Mooch With The Fairies 2009

Well last weekend was spent mooching with the fairies at Groombridge Place nr Tunbridge Wells. This was the second year we had attended and once again we were impressed with how beautiful the place was.

The sun shone down for the whole weekend and everywhere you looked there was a fairy walking by. Unfortunately the event was not as busy as last year but we still had fun catching up with old fairy friends.



The fairies are resting next weekend (well working in their grotto anyway). I am planning a workshop for the 3Foot High Festival in Chelmsford, which is an annual event for pre-schoolers and their carers. This is an extremely popular event which always sells out. The children's charity Kids Inspire (find out more in the links on the right) have asked me to run a workshop for them, so I am hoping to have an Enchanted Forest, where the children can paint,colour and glitter lots of recycled itmes to hang on trees I have made. I have spent this morning painting tree branches, loads more still to go.

Wychwood Festival 2009

Well this was our first trip to Wychwood and one we really enjoyed. The festival is based on Cheltenham racecourse so admittedly parts of the site looked a bit ugly but the main arena was predominantly grassed and was lovely.

Luckily for us fairies my in-laws live just near the site so I was able to drop the little people there for the afternoon while Sapphire and myself set up the stall. There were the usual delays with getting our pitch sorted but it was worth the wait as I felt we had a good spot with loads of room for our massive tent behind (always a problem!) After collecting the little people again and get them settled we plodded on with set up until it got dark, when we discovered our lights had packed up again!! After a late night dash to collect our lovely new festival nanny Gina from the station, and then a lovely cup of tea and a natter, I was more than ready for my sleeping bag.

Friday dawned hot and sunny so we ploughed on with the stall only to later discover the festival didn't start till 5pm not lunchtime as we had been told. The kids were also frustrated as the kidszone didn't start till then either. However it was too hot to get cross, the was nothing for it but to enjoy the sunshine. When the festival did eventually start, trade was steady with tutus our most popular item. Dan arrived around 10pm as my knight in shining armour as he had come armed with new fuses for my stall lights, finally there was light.

Saturday was another hot and sunny day (very rare in the festival world) and trade was steady all day. The kids and Gina enjoyed the kidszone which I thought was really good. My little fairy absolutely loved the willow wigwam and spents ages weaving ribbons onto it.

Sunday was again hot but was a slow day for us and quite a few other traders. People were there but not really looking round the stalls which was a shame. There were lots more chairs in the main areana (never a good sign) I think maybe everyone was just hot and tired by then.

I didn't take many photos this time, I was being too lazy to dig my camera out for most of the festival but did manage to capture a few of our customers, I think the heat got to me.

Radio 1 Big Weekend

Well I'm a bit late writing up about the Radio 1 Big Weekend, but better late than never. It has been so hectic here at Fairy Finesse since our return that I haven't had a chance and then as the days go by inspiration on what to write also fades.

Anyway this was a strange event, I felt. Lots of people but the site never seemed very busy probably due to the fact that most people headed straight for the main stage tent and didn't really move again.

The weather forecast had been mixed for the weekend so it was with some trepidation I set off on my own for Swindon early Friday morning. It was long before the rain was pouring down and it felt slight strange listening to the Chris Moyles show on the radio talking about the festival site when your on your way there. Miraculously just as I pulled off the motorway the rain stopped and the sun came out. Pitching a stall in the rain is miserable I think theres only one thing worse and thats the wind. By the time we were allowed onto site (the bigger the festival the more hassle everything ends up being)the wind was blowing furiously across the park. After helping the ladies next to me pitch their tent I attempted to pitch my own stall and thankfully the said ladies then helped me, as it took three of us nearly an hour to get the stall up and pegged down as the wind kept moving it.

I spent Friday enclosed in my stall trying to set up while the tarpaulins took a battering from the wind. Around 5pm the wind suddenly ceased to my relief and I was able to press on with sorting out stock. It was with much joy when I received word that my fairy clan had arrived to help, it's always much easier dealing with any hassles when your not on your own.

