A Peek Into The World Of Faeries

For those of you who missed out on visiting the magical FaerieWorlds festival this year, I offer a glimpse into another way of life...

FaerieWorlds I Already Miss You...

Don't worry I'll be posting some more images of my trip to FaerieWorlds soon. It was such a wonderful, fantastical adventure I wish I could have brought all of you with me.

I did however lose my wings though.....hopefully the soul who found them loves them as much as I did...

FaerieWorlds 2009 & New Faerie Wing Tutorial

So I finally bought my tickets to FaerieWorlds '09! I've missed the scent of incense, sweat, and craft booths, and I've missed being in that little secluded spot of fantasy and magic lovers, dancing and creating for 3 days.

And now as the countdown begins (24 days) I'm trying to energy drink my creative flow into overdrive so that I can pump out something truly fairy-like for the festival. Last year I posted a wonderful fairy wing video tutorial which I used to make my own wings since I was a beginner.

This year I'm trying something a little more challenging. I will attempt to make some insect like fairy wings out of iridescent cellophane paper, using wire as veins to create an open frame like these ones below.

Thank goodness for Faerie Muse and her extremely helpful tutorial! Wish me luck! Keep checking by for updates on my costume!

Lost Fairy Tale: The Twelve Dancing Princesses

There was a king who had twelve beautiful daughters. They slept in twelve beds all in one room and when they went to bed, the doors were shut and locked up. However, every morning their shoes were found to be quite worn through as if they had been danced in all night. Nobody could find out how it happened, or where the princesses had been.

Down they all went, and at the bottom they found themselves in a most delightful grove of trees; and the leaves were all of silver, and glittered and sparkled beautifully. They came to another grove of trees, where all the leaves were of gold; and afterwards to a third, where the leaves were all glittering diamonds. On the other side of the lake stood a fine, illuminated castle from which came the merry music of horns and trumpets. There they all landed, and went into the castle, and each prince danced with his princess.

They danced on till three o'clock in the morning, and then all their shoes were worn out, so that they were obliged to leave.

To read the whole story of the twelve dancing princesses by The Brothers Grimm, visit SurLaLune. You can also check out versions from around the world it's all so very intriguing! 

Art of Dreams: Daniel Merriam

As a Christmas present I bought this Art of Dreams calendar for a friend of mine. I hadn't ever heard of the artist before but the it caught my eye in a bookstore last week and I was just fell in love with the fantastic surrealist artwork on the cover I had to buy it! 

For those of you who know me, know that I love magical dreamworlds, fairies and all things make believe. I think it comes with being an only child, having only my imagination and my cat for company. 

So here is just a little sampling of the wonderful Daniel Merriam. I hope you enjoy his work!

DIY Faery Flower Crown

Never has a post been so right on like the one that The Cherry Blossom Girl just posted. If you're like us, you've been on the hunt for a lasting crown of flowers for ages. There are some very beautiful ones on the internet but prices run oh so high it sort of ruins the point. 

There are the daisy crowns we've all made in the summer time. But no matter how beautiful, they're shriveled up messes by the end of the day...

Although it's the only the beginning of winter, flower crowns are always in season I say. So check out how to make your own (flower crown) and let the magic begin...

Shop Ban.do

These headbands from Ban.do are so ethereal and magical don't you think? Just the right combination of sparkle and natural elements plus lots of vintage pieces are used. 

If you ever want to stand out in just the right way, these are the perfect accessories for the job. Mmmm...if only I could afford one for myself....

FaerieWorlds 2008

For all of you who missed out on FaerieWorlds in Eugene, OR this year...I wanted to share a little taste of the wonderous world of Faerie. I was only there for two days and was extremely sad to leave. The smells were delicious and the people there were the friendliest I've ever met! 

For my costume, I made the faerie wings from the tutorial shown in my last post. I know I copied them completely, but in the time I had to finish them I was too pressed for time to experiment. The only thing I changed was that I wasn't able to find strong enough wire to hold the shape after the stockings had been added. I bought cheap wings from a costume shop, cut off the nylon on them, and added my own so that I could have a clean slate. It works out wonderfully although it was harder to create a strong enough base to keep them from flopping around. As you can tell in the picture, they are a big saggy by the end of the day...but you get the picture. Post. Script. I made the tutu also. 

I was lucky enough to hang out with the lovely Cleo Wolfus who creates beyond beautiful dredfalls. I never wanted to leave her booth because the colors and textures surrounding me were so magical, they truly embodied the essence of FaerieWorlds. I'm wearing the pair I bought in the picture above. To get your own, check out Cleo's Etsy shop!

Here are such a few of my favorite photos from the festival:

Faerie Wing Tutorial

I finally found a faerie wing tutorial that actually gave me some authentic ideas! No more cheesy looking glitter glue wings, this is the real thing!

Etsy Find: WhichGoose

I hadn't been finding much on Etsy lately....until I searched for "faery". I soon came across WhichGoose's beautiful handmade faery crowns! They are perfect for any sort of roleplaying or dressing up and quite cheap too! They mostly range from $20-30! So check them out...

Also...if any of you are planning on going to FaeryWorlds with me this summer you might want to pick one up!

Froud

Brian Froud, in case you didn't know, is the artist who designed the magical world of both The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth. I'm guessing you've happened upon books of his about faeries or goblins and such in misc. bookshops. 

But there are those out there who call themselves "Froudians" those who are most likely believe in faeries or who are just plain fantasy nerds. Point is...someone got this awesome tattoo of his work from the book Good Faeries Bad Faeries! Amazing...but kinda scary?

And speaking of replicated artist tattoos.....here's Audrey Kawasaki piece!

Who's Excited For FaerieWorlds?!

I know we're awhile away from August but who can't help looking forward to the FaerieWorld Festival in Oregon! It's going to be just a beautiful time and I hope those of you who are interested will join me!

Love you my dear faerie friends!

Oh and it's only $18 for one day! Pretty good deal if you ask me!

What Art Thou Puzzle Piece?

I've been working on my fairy puzzle for some weeks now...looking forward to the sense of accomplishment that comes with placing the last piece on the puzzle...
BUT! I now come to find that there is one puzzle piece that has gotten lost! How frustrating don't you think?