10 fun gift ideas for the home fireplace enthusiast
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There really is nothing like a warm, crackling fire on a cold winter day.
Fireplaces are an integral part of many homes. They serve as a focal point during casual family evenings and as a part of the festive tableau during a holiday gathering. Fires bring warmth and beauty and inspire a visceral sense of tranquility and comfort.
They can also be sort of messy, though, and sometimes hard to manage, too. Wet wood and piles of ash and whatnot come with the territory. If you buy holiday gifts for someone who loves having fires in his or her home, gifts that help make fires easier to light, simpler to manage, and quicker to clean up will all be warmly received. (Yes, I'll be hitting the puns hard here, FYI.)
There are also a number of fine hearth-themed gifts that go beyond the simple lighting and maintaining of a fire. Fireplaces can be aesthetically pleasing at all times, even when no yule log is ablaze atop the andirons. Along with the handy fire starters and ash-cleaning solutions, therefore, we've also included a few handsome fireplace accessory gifts that might just be a hit even well after the cold weather abates in the spring.
Having trouble finding a gift for everyone on your list? Check out all our 2017 holiday gift guides on Insider Picks.
Color cones that create vibrant green and blue hues when added to a fire
Is it magic or science that lets these Plow & Hearth Fireplace Color Cones create vibrant green and blue hues among the licking flames of the fire? Answer? Science. In this case, it's an application of safe, stable copper chloride over the two pounds of pine cones that come in a sack of Color Cones. When added to a fire, they burn for 5 to 10 minutes each, adding unique, appealing colors to the flames.
These cones can be used in any wood-burning fire, from an indoor fireplace to an outdoor fire pit to a wood stove. And not only do they look great when ablaze, but the pine cones and burlap storage sack can also be pleasingly arranged beside the fireplace.
Buy the 2 lb bag of Plow & Hearth Fireplace Color Cones on Amazon for $24
A powerful lighter with an adjustable neck for easy lighting
I own and often use a Zippo Flex Neck Utility Lighter, so I can tell you with personal conviction that this thing helps light a grill, a fire, a fire pit, and anything else you want set ablaze without the need for your hands to be too close to the heat. It creates a wind-resistant flame that's hot enough to quickly catch any decent kindling, and the flame can be adjusted up or down as needed.
Just note that if you or your giftee should use the lighter frequently, which one should, of course, it will go through fuel quickly and will require frequent refilling. Which is no big deal, because the process is easy and butane is cheap. But do consider including a can of it with the gift of the lighter.
Buy a Zippo Flex Neck Utility Lighter on Amazon for $15.50
Cedar fire starters
One order of the Midwest Hearth Cedar Fire Starters can be used to help kindle as many as 32 fires, as each of the quick lighting, slow-burning pucks can be snapped into four separate pieces. The fire starters are made made in America using only cedar sawdust and wax, so they burn cleanly, hotly, and with a faint, pleasant pine aroma.
The Midwest Hearth Cedar Fire Starters leave behind no residue and give off no unsafe compounds, so they are completely safe for regular use in an indoor fireplace and even in a wood-burning stove used for cooking.
Buy the Midwest Hearth Cedar Fire Starters on Amazon for $13
An affordable and good-looking bellows
Whether someone actively uses their Astor Bellows to pump air into a fire, helping the flames grow hotter and larger, or they perch it near the fireplace as a purely ornamental object, they're doing it right. This bellows is both capable and handsome, equally well suited to use fanning flames or enhancing aesthetics, and at its best when used for both.
Beyond its function and looks, the fact that this bellows only costs $21 is also well worth noting. It's a gift the recipient will love, and one he or she will likely assume costs much more than it did, too.
Buy the Astor Fireplace Bellows on Amazon for $21
A wrought iron fire tool set
The Uniflame 5-Piece Wrought Iron Fire Tool Set has every tool a person should need to build and manage a fire and to clean out the fireplace afterward. The tongs help place logs or move them about while the fire is burning, the poker can shift embers or reposition logs, and the shovel and broom work together to clear ashes after a fire has burned itself out. (For the record, the stand counts as the fifth piece.)
