Monday, April 26, 2010

A Fairy Bower


 Fairy elves,
          Whose midnight revels, by a forest side
Or fountain, some belated peasant sees,
Or dreams he sees, while overhead the moon
Sits arbitress.
~John Milton

I spent some time the past day making some little Elf homes to adorn our herb garden and to encourage my Munchkins imagination. These were SO simple to do.
Supplies:
Large Rock (with a flat side)
Wood
Stik All Glue
Hinge and Screws
Paint
Small Hook
Thread
Wooden Knob (for lantern....or chimney too)
Clear Acrylic Spray
Tools Required:
Jig Saw
Paint Brush
Screw Driver

Take some wood and use the jig saw to make a door shape. You could do any shape you'd like: round (hobbit door-shaped), rectangle (modern), pointed (for the elf look), or triangle (just because you're weird). :-) I'm mortified to say that I used a beautiful piece of Cherry wood that I found in our barn....I thought it was just a nice piece of oak, but no. I was mistaken. Oh, boy was I EVER mistaken (according to my husband and my father). Jeesh. Well, it turned out lovely anyway. ;-)
Now it's time to sketch. Make a quick sketch with pencil (lightly) of what you'd like to paint....or, go right ahead and free-hand it with a paintbrush if you are feeling bold. 
 Paint away!! You should paint the accessories too. To give my doors a more aged look I took a wet paper towel and dipped in it some black paint and lightly sponged the entire door.

Once they're dry you can screw the hinge onto the side and bend the remaining hinge back behind the door. Then, glue the door to the rock securely. 
Almost there!! The glue will need to set for at least 24 hours. You can make the lantern by tying some black thread around the little wooden bobble and securing it to the hook (which has been glued onto the rock as well). If you would rather make a chimney, you can just dab some glue on the flat end of the bobble and stick 'er right on top of that rock. To make it more weather proof, you could coat it with some clear acrylic spray (just be sure to cover the rock behind with something so that you don't spray that too). I made two different doors just to try out some of my ideas. Here is the other door, finished with chimney:
I know I was forever imagining these kinds of dwellings when I was a child. Nature provides us with so much to encourage the imagination. I know my Munchkins reaction to this will be to fill the day with stories of the people who live in the dwelling next to the chives and sage. There will be food gathered for their lunch and a nap time announced as well. They are going to be prospering in our herb garden for sure!!!!

Check out these linky parties for some great ideas!!!!
Just Something I Whipped Up
Making the World Cuter Monday 
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Making The World Cuter 
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33 comments:

  1. What a cute idea! I'll bet your garden is gorgeous!

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  2. My kids would be digging this little number. Great idea!

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  3. That's so cute! I have so many things that I want to do in my garden once the house is built. I'm adding it to my list.

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  4. What a tremendously fun idea...I love the picture before the color is added reminds me of the gate to the Mines of Moria in LOTR...okay so my geekiness is showing...

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  5. Very cute and so creative. I love to think of other worlds and what you might find in them. Have a magical day.

    Rebecca

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  6. Cute! My kids would love this! :o)

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  7. Hi Missy,
    I love the look of your blog! Stopping by from BlogFrog :)

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  8. Such a cute idea...thanks for linking up to NTT!

    Blessings,
    Linda

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  9. omigoodness... i think this is the sweetest thing!! i may copy this!

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  10. SO CUTE!!! My kids would love that. Now I need a garden to put it in.

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  11. Well then I guess the call is to the rest of the world and if we are geeky then we got each other!! ;)

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  12. What a GREAT idea! I love encouraging imagination. My oldest would especially love helping me make this along with an entires story of who she decides will live in it! Thanks for sharing! And thanks for dropping by my blog! I still get giddy over each comment!

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  13. That's wonderful -- you are so creative. I really want to open that door! Thank you for linking up to the Boardwalk Bragfest!

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  14. Great blog! I just wanted to tell you that you have won the Basic H2 nontoxic cleaner from my giveaway, but I have no email address from you. Could you send me that? Thanks so much!
    Have a great day!
    Cara

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  15. My girls love to make fairy houses in our garden. Guess it's time for daddy to get the jigsaw out so we can have a fairy bower!

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  16. Thanks for this post (found you on The Girl Creative). I've been wanting a door for my troll garden but wasn't quite sure how to fasten the door and all the doo-dads. Now I know! Thanks for sharing.

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  17. Those are soooooo cute.

    But now I want to open the doors and see tiny little furniture inside!!!!

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  18. Absolutely, incredibly so very cute!
    Seriously, a LOT of cute!

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  19. LOVE this! I have been wanting one of these, actually been looking online. But your door has such whimsey to it! LOVE it!
    Thank you so much for joining in the Tales from Bloggeritaville Thrifty Thursday! I appreciate you joining in the party!

    Leigh
    Tales from Bloggeritaville
    www.lbratina.blogspot.com

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  20. How cool!

    Thanks for joining Get Your Craft on Thursday. Please join me next week for another great party!

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  21. I love this idea! My kids aren't little anymore, so it would be for me. :) So cute!

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  22. The door is very cute, but the lantern is my favorite! I love the Storybook Land at Disneyland and I WILL create one someday in my garden (Can you sense I've been telling myself that for years!) Someday.....

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  23. This is so precious! What a super cute idea! Would love to have you stop by The Sunday Showcase Party if you get a chance! I really need one of these for my son's garden! Thanks so much for the inspiration!

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  24. Found you from Funky Junk! I am crazy in love with this!!!! My boys who are 9 and 6 will love something like this in our garden. Thank you for the inspiration!!!

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  25. Thanks so much for joining the Sunday Showcase Party! I greatly appreciate it! I just think this is super cute and I adore the lantern! Hope you are enjoying your weekend! ~ Stephanie Lynn

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  26. What a fun idea!! Simple and inexpensive too, very cute!

    Thanks for linking up to my Flaunt it Friday party, please come back next week! :)

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  27. Love it! Saw something about making a fairy land in Martha or something...and have wanted to do it in my own yard. This would be a great addition!

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  28. I love this idea. My daughter is very interested in my garden this year and she would be completely absorbed by the idea of fairies living there! Stop by http://websterupdate.blogspot.com/ and check out our garden progress. Following you!

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  29. well, i have to say: very creative and inspiriting! 'little miss naughty's encounter with the good fairy comes to mind...

    btw check out our blog ~ i think you'll enjoy the fun and whimsy of our art n craft tutorials too.

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  30. Cute - I love the chimney! What fun!

    Thanks for planting your creative seeds at Plant a Punkin Seed Party. Come plant again on Friday!

    Kristi
    Punkin Seed Productions

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  31. What a cool idea. Thanks for sharing at 'Look at me, I'm SO Crafty!' at Fun to Craft.

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  32. These are adorable! Love this idea! Thanks for linking up for Friday Favorites!

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  33. I'm coming back by to let you know that I'm featuring your post! Come by and get a "featured" button for your blog if you like!

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gimme dat comment.