Once Upon a Time Mini-Garden Weekend

Celebrate Fairy, Gnome and wee little gardens. Look for miniature crafts, activities, fairy face painting, planting of miniature gardens, as well as design and plant advice. Let your imagination soar with charming fairy tales and lore.  Naperville’s Saturday activities feature miniature gardening with an adult flair and a kid’s imagination. Aurora’s Sunday activities are geared for kids of all ages!

Schedule of events:

All day                   Wee Garden Discovery Hunt and Fairy Food Refreshments     

Follow a map to find all of our secret little gardens. When you have found them all, look for our Storyteller for a special treat.

All day                   The Art of Bonsai                                                               

The Prairie State and Midwest Bonsai Societies will display and sell throughout the day.

10am                      The Fairy World of Cicely Mary Barker        

Cicely Mary Barker created beautifully detailed fairies and wrote fairy themed books as well. Our Fairy Storyteller will be your guide as you discover Cicely’s special magic.

10am – 1pm          Plant a Grown Up Fairy Garden (for the young at heart!)  Cost of materials.

Shade or sun, fairies or not, we can help you create an enchanting miniature garden that you will love.              

12noon – 2pm Make Clay Miniature Garden Accessories, $25               

Nancy Jana Kent from the Village Potters will assist you in making accents of your choice and will fire them for you!                    

2pm                        Tales told by Clow Elementary School’s ‘Tattle Tails’ Storytelling Group

2pm-5pm               Make a Once Upon A Time Garden, $15.      

Your child’s imagination will soar as they create a miniature garden of their very own.  We will provide the container, soil, plants, stones and other wee bits.  As they plant their garden, a story may evolve. If it does, budding authors are encouraged and invited to bring their stories back along with photos of their Once Upon A Time garden.  We will post them at The Growing Place in Aurora and selected stories will be posted on our Facebook page.  We will also post pictures of the gardens without a story attached. Additional accent pieces are available for purchase.

2pm                        Design:  Backyard Miniature Gardens          

Miniature gardens do not have to be in containers. Learn how simple it is to nestle one into a small space in your backyard. We will introduce mini garden friendly plants and assist you in selecting plants and accents that go well together.

All day                   Magic Fairy Door Hunt and Fairy Food Refreshments             

Discover the magic of miniature gardens as you search for each magical door. Find them all and receive a treat!

11am – 3pm          Make a Fairy or Gnome House, $15.              

We will have a large selection of found woodland stumps and materials as well as inspiration and assistance to help you make a house that would please a Gnome or a Fairy! 

12noon – 3pm      Fairy Face Painting                                                                          

1pm                        Once Upon a Time Fairy Tales        

Our Storyteller will share fairy tales and stories. Find the stories illustrated in wee little gardens.                             

2pm – 5pm            Make a Once Upon a Time Garden, $15.         

Your child’s imagination will soar as they create a miniature garden of their very own.  We will provide the container, soil, plants, stones and other wee bits.  As they plant their garden, a story may evolve. If it does, budding authors are encouraged and invited to bring their stories back along with photos of their Once Upon A Time garden.  We will post them at The Growing Place in Aurora and selected stories will be posted on our Facebook page.  We will also post pictures of the gardens without a story attached. Additional accent pieces are available for purchase.

2pm                        Design:  Backyard Miniature Gardens          

Miniature gardens do not have to be in containers. Learn how simple it is to nestle one into a small space in your backyard. Our Designers will introduce mini garden friendly plants and assist you in selecting plants and accents that make a special mini-garden.

3pm – 5pm            Paint a Fairy or a Gnome,

$6, $8 or $10 depending on size.                    

We will provide 3 to 6” cast iron fairies, gnomes and weatherproof paint. You provide the creativity.