Flower Faeries

When I was a little girl I learned to make flower faeries by pinning different kinds of flowers together using toothpicks. Now I don't have access to all sorts of flowers like I did when I was growing up. I learned to make these little faeries using silk flowers and pipe cleaners. They are almost as much fun as the real ones and last much longer. Use your faeries to trim a wreath, decorate a plant or tie a thread to the loop at the top of their heads and hang them in an open window.

Materials
Pipe cleaners
Artificial flowers taken apart and sorted by size
Note: small children may need assistance in removing the flowers from the stems and taking them apart. Most will just pull apart, but some will need to be cut.* Small wooden beads ... Pony or other large-holed beads
Yarn or embroidery floss (Optional)
Large scissors or wire cutters

1. Cut a pipe cleaner so that you have one piece 8" long and one piece 4" long. Put the 4" piece aside (don't lose it!) and bend the other piece to the shape shown in the picture 
2. Select a section of large flower petals. Poke the top of the pipe cleaner section through the hole in the center of the flower petals. Repeat until the faery's skirt is as full as you wish. 
3. Slide a pony bead down on top of the skirt petals.
4. Wrap the 4" piece of pipe cleaner around the faery's body just above the pony bead. This is your faery's arms. 
5. Slide a middle-sized section of petals down on top of the arms for your faery's collar. 
6. Slide a bead on for the head. You may wish to use a very small section of petals for a hat or you can use a few strands of yarn or embroidery floss for hair. 
*Many discount stores which sell artificial flowers will be happy to sell you a bag full of the flowers that have come off the stems during shipping at a very low price--Just ask them!
http://gingerbreadgrandma.knownworldweb.com/flowerfaery.html
Plastic Bottle May Basket

You will need...
20 ounce or 1/2 liter plastic pop bottle,
Craft knife,
Bumpy chenille stem (or regular chenille stem),
Hole punch,
Narrow ribbon,
Real flowers or handmade flowers

Directions:
1. Cut the bottle with the craft knife about 4" from the bottom. Discard top.
2. Punch a hole on opposite sides directly across from each other.
3. Insert one end of the chenille stem from the outside to the inside. Bring it up and twist to the stem above the bottle edge. Repeat for other end of the chenille stem.
4. If desired, punch holes around the top of the bottle. Weave a ribbon in and out through the openings.
5. Early on the morning of May 1st, fill with real or handmade flowers.
6. Hang on your neighbor's door, a friend's, or anyone special to you. Remember, it's supposed to be a surprise!
http://www.mysticmooncoven.org/bltane04.htm#B3
May Wreath

You will need:
gravevine wreath,
variety of flowers,
greenery (ivy, rosemary, etc),
decorative items (ribbons, figurines, etc),
Scissors,
glue or hot glue gun.

Assemble supplies. The greenery goes on first. Weave, wrap, or tuck it into the grapevein. Glue it in strategic places. Ivy, rosemary, and moss are a few ideas. Use fresh or dried. Place a variety of flowers loosly around the greenery and glue them in place. After all flowers are in place, add ribbons, figurines, or crystals. Use this wreath for the top of your maypole.
May Garland

You will need:
springs of greenery,
variety of fresh or dried flowers,
ribbons,
floral wire,
wire cutters,
scissors,
glue or hot glue gun.

Use a heavy wire backbone that runs the length of the garland. Begin by starting at one end, attaching each bundle of greenery over the last. Use floral wire to attach the bundles to the backbone. Once all the greenery and flowers have been attached with floral wire, add ribbons, bells, beads, crystals and any other decorative items you wish. Put this over a doorway or on a mantle.
May Pole Centerpiece

You will need:
18" wood dowel or thin branch,
6-9" diameter flat round wooden plaque,
small grapevine wreath, approx. 6-8" diameter, decorated on both sides,
1 yard each of red and white ribbon,
scissors,
drill and a 1/4 drill bit,
1 1 1/4 length flattened wood screw,
hot glue gun.

Drill pilot holes completely through center of plaque and 1/2 deep into the bottom end of the dowel. Cross the ribbons and glue on top end of the dowel. Attach the dowel to the stand by screwing the screw through the plaque, and then into the bottom end of the dowel. Glue wreath on top of dowel by melting a medium dab of glue on top of the crossed ribbons and on the bottom of the wreath, then join the wreath to the top of the dowel. To make it more secure wait a few minutes and then glue around the edge of the wreath where it meets the dowel, filling in gaps. Brain the ribbons - one color going left and under the other color, which is moving right. Braid about 2 inches down the dowel and tack to the dowel with hot glue to keep in place. When set, tack the ends of the ribbons to the edge of the wood plaque with hot glue.
http://www.dreamcatcher.net/moonwise/crafts.html
Building a Faery-Elf House
-by D. J. Conway

To create a special inside house for these little people, you will need:
a cardboard box with a lid (this doesn't have to be very big);
some poster-board;
scraps of rich-looking material;
glue or tape;
scissors;
a sharp knife;
acrylic or poster paints,
or appropriate wrapping paper;
pencil;
needle and thread.

With the pencil, mark out the doors and windows on the box in the shape and places you want them. Cut the door across the top, bottom, and one side, bending the other side back to create a door. Cut out the windows, leaving narrow strips to simulate panes if you wish. You can paint the box to simulate bricks, stones, or boards. Cut a piece of poster-board one inch wider than the lid and as long as you want the roof to peak to be high. Lightly score the poster-board crosswise in the middle with the knife so it can be neatly creased to make the peak of the roof. Center the roof with a half-inch overhang on each side and glue into place on the lid. The ends are filled in by cutting out triangular pieces of poster-board and inserting into the ends of the roof. You want the roof-lid to be removable so you can redecorate inside.Faeries like shiny things, so you might use a clear glue on the roof and sprinkle on colored glitter. You might also glue on dried moss and small fir cones.Tiny strips of cloth can be fastened at the windows fo rcurtains and placed on the floor for rugs. Caps from cans and bottles become little tables; small boxes, filled with cotton anc covered with velvet material, are beds. Let your imagination go, furnishing the faery house with whimsy and dreams.
http://www.dreamcatcher.net/moonwise/weepagans.html
May Day Fruit Baskets

Cut an orange into a basket shape. The top half makes the handle, the bottom half makes the conatiner part. If you want to get even fancier, make scallops or zigzags around the edges. Using a grapefruit knife, carefully remove the fruit and pulp. Rinse the basket, then sliver a little bit of peel off the bottom to make a flat bottom and fill with small fresh flowers.
http://www.dreamcatcher.net/moonwise/weepagans.html
Rainbow Hats

Trim off about 2 1/2 inches from one side of a paper plate, cutting straight across. Starting from the straight edge, cut out the center of the plate, leaving a 2 inch wide rim. This forms an upright headband. If the band is too tight, carefully trim the inner edge. Color the headband in rainbow strips. Punch a hole at each end of the colored stripe, about 1/2 inch from the edge of the plate. Add ribbon streamers. Curl the streamers with scissors or let them hang straight.
http://www.dreamcatcher.net/moonwise/weepagans.html
Flower Pictures

Take various colored cupcake papers and glue them down on a piece of paper to appear as open flowers. Then use markers to draw the stems and leaves.
http://www.dreamcatcher.net/moonwise/weepagans.html
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