Make It Mama: Fairyland Play Set

I include at least one handmade gift in my kids Christmas stash each year. Even though the jingle bells have long stopped ringing, I thought I would share this adorable Fairyland Play Set I made for the girl kiddo this past Christmas, since she has played with it daily since December.

First step is locating a "home" for your play set. I wanted the set to be portable and contain itself so I opted for this wooden, 8x10" box that is approximately 2" deep from Michael's. The standard price of the box is $20, but if you are lucky enough to score a 40% off coupon, you can make a nice dent in the total price like I did. I love the natural color of the wood, so I decided to leave it as is on the outside, although creative minds can certainly have a field day decorating the outside of the box, perhaps personalizing it with a name. Staining the box is also another option that I considered.

The next step is determining what pieces you would like to include. I wanted to start out with some basics and then add to it over time, using the addition of extra pieces to serve as an opportunity for some mom and kiddo crafting time. I started out with a plain wood horse, wood furniture knobs (left over from an Ikea purchase, but also available at your local hardwood store), and some scenery. Now I could have hand-painted the scenery, but this full time working mama knew getting around to that would probably result in an unfinished project, so I opted to pick up some pre-painted wood cut outs from the craft store. 

Of course, the most important pieces of a "fairy" play-set are the fairies themselves!  I picked up a couple of wooden peg figures to paint.

The final step is to make fairyland come alive! I cut out dark and light green one inch felt squares for the "grass" and hot glued them to the bottom inside of the wooden box. I preferred to use felt over painting the grass, to give the play-set a nice dose of texture.

Using non-toxic paint, I hand-painted the horse, the fairies and transformed the wood drawer knobs into toadstools. The perfect starter accessories for a fairy kingdom!  I coated all the wood pieces with a non-toxic sealant to make them more durable, but still safe, for little hands.

I painted the inside top half of the box a sky blue and used wood glue to secure the pre-cut tree and rainbow. I also added a clasp closure to the box. Isn't it adorable?! I'm in the process of selecting additional pieces to add to the set with the help of the girl kiddo. This makes for a fun activity to complete with the little ones, or a great gift for someone special. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination!

If you're not the crafty type, no worries, I will be selling these sets (and similar sets) here.