Flipping through the latest issue of Midwest Living yesterday, I found an article about fairy gardens. Apparently they're the hottest new variation on terrariums. While I'm not really into imaginary fairies, there is something appealing about miniature versions of pretty much anything. Anybody remember The Littles on TV? It was a cartoon on Saturday mornings when I was, well, little, and I loved it and desperately wished some tiny people would come live in our house. So making a mini garden might be just the thing to do with a small girl you know.
Use herbs planted in a container to mimic little hedges, bushes, and trees; then add a gravel path or pond. (Find more info here.) If you want to accessorize, get benches and other goodies at The Garden Barn's Etsy shop. Or make your own chairs from champagne bottle packaging by following today's DIY instructions at Design*Sponge.
(Images from The Garden Barn and Design*Sponge)
That's adorable. What a great idea! If only I had room for more plants.
ReplyDeleteOh...so cute. And you seen the hobbit/fairy doors here?
ReplyDeletehttp://www.etsy.com/shop/HiddenWorlds
When I discovered the doors a few weeks ago I decided this was a project we'd have to put on our list. Seeing all these other wee accessories is making me even more eager.
I just may have to try one of my own. They are so cute and I love having fresh herbs at the ready to cook with.
ReplyDeletehow lovely!
ReplyDeletewonderful idea if there is not garden space or too many plant pots!
That is so cute!
ReplyDeleteI'm really, really glad those Littles didn't come to live in our house back then.
I loved The Littles. And I adored reading The Borrowers books too. Remember them? If you are Borrowers fan, check-out this fun zine: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=37754306
ReplyDeleteThe Littles were a book series before tv, i think...I loved them and thought they lived in our attic.
ReplyDeleteI was going to comment in The Borrowers, too. I love them. And not a little.
ReplyDeletethat is the cutest darn thing I have ever seen!
ReplyDeleteOh now you've gone and done it. IMAGINARY FAIRIES???? Wooooooo, I'd mind my P's and particularly my Q's were I you. There is no such thing as an imaginary fairy. They are real. Make a fairy garden, tend it with a good heart and you'll see. There's still a little girl inside who knows that to be the truth. Look there and believe.
ReplyDeleteThe garden is wonderful.
Oh faeries do exist lol. Anywhoo, I too miss the littles. I loved watching that when i could.
ReplyDeleteOoh! I love that little chair!
ReplyDeleteHi there,
ReplyDeleteYou are a 'category winner' in my '25 Best Blogs of 2009'. Congratulations!
See the other category winners and your mention (and link)here: http://www.cricketwife.com/2010/01/25-best-blogs-of-2009-part-1.html.
Have a great 2010.
Cheers,
Sara Bradshaw
Love The Littles. Love the champagne wire chair. Love the mini garden! I definitely want to surprise my 5yr old daughter with a fairy door somewhere in our house.
ReplyDeleteAdorable!!
ReplyDeleteBlessings, andrea
Thats a very cute one and I love the little chair made from a champagne cap.
ReplyDeleteLots of people at the Garden junk forum on Gardenweb make Fairy gardens if anyone want to see more go there and search for Fairy garden.
Kathy
Those look so cute! And thanks for reminding me about The Littles! I had forgotten about that show!
ReplyDeleteok. I'm so making a mini-garden. I even have a tiny bench that's just dying to be a garden bench.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful idea, thanks for sharing! I just came across your blog and I love it!
ReplyDeleteOh ! I love everything that small !
ReplyDeleteWhat a cute idea... thanks !
Oh my gosh, how cute! It does sort of make me want shrink, crawl in, and enjoy the warmth. :)
ReplyDeleteI LOVE this! I do have a thing for miniatures and gardens - perfect combo. I even have left over mini champagne wire chairs my husband made for me after New Year's...guess I'd better get started!
ReplyDeleteI loved the Littles and went through a stage as a kid where I longed and yearned in vain for fairies to come and visit me. But I'm still not making a tiny garden. I'm bitter now.
ReplyDeleteOh my goodness!! If only I had seen that chair-out-of-champagne-bottle-packaging project *before* tossing out the detritus from our once-a-year bottle of champagne. *sigh* I have a few projects in the works to create some playful spots for children in my garden, and am now inspired to add a little fairy magic... :)
ReplyDeleteThere is something about little things...
ReplyDeleteUh oh. Forgive me for saying fairies are imaginary. I have turned this blog into a hotbed of controversy.
ReplyDeleteNow it occurs to me: would a realistic fairy garden also feature a giant pile of baby teeth? Or is a tooth fairy different from the kind that would live in small gardens? Somebody enlighten me.
whoa this is straight out of CSI - what are you hersom grissom the mini killer???
ReplyDeleteSo adorable! I might try one of these - it could be more manageable than a real garden. Thanks so much for the inspiration!
ReplyDeleteDangit, Jess! I just dropped $40 here 'cuz your post was so cute!
ReplyDeleteIt's all your fault.
Dede
Um, Sarah Sidle, you figured it out. I'm actually the cousin of the dollhouse miniature killer. I'm the sidekick of this season's demented laparoscopic killer, so you can expect to see dead fairies whose intestines have been tied into bows soon, lying in tiny gardens.
ReplyDeleteDede, that $40 will be a good investment if you actually get to see a real fairy. Or just end up with a cute garden.
That is super cute! It could be functional too if you use your favorite herbs for the plants.
ReplyDeleteThis just makes me happy! Can not wait to do this.
ReplyDeleteThis is pretty awesome. I also love terrariums to house teeny tiny things.
ReplyDeleteHayao Miyazaki, whose Studio Ghibli created Totoro, Ponyo, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away and many other films, has said his next animated feature is going to be based on The Borrowers, a Carnegie Medal-winning childrens book about a family like The Littles. More info here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karigurashi_no_Arrietty
ReplyDeleteWow, I didn't know that! I love Spirited Away. This one should be fun! Thanks for the news.
ReplyDeleteDesign Within Reach has for a number of years hosted a champagne chair contest, where anyone is welcome to enter a miniature chair using the foil, cage, and cork of only two champagne bottles. Over the years the designs have become extremely sophisticated. Check them out if you haven't already. Fairies can be modern too. =)
ReplyDeleteI'm not a big fan of fairies, but got some
ReplyDeleteadorable fairy plant pots as a gift. I made a Toad Garden instead, complete with toad homes!
I love making these for my bargoers at brunch! They LOOVE THEM! xoxo, Madamchino!
ReplyDeleteThis is soooo cute! I'll definitely try to make one myself
ReplyDelete