Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Fairy Gardens & My TC


Hi Knitters,
The winner of Loop-d-Loop Lace is....

EllenLBishop (rav id)

Congratulations to Ellen and thank you all for entering. I'll have another giveaway very soon. I already have the next book picked out and it is a good one.

Now, many years ago TC became enchanted with fairies. I thought it might be a passing fancy but this interest has stood the test of time so far. She still reads her fairy books (and this one and especially this one), collects fairy items and as soon as spring hits she starts planning her fairy garden.
My sister and I went out for lunch a few weeks ago. After lunch we wandered into a lovely little florist/gift shop next to the restaurant. We couldn't believe the tiny fairy garden furniture we stumbled upon. A couple weeks later we met again for lunch and this time we bought a bunch of the items for TC's upcoming birthday.

My sister bought TC the arch which is probably the best piece of the bunch.
Next, Peachy and I went to a garden supply shop and bought stones for paths, moss and other ground coverings and two bird baths (these were only $10 each - a steal). All of these gifts were purchased with the intention that TC would go to town creating her own tiny fairy gardens.
TC has been diligently working on her fairy gardens over the last week or so. She has mapped out and carefully placed her new fairy items.
One of the bird baths is complete as of yesterday. If you look closely at the photo above you can see the gardening tools like a shovel and rake and a watering can on the moss by the tiny bird bath.
I think the patio furniture is my favorite.
TC's neighbor friend has been helping her out with the bird bath fairy project. They are so cute and busy working together in the back yard. I love it so much that I don't disturb them at all while they are working. I don't want to interrupt their creativity. Watching their passion and willingness to work for long stretches at a time gives me so much joy. It truly is the simple things in life that bring happiness (and a good project always helps).

TC and this sweet friend pooled their money together a couple of summers ago to purchase some fairy figurines to put in the larger fairy garden. They are using a few of these same figurines in the bird bath fairy gardens, too.
Here is the start of the second fairy garden. This time she chose to do a border around the outside with her ground coverings.
I also got a few really inexpensive solar lights (about 80 cents per light) to put in the garden for TC's birthday. They are really cool because they glow at night in her garden.
TC spends a lot of time watering and taking care of her fairy gardens and now our new vegetable garden as well. She can often be found in the vegetable garden staking the plants that are getting unruly and bent over weeding or watering. She is a caretaker.
It has been fun to see the love of nature and gardens grow in TC. I think this one will stick with her and become a lifelong passion. It is in her blood and comes from generations before her.
I couldn't resist the fairy house from the gift shop as well. It is a wonderful sight at night because the solar light right behind the house makes it glow. The other night we had a bonfire in our backyard and she pointed the glowing fairy house out to me.

We both smiled at the unintentional goodness.

Magical.

best, susie
p.s. TC likes to look at fairy garden images here.

16 comments:

Mom In a Box said...

That is too sweet! My children (4,3 and 19 months) help me in the garden. I hope to build a love of nature and the outdoors just like this. Thanks for sharing.

Melissa said...

TC's fairy gardens are beautiful! What a wonderful passion to have! Does she have any of the Brian Froud books? http://www.amazon.com/gp/search/ref=sr_tc_2_0?rh=i%3Astripbooks%2Ck%3ABrian+Froud&keywords=Brian+Froud&ie=UTF8&qid=1309350194&sr=8-2-ent&field-contributor_id=B000APOEK2
These books are a little more adult, so maybe not. But many of them are a must for passionate fairy enthusiasts.

Creative Design said...

Lovely! My little fairy love is now in college! I remember when....! Thanks for sharing!

Sheila

Miss Julep said...

Thank you for this post!! I LOVE reading about TC's fairy gardens and remember reading about the time she and her friend purchased their fairy dwelling with pooled resources. So good to know that they still are enchanted by fairies:)

Anonymous said...

Dear Susan and TC,
I'm a fairy garden fan, too. In the second link below you'll find my instructions on how to make your own wattle fencing and a link to fairy garden guru Janit Calvo's online supply sourcehttp://myartfullife.wordpress.com/2009/07/06/how-to-make-your-own-fairy-garden/
and here: http://myartfullife.wordpress.com/2011/05/29/fairy-gardens-are-for-grown-ups-too/
And in Sally Mavor's book "Felt Wee Folk" TC will find the how-to for her own fleet of handmade fairies.
Here's to more fairy garden fun!

Ellen Bishop said...

Thanks, Susan!!! I am so excited to win the book!!! Ellen

barb said...

What a wonderful project. You can spend so much time looking at all the tiny details of a fairy garden. TC's IS magical. I am going to show this post to my 8 year old granddaughter. I know what she will want to start collecting. Thank you for sharing this beautiful fairy garden with us. Thank you TC.

barb

Michelle said...

Those are amazing!! TC is one talented little lady! My girls started their own fairy garden just a week or so ago. We'd been talking about it for years and finally decided to just do it. I will be showing them these pics of TC's garden for inspiration! :0)

Stefanie said...

OMGosh! Everything is just awesome. What fantastic finds you and your sister found!
We love the Tinkerbell movies in this ohana and all that reminds me of them. Fairies are just so magical and pure.

Gerda said...

How lovely to encourage a child's wonder in nature.

My children all loved Fairy's when they were young, it is important to let them believe in magic! I still believe in it!

Gerda said...

My kids loved Fairy books when they were young, it is a magical time in a young persons life and let's them know that there are some things that just are magical. It is also nice to do activities that engage creativity not influenced by popular culture!

dana said...

i just adore pop-up books. how did i miss this one?

Connie, the daisyhead said...

How sweet! My daughter and a friend were making fairy gardens at the park today. It was fun to have a look at your more permanent ones. Lovely!

christine m. said...

I really just adore the charm of this hobby! But, I'm wondering what happens to the gardens in winter?

Sara said...

Congratulations! 700 posts....and I've read them all! You are right about that book, it looks amazing and I would definitely find many projects to knit. I'm a Noro freak, too!
Sara in Platteville

Woodland Fairy Village said...

Very cute!! I will have to try my hand at creating one. They are all the rage now. Love your designs and elements! Thanks
~ Mare