After having a go at making a corn husk doll myself, I showed Lark (my 10 yr old) what to do, so that she could make one herself. She really enjoyed doing it and it’s a shame that we don’t have more husks, because I think that she would really like to have made a whole family.
I also helped Wren to make one, although most of her efforts were concentrated on snipping little bits of husk with her scissors! She loves scissors and is always interested in any tasks that involve using them.
In case you would like to have a go at making your own, here is a quick “how to” guide. There are so many variations that you could make, so once you have the basic head arms and body, let your creativity go wild!
First job is to remove the leaves from the base of the husk with a pair of scissors. Cut as close to the base as you can.
Once that is done, take four good sized leaves and tie them together at the tapered end. We used some natural raffia for tying, because we only had a few corn husks, but you could cut strips from one of the leaves for tying. Pull the leaves down to cover the knot. At this stage we stuffed in some scraps in to pad out the head a little more.
Tie tightly around the base of the head.
Now you need to make some arms. Take several leaves and stack them one on top of the other, (have a good wide one at the bottom, but you can use up some scrappier bits on top). Now, roll the leaves up lengthways. Tie tightly about 1-1 1/2cm from the end on both sides, to make the hands.
Once that is done, take four good sized leaves and tie them together at the tapered end. We used some natural raffia for tying because we only had a few corn husks, but you could cut strips from one of the leaves for tying. Pull the leaves down to cover the knot. At this stage we stuffed in some scraps in to pad out the head a little more.
Tie tightly around the base of the head. It’s nice to use bows for this bit.
Lift up the top leaf under the head and put your arms across the dolls body.
Put the leaf back into place and tie tightly underneath the arms.
Now is the time to unleash your creativity! Using any leaves that you have left, create clothes for your doll. We were restricted by the few leaves that we had, but I tied a simple head scarf around this one’s head for Wren and added some extra wispy leaves around the skirt.
Lark added some hair and a wrap around skirt and waistband to hers.
In the doll that I had made the day before, I added a bonnet, full skirt and apron, because I had a bit more to work with.
Whatever you do, have fun with it!