This elegantly simple set of fireplace tools makes a great gift because it has all the standard items one would expect and because it looks like it should have cost a bit more than it does. Its recipient will enjoy actively using the tools and will appreciate their handsome styling even well after fire season ends.
Buy the Uniflame 5-Piece Wrought Iron Fire Tool Set on Amazon for $45
A box of Fatwood
I know that in my house, we go through one Fatwood Firestarter Bulk Box each winter. I also know that if anyone sent me one of these as a gift, that would be great.
Fatwood burns hot and slowly, helping even dense or damp wood to catch on fire. It can mean the difference between a big, crackling blaze and a smoldering, smoky let down. So giving the gift of Fatwood is tantamount to giving the gift of great fires.
Two things to note: Contrary to common misconception, the stuff burns so well because of its pine resin content; there is no animal fat present here. Second, this is really more of a fire aid than a fire starter; it can take a bit of work to get the Fatwood itself burning, so consider also tossing in some quick-lighting fire starters with your gift.
Buy the 25 lb Fatwood Firestarter Bulk Box on Amazon for $38
A fire-resistant hearth rug
This 44" by 22" Minuteman International Cocoa Jardin Wool Hearth Rug will look great in homes with all sorts of different interior decor styles, from the modern to the country to the cabin and beyond. Its size and rectangular shape make it a perfect fit for most fireplaces, and its soft feel will make it a favorite with people and pets alike.
But here's the real selling point on the Minuteman International Cocoa Jardin Wool Hearth Rug: It's surface is certified as fire resistant. This rug won't catch on fire even if embers pop out of the fireplace and land on its surface. It can be laid down atop wall-to-wall carpeting or on a wooden floor to help create a safer hearth area, and it just happens to add visual charm, too.
Buy the Minuteman International Cocoa Jardin Wool Hearth Rug on Amazon for $60
Heat-resistant gloves
On the scale of fun, getting a burn on the hand ranks somewhere right between the worst paper cut and five simultaneous bee stings. Fortunately, with a pair of BlueFire Pro Heat Resistant Gloves on, a person's hands are all but impervious to burns. These heat-resistant, comfortable, flexible gloves can withstand temperatures up to 930 degrees Fahrenheit, so anyone wearing them can confidently toss a log in the fire, brush hot embers aside, or grab a hot poker to stir up the coals.
The BlueFire Pro Heat Resistant Gloves are also great for grabbing hot baking sheets or casserole pans out of an oven or for use over a hot grill. This just might be a gift that gets use during fire season and during all the other seasons, too.
Buy the BlueFire Pro Heat Resistant Gloves on Amazon for $30
A hearth log holder
Fires burn through logs pretty fast. Unless you keep some extra wood handy, you will find yourself heading outside to the woodpile a few times per hour if you want your fire to last. That's why you should consider getting a Pleasant Hearth Log Holder, a handsome and compact rack suitable for indoor storage of a dozen or so logs.
This affordable, durable log holder also comes with a canvas wood tote, so bringing in the wood needed to load it up is nice and easy. Also, you could always wrap that separately and seem like an even better gift-giver.
Buy the Pleasant Hearth Log Holder on Amazon for $26
A powerful little ash vacuum
Cleaning the ash out of a fireplace, fire pit, or grill is thankless work. One almost invariably ends up with dirty hands and clothes and often coughing on the dust. It can also be exceedingly hard to get all of the ash out of a fireplace using only a broom and shovel; there are always those pockets of ash lingering in the corners or by the legs of the grate.
When you give someone the PowerSmith Ash Vacuum, you give them the gift of quick, easy, and thorough fireplace cleaning. This powerful little vacuum sucks up every little cinder. Its fire-resistant internal components mean it will operate safely even if some hot embers are drawn in, and its effective filters mean no dust swirling around in the air of the home.
Buy the PowerSmith Ash Vacuum on Amazon for $64
Steven John Freelance Writer Steven John is a freelance writer living near New York City by way of 12 years in Los Angeles, four in Boston, and the first 18 near DC. When not writing or spending time with his wife and kids, he can occasionally be found climbing mountains. His writing is spread across the web, and his books can be found at www.stevenjohnbooks.com. Read more Read lessYou can purchase syndication rights to this story here.
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