Pocket Fairies (or as our friends like to call them Fairy Pockets!) is a super fun craft project that you’ll want to com back to over and over again. This easy to use template is perfect for a rainy-day activity or whenever you need a little quiet (creative) time.
Way back when, The Big was obsessed with fairies and wanted a quick and easy template for drawing them. So my mama and I got together and came up with a few different templates for her to use. She was so into it that she created one of her own templates that lives on the blog and is called Pocket People.
I had honesty forgotten about those templates until a few months ago when The Little started school and was having trouble being away from home. I had the brilliant idea to create some little fairies that she could take with her and keep in her school folder. Whenever she felt sad or like she needed an extra hug or kiss from Mommy and Daddy, she could pull out her fairy and it would let us know.
The Little loved the idea so much that she decided to make enough pocket fairies for her teacher, her friends, and her bus pals.
Whenever she had friends over, she would ask to make them with her friends and we would spend hours sitting together while I drew in the fairies and they colored. They would often tell me the kinds of things to include (hearts or stars on the shirt, make a dress, give them long hair or curly hair, etc.). It was so fun to see where their imaginations would go and the different ways that they would color them in.
Once the Pocket Fairies are colored in, I cut them out (leaving a quarter-inch margin around the image) and then laminate them to keep the fairies protected. I try to do that part in batches and wait until we have several sheets ready to go, since the cutting, laminating, and cutting again is a bit of a lengthy process. (Don’t feel like doing all that? No worries. I find that the creating and coloring is truly the best part.)
It’s been over three months of pocket fairy-ing (yes, it’s a verb), and we are still going strong. We’ve probably made at least 50 different fairies, with no end in site.
When I went to share the Pocket Fairy template with a friend, I realized that I never actually shared it on the blog. I reference it but that. was. it. Quelle horreur! So consider this post my sincerest apologies AND a way to remedy such an egregious error.
What you’ll need to make your very own Pocket Fairies (with affiliate links):
- Pocket Fairy Template (9-fairy and 12-fairy versions)
- Printer and printer paper
- Pens or pencils (I use an ultra-fine tip pen)
- Colored pencils or pens (my kiddos love using sparkly gel pens)
- Scissors
- Laminating machine (I linked to a one on Amazon, but I found mine on sale at Staples) and laminating sheets
Ready, set, fairy!
Now that you have all of your materials gathered and your template (or ten) printed out, it’s time to get creative!
Depending on the age of your kiddo, you may want to take the lead and draw the fairies for your little ones to color in. If they are old enough, they can obviously draw the details in themselves! I like to use an ultra-fine tip pen to draw the details in (my favorite is a Microperm 01) since I find it to be closest to the lines that are already in the template, but any pen or pencil will work. You could also use scraps of paper to make skirts or pants if you want to mix things up even more.
Once you’ve drawn in all the details, it’s time to get to coloring. My kids LOVE using sparkly gel pens, while I prefer using colored pencils. Crayons are a bit too thick for this one, but markers would also probably work well. Just be aware that those will likely bleed through, leaving the back looking less clean once they get laminated. Could make for a cool effect though!
Next up, cutting out your fairies! I like to leave a small margin around the fairies since it gets hard to cut into all the little nooks and crannies of the fairies. It also makes it easier to get into the laminating pouch to have a little more to work with around the fairies. My kids, on the other hand, try to cut them as close to the outlines as possible, and they tend to curl and bend more otherwise.
Finally, it’s time to break out the laminating machine and get your gorgeous fairies protected. I try to fit 15 (give or take) into each laminating pouch, so I like to wait until we have a good stash of finished fairies ready to go. Since every laminating machine is different, defer to your machines instructions for this part. Once the sheets have cooled down, cut each fairy out, making sure to leave a quarter-inch margin around each one. Otherwise, the laminating will pull apart and your sweet little fairies won’t be protected.
Once you’re done, it’s time to share your fairy goodness with friends, family, and strangers alike. We have grand plans to leave our little fairies around town by tucking them into books in the library, leaving them on shelves in a store, adding them to birthday presents and cards, or mailing them off to friends near and far to share a little joy.
What would YOU do with them?
