DIY Miniature/Fairy Garden Fence

It's so easy to make your own accessories for your miniature/fairy garden! Here's a quick and easy tutorial on how to make your own fence using cut up cedar shingles and copper wire.

Materials/tools needed:
Cedar shingle scraps, cut into 4-5" lengths
24 gauge copper wire (get it from an arts&crafts store from the beading/jewelry section)
Jewelry or needle nose pliers
X-acto or similar sharp cutting knife

1. Cut scrap length-wise into 1/4" widths (doesn't need to be exact)

2.  Cut two long pieces of copper wire at least 4x longer than the finished length of the fence. Fold in half, and wrap one around a cedar piece about 1/2" from the top. Twist the wire 4-5 times, then add another cedar "post".

3. After you have a few posts together, add the second wire about 1/3 of the way down from the top of the post. Do the same as the top wire until the pieces are together.

4. Continue wrapping and twisting until you get the length you need or you run out of wire.

5. To finish off the end, twist the wire and fold it over the last post.

6. You may cut off the extra length if you need to. This is optional. I left the posts intact because the extra length will help to keep the fence secure in the garden. Install and enjoy!

Side note: If you end up with little splinters on the edges after snapping the posts apart, use the knife to scrape them off and clean up the edges.

The Beginning of a Fairy/Miniature Garden

I've had my eye on miniature gardens since the first time I saw them years ago on display at a nursery. There's something so wonderful and whimsical about creating a tiny world or habitat, and it fuels my obsession/fascination with all things miniature involving nature. I never delved into playing with dollhouses (though I had always wanted one), but bonsai, terrariums, mosses and lichens are some of my favorite things. So when I came across an awesome galvanized tub at the flea market for next to nothing, I knew it would be the perfect container for a miniature nature-play fairy garden that I hope work on with my daughter over the years to come.

I went ahead and got a head start on the "plot" for the fairy garden - maybe one will take up residence soon?

I had two japanese maple saplings that my mother brought up with her last spring, and I thought that they might enjoy the new setting; I plan to keep them small in a bonsai-type fashion. I also transplanted some of the moss from our back yard (we have tons in our backyard) and added some elfin thyme and irish moss (both which, in addition to their cute, tiny leaves have cute, tiny flowers!) and a few rocks as a path and around the garden.

I think it's a good start, don't you?