'.
"We went to the dump and asked if they had any spare boxes and they let us take some home. It didn't take many at all - just three medium boxes and one long one for the chimney breast.
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She added: "I knew we had some brick wallpaper left over from when we did a feature wall so I decided to use that to cover the cardboard and make it look like a proper chimney and fireplace.
"The lights were just a spur of the moment thing. I had some LED lights I was not really using under my shelf so I put them in the fireplace.
"It only took two days and the girls were getting involved. They absolutely love it and Chloe is so happy Santa has a chimney and fireplace to come down to deliver presents.
"It didn't cost anything and it's priceless seeing the girls' faces light up when they look at it.
"It's something that didn't take long and was really simple to do but it can make your child's whole Christmas amazing. It really shows that the best things in life are free."
At first, Kate looked at buying a fake fireplace online but felt confident she could recreate the designs herself - and without forking out the £30 asking price.
Her free DIY alternative has proved such a hit with the kids, friends and family that Kate says it will definitely be a recurring feature in their home for all future Christmases.
"I have had such an amazing reaction from people," she shared.
"I'm going to recommend doing this to anyone whose kids start asking the same questions about how Santa will get into their house. It's such a great idea and it looks amazing, especially for the children."
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What an amazing idea. People without fireplaces, take note.
Featured Image Credit: Kennedy News And MediaTopics: Christmas, Home, Real Life, Interiors