Breyton family, La Maison des Contes de Fées / The House of Fairy Tales

pictures are screenprints from the video by France 3 TV

as referred to in the documentation

Notre-Dame-de-Bellecombe is a small mountain village of about 500 inhabitants, in the French Alps, with a ski area that was in 1937 one of the first to have a drag lift. It is a quiet place with not much evening entertainment and therefore very suitable to be visited by families with young children.

Those children will undoubtedly enjoy visiting La Maison des Contes de Fées (The House of Fairy Tales), located in the hamlet of le Cheloup, part of the nearby of Notre-Dame-de-Bellecombe.

An enchanting interior art environment

This house of fairy tales is included in this weblog because its interior is imaginatively decorated with many personifications of fairytale characters, handcrafted by the owners Edith and Daniel Breyton and their children Claudine, Lise and Bruno.

It's a family project of non-professionals, resulting in a enchanting small-scale indoor art environment.

Starting in the early years of the 21th century, the family has spent more than two years crafting a first collection of various characters to populate the tableaus that present them. Continuing this activity, the collection in 2018 had a size of around 150 characters. 

 

The heads and other body parts of these characters are made of paper machée and, once dried, they are painted in appropriate, rather natural colors, as can be seen in the image above. 

All clothing worn by the fairytale characters is handmade. All together, the way in which the characters are formed, painted and dressed gives them a very realistic and authentic appearance.

The fairytale characters are grouped into some 40 scenes that depict all kinds of fairy tales, including some well-known ones such as Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf, Cinderella and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Little Red Riding Hood and the Wolf

The exhibition space covers a total of about 150 m², of which about 60 m² is used for the various scenes, a size that contributes to a homely atmosphere. Therefore the family doesn't refer to the exhibition space as a museum, but as a house.

Cinderella

Each fairy tale scene is situated in a beautifully executed and recognizable miniature environment, matching the relevant fairy tale. In addition, certain parts of each scene can move, are beautifully lit and supported by sound fragments.

A feast for the eyes.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

The fairytale house can be visited all year round. In addition, the house also includes a B&B facility (see their website and FB page for further information)

Documentation

* Website of the Fairytale House

* Facebook page (with info about exceptional closures)\

* Article on the website of France 3 TV, with a video of the exposition

Edith & Daniel Breyton and their children 

La Maison des Contes de Fées (The House of Fairytales)

8 Impasse du Bois Dormant 

Hameau Le Cheloup 

Notre-Dame-de-Bellecombe, dept Savoie, region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, France

visitors welcome, entrance fee

Google streetview (with photos)