FairyTale : A True Story

While lazing about one Saturday afternoon I happened upon a movie about faeries. It's called FairyTale: A True Story. It's about two girls who reportedly take photographs of fairies near their home. In truth the older teenage girl is a talented artist and painted and cut out her fairies and set them up using hat pins. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, (who wrote Sherlock Holmes,) believed the photos to be real. Click here to read more about the story and see more photographs. Click here to see the details of the film. I highly recommend it! It is very heart warming. Being a great fan of faeries,  I was thinking I might try to paint from the famous photo. I don't know if anyone has already or not.

Queen Elizabeth Faerie?

This faerie looks like Queen Elizabeth, (not the modern day one,) to me. I suppose I likely would have lost my head for painting a queen as a mischievous faerie back in her time!

I have attempted to give her accessories just from nature this time, no forged metals, just leaves, vines, and feathers. Hopefully, my style will evolve into something recognizable. I am going to a watercolor class today at the Multnomah Arts Center here in Portland and am very excited!

On another note, I have been researching elves hoping to create some unique Christmas cards. It would appear that elves were considered pretty evil until the Victorians commercialized Christmas and portrayed them as helpers to Father Christmas. The Norse thought they would shoot arrows into their cows to disease them! They also seem to go back and forth from being tall to small, evil to good. None the less, it is amazing to me how many different cultures believed in elves which were seen more as Faeries in Celtic cultures. Now the Christmas Elves look kind of goofy. I'd like to change that and give them some dignity! Here's a link to one I thought was kind of sweet, but still the Elves look too much like little Santas to me. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this!
Elves Link - No artist mentioned.