New Blog

I started another blog for the fairies in my garden. It is a tale of building a garden together. I know the seven fairies are going to inspire the changes to the garden. I found my motivation!
sevenfairies.blogspot.com

Fairy Pillows

Last week while working on a few fairy chairs I
realized my supply of fairy pillows was almost gone.
I decided to make fairy pillows all weekend. I quickly
gathered my supplies of hand dyed fiber and wool
roving.  I have a good set of felting needles and a
firm piece of foam that I purchased from Esther's
Place in Big Rock IL. I buy all of my fiber from
this wool co-op. It snowed all weekend and this
turned out to be a great winter project.  I made
50 fairy pillows.

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Chairs of the Seven Fairies

The seven fairies are going to need there own chair instead of stump at the dinner table. Meals together with family and friends are the best of times. The fairies will have adventurous days and gathering at the end of the day to share tales is a must.These are the first two chairs for the dining set I am building.

The Seven Fairies of Garden Harmony

The final fairy is finished with her make-over. She was dressed like Carmen Miranda when I found her. She had bananas on her head but no hair. She was the only doll I would call "full figured."  I have named her Lilly.

Like all the fairies she has her talents for gardening. Lilly makes sure the plants in the garden are well cared for receiving food and water when needed. She prefers to let the plants grow with what Mother Nature provides but, once in a while, during dry spells the plants need extra water.  She also keeps a close eye on the hanging baskets and containers. They always need more food and water than the plants in the ground. 

                              Before                        After
                           
While I was working with the dolls, they seem to get more of an identity. Maybe I should say story.  I am now referring to them as "The Seven Fairies of Garden Harmony." Each fairy has a job to do in the garden. When all the fairies work together and perform there assigned tasks, there is perfect garden harmony.

Fairy                      Job

Rosa Lynn           Plants (planting and weeding)

Cricket            Soil (creating and maintaining healthy soil)

Twigs             Construction (building and designing)

Ruthie             Insects & Wildlife (the good, the bad and the….)

Myrtle             Food and Water (explains it self)

Lady Pearl       Entertaining (garden tours, garden parties etc.)

Opal               Song and Dance ( garden is fun, lets sing and dance about it)            

...and all this time I was doing all of the gardening myself. I am so thrilled to have met the seven fairies.
I have a plan for a dining area in the new fairy garden with seven seats.

 
 

                 

Fairy 5 and 6

Meet Opal
Opal is garden fairy number 5. She is a real Star Opal!
Opal is very theatrical. She loves to sing and dance.
If it is too quiet or if everyone gets too serious, she starts to
sing and dance. It is very contagious. Opal insists on fun in
the garden.

Meet Cricket.

Cricket majored in Botany at Fairy University. 

            She has an obsession with keeping the soil

 in the garden healthy.She is called the

 "Queen of Composting."

Cricket says "plant health starts with good soil."

Twigs gets a wing touch up

When I put Twigs with the other fairies, her wings seem to clash.
I touched them up with a little gold glitter on the edges.
Much better!

Seven Gypsy Fairies 3 and 4

Meet Gypsy Fairy number #3 or "Twigs".  She is a spunky gal who is very curious.
Can't keep a secret from her.

Before               After

Yes. She has new hair. I tried to salvage the

original hair however, Twig's hair fell out

during washing. I gave her a new color too.

Meet vintage garden fairy makeover #4 or "Pearl".

She has her original hair but a different style.

She is a very classy proper fairy. She is always

teaching etiquette and good manners by example.

Fairy Furniture you can make

The new book will be available January 17th.

I am pleased to announce my first book will be available
on Amazon.com as of January 17th.

For me the book is filled with fond memories of the many
hours spent in my studio creating. I hope it will inspire
many artists out there! It will be fun to receive pictures of
the furniture others build following the step-by-step lesson
inside the book.

Seven Gypsy Fairies

The seven gypsy fairy project is moving along very nicely. I have completed the make over of the first two dolls.


Meet Rosa Lynn and Ruthie.

Rosa Lynn is the only fairy in our
little fairy hollow that has black hair.
She is always collecting flowers to
bring into her house. She adores making
Tussie-Mussies and giving them away.




Ruthie has gold wings for now,
they may have a hint of green as spring arrives.
Ruthie sings very quietly. She makes up songs
about her insect friends in the garden.


These are of course the before and after images.

My Garden Fairies

I am so close to finishing my first book. Every day I am inspired about the next and future books. If you have met me you would know my favorite thing to say about creativity is "If you don't feed It, It won't grow".  Lately I feel like creativity is growing in big waves. Yesterday, Doug and I did our usual meandering through an antique store on his day off. I came across these pitiful dolls. Normally I think old dolls are "creeeeepy"! But these dolls looked like lost unwanted puppies. They touched my heart. I have been looking for fairies to put in my new fairy garden next spring. These dolls are getting a
make-over this winter. They are going to be reinvented to garden fairies and will become "The Seven Gypsy Fairies of Tree Star Hollow." There are seven dolls yet to be named. I will keep you posted on the progress. A little hint: I stopped by my local JoAnn Fabric store to pick up a few pieces of fabric. Look out Project Runway!