How-To: Make A Fairy House

Guest blogger, Mady Ellars, 13

This is my first time ever blogging, so please excuse any errors. I have only been a teenager for two days anyway!

Fairy houses are miniature houses built in the forest, perfect for fairies! It is a great activity for young kids, especially little girls, and it is wonderful for older, more patient kids as well. They should be made of only natural materials, but a little bit of glue won't hurt.

Finding a location is the hardest part. If you are camping, there are often many trees close to the campsite that will be close enough for safety, but still private enough for imagination. Try to have your kids work alone, or perhaps an older kid with a younger kid. This allows them to be creative and have their own special project.

What you will need:

• An oldish sort of tree, with two roots creating a semicircle
• A forest, with a clearing near the tree
• Natural objects (shells, leaves, ferns, twigs, rocks, pebbles, grasses, berries, bark)
• Glue (optional)
• A creative and imaginative mind!

First, look for a tree. Red cedars are just right, as well as abundant, but really any tree will do. It should have a little hollow at the base, shaped as a little semicircle. It will take some time to find the right one, but it is very rewarding when you find the perfect one. Look for a location that isn't too close to a path or where people come frequently. A great place to find is one with a bit of sunshine that can poke through, making a very magical atmosphere!

Next, collect a couple of natural objects that seem to already have a purpose. For example, a curved piece of bark for a slide, bright berries for hanging lanterns (make sure your kids know which are and aren't poisonous), or a lumpy rock that looks just like a couch. You can go and collect more as you need it, but it is good to have a few things to begin with so you don't have to keep running to the hill where the blueberries grow just to find you forgot which tree you were working at.

Then begin to build! Your house should be small enough that only your hand can fit through the doorway. Start by making walls, which you can do by poking sticks into the ground next to each other and weaving a little bit of grass in between them, or by piling up rocks. You can then make the roof. Fairies like green rooftops to blend in, but really any material will do. The house Keston and I built had large ferns curved with their stems tucked under some twigs, and a few twigs poking across to hold them up. You can then decorate the inside. Here are some ideas:

• A leaf covered "carpeted" floor
• A daisy rug
• A stone couch
• Grass and leaves in a pile to make a beanbag
• A round piece of wood for a table, with smaller round pieces for chairs
• A piece of bark wrapped in a leaf for a bed, complete with pebble pillows

You can then choose to make a doorway. You do not have to, because you may want the interior showing, but you can use bark, twigs, or rocks to make a front wall. A door is, again, optional.

After the house is built you can make a yard. You can build a fence, a garden, ladders, swings, or whatever else you can come up with.

Swings are quite lovely, and very simple to make. You use a curved branch, then tie two pieces of grass to it. Then tie a small, rectangular piece of bark onto the bottom of the grass. The swing makes it look like a house, instead of (in little kids' cases) a pile of sticks and leaves.

You should also make a dancing circle. It is something faries are quite famous for, and they will appreciate a permanent one that doesn't have to be remade for each of their parties (which are very wild and last all through the night). Just place pebbles into a circle, making sure they are slightly pressed into the dirt. A lantern is also nice, and it can be made by poking a berry onto a curving stick.

Once your house and yard have been built, a fairy is ready to move in! Check back at your fairy tree about once a month, and make any repairs nessecary. You might just find tiny footprints, or even additions to your house. This isn't very common, but occasionally a person might stumble upon your house and find a need to make a fire pit, or a tree house. Always remember to be courteous when you find other fairy houses, and do not break them.

Here are more ideas, and here are some fun books to read to your kids about fairy houses.

This is a pretty long post, so I will now be finishing it. Feel free to comment about any fairy sightings...Check back for more possible guest bloggings!

Comments

[mom]

Mady, you are such a gifted and talented writer! And endlessly patient and creative with your little sister and (sometimes) your brother. :) You amaze me every day. I am so proud of the 13 year old that you are. I love you very much. xoxo

[andi]

Mady, thank you so much for sharing this lovely idea! I want to try it with Audrey, but I am not sure if she has the patience for it yet :) But I will definitely be printing this out and saving it for next summer or spring! Oh, and happy birthday!

[auntie druann]

Mady that is awesome! Good job on your first blog and congratulations on becoming a teenager! Yay! You haven't received a birthday card from me yet but one is on the way. I love the way you take care of your little sister, and your brother too, even though it's harder with him. I can't wait to see you in August! Keep on blogging, maybe start your own so we can keep up with the Life of a 13 Year Old...Love, Auntie Druann

[Stefanie]

Mady,
You are one impressive 13 year old! You write very well! I hope my daughter will be as wonderful as you when she's a teenager.:) Have a great summer!
Stefanie

[Shari Walsh]

A teenager? Wow! Great blogging! I am new at this too. Sure is fun, huh? I am quite impressed by your writing skills; no doubt you are your mother's daughter. :) What a precious blessing you are to her. I love to see young people, such as yourself, who are so happy and full of life. God bless you and keep up the good writing!

[sophie]

wow it's sooo cool that girls your age are stil into that!!! i'm under 10 years old and i love fairies! and what im about to tell youis a promised NO JOKE!! one time when i was in my hometown i left a fairy note on my windowsile it took five 1/2 days but i acually got a letter back!!! and i knew it was not a family member nor friend that did because none of them can wright that small or that beutiful!! please belive me it's the truth thanks again!

[Haiden]

That was really nice info.
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[Michael Wong]

Ms Ellars,
I'm an artist in San Francisco and I will be leading a fairy house building group next week and have been googling info on Fairy Houses. Your blog has had some of the best ideas I've seen yet.
Great Job.
Michael Wong.

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If they're ever in Lincoln ma Also the Decorvada Musuem and sculpture park is right down the road and place to stop by. Along with Brayer's house down the lane. You can't go inside his but you can walk around the neighborhood. So his neighbors weren't all that upset since it was his friends.

[Raymond]

Mady, you mentioned that this is wonderful for older more patient kids as well. I am here to tell you that you are absolutely correct. I am a 63 year young man that loves making Fairy houses as well as any young kid does. And as for Fairies, well, I believe, I believe, I believe. I also believe that you are a sweetheart and please don't ever grow old. Life is too short to be old!
Raymond

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