Here in Amsterdam, we have a little shop I love. It is called De Zaailing, and it sells all sorts of beautiful and natural toys, clothes, crafting materials and books. On the counter, they keep a wicker basket full of the most beautiful little felt fairies — perfect little presents for birthdays, or just because. My children each have a little flower fairy in their room and they all treasure them.

There are also really lovely seasonal fairies — mushroom and acorn fairies for fall, there is a Sinterklaas and a Santa, darling tree decorations, angels and ice princesses, and then countless flower fairies for spring and summer. My sweet friend Annie from Brimful recently told me that these felt characters are entirely made by hand by local craftswomen in Romania, and are brought on the market by Nicoletta from Eco Flower Fairies. The fairies really make the sweetest presents, are wonderful to use for decoration on your seasonal table (if you have one) or to decorate your table for holidays.

xxx Esther