The Arrival of Twinkle

DEAR FAIRY FOLLOWERS,

Our new trainee fairy Twinkle had been expected to fly in for days now , she had been held up 
with the cold weather but at last she arrived in a shower of snow  just as the Snowdrops were
opening. True to her name she is very twinkly and we were all happy to see her.

Lolly and Buncle got out the Best Fairy China, sat her down on the best egg cup and gave her a warming cup of tea and biscuits.

Ty -Ping then gave her some general information about the house and our rules;
 we don't have many but we do ask all fairy folk to NOT leave footprints
in the butter and to fill in the proper form and have it stamped by Ty-Ping
if they plan to grant any wishes ( trainees are not allowed to grant any such wishes
until I give them their FULLY FLEDGED FAIRY CERTIFICATE. )Other rules are , NO sitting on the end of my knitting needles when I an knitting
as I loose count of my stitches and NO napping in the Icing sugar as it gave me
such a fright once when a little fairy 'ghost' flew out of the bag once when I was baking !

Twinkle was then shown to her cupboard where she was to sleep and arrange her things...

and she set about un packing her personal wands ( rather too many for such a young fairy, but then she does like twinkly things.)

We soon could see that this little trainee was most drawn to all the pretty
and 'girly ' things that she could find.  

She then had a little flutter around the house to get her bearings...

And she seemed to be happiest in the bathroom checking out the scents and potions 

and the jewellery and the trinkets. 

She seemed quite interested in this light bulb which is just as well because
Twinkle is soon to find out that she is here to learn about recycling and to study
climate change as much as about how to wave a wand and polish a tiara . 

But we shall break her in gently and for now she can dream of all things sparkly
and twinkly and of all the fairy dresses and shoes she might wear when she is
Fully Fledged as she cuddles up to a shiny spoon in the Best Fairy China
in the pic- nic hamper.

LOVE FROM,  Betty x

Making Marmalade

 DEAR FAIRY FOLLOWERS,

Happy January and I hope you are all feeling full of fairy fizz ! 

I have some exciting news from Betty's Cottage - we have some new fairies moved in to help Lolly and Buncle who will soon be moving outside once Spring creeps in and so let me introduce you to Bees-Wax ( she is the one dusting the teacups ) and all fairy fans will know that she is a Domestic fairy in her little maids uniform and below is her brother Buzz. They are very different characters as you shall find out but for now let me just tell you that Bees-Wax quietly hums as she goes about her work and Buzz
buzzes around quite noisily, so we always know where he is. I also have a SURPRISE FAIRY for you to meet later on , but in the meantime ...

 They have joined us at the time of year where we like to make our marmalade ...I am very fond of the stuff, although I know that fairies often find it bitter and much prefer the jam making season, however the fairies agree that it does make a dreary month much more magical with it's golden glowing colour and the smell of oranges wafting around the house ( which makes you think of sunnier days. )

This tiny Domestic fairy was in charge of the stirring and very brave she was too to balance on the edge of a bubbling pan ( please don't try this at home ! )

Once it was potted up Bees-Wax flew in to test it was set properly ...

 and then in buzzed Buzz to make doubly sure and with a flick of her magic duster , some extra fairy dust was put into the pot.

 Lolly and Buncle cut out the fabric tops and tried them out as new skirts whilst they were at it !

Lolly practised her best handwriting to make up the labels and Buzz checked that she had written the correct date.

 When all was done they sat down to a little snack of bread and marmalade .

Buzz doen't like the bits so we gave him just some of the jelly...

But Buncle likes the chunky jewel- like  pieces and so she tucked into a nice chewy piece of orange rind and she said it was so zingy she had more than enough energy to tidy the pots in the larder.

Bees-Wax gave the pots an extra dust of magic so that every time we peek inside the cupboard we shall get a golden glow from looking at them.

In fact I forgot to tell you that our new Domestic fairy has been very busy this month as one of her first jobs was to paint the larder and line the shelves with this lovely new lacy paper.

Now before I forget about our surprise fairy , here she is ...  All you readers of my Fairy Christmas and Fairy Year books will recognise her as Ty-Ping my secretary and I am so pleased to have her back ( she has been travelling all over the world signing autographs on the book tour. )  It is going to be a very busy year ahead and she really helps to keep me organised ...she was a bit miffed that she wasn't given the job of writing out the marmalade labels but is very happy that we shall be having a marmalade souffle tonight to welcome her back and we are looking forward to hearing all her travellers tales.

