Build a Pumpkin Fairy House

If you are a parent or educator seeking additional ways to engage your children with nature, you will love this project. Building a fairy house requires creativity, engineering, and requires some outdoor exploration to gather treasures and resources from the natural environment.

You can make this at any time, of course, but we love to do it around Halloween time. In our community, many parents are looking for alternatives to both the tricks and the treats of Halloween (anyone who’s had to deal with the sugar high or a very scared child not being able to sleep at night will know what I’m talking about ..). And so we have made it into an annual tradition that around this time of the year, we gather to carve out our pumpkins, and share a meal (pumpkin soup, often!) and a story around the campfire.

No scary, gory stuff.. just the warmth of the fire and of people coming together, the children light their candles inside their newly built fairy house and go back home nourished and filled with stories of magic and possibilities.

Materials Required:

• Sticks and small twigs

• Leaves

• Flowers

• Moss

• Acorns, pinecones, or other natural items

• Pumpkin(s) (from a local farm or store)

• Pumpkin carving knife (adult supervision required)

• Hot glue gun or super glue (adult supervision required)

• Scissors

Step 1: Gather materials for your fairy house

Let's go on a nature walk and gather sticks and twigs, pieces of moss and lichens, seedpods and pinecones. Anything that sparks our imagination! Before you head off on your adventure, think for a moment of what the Pumpkin Fairy might really like in her new home. A soft moss bed? A little swing? Stepping stones?

Encourage your child to plan ahead and visualise what they wish to include in their creation.

Step 2: Carve windows and doors

Once you have gathered all the decorating materials, it's time to carve the pumpkin.

• Carefully remove the top of the pumpkin (adults only, for safety).

• Scoop out the insides (a fun sensory experience for kids). Save these to roast later or clean the seeds for bird food.

• Carve out a door and windows to form the fairy house structure. Get creative with shapes—round, arched, square or heart shaped. Your choice! Tiny seedpods can become door handles.

• Preserve the top to use as the roof. Gluing moss to the top is a nice touch.

Step 3: Building the fairy house

Now it's time to decorate your fairy house! Use the natural materials gathered during the scavenger hunt to adorn the pumpkin.

Here's some ideas:

• Attach the door - Position a small stick or piece of bark at the pumpkin's entrance to act as a door.

• Create a window frame - Snap a twig in two pieces, and create a window frame. You can either glue it or push it inside the pumpkin skin.

• Decorate roof and walls - Use leaves, moss, and flowers to craft a roof and embellish the walls of the pumpkin. Use a hot glue gun (with adult supervision) or simply some craft glue.

• Add the final touches - Position your pumpkin fairy house on a board, paper plate or on a wood slice. This can become a garden area! Scatter flowers, pinecones, pebbles and other small decorations around the fairy house for a whimsical touch.

• When finished, position a tealight inside the pumpkin (optional).

If you are making this nature craft for Halloween, remember to leave a few candies for the Pumpkin Fairy 😊

Watch a video of the children making their pumpkin fairy houses at one of our recent nature play gatherings.