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Those stairs took me forever, |
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One of the hardest parts about |
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| Those fairies sure do know how to decorate! |
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One of my favorite parts of the fairy |
Fairy house building has been a tradition for more than 100 years in Maine, especially on the coast and on the islands. A fairy house is a small structure that is built in the woods and is usually found at the base of a tree. They use natural materials like, twigs, driftwood, and leaves. As a general rule, Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens does not allow the use of live plant material; this is to ensure that we do not harm the natural habitat around the fairy house building area.
On one of my first visits to the Gardens, I was about 14 years old, and I came with my two younger cousins. I fell in love with the Gardens and was absolutely loving being here. My cousins, on the other hand, were not. Being boys of 10 and 8, all they wanted to do was play in the woods or go home and kayak. It was only when we got to the Fairy House Village that they finally stopped complaining and became excited about being here. They were fascinated by the Fairy House Village. To be honest, it is truly something magical to behold. We all got started right away building our own fairy houses. Our first fairy house was really quite pathetic. But you can only improve from there!
Last Thursday I got the opportunity to try out my fairy house building creativity again! The morning started off with me scratching my head, having absolutely no idea where to start. There are simply too many directions you can take in building a fairy house. There is no way to compare houses because they are all unique. Every fairy house created is beautiful and brilliant in its own way.
Finally I just decided to go down to the Shoreland Trail and walk along the shore finding decorating materials. Luckily I stumbled upon an intriguing piece of driftwood that became the main feature of my fairy house. After that it was just a burst of creative energy to decorate and make the house fairy suitable. In the end, even though it took a few days to design and decorate, I think it turned out well. I tried to make mine original and represent the Gardens in the best way possible, so I did my best to design the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens logo in stones.
On July 5, we are starting what are called the Fairy Fridays. You can find more information about dates and events at Fairy Friday…And One Weekend. Be sure to keep an eye out for all the fairy houses designed by members of both the horticulture staff and volunteers. Come out and join us in all the fun of Fairy Fridays!!
– Kristin Neill, Horticulture Intern
