In Need of the Fairy Broom

It is time to visit a special place in the Fairegarden. Won’t you join me? It has been given a clean up just for you.

Looking in the direction of the Fairy Garden after the leaves had finished falling to the ground, it seems there needed to be some tidying up done. A couple of years ago a tool was fashioned for just that occasion, click here to read that story.

At one time it was thought that the messy culprits were the devil squirrels that cause such rumpus around here, and they may play a part. But sitting in the loveseat with the binoculars pointed to the hill outside revealed the true destruction derby was executed by the birds, lifting moss and leaves in the hunt for tasty insect or seed treats. Caught in the act!

They overturn carefully positioned furniture in their quest. The autumn leaves only add to the mess. It was time for action.

Taking the little long handled broom down from the wall where it hangs with the other home made brooms, click here for the broom story, out we go to the Fairy Gazebo and Fairy Hovel located on the right hand side of the pond on the steep slope.

The lavender sweeper is brittle but effective at the detailed cleanup after the larger leaves have been removed by hand. The furniture has been righted and it looks much better.

I do hope the fairies will now enjoy the gazebo on warmer winter days, especially since the moss has filled in nicely between the stones on the floor, no thanks to the birds who were a problem early on. The little round concrete step stones were made with leftover mix from other fun cement projects. The furniture and accessories are gifts from friends and family, thanks especially Gail, Rose, The Brokenbeats and The Financier!

All is now well in the land of magic and make believe. It is hoped you will enjoy some imaginative play time there. For more stories about fairies and the building of structures just for the fey, see the sidebar for the page entitled Fairies, or click here.

Frances

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~ by fairegarden on December 21, 2012.

Posted in before and after, fairies, Seasonal Chores

13 Responses to “In Need of the Fairy Broom”

Devil squirrels!?!? All of us squirrels are angels!

Hi Evil Squirrel, thanks for visiting and welcome! The devil digging squirrels in my garden are cute, I’ll give them that, but they are turbo-destructive with their ceaseless digging, especially of newly planteds or bulbs, leaving roots exposed or the bulbs laying helplessly above the ground.
Frances

evilsquirrel13 said this on December 21, 2012 at 5:04 am | Reply
Are you sure the fairies didn’t have a rousing solstice party overturning furniture? Seems like you have certainly set the scene for such a party now. Their area looks ready for action. Love that little broom. The wind here could have blown away everything in the garden as it blew up a storm the past 24 hours. Brrrr winter has arrived.

Hi Lisa, thanks for stopping by. The fairies might have had a shindig, that is also a possibility. The wind is wuthering here, as well, with some very cold and shivering temps. The fairy garden is quite protected by fence and trees and slope, I will have to check its neatness!
Frances

Lisa at Greenbow said this on December 21, 2012 at 7:03 am | Reply
You have a beautiful fairegarden. So inviting to the fairies. Did you make your fairy house? Very nice fairy house. I am learning to make hypertufa and would love to make a fairy house. Thanks for inviting me to your garden.

Hi Jean, thanks for visiting. I did indeed make the fairy house. There are posts about it on the page listed on my sidebar titled Fairies. There are several hypertufa and leaf casting mix posts as well, under the sidebar page How To.
Frances

jean said this on December 21, 2012 at 8:48 am | Reply
- Thanks Frances, Your blog is so interesting and the pictures are amazing. Just what one needs to brighten our day on a cold winter day. Go out about dusk and take pictures in your garden and you might catch a fairy or two, little sparks of light in the garden. So cute, will have to build them a home so they feel welcome.
  
  My pleasure, Jean. I appreciate your kind words. The fairies are here, of that I am certain, but I have never seen them, yet.
  Frances
  
  jean said this on December 21, 2012 at 11:13 am | Reply
Not the birds! How Hitchcockian…I hold the rodents responsible for almost all the mischief in my garden and they are very naughty. But, I digress…The Fairy Garden is a delight and the little broom makes me smile. Happy Solstice Day~Thank you for the linkage. xoxogail

HA, Gail, and after all I do for those birds, too! Happy Solstice to you, my friend, and thank you for the adorable fairy chandelier. I know the fey appreciate a little mood lighting.
Frances

gail said this on December 21, 2012 at 8:51 am | Reply
So sweet! Love their Moss Rocks! I’d say some stylin’ Fairies.

