The Faerie Tour 2013

Last night we invited a gaggle of lovely people to celebrate mid-summer and kick off this years Faerie Tour. The Faerie tour is a collection of faerie houses and hiding spots dotted around our property. This is the third year that I've created the tour, the second that it's been open to the public. The tour is a fantastic way to make art fun and accessible, and spreads a whole lot of joy.

If you're in the neighbourhood stop by and take the tour yourself. The houses will be set up and maintained until the end of July. Then the faeries will take a trip over to The Gates, near Presquile Provincial Park and reside in the old mini-golf course for a month or two. We'll be opening that event with a fairy tea party the first weekend of August.

Merry Mid-Summer!

Merry mid-summer to all of you!We're celebrating tonight with a little party that is quickly getting away from me. Here's hoping the guests won't starve and the faeries will do the entertaining ;)

Today's a pretty special day too because I'm featured on the Graphic 45 blog today! How freaking exciting is that? Hop over and take a peek...

My pants are quite fancy today :)

Happy Birthday to Me

I'm still coughing and sound as though I smoke 2 packs of ciggies a day, but I'm alive. I think it's safe to say that I probably don't have mono, despite being absolutely certain I would be napping for the rest of my life last week. Last night I managed 11 hours sleep, but I didn't take a single nap today so I figure I'm on the mend.

Being sick put me way behind and I've been working like mad to get caught up on this year's Pixie Project/Faerie Tour and cleaning the old house for a little kick off party on Friday night. I'll share photos of the faerie goodness when it's all gussied up... or you can follow my facebook page for frequent updates.

I will share a pic of my birthday cake. I'm not big on the whole birthday thing but it's a fine excuse for cake. My husband picked up this gorgeous slab of chocolaty goodness and my kid shoved in the "170". Yeah, he thinks he's hilarious.

No worries, he made up for it by covering my slice of cake with Smarties :) All was forgiven.

Germs and Flowers

I'm sick. Thankfully I'm past the "Oh my god my skin is on fire!" phase and have moved on to the "I'm coughing lava!" stage. These germs have whopped my ass and seem immune to my many attempts at thwarting them with drugs and miscellaneous concoctions. Even worse news, the Mr. is starting to feel a bit iffy too. If you think I'm dramatic... eesh! I am not looking forward to his interpretation of this particular strain of germs.

Besides being sick we've had day after day of drizzles here. All I really want is a couple of non-rain drenched days where I don't feel like I'm going to fall over so I can get some serious work done on the Faerie Tour. *sigh*

BUT, on a more positive note, I do have something pretty to show off. An altered board book using items from Alpha Stamps  The Language of Flowers Kit ....which was so awesome it's now sold out!

And now I'm heading back to bed to lull these germs into a false sense of security before I wallop them with a hot toddy and mind manipulation later this afternoon.

Fairy Tale Bookmark

Alpha Stamps sent me some of these sweet little Fairy Vials and I FINALLY sat down to make something with them. I'm sure a couple will end up in a miniature house but this one is now a pretty bookmark...

I've also used:

Organza ribbonSheet Moss

Small Ceramic Mushroom Bead

Tiny Antique Brass Leaves

and an Ornate Metal Key from Graphic 45

 Quick, easy and a little bit pretty :)

Paper, paper, everywhere...

I've been having a grand time making things with all of the fantastic products sent by Graphic 45. There's a few things I can't show off just yet, but I've also made a few extra bits in an attempt to familiarize myself with the collections a little better.

Last night I pulled out A Ladies' Diary and Secret Garden and went to town making a few ATC's.

I've used Secret Garden Beautiful Blooms for the background of each and embellished with ladies from A Ladies' Diary Garden Stroll. The wings and butterflies are from Olde Curiosity Shoppe Butterfly Specifics Scrapbook Paper.

I've also used pieces from Secret Garden Tags & Pockets,  Secret Garden Stickers and Secret Garden Chipboard 1. Even a stamps from G45 Cling A Ladies' Diary 1 managed to sneak in.

Because I wanted these to be quick and painless (and because I misplaced my good scissors!) I used some beautiful Dresden scraps from Alpha Stamps, rather than fussy cutting the night away.

