fairies (a new world after 3 boys)

[graywiggle]

hi,

we're looking at "the tempest" with my older boys, and I thought the younger boy (4) and girl (2) could join in with a "fairy theme". That's when I realised our lack of anything to do with fairies. Three boys, and I have lots of books for dinosaurs, rockets, diggers, but no fairies.

 

any suggestions for fairy books, or activities (apart from cardboard fairy wings which we're making this afternoon)?

 

any night time reading books would be great too. Nothing with too much peril, my younger son was not happy with Peter Rabbit's predicament

 

thanks,

 

maria.

[GailV]

The problem is that with 2 girls we have waaaaay too much in the way of fairy stuff. We live the fairy lifestyle here. I'm having trouble narrowing down to a couple of simple ideas.

 

Fairy wings can also be made out of bent wire (coat hangers, etc.) that has old pantyhose stretched over it. Decorate with glitter glue. I think Family Fun magazine had an issue that had these in it -- you might check their website for fairy ideas.

 

Glitter is really fairy dust. (ETA: glitter can also scratch a cornea, so no throwing around unless you are a bona fide fairy.)

 

Many fairies carry wands. They often have ribbon or yarn.

 

Build little fairy houses out in the yard or garden. Fairies prefer natural material, like lumpy wads of mown grass, little twigs, bits of moss. Fairies are very low tech about housing and prefer that you not spend anything on materials and also that you not destroy the garden in your enthusiasm. They also like to use acorn caps for bowls (not a good time of year for that), bits of bark for plates, etc.

 

I'll ask my daughters when they get up for story ideas. Somewhere around here we have flower fairy books.

 

Wooden clothespins can be made into fairies. For that matter, so can pipecleaners. My kids have made seeming billions of little fairies from scraps of fabric, pipe cleaners, and bits of yarn. This would probably be beyond your little ones, but maybe older kids can be drafted to help make a couple. Then you can act out the story or stories (assuming the 2yo won't eat the fairy).

 

I have to go drive dh to the airport. Will ponder this and come back later.

[dragons in the flower bed]

any suggestions for fairy books, or activities (apart from cardboard fairy wings which we're making this afternoon)?

 

Hi Maria! My sons adore fairies.

 

For a non-scary introduction, I highly recommend Flower Fairies by Cicely Mary Barker. There are CDs and books; it's mostly very pretty pictures and poetry.

 

You can make fairies out of pipe cleaners, yarn, felt, embroidery thread, and wooden beads using the instructions in the book Wee Felt Folk.

[graywiggle]

thank you both for your suggestions,

i'd forgotten about "natural" fairies, as i'd been overwhelmed by the bubblegum pink kind. we went to a local toy shop, and bought some fairy snap cards. my eldest son (12) remarked he didn't know there were so many different kinds of fairies...

having fun

 

thanks again, i'm tempted by the beautiful books at wee felt folk. now to be brave enough to make some..

 

regards,

 

maria.

[Melinda]

Usborne has some fairy kid kits and books.

[Melinda]

Oh and forgot to say, sometimes we plant a lollipop tree (when seasons are changing, other than going into winter). We sprinkle fairy dust (glitter) into a terra cotta pot on the front porch in the evening, and by morning a full-size (1-2 feet tall) lollipop tree has grown. Basically, it's a branch with some treats tied to it.

[St. Theophan Academy]

Once again, I give you Serendipity :) This site has great fairy ideas (more than you want I am sure, but when someone says fairies, I think this site). She has created an entire program teaching the letters of the alphabet and botany with the MC Barker books.

 

Enjoy - I love this site!

[helena]

a childs dream come true is a good place to buy supplies to make a fairy. Once ours are made, my daughters build a whole environment for them,they find big branches,flowers,leaves,wood shavings, seeds, pods,they fill dishes with water and put rocks,and leaves in them. It can get big and messy(which is sometimes a good thing). And then they lose themselves in it all,their fairies come alive. The disney type fairy doesn't do it justice. It's more fun to keep it natural and adventurous. You might want to check out Elsa Beskow, and Sibylle Von Olfers, both of these authors wrote fairy, elf type books! Good Luck!!