Saturday dawned dry and at times sunny and come midday the crowds poured in, despite this the day felt fairly quiet. Sunday was much the better day for lovely sunshine and the site also felt busier and had alot more atmosphere. I didn't catch much of the music as I was on the stall but I did see Snow Patrol who were great and also the sound clash with Vernon and Peter Tong. The main tent was packed solid for the Prodigy who started their set but then the power went out and they had to go off. Fortunately things were soon up and running again otherwise there would of been alot of disgrunted people. The noise and vibrations coming from them set off loads of car alarms on the site so along with them you could hear a constant beeping noise.

Overall although not a busy festival for us we enjoyed ourselves and it got us back in the swing of the festivals ready for the season ahead.

Elf Fantasy Fair 2009

Well we have arrived back from the Elf Fantasy Fair, at the Castle De Haar, Utrecht, in the Netherlands.

We traded there last year but my husband came with me then, this year it was just me and Sapphire Fairy so I was very apprehensive about driving all the way there. I only booked the Euro Tunnel at about 11pm the night before we were due to leave as I was still unsure of going. My husband waved me off before 6am the next morning and before we knew it we were through the tunnel and motoring along in France. The journey overall was good apart from getting lost in Antwerp and getting continually beeped at for my appalling driving there.

Thursday afternoon was spent setting up the stall. Friday was spent was again trying to make the stall look as colourful and fairyish as possible, it is unbeliveable just how long you can spend doing this. Trixie Fairy and Moe the Irish Fairy arrived harrassed and tired at about 6.30pm. Moe was running the Fae Magazine stall and Trixie was selling her Fairy Kisses jewellery on our stall.

Saturday dawned bright and sunny and we had a wonderful and busy day selling loads of tutus, wings and other fairy goodies. The costumes were amazing and the people as lovely as ever.

I woke up at 5am Sunday morning to the sound of rain, never good, so I hastily went back under the duvet for more sleep. At 7am it had stopped so I was keen to get to the stall and see if any leaks had sprung, however by the time we arrived there so had the rain and the first few hours of Sunday were spent we arranging our stall to allow everything to be brought inside the shelter part. We were told it would be sunny later but I was a doubting fairy I'm afraid, however I was proved wrong and it was lovely and warm and bright by the afternoon. The day progressed with steady sales so I was a happy fairy. The stressful part of this event is always the packing down which is done on the Sunday evening. You can only bring your vehicle in at your allocated time slot which makes it all a big rush. Sapphire and I rushed to pack up as much as the stall as possible before I had to go to the car park to await my time slot, you then spend the next hour standing in the car park waiting and by the time you bring the car in to your stall you have to pack it in the pitch dark, never easy.

We left Moe and Trixie at 10pm when the headed off to try and hitch a lift back to Utrecht which left me slightly uneasy but having spoke to Trixie since they obviously managed ok!

I have a Fairy Dress Up Party this Saturday and then we are off once again to our next festival, the Radio 1 Big Weekend at Swindon. Looking forward to this once we sort out the usual logistical nightmare of juggling the little fairies and goblin around getting to the festival and setting up.

More Tutus Now Complete

The fairies have been busy completing more faiy tutus including some new tyed ones shown above. These can be made in either adult or childrens sizes, they usually contain a mixture of net and ribbon with flower detail to the front. Adult £15.00, childs £12.00.
Grab them while there still here.

Radio 1 Big Weekend

Received confirmation this morning that we will be trading at this years Radio 1 Big Weekend. May 9th & 10th, Lydiard Park, Swindon. www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/bigweekend/

If your lucky enough to get tickets we'll see you there.

Fairy Tutu Tiaras

The fairies have been busy in their grotto making more fairy tutu tiaras, these will be added to the website shortly. They are available in different colours and cost £5.00 each. Extra embellishments can be added for an additional £1.00, these could be such things as pixie bells, butterflies, or any other trinkets you would like.