Everything You Need to Trap a Leprechaun This St. Patrick’s Day

You will need:

A cardboard box or shoebox

A stick (or pencil in a pinch)

A pillowcase

Food  (see below) 

Optional: bling

Step Three: Get the Gold

Wait at least three hours before checking your trap, but if you can, wait a full night. (Parents, you can leave a small note or coin in place of the treat from the escaped wee man). If your trap is empty, better luck next year. If, however, you caught your leprechaun, you’ll need to transfer it from the trap into your home. Use a soft pillowcase, and scoop up the entire box including (hopefully) the leprechaun. Remember, your goal here is to get him to reveal the location of his gold, not bring harm to him. Be firm but kind, be persistent. 

Further Tips:

Once you have him inside, lock your doors and close your windows. Leprechauns are master escape artists.

Be ready to barter. They are very clever and can trick you out of just about anything, but you will need to offer something in exchange for the gold (i.e., his freedom). Do not believe him when he tells you it’s “at the end of the rainbow.” They like silky fabrics, velvet and shiny things.

Be sure you have enough food: They can eat an incredible amount of food, so be ready to lay out a feast or at the very least, a decent tea party.

If you can get them to tell you where the gold is, you truly have the luck of the Irish!

*While it was once true that a leprechaun could only be found in Ireland, there are generations of leprechauns that have naturalized in the woods, parks and gardens across America. Rumors of how leprechauns came to the U.S. include stowing away in luggage, sliding across rainbows (totally unfounded) and the most plausible: paid passage. They are, after all, in possession of copious amounts of gold.

Editor’s note: No leprechauns were harmed in the making of this article.