A tall elf at last year's Elves' Faire

If you think you’d like the Renaissance Faire a whole lot more without the drunk Robin Hoods and uninhibited wenches flaunting scary corseted cleavage, gather up the kids and head to the 24th annual Elves’ Faire, a wonderfully sweet community festival that Pasadena Waldorf School has been putting on for 24 years.

The school’s already breathtaking campus is transformed into the fairyland populated by gnomes, elves, fairies and medieval folks. These are not Santa’s elves, but rather friends of the Hobbit – it’s a Middle Earth type of place where Father Winter hands out icicle crystals and an elf named Pockets wanders the grounds followed by kids who, for a ticket, get to reach into one of her pockets for a hand-wrapped treat, perhaps a small wooden toy or shell. Other regular happenings include the Angel Room – where children enter with an angel friend and get to select a gift — the Jack Frost Bake Shoppe, the Doll House, the Fairies’ Feast and the Tea Party, as well as unique children’s games, crafts, puppet shows, music, artisans, raffle and silent auction, and food from local restaurants.

Kids can take a seat at shaded picnic tables and make such things as photo frames, fairies, beeswax candles, sand art and dream catchers. Games are lively and creative: kid-style jousting, an incredible blindfolded maze, and challenges of balance and skill. All activities are available for a ticket or two – tickets are $1 each.

The Pasadena Waldorf School is a private school serving children from kindergarten through eighth grade located on a bucolic and historic campus in Altadena. Parking is on the surrounding streets; plan for a drop-off or leave yourself plenty of time to walk several blocks to the school, particularly if you have little ones.

Elves’ Faire
Saturday, November 21, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Pasadena Waldorf School
209 E. Mariposa St., Altadena
Admission free; go to elvesfaire.com or call 626.794.0897 for more information

Student drummers at last year's Elves' Faire