There is something so fascinating about miniature creations and fairy gardens.  They take us back to our childhood and I love getting lost in them and living, even if it’s only for a moment, in a tiny world where anything is possible.  One of my favorite people, my Aunty G, feels the same way. She’s like the Pied Piper when it comes to us kids, we all just want to be around her and I’m almost 50 😎 To celebrate her birthday we wanted to make her something different, something that would always remind her of how special and loved she is.  So we decided to make her this miniature garden with a little thatch roof fairy church.

A beautiful addition to a fairy garden. This miniature church was made from a wooden tissue box and coconut hair

Like most of our miniature houses we used a wooden tissue box to make the church. You should be able to find something similar at a craft store or you could use a shoebox that’s been sealed with outdoor mod podge.

A humble tissue holder

Turning a Tissue Box Into a Fairy Church

The first thing we needed to do was change the look of the tissue box so we measured the sides and played around with some ideas until we were happy. A friend of ours cut the design out of hardboard for us and we stuck the new sides on using silicone glue. To make the a support beam for the top of the roof we drilled a hole on each side and inserted a wooden skewer.

Stick on the side walls

To make the actual roof we took a cardboard box cut to size. The hubby used the cardboard template to cut a proper roof from some hardboard. We hung the doors using two bent bits of wire.

Making the roof template

We stained the whole lot using a waterproof outdoor sealer and started gluing on small stones to give the church a rustic look.

Drawing the windows for the miniature chrch

Sorry about the flash. It was really late when I took the pic but I wanted to show you these beautiful little windows I found in the scrapbook aisle at our local craft store. I used a silver Sharpie to color the inside of the windows so they would look more like glass. So pretty and delicate. If  you can’t find something similar you can just draw the windows and then glue the stones around them.

She lives her life in her own beautiful fairy tale Click to Tweet

To make the door we glued ice cream sticks to the door frame. They were stained and white washed before I stuck on bits of jewelry to make the hinges and door handles.  That what’s so nice about miniatures and fairy gardens. You get to be so creative and you see things from a totally different perspective.

Popsicle sticks for the door

How To Thatch a Fairy Roof

To thatch the roof we used coconut fiber (coir), masking tape and tacky glue. I found the easiest and least messy way to thatch a miniature is to first stick the coconut fiber onto some masking tape. Take a small bundle of the fiber and spread it onto a strip of masking tape.

Masking tape and coconut hair

Push the fibers down firmly and then flip the masking tape over to form a taped strip of fibers.

Flip the tape over and cut

Trim the untidy bits at the top and then stick another piece of masking tape about halfway down the fibers to form a second taped strip.

Trim and tape the middle

Cut just above the second strip of masking tape and you end up with two strips that you can stick down. Use a tacky glue to glue the strips on to the roof starting at the bottom and layering the strips one on top of the other as you go.

Glue the strips down

The fibers of the first strip should hang over the bottom of the roof. I used the same technique to thatch a repurposed lamp shade ðŸ˜€

The layers should be quite close together to get a nice thick thatch roof Click to Tweet

Don’t worry about how scruffy it looks you’re going to trim the roof when it’s all covered. Add a nok at the top. We made ours with clay that we painted and sealed

Layer the coconut hair strips starting from the bottom

Be prepared to have lots of bits of coconut hanging around for days. Those fibers go everywhere 😀 We made two little lanterns from earrings and stuck them on either side of the door. We found a small concrete planter which was the perfect size for the little fairy church. This is what she looks like from the top.

A beautiful addition to a fairy garden. This miniature church was made from a wooden tissue box and coconut hair

And from the front.

A beautiful addition to a fairy garden. This miniature church was made from a wooden tissue box and coconut hair

My Aunty G put her little fairy church and garden on her water feature. Isn’t that just the perfect setting?

A beautiful addition to a fairy garden. This miniature church was made from a wooden tissue box and coconut hair
If you like the idea of turning a wooden tissue box into a fairy church, don’t forget to pin 😉

A beautiful addition to a fairy garden. This miniature church was made from a wooden tissue box and coconut hair #miniaturegarden #fairygardenideas #fairychurch

Happy b-day Aunty G, love you always. Thanks for all the laughter, love, and beautiful day dreams.

Oh and if you don’t want to go to all that trouble and find some of the materials we used to make the fairy church, we’ve got you covered Disclosure: If you click on the links below, we may receive a commission from Amazon. But don’t worry it won’t come out of your pocket, and it helps us create more fairy crafts 😉

Coconut Fibre Thatch for Roofing a Dollhouse
Coconut Fibre Thatch for Roofing a Dollhouse
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Made with love by a Crafty Mix