The pieces are finished off with some May Arts ribbons. I'm not really much of a ribbon person BUT these are truly gorgeous and divine quality. I've actually been thinking a lot about making ribbon flowers just so I can dive into the yummy stash on hand.

One last bit of gushing... Scor-Tape. If you're a paper crafter go out and buy some this minute. It's not messy. It's really sticky. It tears easily. It's soooo handy for ribbons and trims. Definitely a new staple for my craft room.

Toadstools of the Giant Variety

I'm getting ready for this year's Faerie Tour and decided to add some giant toadstools. I have no idea why, it just seemed the right thing to do.

It did occur to me afterward that it would create a lovely photograph opportunity for my visitors. So I made two.

 

They are still in the process of being sealed... and they might be moved to another location... but otherwise they are finally done!

I created mine using building tube for the stem and the top was formed using chicken wire over Styrofoam.

Over that, I did layers of paper mache. I did old school paste with just flour and water, and I'm not sure how well that will hold up, but it's what I had on hand and it does make it quite stiff.

Next I painted them. I used an enamel rust paint for the red part and an outdoor latex enamel for the white.

I looked into ways to protect paper mache outdoors and came across a recommendation to use marine varnish. The varnish was the most expensive item but I figured it'll be worth it if I can make these last through the summer. I'll keep you updated!

To give you a better idea of size here's my almost 5' kiddo posing with the pair.

Now, I saw a comment in which someone said they wished they could afford these. I can tell you right now, as a broke-ass-bumpkin and proudly thrifty gal, they didn't cost very much at all.  If you're willing to put in the effort, have a bit of time, and don't mind getting really flipping messy, you CAN create these on a tight budget.

Want to see these for yourself? The tour will run at Pixie Hill from June 22nd until the last week in July before moving to The Gates in Brighton for August through to September. xoxo

Masked Bandits

 I created these winged fellows for Alpha Stamps this month. They're hosting a "peek-a-boo" swap to coincide with this months Black and White Silhouettes Kit.

They measure 4"x4". The wings are from my Just Wings Collage Sheet, printed on transparency. The antenna are finely cut pieces of paper.

The inspiration? A couple of weeks ago I watch a movie called The Fall and quickly fell in love. Stunningly beautiful, absolutely wonderful and immediately one of my very favourite things. With bandits, adventure, love and revenge... how could I avoid being inspired?! And so, I've been putting masks on just about everything with a face over the past two weeks.

Fair warning: if you decide to watch this film for yourself (and you totally should) prepare for tears. Also, the leading man, Lee Pace, is kinda dreamy so you might find yourself with a new imaginary boyfriend too.

Standing guard

The weather has been rather funny here as of late. Loads of rainy days which, although I love for making my plants grow, have put a damper of getting a head start on this year's Faerie Tour.

Last night I'd had enough of waiting and starting a little fiddling around the Troll's Hole. I spied this fellow standing guard in the crook of the tree stump next to the Troll's entrance.

Handsome, no?

I managed a bit more clean-up this morning and this is the current state of the hole...

 

An "Un-welcome" mat and some potted weeds are in order but they'll have to come later. I thought I might also get to work on the Hobbit home and but was greeted by another guardian toad.

I think this fellow was new to his position. He was awfully shy and as soon as this photo was snapped immediately hopped into a corner, pressed himself tightly against the ground, and pretended he was invisible against the mud. His disguise was not nearly as impressive as he believed it to be. He was, in fact, quite visible. But I felt sorry for the dear so I pretended he vanished and left him to recuperate from the fright of our confrontation.

Instead of progress, I'll share the above photo of a newly discovered patch of four leafed clovers growing near the Troll's hole. There are at least two in the photo... can you find them?

Professor Dukinschnof is missing

I didn't get a "Good morning" today.

Today I was woken with "The duck is gone."

The Professor is missing.

This week the fella was moved into a chicken tractor, a sort of small portable coop that can be moved daily for fresh grass and little mess. We had placed a small tub of water with him and he seemed to be enjoying himself, splashing around in his new diggs.

This morning the end door was found wide open and our dear duck was vanished.

