Fairies have gone by many names, wee folk, and good folk, people of peace, just to name a few. If you have decided that a fairy tattoo design is what you are looking for then I suggest you keep reading and I will supply you with some of the myths and legends surrounding this wondrous creature.Fairy tattoo designs usually show fairies as human in appearance, and they vary in appearance from cute to evil, sexy to angelic, and everything in-between.
The origins of the fairies are unclear and many different versions have explained there existence. In modern times fairies are depicted as young, helpful, winged tiny creatures as in Peter Pan and Tinker Belle. In folklore fairies were originally as tall as a small child, back then, fairies were to be avoided, as they were known to steal babies and old people and replace them with changelings that looked exactly the same.
To protect yourself against the evil fairies, you place pieces of cold iron, which was (poison to the fairies) thought to originated from stories of the first human invaders and their iron weapons; or a four leaf clover, or a simple piece of bread (as bread was seen as a symbol of life), a popular and easy protection.
Even wearing your clothes inside out was a deterrent (I guess you would scare off more than just evil fairies), or running water or church bells. And with so many charms available to ward off the naughty fairies perhaps evil fairies were not such a problem after all.
A common view was that fairies were dead humans. One man said he met a fairy that looked just like his dead neighbour?
Another view is that fairies were somewhere between heaven and hell. This would explain their mischievous behaviour, because they were not devils, but not quite angels. Take for example, bad hair days, they could be explained as fairies visiting you as you slept and tangling your hair, or "Elf-locks as it was known then.
And if you were wondering why you always wake up during the night, well you can blame those pesky fairies, because, as legend has it, if they thought you kept an untidy house they would pinch you as you slept. So if you wake up grumpy from not enough sleep (and your hair is all messed up), now you have someone to blame.
Also, they were credited with sending you the wrong way on your travels, and where did I put those keys? You guessed it, the fairies again.
If you decide on a fairy tattoo design remember nowadays they are seen as good luck charms, and if you know the name of your fairy, so the story goes, that fairy grant your wishes.
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