 And so I leave the fairies to say goodbye from the newly decorated larder ( always a good place to look for fairies of course and you are much more likely to find some hiding in your larder if you line the shelves with something pretty. )

Next time our Trainee fairy will have arrived ...I can't wait for you to meet her. Until then have a magical month even though it is cold and gloomy - remember a fairy is never very far away even if you can't see her ( but if you hear a loud humming it could be a him and it could be Buzz ! )
Love from, Betty X

New Wings, New Year

DEAR FAIRY FOLLOWERS, 
Now that the excitement of present giving is over I thought you might like to see what Lolly and Buncle got for Christmas. As I hinted to you before , their wings were really past their best and so 
I made some new everyday wings for them - strong and durable made of cotton and stiff enough to withstand all weathers !

 However the best present was to come ( and for all you followers who remember Lolly longing from some twinkle when she spilt the sequins ) new party dresses and wings were next to be discovered amongst the tissue and ribbon ... Lolly and Buncle were so delighted to look like proper fairies with sheeny- shiny dresses and twinkly- winkly wings ...

Their sashes are made of shimmering organza ...

 and their silk and taffeta skirts whisper and rustle when they move ...

They were so happy they danced around the desk ...

and they flew around the Pussy Willow twigs ...

and they swung around the fairy lights ...

 and partied in their party dresses all day long !

 As evening fell Lolly gathered up their little Christmas Lavender bag ( a present from Auntie Everlasting )

 and together they decided they would pack away their party clothes with the Lavender bag to keep them fresh and nice until the next Celebration comes around.

 They still have a few more days to wear their party clothes before they must put back on their garden dresses ...so until then SEASONS GREETINGS to you all and we wish you a FAIRY HAPPY NEW YEAR too . Do come back and visit us at Betty's Cottage in 20015 !

LOVE FROM,  Betty x

The Magic Desk

DEAR FAIRY FOLLOWERS,

It has been a very busy few days here at Betty's Cottage - the Red Fairy has been decorating with her 
favourite colour and Lolly and Buncle have been on high alert making sure that naughty fairies do not open any presents before  Christmas Day. Last night they had to grab this gift before the Cone Fairy peeked inside - so you see it is not only children who are tempted to do this !

 This morning all was usual at my desk with a few fairies rummaging around the pens and papers , wondering if I have been writing about them no doubt.

 Here we get in a little closer to see what is going on ...it looks a bit messy after all the Christmas card writing and all the long lists I have to make and I spied a few fairies not making it any tidier.

 The little tree fairy who Lolly and Buncle rescued from the Bauble Box flew on to the top to  see what was going on although strictly speaking she should be hanging on the tree by now - she looks so sweet that I can't bring myself to tell her off . One has to make allowances for the very young fairy.

Matilda however is not so young and is overly  fond of my sparkly pen. If it ever goes missing I  call her name and she brings it straight back to me . I have given her the task of keeping all my pens topped up with ink as she seems so taken with them.

 She sometimes asks Myrtle to help her tidy up  - they like looking in all the little cubby holes and are still looking for the secret compartment that I told them about (this of course makes it an even more magical desk and all visitors are invited to find it but so far nobody has - other than Auntie Everlasting of course ! )
  Having lots of special little momentos , photos and keepsakes all in one place will give off a very magical atmosphere and attract fairies to it for all you Fairy Spotters still hoping to catch sight of one and don't forget that if you don't see a fairy you are still experiencing the magic !

 My desk does seem to attract a lot of fairy attention and the Fairy Tale book on the top is a regular resting place for a fairy to sit and dream. This is the fairies favourite book and I often read it aloud to them on a Winter's night.

 Before I go Lolly and Buncle have reminded me that we took some photos last  night when all the fairies had settled down to show all you Fairy Followers where they will be sleeping tomorrow night ...

First they had to shift some things to make room for their beds ...

 and then they settled down by the candle with their stockings at the ready ( I had to sew on their initials so there were no mix ups or arguments ) and they always like a paper chain over them so that if it rustles they might make up and see Father Christmas ...

 But they always fall so fast asleep after all their fairy duties that they never do !

HAVE A FAIRY MAGICAL CHRISTMAS !

Love , Betty X