Consider Scale When Planting a Trunk Fairy Garden

The variety of designs present in miniature gardens can be mind-boggling. Some are outdoors, landscaped into the yard, and feel permanent as if these little fairy gardens bloomed up from the ground. Others are placed carefully in containers, indoors and out, and highlight the care and intention taken by the gardener. All miniature gardens can showcase a specific story or elicit emotions from those who view them. What is one of the easiest ways to build a story within a miniature garden? Choose a container that adds specific character and context! Miniature gardens planted inside books, seashells and other containers feel suddenly and truly set within the environment of their story. It can add an air of mystery, fantasy, silliness, or even spooky fun.

A fan favorite in the shaped-container category is the trunk. That is right; a miniature garden planted right inside an open wooden piece of luggage! While this container offers a ton of options regarding “travel-themed” miniature gardens, the topic can also be taken in a variety of different directions. Perhaps the trunk becomes a treasure chest or a piece of luggage for wizard school or even a long-lost crate found at the bottom of the sea.

If you have an idea for a miniature garden planted in a trunk, one of the key elements to consider is scale. In large container gardens and landscaped miniature gardens, the most common scale is a one-twelfth. The calculation means that one-inch on a miniature accessory equals one-foot in real life.  If a fairy in your container garden were five-inches tall then in real life he or she would be five-feet tall. An easy hint is to remember is that one-inch equals one-foot. You can use the one-twelfth scale in your trunk garden, but it can also get a little tricky!

A miniature garden planted in a piece of luggage or other creative container is an unusual case, due to the fact that the unique planter may or may not be designed using a life-size gauge. Therefore, when you are planning a miniature garden remember this suggestion - the accessories and fairy houses do not need a perfect scale related to the trunk itself. You can choose to use a one-twelfth scale if the look is pleasing to the eye or you may select another scale. In this scenario, the chest sets the scene and the feeling of the garden.

Another thing to remember in your trunk fairy garden is that you are building a world full of fantasy, rather than reality. For this reason, it can be a fun opportunity to play around with scale and design. You may have a miniature garden fairy that is scaled at one-twelfth in size with an extra-large, ten-inch high shell that you are using for her fairy house. First, consider that in real life, how many of us live in a seashell and second, if we did live in a seashell have you ever seen one ten-feet tall? Nevertheless, you are working within a magical world that has appeared in a treasure chest - go ahead, have fun, and play with the size. The most important thing is to scale the mini figures and accessories to each other, rather than the trunk container or the world around you. Once you have become experienced at planning a miniature garden, your fairy gardens with unique containers will come together easily, beautifully, and full of imaginative fun!