Growing enchanted miniature garden scenes
Jean Neuweg lives and gardens in Fort Madison, Iowa. When I saw her themed fairy gardens, she made this summer,…in one summer, I was delighted and amazed! She has a talent for finding just the right accessories from very unique sources and making small details herself which we love here at Flea Market Gardening.
Jean’s sense of scale is particularly fine when creating her miniature gardens and they all seem, not too big, not too small,…just right!
How to make fairy garden accessories with Jean
Jean says, “These are the fairy gardens I put together this summer. It was so much fun searching garage sales and garden stores for the pieces in the gardens. “
“I love gardening! she says. And I love to come up with new ways “play” in my rural Iowa garden. I started with an old wagon that I bought from a Flea Market many years ago. I made a gazing ball out of a marble and a spool.”
See if you see the same tiny details as we do?
Jean’s wonderful wagon fairy garden
Jean’s tiny details and plants:
- An arch made of a scrap of hardware cloth (wire screening) and painted white
- A tiny trellis also made of the wire screening
- Tiny wooden birdhouses from scrap wood
- Pebbles with inspirational words
- Small ceramic mushrooms
- A marble gazing ball on a spool
- alyssum
- Polka-dot Plant, pink and green
- sedum
Jean’s ‘Blue pan’ miniature garden, complete with exquisite detail.
“I made a fairy garden in a blue wash pan, with a tire swing, and a house made from a wooden building I found at a garage sale. I also made the copper wire tuteur.”
Jean’s tiny details and plants:
- Copper wire tuteur (In front of the blue chair)
- Tire swing from a toy car hung from a branch
- Pebble plastered house
- Baby’s tears
- wire vine
- sedum
A white enamel pan is the container for this tiny garden
“Then I put together the one in the white wash pan with furniture purchased at a shop while on vacation. The dishes were garage sale finds on the table.”
Jean’s tiny details:
Tiny bird houses, from wood scrap blocks, on wire stakes
Sedum ‘Blue Spruce’
Ivy (in the branch
Licorice plant
Choosing a fun theme for a miniature fairy garden
Jean’s sandy beach garden in a galvanized tub
“Then I made the Beach. I bought the palms on clearance at Lowe’s and the flip flop buttons at Ben Franklin. I made the Adirondack chairs and surfboard out of Popsicle sticks, using tutorials onlne for the chairs. Real driftwood from our local Mississippi is also on my beach.”
Jean’s tiny details:
- Handmade chairs from Popsicle sticks
- Wooden bead beach ball
- flip-flops from buttons
- shells
- Tiny terry cloth towel
- Popsicle stick fencing
Beach glass ‘water’ - Ponytail palm
- Small dracena reflexa (houseplant)
- Tiny sago palm
Beach garden detail….the flip-flops are buttons!
Bird bath mini garden
Next was the broken birdbath garden. I found the Hallmark fairies at the Salvation Army and a garage sale. The succulents were more clearance finds.”
Bird Bath garden detail
Jean’s tiny details
- Hallmark fairies
- Bridge and beach glass
- Variegated Sedum
- Ghost plant
- Jade plant
- Pork and beans sedum
Jean’s mini garden in a broken pot. All the mushrooms are alike..genius!
And finally, the broken pot garden with a water bottle castle, was an idea from online. I made the mushrooms out of old wooden drawer pulls.”
Jean’s tiny details
- Water bottle base for a ‘house’ covered in pebbles
- Pine cone scales and shells for a roof
- Wooden drawer pulls painted like mushrooms
- Ghost plant
- Sedums
“I’m getting ready to take them apart for winter. Maybe… Maybe, I’ll save some of the plants for a small inside Christmas-themed miniature garden…!” Jean says.
“As you can tell. I’m rather passionate about my gardening! …And the search for more treasures for my fairy gardens!” ~~ Jean
For your fairy garden, you may need:
2 Comments
Such fun – for children and adults alike!
Oh my goodness, I love all of these. I have been trying to figure out how to make a Fairy garden without my husband covering it with cut grass when he mows the lawn. These are perfect!!!! Thank you so much for sharing your ideas.