Our Fairy House Part One

This is going to be a post in a few installments.  The fairy house we're planning needs to be done in stages.  This is a fabulous craft for kids because it combines creativity, literature (it's a good time to read J.M. Barrie's Peter Pan), and a little bit of exercise as you walk around your neighborhood or a park to collect materials.  If you have boys, this craft could easily be a Gnome House. 

There are rules to making your fairy house that need to be followed.  If you don't want to follow the rules, it really won't be a legitimate fairy house.

1.  ALL materials must be natural, not man-made.  That means that even if the materials are natural in origin, if a human constructed it, it's off limits.  You can't use hemp twine.  Hemp in natural, but unless you make the twine yourself (which of course you can!), you can't use it.

2. You cannot use living things. You can't pull leaves off trees.  You can't pull branches off of trees (you can use dead branches that have been left from pruning). You can't rip moss off a tree.  You can't pick flowers.  You can't pull off vines.  It has to be dead fall sticks, moss, dried leaves (fresh if they have just fallen off a tree), pinecones, shells, stones, etc...

3.  Be creative!  Need some sort of glue?  Use tree sap or mud.  Need string, use dead vines and braid them.

The best place to make houses is in your yard if you can.  But, since you are using only natural elements, you can make them in parks, or in other natural settings (beaches, river areas, forests, etc...). Imagine how fun it would be for a little boy or girl walking in a park to stumble upon your fairy house! Find a little space that's tucked in.  Little area under brush and inside trees are the best. I was lazy this year and left a tree trimming in my yard.  I should have cut it down and either mulched it or sent it along with the other yard waste, but I didn't.  And I'm glad I didn't.  We'll be using this to tuck in our fairy house.

Finding Supplies
 
Make sure you take a basket or a bag with you.  Since this is a very green project, take a reusable grocery bag as opposed to a plastic bag.  Maddie likes to take a natural woven basket.  Basket's are also pretty cute.  She's like Little Red Riding Hood. 

Here is a nice list of things you'll want to get:

1. sticks of all shapes and sizes.  You never know what you're going to do with them.
2. Stones and pebbles (great to use for little paths)
3. Pinecones
4. Vines (you can make string)
5. Dead leaves and flowers (for roofs or or bedding)
6. recently mowed grass
7. Soil (for making little garden beds)
8. Seeds (to plant in your garden bed)
9. Acorns (make wonderful cups)

Maddie finding river stones in the park area of The Lehigh Valley Zoo

To be continued.....