Hi Folks!
We've hit that point in the season here in the northeastern USA that harvest is going on. Corn is ripe and plentiful. Grain is coming in and there is an abundance of tomatoes. The rich bounty of the harvest is a gift from the Divine and an excellent thing to celebrate with the children in your life. It's possible to use the delightful things that come in with the harvest to make your home beautiful and even a toy or two for your children.
Corn is coming in everywhere around my neck of the woods. (The next town over has their annual Corn Festival this coming weekend even!) If your family is like mine, you enjoy having yourselves a mess of corn on the cob with your cookout. The question is, what do you do with those husks when you've finished shucking the corn? Some folks like to compost them, but you can also use them for crafting. All you need is a bit of string and a little ingenuity.
Take the long 'leaves' of the husk and fold them over the end of the stem. Using your string, tie off the end immediately below that stem end. Take two of the 'leaves' and pull them out of the bundle you have made. Point them out to the left and right of your dolly. Using another bit of string, tie off your bundle an inch below where your arms poke out. Then, split your bundle in half. At where your bundle is split in half, tie a bit of string around each section. At the ends of the two sections, tie a bit of string to finish the legs. The dolly can be dried out and used for decorating or you can do like we do, and let the little ones play with it.
Another wonderful craft for this time of year is to make a peach pit necklace. This one requires a little bit of preparation but the results are charming. Collect a dozen peach pits. Clean them well and allow them to dry completely. Obtain a scarf of the desired length of your finished necklace (I love using thrift shop finds for this!). Take one end and make a knot two inches down the length of your scarf. Place your first peach pit close to the knot. Twist your scarf around the peach pit and knot. Repeat this process until you have two inches of scarf left free. Knot the ends together and enjoy! Depending on the length of your scarf, you may need more or less peach pits then the dozen you have collected.
For the more advanced young crafter, we have our final project. This uses potatoes and requires adult supervision. Cut one large potato in half. With your paring knife, carefully carve out a raised shape. Then, take your potato stamper and put it in a dab of acrylic paint. Press onto paper and make yourself a fun picture. Discard the potato when you are done using it to paint.
Happy crafting!
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We've hit that point in the season here in the northeastern USA that harvest is going on. Corn is ripe and plentiful. Grain is coming in and there is an abundance of tomatoes. The rich bounty of the harvest is a gift from the Divine and an excellent thing to celebrate with the children in your life. It's possible to use the delightful things that come in with the harvest to make your home beautiful and even a toy or two for your children.
Corn is coming in everywhere around my neck of the woods. (The next town over has their annual Corn Festival this coming weekend even!) If your family is like mine, you enjoy having yourselves a mess of corn on the cob with your cookout. The question is, what do you do with those husks when you've finished shucking the corn? Some folks like to compost them, but you can also use them for crafting. All you need is a bit of string and a little ingenuity.
Take the long 'leaves' of the husk and fold them over the end of the stem. Using your string, tie off the end immediately below that stem end. Take two of the 'leaves' and pull them out of the bundle you have made. Point them out to the left and right of your dolly. Using another bit of string, tie off your bundle an inch below where your arms poke out. Then, split your bundle in half. At where your bundle is split in half, tie a bit of string around each section. At the ends of the two sections, tie a bit of string to finish the legs. The dolly can be dried out and used for decorating or you can do like we do, and let the little ones play with it.
Another wonderful craft for this time of year is to make a peach pit necklace. This one requires a little bit of preparation but the results are charming. Collect a dozen peach pits. Clean them well and allow them to dry completely. Obtain a scarf of the desired length of your finished necklace (I love using thrift shop finds for this!). Take one end and make a knot two inches down the length of your scarf. Place your first peach pit close to the knot. Twist your scarf around the peach pit and knot. Repeat this process until you have two inches of scarf left free. Knot the ends together and enjoy! Depending on the length of your scarf, you may need more or less peach pits then the dozen you have collected.
For the more advanced young crafter, we have our final project. This uses potatoes and requires adult supervision. Cut one large potato in half. With your paring knife, carefully carve out a raised shape. Then, take your potato stamper and put it in a dab of acrylic paint. Press onto paper and make yourself a fun picture. Discard the potato when you are done using it to paint.
Happy crafting!