Deliver mornings full of surprise and magic with our favorite creative tooth fairy ideas. Your child has twenty (or so) teeth to lose, so there's plenty of time to try them all!
1. Tiny Tooth Fairy Door
Perhaps you've seen a minuscule doorway around town recently? They've been popping up in some rather strange places.
Install your own tiny door and you're bound to be flooded with visits from tooth fairies of all stripes. Why slip in through an open window when you can just magically come and go through your own front door? 'Lil Fairy Doors is an Australian company that offers a line of colorful miniature doors.
Perhaps they're a bit pricey at $24 a pop, but you only need one!
They have lots of sparkly doors to choose from and they arrive complete with trim, moulding, and hardware already installed. Of course, they don't actually open. That would spoil the mystery! These fairy doors attach flush against any section of flat drywall or wood.
Pro Tooth Fairy Tip: Make your own tooth fairy door with a little help from Kate's Creative Space. Dette Cakes has also posted a nice and simple 3-step fairy door tutorial.
2. Make Your Own Tooth Fairy Plushie
$17.50 gets you enough pre-printed fabric to make four tooth fairy plushies in various colors.
If your tooth fairy can cut 'n sew, SammyK's Toothy the Tooth Fairy Plushie is the one to make! It's a classic design. It's not too over the top "fairy-ish" and it'll work for both girls and boys. It also includes a backpack that the tooth fairy can load up with surprises in exchange for that lost tooth.
Pro Tooth Fairy Tip #1: Don't end up with a lumpy and uneven plushie! Polyester fiber fill and wool are both good stuffing choices. Wool will cost a bit more, and can be harder to find, but it has a nice natural feel and packs into smaller corners really well. The poly fill is inexpensive but can move around a bit if you don't work it in tight enough.
Still not sure what to use? Abby Glassenberg breaks it down for you in plenty of detail. Peruse the comments below her excellent post for even more ideas of how to stuff your tooth fairy plushie.
Pro Tooth Fairy Tip #2: A Turn-it-All and a good stuffing fork will save you tons of time!
3. Send A Tiny Tooth Fairy Letter
Our World's Smallest Post Service has been perfecting the art of miniature correspondence since 2008. Tiny tooth fairy letters can be customized to say whatever you want. Then they're sealed up with real wax, a tiny canceled postage stamp, colorful star glitter, and a magnifying glass for good measure. Exquisite details abound!
Pro Tooth Fairy Tip #1: Order a few custom Tiny Letters from the tooth fairy and have them shipped to you all at once. That way you're ready when that loose tooth finally slips out!
Pro Tooth Fairy Tip #2: Wonder what the tooth fairy might put in a letter? These sample tooth fairy letters will get you started.
4. Office of The Tooth Fairy Kit
Each kit includes letterpress certificate, a bag, and some nice extras.
You could spend hours trying to design and print your own tooth fairy stationery. And it wouldn't look half as good as this official letterpress set from the "Office of the Tooth Fairy." It's by far the most well thought-out and professional looking tooth fairy stationery we've seen. Pick some up and never be without your official Certificate of Record!
Pro Tooth Fairy Tip: You can also get 5-packs and 10-packs of extra certificates for siblings, without the bag and other extras in the original kit.
5. Doctored Dollar Bills & Coins
When I was a kid, the tooth fairy loved to leave behind a trusty $2 bill for me. I'm sure it slid under the pillow swiftly and quietly. I never felt a thing. While many of today's tooth fairies still traffic in currency, inflation has taken its toll. The novelty of a $2 bill will get it done in a pinch, but $5 seems to be closer to the going rate in some parts of the US.
But if your tooth fairy is just a little bit crafty, why not add a thin layer of sparkly dust to that dollar bill or gold Sacagawea coin? It's easy to do and adds a nice modern touch to one of the oldest tooth fairy ideas around. You only need a few key materials:
- $1, $2, or $5 bills
- Gold Sacagawea dollar coins (get a roll of 25 at your bank)
- Spray adhesive, we like Crystal Clear Tacky Spray the best
- Glitter, we like these Sulyn non-toxic glitters or splurge for this 24-pack of colors
Instructions: Place your bill or coin on a paper towel. Gently spray one side with adhesive, sprinkle some glitter on and then shake off the excess. Repeat on the back side a few minutes later. Let it dry and you're done!