Hi Entwined, thanks. The Moss Rocks were originally met to be gifts for the family, but I had to *test* them outside for a while and the fairy garden was the perfect spot for them.
Frances

entwinedlife said this on December 21, 2012 at 9:10 am | Reply
Just a few words floating about in my stream of consciousness as I gaze upon your your pictures….magical, enchanting, delightful, imaginative, playful, so, so dear. What a fun endeavor. I really must pick a special spot and do some miniature urban development of my own. Winter is the perfect time for ideas to marinate!

Hi Michaele, thanks so much for your kind comments. I really do appreciate them! The fairy garden is a little getaway for me, especially nice in times of stress. It is fun to play like a little girl there. I do hope you make one of your own.
Frances

michaele anderson (@meander1) said this on December 21, 2012 at 9:17 am | Reply
Oh Frances, now I know exactly what I’ll be doing this winter…
MAKING A FAIRY GARDEN! hee hee hee!
I don’t know if you covered it in the past, but what are the like… tubular concrete things with the blue beads stuck into them? [totally poetic, I know. Hah!]
I’m getting influenced by the way they look… if I made a TON of those type of shapes over the winter they’d make very interesting raised garden bed edging for when I redesign my beds… HMMM.
I draw so much inspiration from your blog, I really love it!
Wonderful as always, Frances! ♥

Hi Donna, thanks so much. The tubular, good word, concrete things were made using toilet paper rolls as forms. For edging a garden, I made ones from 1/2 gallon juice boxes, with 5 marbles on the tops. Don’t think I have shown them on a post, but both are made with leaf casting mix, but regular quickcrete would work just as well, most likely. Good luck with your sweet fairy garden!
Frances

Donna B. said this on December 21, 2012 at 3:49 pm | Reply
I see glimpses of someone shifting about between the plants, little giggling sounds and whispers, a rustle of leaves, a black shining cloak, a beady eye, as black as coal, sometimes the tip of a bright yellow beak…..who is that, I say, as someone scurries under the fence…then the perfectly beautiful song of a black bird fills the air….was it him I wonder. I feel someone lives at the bottom of my garden….maybe I should welcome them with beautiful chairs, and a table, so they will stay. I work in clay, maybe, when my studio is built I should consider making a small house…..the child in me would love that.
Frances, your garden is an inspiration on every level, I see your passion, and always enjoy my visits. Warmest wishes Sandy

What a delightful comment, Sandy, thank you! A small house built of clay, shaped with your own hands would be most welcome by any and all little visitors in your garden. It is you who inspire me!
Frances

Sandy & Richard said this on December 21, 2012 at 6:50 pm | Reply
A fleet visit to wish you a very happy Christmas and a wonderful and creative 2013.
Lucy

Hi Lucy, how sweet of you, thanks! May your holidays be bright and cheerful and 2013 be the best year ever!
Frances

Lucy Corrander said this on December 22, 2012 at 4:01 am | Reply
Looks like a magical place. Hard to imagine that the birds would cause such destruction, but if they were caught in the act…

Hi Carol, thanks for visiting. I was surprised to see the birds, it was the larger, foraging ones, like the thrushes that did the dirty work. When the moss was first applied to carpet the spaces between the stones for the floor, it was a daily mess in there. It was before the fairy house joined the scene. Time has helped the moss take hold so now it is only furniture upset that happens. I will admit that the furniture is not very heavy. Now if it were made out of concrete….
Frances

indygardener said this on December 23, 2012 at 1:00 am | Reply
It’s a very cute little garden. I especially like the little “boxballs” in containers that they use to decorate their front path.

Hi Shade, thanks so much. The fairy garden is lots of fun. The little Moss Rocks do seem perfect for the miniature space.
Frances

Northern Shade said this on December 24, 2012 at 1:46 am | Reply
Love the lavender sweeper. Very creative.

Donna said this on December 24, 2012 at 8:11 pm | Reply

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