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Whereas the Queen's Handmaidens are busy this time of year attending to her needs, the Warriors, those small, lithe and hidden Wee Folk, are scouting the forest for any signs of human encroachment.  The Warriors protect the rath from danger while the Hunters and Gatherers roam the forest floor for acorns and other nutrients to bring back down below for a long winter underground.  This one was crafted from dried grasses, lichen, and adorned with flowers and hydrangea with just a hint of Usnea.   Mid-October. Can you feel the energy getting stronger?  The Queen and her rath have had a long, luxurious summer, but now they are busy preparing for their retreat underground. The Queen's Handmaidens are unusually busy, moving her things. Here's one, found taking a rest upon the changing maple leaves.  Here she is, close up. Her skirt is a blush of hydrangea; adorned by brambles and dried roses.  Her bodice is crafted from red birch and white birch collected on our property.   They are like Billie Eilish's voice....fragile, ethereal and then...deadly. Here is one that has every indication of breaking apart in my hand, except that she's hardy and powerful as her mauve colors bleed into fall. The Autumn Fairies.    I'm busy making fairies, literary dresses and miniature scenes for an upcoming Small Works Show that I'll be in this Saturday, October 5. Here are a few of the fairies that will be hanging at this show. Beach Rose fairy with pink wash on bodice and lichen skirt. 
A Tree Shifter made from birch, lichen, moss, fungi and washed with green watercolor. 
A fall fairy   The Fuin Fairy comes out this time of year: She is a symbol of the end of summer. Here she is resting on hydrangea.  Here she is without filter.  Her applique is made of rose petal, petals of cornflower and a sprig of green.  Her skirt is made of chenille and sprigs of green.  I'm making more of these, which will soon be taken to Brambles, the shop in Belfast that carries my fairy dresses.  As we approach the Autumn Equinox, there has been a lot of activity in the woods. The Wee Folk have been gathering all season. Here's one spotted taking a rest.  Her dress is yellow and pale green to blend in with the still green ferns with a yellow applique.  I bought these flowers at the United Farmer's Market of Belfast at one of the farm stands.  The grass sash and dress underskirt accents are called Explosion Grass, which I got from a florist in Blue Hill.  Stitched up the back with pale green thread.
Another fall fairy made from red and brown leaves.  Cut along the midrib, the veins of the leaf patterns fit together like a pattern with the blade as the neckline.
I love the way the red and brown intersect and how the "wings" came out.
Each piece is one of a kind and comes with a custom fairy hanger.
The fall fairies are here, adorned in dried leaf with "wings." 
 She is known as the "fuin" fairy, a symbol of the end.  It is the end of summer, the end of natural light, the beginning of winter's time. The commencement of the dark half of the world.  Her bodice has been made from grasses that were once part of the Green World, but now have dried and withered.  Her adornment is from the petal of a hydrangea bush that has turned purple with the fall cold and a curled dried leaf.  Her skirt is made from the dried bulb of Queen Anne's Lace, brambles and the white fluff of plants gone to seed.  She is a symbol to honor the change of the cold and dying season. It is also the season of renewal for all of the plants that have died and decayed nourish the Earth for May's growing season.
 © Kay Stephens The Irish believe that the fairies are the fallen angels who were cast down by the Lord God out of heaven for their sinful pride. And some fell into the sea, and some on the dry land, and some fell deep down into hell. But the fairies of the earth and the sea are mostly gentle and beautiful creatures, who will do no harm if they are let alone, and allowed to dance on the fairy raths in the moonlight to their own sweet music, undisturbed by the presence of mortals. (Story origin)  © Kay Stephens This little fairy dress was made from dried grasses, dried hydrangea and adorned with tufts of field flowers. Each dress is one of a kind and some, like this one, are so fragile, they need to be mounted into a custom shadowbox and protected behind glass.  The Fallen Angel is encased in a vintage wooden cigar box as its shadowbox. It comes with mounting hardware on the back to hang upon a wall or to sit upon a shelf.
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Tonic of the Woods
the inspiration behind the creations Photos, stories and concept ©Kay Stephens
Look up the story behind a fairy dress by clicking on the name below
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