Folklore Thursday: Flower Fairies

When I was a child, my mother would take me into the garden at night to look for fairies. Somehow, I always just missed seeing them but I never doubted her word that they were there.

I also missed out on seeing Albert the Pixie, at my grandparent’s house. However, Albert always took the 2p pieces I was given by grandad to make wishes with at the wishing well in the garden (of an otherwise standard Birmingham semi, but grandad was a keen nature fan and storyteller so built a pond, wishing well and Wendy house so sturdy it lasted from my mother’s youth to my own – and still had a watertight roof).

Grandad also introduced me to Cicely Mary Barker‘s Flower Fairies. I’d fall asleep looking at the Flower Fairy wallpaper in the bedroom and dream of forests and flowers full of fairies.

Flower Fairy Folklore

There is a lot of fairy lore relating to nature. Though other flowers have more related fairy stories, for me, the ultimate flower fairy is the fuchsia – which grew in abundance in grandad’s garden.

Apparently, fuchsia bushes make good fairy hiding places – for obvious reasons.

…though fuchsias are far from the only plants that fairies can hide in.

And you can guarantee you’ll see many other magical things if you go fairy-spotting and look closely enough at the flowers.

Natural Magic

Flower Fairies helped me connect nature and magic as a child. Flowers and butterflies are obviously from fairyland, if you wear fairydust-tinted glasses (butterflies and moths are clearly fairy wings that have escaped their owners). Sometimes, it can be fun to wear those glasses, whatever your age.

There’s enough folklore surrounding fairies and flowers to help bring fairyland to life for little ones – particularly with the help of flickering solar powered lights at the end of a wild  (bee and butterfly friendly) garden.

As to adults? Just keep looking at fuchsia bushes and who knows what you’ll find…?

If you like folklore and myth, check out #FolkloreThursday each week, and follow @FolkloreThurs. There are endless fascinating stories and pictures shared each week: a must read for storytelling fans and practitioners.