In Which we Build a Fairy House

James collects sticks. He finds them everywhere, carries them home and adds them to his pile. You never know when you might need a good stick.

Last week we had some big Santa Ana winds blow through. It left out backyard littered with sticks and twigs of all shapes and sizes. When the boys and I raked them up, we added them to James' pile, knowing they'd come in handy. They did.

We were playing outside and James looked at his pile of sticks.

"What should we build with these?" he asked me.

"How about a fairy house?" I reply.

"What's a fairy house?" both boys ask me.

How is it that we've never built a fairy house? I explained and then we set to work.

Everyone helped, even Lilly, our little dirt fairy.

We used a modified tee pee design. Then, to give the fairies protection from the elements, we added large avocado leaves on top of the twigs. We laid a layer of yellow leaves for a cheerful carpet and made a pathway of sticks leading to the fairy pond.

Like I said, everyone helped. Lilly and William loved finding the yellow leaves for the fairy carpet. And Lilly loved laying the avocado leaves across the frame of the house. James loved being the architect. He has already designed and built another house for the fairies.

I think we might start collecting materials to make a whole fairy village. It is pretty fun to construct these little dwellings out of materials we find in our yard. The boys had great fun imagining the other things we could add to our fairy house, like the path and the pond.

The only thing we were missing was fairies. We don't have any fairies. Or elves, gnomes or other woodland creatures. We have woodland animals, but, I don't really want them out in the dirt, which at our house always turns to mud. Then I found these.

I think these story stones are the perfect solution to populate our fairy village. Being made of stone, they are sturdy enough to hold up to the dirt and probably even a little mud. Besides they are just so darn cute. Do check out this blog. I love the story stones, but I love the whole bog too. There are lots and lots of great ideas there. So head on over and come up with some crafty inspiration of your own!

I'll be sure to post more pictures as our village grows.