News
15 March, 2025
Explore Fairy Trail magic
WOODFORD and surrounds residents are invited to embark on a magic-filled walk throughout town, taking in all the fairy magic and pixie dust they can, while getting some fresh air and visiting local businesses.
The Woodford Fairy Trail has been running since 2021 and features a range of fairy-inspired displays in the windows of several Woodford shops, bringing magic to children’s lives and foot traffic to local businesses.
The fairy displays are made by Woodford local and founder of the Woodford Fairy Trail, Karen, using several everyday items such as driftwood from the beach, wine corks, clay, pebbles, succulents, gumnuts, crystals, and feathers, along with fairy statues and ornaments. She brings the fairy houses to life using embellishments such as glitter, flowers, earrings, necklaces, and even dinosaurs, resulting in magical, detail-filled displays that engage both children and adults.
“It’s excitement and enchantment and imagination. If I can bring joy to some little kid that gets really excited looking at these things in the window, then that brings me joy,” she said.
“I love putting gifts and donations from others into the creations I make – combining my joy and happiness for my hobby with the kindness, love, and generosity of others within our community.”
The displays are also very inclusive, aimed at engaging boys and girls, with one of the displays at the Woodford Historical Society having dinosaurs added to it.
The Woodford Fairy Trail also brings a lot of excitement to the local businesses, which are chosen randomly to hold a display. Karen says the owners love them.
“Woodford Livestock & Property said kids sit down, look at it outside the window, and it’s fantastic,” she said. “When I walked into Black Bros before Christmas and explained it to them and asked to add a display to their window, the guy was really happy and said it was fantastic.
“I just think it promotes the businesses, it gets people moving around to the other side of the street if they don’t normally go there.”
The inspiration to make fairy houses started several years ago when Karen was living in Redcliffe and a flood caused a lot of driftwood to wash up on the beach.
“I just started with a raft, and it just built up with windows and a door, and friends donated ornaments, and it just kept building. That’s how it all started,” she said.
“I don’t make fairy houses to sell them. It’s not about that to me. It’s about bringing magic to people’s lives.”
Woodford Fairy Trail maps can be collected at any of the display shops and can be accessed on the Woodford Fairy Trail Facebook page.
