In general my Fairy House work falls into five basic categories:

1. Houses made on site from found materials. My most “rustic” houses. Made on site over many hours of concentrated work using just simple hand-tools. Intended to return to the earth so no glues or other artificial materials are used. Thorns, porcupine quills or sometimes a bit of cotton thread may be used to hold things together. Houses are left where they are made and begin to disappear back into the landscape after the photos have been taken.
2. Houses made on site with pre-fab elements. Most often these include doors, windows, bridges etc. that I have made ahead of time in the studio. These add drama and detail to the house design. If I intend to leave the studio-built features with the house when I am finished, then I make sure to create the additional items all with non-toxic materials. Again, respect for Nature is paramount.
3. Studio Built but temporary houses. Houses made fully in the studio and brought to locations for their photographs. These pieces are designed to be somewhat temporary installations but require a lot of detailed work so building ahead of time in the studio is best. However, these sculptures are quite fragile and since they may use epoxy glues etc. they are removed after the images are taken. They are not finished inside nor do they have added lighting.
4. Exhibition Houses. These houses are often larger scaled with great details. Extremely sturdy construction materials & techniques to withstand being outdoors for weeks at a time. Often extravagantly lit with plug-in LED lights for added drama.
5. Durable Studio built houses.The final category are my most highly-constructed pieces. These are very sturdy structures which are built to last. Usually fully finished inside and out with added battery-powered LED lights. They are then brought to special locations to be photographed. Usually taking weeks to months to create they are my most prized creations. Some are for sale in my SHOP.

When I left my career as a watercolor artist and began working directly with nature, my art therapist said there was something special about the first fairy house sculptures. The last words my father said to me before he died was that I needed to keep making my “little  houses”…. it was “important” he said. Both messages were powerful and made a deep impact. Over the years I have pushed myself to explore new materials, techniques and designs and continue to enjoy the challenges, processes and results.

I think fairy houses represents a primordial resonance that we can all feel. When I wrote the introduction to my Enviramagination book, it felt important to honor that sense of “Home” that we all know and recognize. But there is more to it because these sculptures touch a deep place of childhood imagination and that connection we sometimes feel to the invisible realms.

“But is it art? Or is it craft?” some ask. Who decides?  Does it matter? At the professional level both fields require vision, mastery of skills & materials and dedication. Lots of dedication. Is it “Art”?  you decide.

People often ask if I have used digital manipulations to create these images. If you had been with me when I had taken the images, you would have seen the actual sculptures in their settings just as they are depicted in the images.

All the houses are real houses, not an image that has been artificially created with software or AI.

That said, sometimes when I take a photo, there is something that needs to be enhanced by changing some of the exposure settings, saturation, etc. so I do use photo-processing software to bring out the best features of the image. I may also do small clean-up editing to remove a stray weed or twig to bring the focus onto the beauty of the sculpture rather than letting the eye become distracted.

All the photo editing that is done has one goal in mind: to make a beautiful record of a real fairy house that I have made.

Some sharp-eyed viewers may notice that the same house might appear in multiple settings. This is because sometimes I’m not satisfied with how a fairy house image turned out. Or it may because a particularly exciting location was recently discovered. Or a fresh new crop of flowers or other natural materials has come into season and I want to see an older house presented in a fresh way. All of these impulses are part of my creative process.

If you have found a sense of joy and delight viewing my Fairy house sculptures, then I am thrilled indeed! The most common statement I hear about my work is “I want to live there!” Isn’t it interesting that even though we all come from such different backgrounds and cultures, we can still connect with that sense of playful whimsy which is also deeply rooted in nature.

If you want to experience more of this magic, I invite you to come over to my SHOP to see products I have created using these images.

If you are especially crafty yourself or know someone who is, you might want to check out my Fairy House builder’s book where I reveal many of my secret tips and tricks and can help you build your very own masterful creation.

OR, for the really driven Fairy aficionado, you might just find your very own Fairy house sculpture in my shop waiting to come home to a mantelpiece (or other display area) near you!  ( please be patient while we get ready for the grand opening…  coming soon!)

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