Best Tabletop Happy Place

Nicole Pearch says that a garden must have three things to attract fairies to it: life, color and something shiny.

“Your fairy garden is supposed to tell a story of happiness and joy,” says the owner of Party’n with Plants. Whether assembled at home or at parties, her fairy garden kits let you craft your own tabletop happy place by filling a bowl with low-maintenance succulent plants, colorful Norwegian reindeer moss and whimsical figurines, like unicorns, mermaids and dinosaurs. “There’s always a surprise in your kit — a little gem or shiny heart,” says the Akron resident who also sells terrarium, play dough and Zen garden kits online. While Pearch guides party guests through constructing the gardens with a rock base as drainage for watering the plants and more, what you do with the surprise element and the theme is up to your imagination. No two gardens are the same, but locals often build a similar dream. “Many people in Ohio want to look at a little beach scene,” she says. partynwithplants.com