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The Queen invited a visiting King to join the rath on this Holy Night of Christmas Tide.  Man believes that the world is just a little bit more wondrous the Night Before. Shakespeare's Hamlet: Some say that ever 'gainst that season comes Wherein our Saviour's birth is celebrated, The bird of dawning singeth all night long: And then, they say, no spirit dare stir abroad; The nights are wholesome; then no planets strike, No fairy takes, no witch has power to charm, So hallow'd and gracious is the time. --Hamlet I.i  This is the one night of reprieve for Mankind. The one night that The Queen and King on their thrones, command the rath--the hunters, gatherers, the sentinels, the Fairy Nurse, not to trick or tease humans in their homes, nor snatch their weans from their cradles and replace with changelings. Nature is to be revered on this night when no wickedness roams the earth, and no fairies take their toll.  On a windless afternoon on a frozen Maine lake, this pair of wee sovereign chairs were spotted.  This night there would be feasts and candle lighting, merrymaking and quick laughter, for these Good People were celebrating as well. Celebrating all that Nature has given them and vowing to protect Her from those who spoil her forests and waters. For on this night, this Holy Night of Christmas Tide, they will not fight. There will be peace.  Fairy Chairs and concepts by Kay & Justin Stephens Adapted from this folklore: http://www.holytrinitygerman.org/xmascustoms.html
It's spring cleaning for the Wee Folk, a time for cleansing and purification; a time for growth and renewal.  These three fairy dresses represent the pagan trinity of The Maiden (youthful enchantment), The Mother (the green and fertile Earth) and The Crone (the wise woman). 
All fairies are from the elemental property of air and lightness, represented by plants, herbs, flowers, trees. Both The Maiden and The Mother are made with birch bodices (which is believed in Celtic magic to ward off evil) and dried tulips for dresses (which has properties of prosperity and protection). The Maiden is sweeter and lighter in coloring, whereas The Mother is more sophisticated, containing an underskirt of bramble. The Crone is made from dried grasses for a bodice, a dark bramble skirt and a sash made from the natural lichen-covered ring of tree bark.  Here they are through a special lens, floating among the mossy forest floor. All three will soon be sold together. Stay tuned for more announcements.
The Wee Folk are mostly gentle and beautiful creatures.  This one was found on the side of a road by wild white daffodils. It is made from dried grass, birch and Hydrangea.
When the angels were cast out, some fell to Earth. Those who fell into the forests became the wood-spirits who live there: the hey-men, the wild-men, the forest-men, the wild-women, and the forest-women.  May 1 is a special day, the start of a new season. It's May Day and the powers of The Wee Folk are growing to reach their peak at the summer solstice.  © Kay Stephens This is the beginning of the passive, feminine side of Nature.  © Kay Stephens This dress was made from the gift of a rose from a friend. I dried the petals and they came out beautifully as the skirt, matching natural bands of peach in the birch bark. Orange has the power to draw good things and this Lady of the Greenwood is a symbol to offer a gift today, even if it is anonymous.  © Kay Stephens If you take a walk in the woods today and hear a cluster of birds in the trees; they might be fae. Listen closely. Happy Beltane.  © Kay Stephens It's the beautiful time of year when The Spring Maiden comes up from the forts and basks among the budding flowers.  Photo ©Kay Stephens The Spring Maiden serves the Queen in her dress and care. She is adorned in dried tulips with birch bodice, a lichen cummerbund and a tulip rose for decoration.  Photo ©Kay Stephens I also made another one, which is a little more elaborate.  Photo ©Kay Stephens We're working on making custom shadowboxes for these pretty ones. Hope you enjoy this blast of color.
I love making Wee Folk fairy dresses. I love making tiny shadowboxes. Like cookies in cream, I combined them both. This is The Witch Hare, a fragile dress made from dried grass and cattail fluff perched in a shadowbox on a bed of dark green moss with two sprouting mushrooms. Watch. Here she is.  The Hare Witching Hour.  Behind The Curtain. Had to learn how to learn miniature wiring.  Here is the Witch Hare in her natural element.   ©Kay Stephens March is the month of celebrating Celtic legends and lore, such as the history behind St. Patrick, the Patron Saint of Ireland and to commemorate this day, I made this wee fairy dress in the midst of a nor'easter. While it was a whiteout outside for nearly 18 hours, piling up over a foot, I wanted to bring the beauty of Ireland's lush green landscape into this dress with dark green reindeer moss over a birch bodice.  ©Kay Stephens These are a lovely little gift for the Irish person in your life and for St. Patrick's Day and can be found on my Etsy page. I can make them to order.  ©Kay Stephens Pictured below are three of my most Irish green miniature fairy dresses all propped up by vintage tonic bottles.  ©Kay Stephens  ©Kay Stephens APRIL* By John Galsworthy Starry-eyed is April morn, Rain bells glitter on the thorn. Birds are tuning down the lane Patter song of fallen rain. Spring can grieve, but Spring can be Very life of minstrelsy! -excerpt from Moods, Songs and Doggerels. Reprinted by permission of Charles Scribner's Sons in the anthology Through Fairy Halls of My Bookhouse (Olive Beaupre Miller, Chicago The Bookhouse for Children Publishers, 1920) This spring maiden serves the Queen in her dress and care. She is adorned in dried tulips with birch bodice, a lichen cummerbund and a tulip rose for decoration.
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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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