Friends, the one thing that my daughter never seems to tire of as the years pass, is fairy gardens. They're whimsical and timeless. While there are a TON of fairy garden ideas on Pinterest, and so many items that you can purchase to add to your fairy garden, I still enjoy the handmade items the most. Handmade / DIY fairy dolls, DIY fairy garden furniture, DIY fairy houses. It's such a fun way to see a child's imagination on full display. Making / crafting little bobbles with your child / children from their fairy garden is also a fun boredom buster on long hot summer days. The memories that I have collected over the past several years, assembling these adorable fairy garden treasures, are completely magical and priceless. It's one of my most treasured summertime traditions.
Ready to make your own silk flower fairies for your fairy garden this summer? Read on for the full supply list, our easy step-by-step tutorial and more imagery, below.
Silk Flower Fairies How-To
What you'll need:
- Scissors
- Heavy craft glue (or a low-temp hot glue gun and low-temp hot glue sticks.) Note: If using a low-temp hot glue gun, an adult should handle the step(s) that require gluing, for safety purposes.
- Floral wire cutters (if you don't already have them on-hand they sell these at most Dollar Tree's for $1) Note: The step that requires wire cutters should only be handled by an adult, for safety purposes.
- Skewers (found in the grilling section at our local home improvement store however, most grocery stores carry them - you could also use thin wooden dowels found at most craft stores)
- Wooden beads (found at most craft stores in bulk - we found a big bag of colored craft beads at Dollar Tree and painted them gold and pink to make our picture silk flower fairies.)
- Multi-purpose paint in your choice of colors (we used pinks and golds for the faces of our fairies and black for their eyes.
- Fine tip paint brush(s)
- Embroidery thread in your choice of colors (to create hair for your silk flower fairies - refer to images above and below.)
- Silk flowers (we found the pictured bunch of silk roses for just .97 cents in the floral department at Walmart, to make our pictured silk flower fairies.)
How to:
- Using your wire cutters, cut the silk roses off of the stem, right at the base of the flower (refer to imagery below.) Leave about 1/2" of the stem (you will slide your bead / fairy's head on here - so it needs to be long enough to hold the wooden bead that you use.) Repeat this step for all of your flowers. Set to the side.
- Separate the leaves from the flower stems, set to the side, you'll use these later to make wings for your silk flower fairies.
- Using multi-purpose paint, and a paint brush, paint each of your beads to create your fairy head(s). Allow adequate time for paint to dry (tip - slide beads onto a skewer / dowel to paint them - it makes it far easier to paint / handle!). Note: make sure that the holes in the bead are centered vertically. You may glue the "hair" / embroidery floss over the top hole in the bead, in the next step. The bottom hole in the bead needs to be left unobstructed.
- Once dry, cut multiple strands of embroidery floss (in your choice of color(s) to a desired length, affix to the top /sides/back of each of your beads to create hair for each of your silk flower fairies (refer to images above and below.) Set each of your completed beads / fairy heads to the side.
- Find the center of your silk flowers (they're should be a small hole in the center that leads through to the flower stem gently insert the tip of the skewer into the small hole. Add a dab of glue to affix / make it more secure, if desired. Repeat this step for each of your silk flower fairies.
- Add a small dab of glue to the 1/2" piece of stem on your silk flower base. slide each of the completed bead(s) / fairy head (s) onto the 1/2" piece of stem. Hold in place / allow adequate time for the glue to set / dry. Repeat this step to complete each of your silk flower fairies.
- To make wings for your silk flower fairy, use scissors and the leaves that you set aside earlier. Cut two leaves for each of your silk flower fairies. Add a dab of glue to bottom tip of one of the leaves. Now, press the bottom tip of the second leaf to the dab of glue on the first leaf (slightly overlapping the leaves in a V shape). Hold in place for a few seconds. Allow adequate time for the glue to dry/set.
- Once dry, add a dab of glue to the back of the silk flower (top center). Press your previously glued leaves / wings. Hold in place for a few seconds. Allow adequate time for the glue to dry / set.
- Once dry, add your silk flower fairies to your fairy garden, by pressing the skewer of each of your silk flower fairies into the soil. Enjoy!
This would also make a great fairy themed craft to do with kids at Birthday parties. You could have each child make their own silk flower fairy, and give them a small/inexpensive little potted plant to add them to as a party favor. So adorable, and so much fun!
Originally posted April 1, 2017 - Photos updated June 22, 2018
