1 Using a length of string with one end tied to a stake and the other to a can of upside-down marking paint, mark the outside diameter of the hole. Use a tape measure for correct radius (28").

2 Get out your shovel or spade and start digging—if it’s cold out, this will warm you up in no time. We made our hole 12" deep to provide a more stable foundation for the blocks.

3 Tip in the gravel first, taking the time to rake it smooth after each load; this will help ensure a more level base. Our pit has a 6" course of gravel under a 6" course of sand.

4 Give the gravel one final rake before tamping it down. Golfers take note: this step may produce unhappy flashbacks to that 10 you took on the par-five 16th last September.

5 With a technique remarkably similar to the one employed in Step 3, above, tip your barrow-load of sand onto your smoothed-down layer of gravel. Again, rake out the pile after each trip.

6 Because no one had a tamper lying around, we had to improvise—no doubt you will, too. We wired a 12" x 12" square of plywood to a sledgehammer and found it worked a treat.

7 Once the sand is tamped, use a spirit level to ensure it’s even. Sand is a great base for a fire, because you can easily rake out cinders, ash and the odd burned-out pop can after fires.

8 Using the string-on-a-stake trick from Step 1, scribe a line in the sand to mark the 19" inner-circle radius for the first course of blocks; it makes it easier to fit them together.

9 Once you have the first course of blocks down and fitting together properly—that’s where a mallet comes in handy—it’s a simple matter of laying the remaining three courses on top.