How To Paint Peg Doll Fairies: The Spring Fairies
Peg dolls are some of my favorite things to paint! In this post I’ll share step by step, how to paint peg doll spring fairies. Whether you’re painting them for yourself, for a special child, or to sell, my Spring Fairies are a satisfying creative project for spring!
The Inspiration
I designed this sweet little Spring Fairy peg doll set several years ago to sell at a Spring market. They’ve been a popular set ever since.
Whenever I think up a new peg doll design, I usually start with their “story” or their personalities first. It actually helps me to design their clothing and choose their colors and hairstyles when I know what they’re little personalities are like.
Everyone’s spring looks a little different depending on what blooms first. At Blythe House, the first flowers to push themselves up out of the ground are the daffodils. The farmer’s wife who lived at Blythe House for more than sixty years before us, was a talented gardener and she planted hundreds of daffodil bulbs of several varieties around the house. The daffodil happens to be one of my favorite flowers, so it was such a sweet surprise the first spring after we moved into Blythe House to find so many daffodils!
We also have an old apple tree on our property. I love to watch it bloom, usually in April, although this year it is late! Almost everyone I know loves the smell of lilac (except me!) and it seems that every old farmhouse has an abundance of lilacs surrounding it, Blythe House is no exception. The rumor is that lilac bushes were commonly planted around old outhouses to help disguise the smells. Not sure if that’s true or not but they do have a strong scent! We have several lilac bushes around Blythe House, and although I don’t love the allergic reaction they give me, they are beautiful. I painted the Spring Fairy peg dolls with these three flowers in mind since they are always the first to appear in the spring around Blythe House.
The Spring Fairy Story
Since these peg dolls are “Spring Fairies”, I imagined that they are the “Caretakers of the Spring Garden”. The Spring Fairies arrive in the early spring when the frost is still in the ground. They come with their little brooms and dusters to clean up the flower beds, wake up the vegetable gardens, and coax the tender spring sprouts out of the dirt. Dressed in crisp white starched aprons and wearing tidy bonnets to keep their hair in place, they busily and cheerfully go about their work mostly unnoticed. I’ve named them Miss March, Miss April, and Miss May. I know, pretty original, right?
Meet Miss March
Miss March is the encourager of the Daffodils. She sews all her own clothes, and keeps her and her sisters’ aprons and bonnets clean, starched, and pressed. She is soft-hearted and the day dreamer of the group. She never raises her voice to anyone.
Likes: Moss, Warm Rain, and Double Ruffled Daffodils.
Dislikes: Hot days, Japanese Beatles, and Uneven Hems.
Meet Miss April
Miss April is the “Queen” of the Apple orchard. She is the unofficial fearless leader of the Spring Fairies. She is frugal and responsible and has a no-nonsense approach to spring cleaning. Miss April can be a little bossy.
Likes: A good practical joke, Cataloging her Heirloom Seed Collection, Organizing the Pantry
Dislikes: Tracked in Mud on her Freshly Mopped Floor, Aprons without Pockets, Gypsy Moths
Meet Miss May
Miss May is the keeper of the Lilac Bush. She likes pretty things, and making things pretty. Miss May is happiest when the lilac bushes are in bloom and their scent fills the air. She can’t wait to host lots of parties in the Lilac bushes. Now, she just needs to convince the fireflies to attend and light up the night!
Likes: Inviting the Lady Bugs over for Tea, Throwing Garden Parties, Making Flower Arrangements
Dislikes: Strong Winds, Self-Help Books, Obnoxious Birds (like Blue Jays)
Step by Step
If you’re a crafty creative person, chances are you won’t need my all inclusive guide to paint your own set of peg doll fairies. You can probably look at my photos and follow these simple steps to paint your own. If you find that you do need more guidance, paint colors, supply list, and detailed steps with photos, I’d recommend purchasing my GUIDE HERE.
*you are welcome to use my designs as a blueprint for your own painting, however, if you choose to share your work on social media or sell your work using my designs, I ask that you give credit to me: Lindi Joe of Blythe House 1860
How to Paint Peg Doll Fairies: Step by Step
The Base Coats
- The first step is to decide on the skin tones of your angels. I like to paint any skin tones first, before I add any hair or clothing, for a clean finish. Most of the time, I leave the natural wood as the “skin” since I think the woodgrain is so beautiful and there are so many variations in the colors of the wood itself.
- Pick three coordinating colors that look good together and feel like Spring to you. I chose a soft pink, lilac, and yellow.
- Paint each fairy peep, one solid base color – be extra careful not to paint the face! – Let dry.
- Paint the Bonnet base color (I chose white) – Let dry
- Outline the apron shapes on each fairy with white and fill in- Let dry
- Paint all the green bases: stems and leaves in the pockets, hair, and wings– Let dry.
Details
- Now you’ll paint the highlights on all the greens with a coordinating shade of green: stems and leaves, hair, and wings – Let dry.
- Paint the lace details on the aprons and bonnets – Let dry.
- Paint the pockets and belts on the aprons – Let dry.
- Paint the Flower base colors and shapes
- Add the final details to the flowers, pockets, and belts
- Add the neckline details to each apron: Buttons, bow, and “X” lacing.
Final Touches
- *Optional: add glitter paint over some details like the flowers and wings.
- Last but not least, add a face. Eyes, nose, mouth, you decide. The simplest option is to add two black dots for eyes, (My favorite look) but you can experiment with what kind of face you like the best.
- When your fairy peg dolls are all completely dry, seal each peg doll twice (let dry between coats) with your favorite non toxic sealer.
Whether you want to make something for your kids, a coworker, or yourself, my step by step tutorial will have you finishing a heirloom “Spring Fairies” set of your own in one creative afternoon.
This is a perfect project to do with your creative kids or as a homeschool spring handicraft. The peg doll Spring Fairies would also make such sweet end of year teacher gifts.
For Beginners
I’m excited to offer for the first time, a pattern and guide for my popular “Spring Fairies” peg dolls. My affordably priced GUIDE PRINTABLE PDF is an attainable alternative to purchasing a hand painted set from me, or for those fellow creatives to prefer to paint their own.
This is so much more than a pattern. It is 29 pages of detailed instructions and photos. A step-by-step tutorial that even absolute beginners can follow. I’ve included a detailed list of supplies needed and lots of tips to make sure your peg dolls turn out professional looking.
If you’re looking for more peg doll sets to paint, check out my CHRISTMAS ANGELS PDF PATTERN HERE.
I hope that you enjoy painting your own Spring Fairies and I’d love to see your finished pieces! Tag me over on Instagram @blythehouse1860 and I’ll share your work!
Happy Painting!