Pro Tooth Fairy Tip: Leave a thin trail of glitter from pillow to windowsill (or tiny fairy door) as evidence that the tooth fairy made a quick escape. Or use a doll's shoe to make footprints in the glitter.
6. Tooth Fairy Pillows
If you have a light sleeper, a tooth fairy pillow might be the answer. Hang it on the doorknob or place it on a bedside table for easy tooth fairy access in the dark of night. Tooth fairy pillows come in all sizes, styles, and materials. Here are a few of our favorites:
- Etsy seller Looploft's tooth fairy pillows are stylish, personalized, and handmade. 700 reviewers can't be wrong!
- If you're crafty, then this whimsical tooth fairy pillow DIY from The Handmade Home is your best bet.
- Simple, handmade, and a great deal at $10, LaughRabbit's pillows come in lots of bright colors.
7. Tooth Fairy Books & More Tooth Fairy Books
Anyone who's read a thousand or more books with their kid, knows that not all children's books are created equal. Some merely get the job done, while others capture the imagination of child and adult alike. Here are our favorite tooth fairy books in no particular order, plucked from the midst of many ho-hum options.
The Night Before the Tooth Fairy
Rhyming poetic tale of a boy who's tooth just doesn't want to come out. Colorfully illustrated in a simple playful style. Best for ages 3 - 8.
Loose Tooth (My First I Can Read Book)
Simple illustrations paired with large easy to read text (about 2-6 words per page) tell the story of a first loose tooth experience. "I can see it. I can feel it. I can pull it. I can push it." Will it come out if I eat carrots? Of course, in the end, the tooth comes out on its own! Best for ages 5 - 9.
This one's a good option for pre-school Peppa Pig fans gearing up for their first visit to the dentist or just starting to pick up on the fact that people "lose" their baby teeth. Peppa keeps her teeth nice and clean in the story, just like she should! Best for ages 3 - 5.
What Does the Tooth Fairy Do with Our Teeth?
Imagination and creativity abound in this fresh and entertaining tale. While many fun and novel answers are explored, in the end its up to you to decide what exactly the tooth fairy does with your precious molars and incisors. Some questions don't actually have answers, right? Boerger's watercolor illustrations perfectly capture one of many possible tooth fairy worlds. Best for ages 5 - 9.
You Think It's Easy Being the Tooth Fairy?
How does the tooth fairy do it? Night after night this spunky redheaded tooth fairy makes the rounds to millions of homes across the country. She uses gizmos and gadgets, her own ingenuity, and a healthy dose of good humor to get the job done, despite many obstacles. It's funny, light-hearted, and very entertaining. Best for ages 4 - 8.
Bear's usual cast of characters is back in this follow-up to the original Bear Snores On. As usual, Bear is the focus of the commotion as he discovers a loose tooth over lunch. Surprise and fear soon turn to excitement as bear begins to understand what's going on. The fun and humorous text flows with the same smooth tempo as all the other Bear books. Best for ages 3 - 8.
Truman's in first grade and hasn't lost a tooth yet. But then it happens. A tooth starts to wiggle, and then pop! It's out and rolling across the floor. Is this what growing up is all about? And what about the tooth fairy? How does that work? The lovely cartoonish illustrations and a fun story make Truman easy for kids to relate to. Best for ages 4 - 8.
It turns out that not all kids put their teeth under their pillow for the tooth fairy to find. There's a whole world of tooth fairy traditions out there. Mice and money are recurring themes in this global tour of foreign tooth fairy practices. Some kids throw them on the roof, some kids bury them, some kids throw them at the sun! This well researched book is a real eye-opener for kids and adults alike. Best for ages 4 - 8.
