The Possibilities Are Endless. Part 2

Searching the internet for suitable fairy/gnome home material, I stumbled across the product ShapeCrete. Not carried in-stock at Home Depot, I placed an on-line order through their store. Days later it was delivered for pick up - no shipping costs. I was eager to learn about my discovery.  

Humble Beginnings.

Fairy/Gnome Form

My initial excitement however was tempered when I busted the first "gnome home" form out of its container. There was nothing exciting about the hunk of concrete in front of me. I'd been here before: the beginning of a new project. I was familiar with the twinge of anxiety I felt: "Can any good come of this?" I wondered. (See blog post: Fear Gets You Nowhere.) Determined to answer "YES", I rolled up my sleeves. 

Can any good come of this?

Seeing is believing...more pictures, less words.  

Click on pics to enlarge. 

The base was not level - that'd need fixing.

Tracing the door (and windows) for Sculpey molds.

  

Shaping Sculpey to match the traced pattern.

To the oven.

Molding and cutting Sculpey to an exact fit was challenging. I hoped aluminum foil would stabilize the door and window molds, as they needed to stay curved to fit flush on the house. I am not sure if the molds were jostled in the transfer, but they baked flatter then intended. Another issue to tend to later.

Post baking construction trouble. 

                                                                                   

Little by little. Detail after detail.

Great...the door and one window box cracked after baking. 


Curtains look nice though.

PVC chimney and...

...pine Cone "shingles"

Greenery added.

Thanks to Sculpey base is now level.

Detail painting to give the Gnome Home...

...a sturdy "brick" foundation.

Welcome!

Doubts cast aside...nineteen pictures and 2-1/2 months later, my humble hunk of concrete took on a new life: 

Humble Beginnings.

Metamorphosis Complete

                           360 Degrees.

                     Welcome to their world.

Staging - the fun part.

Do You Believe?

Ever since I saw a fairy garden on display at a locaI greenhouse a few years ago, I was completely enamored. I've created many over the last couple years in whatever I can find: jars, leaky bird-baths, vases, flower pots, etc.

Fairy house under construction.

I usually tear them down once the seasons change. But wanting something more permanent, last summer I built a gnome house made of twigs and attached it permanently to a tree that sits near the road.  (As shown in slide show).

Think that's crazy? Well I'm not alone. A search of Fairy Gardens on Google or Pinterest will yield oodles of sites, clubs, stores and even contests of  a whole culture of people who have the same fascination.
 
Last fall, when my sister called to say she had some unused, unwanted, dumpster-bound bird houses and wondered if I was interested, sight unseen, I was quick to say "yes". When you're a crafter, you don't say no to much: there is potential in even the humblest forms of crap! 

Crap...

...or Fairy Garden accessory.

Don't throw those bottle tops away!

When I got them, I wasn't surprised to see they were kits: cheap, cookie-cutter style, "Made in China" Christmas-themed, wood birdhouse kits. And I couldn't have been happier! Oh the possibilities!! I knew my first project was definitely NOT going to be a cookie-cutter Christmas bird house. In more ways then just crafting, I've never been one to color between the lines!!

I tossed out the instructions. When it comes to fairies or gnomes...I don't want or need instructions. There truly is no right or wrong. Fairy/gnome worlds evolve, taking on unique personalities and almost magically, come alive before your very eyes. 

Plain Jane

Door and steps needed...

...and of course a deck!

Posts and prep for paint.

Color! (which later changed)

Now that's curb appeal!

What about the door?

Looking Good!

 


















With spring on the horizon, it was with much satisfaction that I put the final touches on my "cookie-cutter" gnome house.  

A little Greenery!

Cookie Cutter - Before

Transformation - After!!!

Eventually it will go outside, near the other gnome house, where I will surround both with flowers, plants, paths, lighting, bridges, fairies and gnomes. I can't wait!!!!

Still think this is crazy? Last year, during the warmer months, I occasionally heard voices outside. It was with a happy, smiling heart that I saw the neighborhood children (and even some adults) hunched over the fairy-scape, pointing, eyes wide, wondering..."how did this get here?" I hope that, if only for a moment, they were able to forget their troubles and believe in those welcoming, cheerful gnomes and fairies and their enchanting tiny world. I know I do!