Congratulations to the 3 Giveaway winners; Susan Fiebig, Retro Sandy and Lena Frost! They will each be notified and sent a set of faux flower petals to make skirts and wings for 6 fairies. Thank you to the 100+ contestants who entered!

Many of you wrote such sweet messages about how much you enjoy making these fairies. Some of you also plan to teach your grandchildren how to make them. It warms my heart to hear this. Over the past few years, since I started the blog, I am sometimes so touched by your comments that I get teary. Can it really be that making a simple little doll can make a difference in someones life? Your personal stories and warm messages are very much appreciated, even if I don’t answer every one!

The fairies started as a spontaneous afterthought, when an article about my work was getting ready to go to press for the March 1999 issue of Mary Engelbreit’s Home Companion Magazine. I was asked if I had any items or projects that readers could send away for. I quickly put together a Blossom Fairy Kit and figured out a price. After the magazine came out, I was inundated with orders. The only way people could see what the fairy looked like was to search one of the photos of my studio through a magnifying glass! One thing led to another and before I knew it, Wee Folk Studio became a kit business, with new designs added every year. Eventually, there were 10 doll designs and 10 felt purse kits. At this point, the wee folk were ready to be introduced to a wider audience through my how-to book, Felt Wee Folk: Enchanting Projects. The fairies have been good to me, but after about 8 years, I was ready to give up the kits in order to work on the illustrations for Pocketful of Posies full time.

Reading your comments on my posts made me keenly aware of the need for a revised edition of my how-to book, even though I’d convinced myself that one was enough. It took some time for me to get on board, but in less than year from now, Felt Wee Folk: New Adventures will be published. See posts about it here. I’ll be selling the original book in my Etsy Shop until then. I’m not sure if it will disappear or not when the new one comes out, but C&T is planning on offering the non-doll projects on-line.