This is a special book that sadly seems to be out of print. It combines two of our favorite things: the tooth fairy and letter writing, in a fun and witty story. Wouldn't you want some assurances (in writing of course) from the tooth fairy before handing over your precious chomper? It's full of fold-out letters, maps, a gold coin, and other fun extras. Pick up a copy used if you can but be sure to ask if all the extras are still intact. Best for ages 4 - 8.
8. Foreign Money
It's a bit harder to get your hands on foreign bills these days. The euro gobbled up so many of the usual suspects. But Canada, Mexico and 167 other countries still print their own paper money.
Kids know that the tooth fairy is a global phenomenon. It makes sense that she'd be flush with foreign currency from her nightly travels around the world. And it makes sense she might leave strange money behind. After all, losing a tooth is a pretty strange experience to begin with!
Pro Tooth Fairy Tip #1: Many local banks will exchange your US dollars for some colorful foreign bills. You probably won't get a great exchange rate, so stick to smaller denominations to get your money's worth!
Pro Tooth Fairy Tip #2: Combine this idea with "Doctored Dollar Bills and Coins" for sparkly funny money.
9. Temporary Tattoos
We figured Tattly would have some great tooth fairy tattoo options, but alas they don't seem to have any! Bummer. Perhaps we should send some tattoo-themed tooth fairy ideas their way.
The best we could find that aren't too over the top "fairy-ish," are these anime style fairy tails from Etsy seller TheCaffeinatedRose. Maybe Leafcutter should start making a vintage inspired line of temporary tooth fairy tattoos!?
Pro Tooth Fairy Tip: If you have a sound sleeper and steady hands, use warm water and apply a temporary tooth fairy tattoo while your child sleeps. Will they find it first thing in the morning? Probably not. But they'll eventually stumble upon it and it'll sure be a surprise when they do!
10. DIY Tooth Fairy Pocket
If a homemade tooth fairy pillow seems like too big of a project, then check out Renae's simple and colorful tooth fairy pocket tutorial at Heartmade Blog. These are quick and easy to cut 'n sew by hand and they're just the right size to trade a tooth for some cash or other small wonder.
Purl Soho has a slightly different take on a very similar pouch option, but with drawstring closure instead of the fold over flap.
11. Sand Dollar or Other Natural Artifact
Whenever my father went snorkeling, he'd bring back small treasures for us kids. Maybe a pearly abalone shell or a delicate sea urchin shell. Lea still has some of these keepsakes and they remind her that small wonders lurk everywhere on Earth.
Even common artifacts of the natural world can be fun for kids to collect. The tooth fairy can bring something different every time. Sand dollars are nice and flat for sliding under a pillow. Sparkly rocks like quartz or geodes can work too!
12. Throw In Some Iwako Erasers for Fun
We stock a ton of these authentic Japanese erasers for our line of custom Tiny Packages. They're colorful and inexpensive and there are hundreds of designs available.
Why not keep a little collection and throw them in alongside whatever else the tooth fairy decides to bring? Does your child love sushi? The tooth fairy can bring some. Dinosaurs? Yep. Stingrays? Uh-huh. Cupcakes? They have those too.
13. Mix in Some Foreign Tooth Fairy Traditions
The tooth fairy has been going global for a few decades now, and some very unusual traditions have sprung up. Even if you don't adopt any of these traditions for yourself, they're full of creative twists that might help you come up with your own fresh tooth fairy ideas. Here's a quick taste of what the tooth fairy is up to around the globe:
- Afghan kids toss their lost teeth in a mouse hole, hoping they'll soon grow new teeth as strong as a mouse's.
- Kids in India, Haiti, Korea, and elsewhere toss their teeth onto the roof. Some sing songs as they do it!
- Egyptian kids throw their teeth at the sun and ask for a bright smile in return.
- Argentine kids put their teeth in a glass of water, so El Ratoncito can find them at night.
- Pakistani kids carefully wrap their lost teeth in cotton, then toss them in the river as the sun goes down.
Wonder how Navajo children disposed of their baby teeth? And who would dare throw them to a howling hyena? Find all the answers in this great list of traditions from around the world.
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