The door that was found wide open has a spring latch mechanism, not exactly the easiest things to operate. We became quickly conscientious about predators when we lost our first chicken three years ago. I'm honestly not sure what to make of the open gate. If it was a predator, well that's something you have to deal with when you raise animals, circle of life and all of that. But if someone opened the gate, which I can't imagine but have to ponder the possibility, it was a terrible and reckless thing to do. The Professor was still just a baby, just getting his feathers, and if someone let him go... well it's a death sentence.

We've walked all over listening for his peeps (poor thing didn't even have his quack yet) but there isn't a trace of him. The very little sensible side of me knows he's gone for good. The crazy and delusional faerie loving optimist is quite sure he'll waddle up to the kitchen door any minute for a cup of tea.

Stash bustin' wind chimes

Today I made wind chimes.

I made three sets but they're hard to photograph so this is all you get :P

They were just made from miscellaneous rusty bits in my stash that I don't think will be terribly missed. I was pretty pleased with how they turned out. Perhaps I'm a little too happy with them because I keep looking at everything and wondering how it would sound clinking and clanking in the breeze.

Float like a butterfly

In the faerie underground there exists a gentleman's club where faerie men do manly things. Sure they play cricket and drink lager but they also display their most manly strength by going toe to toe with wasps and other dangerous buzzy things!

 

While the fights are quite gruesome, certainly not suitable for the squeamish, serious injuries are rare.

More often than not, the brave Bee Boxers and their winged opponets share a drop or two of mead after the blue bell rings.

The Sun is back

I've been terribly lax in my mess making lately, more than a little scatterbrained, and my time management skills seem to have slipped down the drain. *sigh* BUT today is a new day and I will regain control! I will! I WILL!

I stepped back, took a deep breath, and holed myself up in my cocoon and made these pretties last night.


I just love the little quotes from that gem of a torn up children's book hiding in my stash.

Perhaps it's the weather that has me discombobulated. It's been pretty darned chilly and drab around here for the past few days. Not in the least spring-like! But the sun has returned today and so I'm hoping that once again the windows can be thrown open.


Despite the two bouts of hail we've seen, the garden seems to be doing pretty well so far. Sure, a few things have already been nibbled at, but I see a few little things that are so far untouched too. Here's a few pics of our garden (last week before the chill).

The soil looks mighty lush! In no time at all this will be a jumble of squash vines. 

Just a portion of our garlic. Good thing the Mr. and I both like the stuff :)

Pretty violets of spring. I use to collect these for my Oberon's Love Potion. If I can find the recipe I'll post it for you.

Mr Pixie built these for the peas to grow upon. I think they're rather nice and can't wait to see them covered with tendrils.

The boxes in the distance are for salad greens. They heat up the ground and let us harvest leaves earlier than we would otherwise.

And finally our rhubarb. I do hope we get lots and lots this year.  The past couple of years we've only had a little bunch or two. I'd like a whole pie's worth thank-you-very-much. Mr Pixie said I might just get my wish this year!

Working Digitally

Do you digital collage? I've been dabbling, and some of my work is a sort of physical/digital hybrid.

This image is almost an entirely physical mixed media collage. The wee white 'sparkly bits' and floaty hearts were added digitally.

Alpha Stamps is now offering digital collage elements and I got to play with a few images (and add a few of my own!). The following two pieces are entirely digital...

While I don't think that anything could replace working with paper and the physicality of cutting and pasting and playing... there's something to be said for digital work. Digital collage often has an amazing 'other world' feel to it. If nothing else, working digitally can help to make the impossible an almost reality :)

Three Little Cottages & Mask Workshop

Here's three little cottages gussied up with Graphic 45 French Country papers.

I really like the Tiny Chipboard House Kit that is the base for these because it comes with all three houses. To vary the height I added a 3 Inch Tall Candlestick Holder and a chess piece.

They look mighty cute here BUT I bet these wee places would make a great little spooky village!

ALSO... if you live nearby and are interested in a bit of paper crafting, I'm hosting a mask making workshop at The Gates for the Brighton Arts Council.

If you have tickets for the BAC Masquerade Ball on May 18th, the workshop is FREE! The workshop is $10 for BAC Members, $25 for non-members BUT you only pay half price if you donate your mask to the BAC's fundraiser auction. There are still a few spaces left, contact [email protected] or call 613.210.0851 to reserve your spot.