Becky, that is just delightful. I've never seen the little Frog People before either. How cute. I need to add this to one of our GJ Inspiration albums....which one, LOL. Misc Album or the Fairy and Gnome Album? Or both, for that matter. Love it, especially as I love froggy stuff in the garden. (no real ones around here unfortunately). hugs, Karen

What a great idea for a simple side yard! I like the idea of the fairy garden in the wheelbarrow. You will definitely have to find her a little home. I have seen birdhouses at Michaels that look a little like a church with actually working doors at the bottom. The bird hole could be turned into a window. Or find a plain birdhouse and buy or create a fairy door for it. Little stepping stones instead of a path might be cool too. Watch for miniature furniture and maybe little animal figurines. Rocks are also a good choice ... they are good for fairies to hide behind. In a garden junk book I have, the woman made a toad house out of a lenght of pvc pipe ... maybe 8" in diameter ... that she covered with stones. She topped it with a funnel that she painted to look like copper. I think she put a little bead or something on the tip of the funnel. It ended up looking like a little castle tower. I like your bonsai-like tree too!

It would be a good idea to look up fairy garden images to see plenty of different examples. You can find lots of wonderful miniature accessories in lots of themes. I think that you'll see that less stuff is best! I've seen wonderful little 'gardens' in antique serving bowls, candy dishes, one of those wooden bowls used to serve nuts, etc. I've got several simple, pottery bonsai containers, glazed and not, that would be perfect. You can find bonsai containers in all sizes and shapes on line for very little money. Most of the fairy gardens I've seen are for indoor display....not for the direct upen sun, wind, and rain. But you still have to select plants, living breathing things, that will do well in the amount of light you can provide. There are soooo many plants that can be kept small with an occasional snip here and there with a pair of scissors. A good garden center is the best place to find an assortment of miniature plants. Try to remember to match plants with the amount of available light. Moss isn't required though it sure looks great. Moss is difficult to grow inside. But you can find sheet moss or dried moss that totally looks alive. Don't forget that natural elements are what make these little displays so charming. Twigs, bark, pebbles, shells, aquarium gravel, sand, interesting seed heads, and tons of other things are the magic in a fairy garden.

Those will make a really cute, unique fairy village. I know I have seen some really cute ones recently--one was on a blog I think, but I can't remember which one. I would think you could look at some of the painted birdhouse designs for ideas too. Or look at some of the actual fairy houses on the Garden Junk forum to get ideas for shapes of doors and other details. I know Luvstoclick had made some really cute fairy houses. You could do a search for hers. There is a post on here with lots of sites for free patterns too, but I don't remember any that had fairy houses. Maybe someone else will be able to help. Good luck on your project, and I'm sure they will look really cute. And remember that you can glue bark, rocks, moss, shingles, etc. on them in addition to painting on them. Just make sure you use a weather proof glue like the GE Silicone II. Luvs