Corn Husk Dolls and Other Things

One day after harvesting all the popcorn I looked at the big piles of husks in the yard and thought "I should do something with that".  Sure, I could have put all the husks into compost, but corn husks take a long time to rot and half of them were scattered all over the yard anyway from all the strong winds we had last week.  So I remembered seeing corn husk dolls in various crafting books and thought I would try my hand at making them!
     Here is what I started with:

A big pile of dry husks waiting for my imagination.

     Corn husk dolls were probably first made by the Native Americans in the northeast, but many other Native American tribes made them throughout the centuries.   The early New England settlers made them, learning the craft from the Native tribes of the area.  The pioneer ladies made them for toys for the children as money was scarce.   The Appalachian folks took the art of corn husk doll making seriously and made many intricate doll designs.   But European cultures also made corn husk dolls, and Mexican women today make especially fancy dolls, using dyes to color the husks, and adding jewels, ribbons, and silk to create intricate dolls.

     I decided to just stick to simple American folk art designs.  A little study on the internet taught me the basics of several different ways of doing this.  So here is my first attempt at corn husk doll making:

These girls are a little rough looking, but they didn't turn out too ugly for a first try! I put faces on them, but decided that my artistic talents weren't so hot for painting on faces!

The second evening, yielded these dolls:

These look a little better, and I was still trying to decide if faces were needed or not.  At least I was getting quicker at making corn husk dolls.

The third evening I was getting a little better yet:

Here is a pioneer lady with her big sunbonnet hat.  Her dress turned out a little better, too.

So here is a picture of the whole group of dolls I made.

I got bored with making dolls and decided to see what else I could do with corn husks.  I decided to make a wreath.  I do love fall decorations, and I needed a new wreath.  Being a person who likes to make "something from nothing", I gathered more corn husks from the yard.   Here is what I ended up with:

My new corn husk wreath!  I cut 1/2 inch strips of husks, moistened them in water, and tied them onto a thin metal coat hanger made into a circle.  Then I added some bittersweet sprigs from down the road, and a small ornament from a long ago wreath and some bright orange silk ribbon.   This is hanging in my living room.

I still had some corn husks left and a quick search on Pinterest gave me this idea:

I made a corn husk "broom" using a twig from trimmings off our Nanking cherry tree.  I think it looks cute next to my potato cabinet and dresses up a corner of the kitchen with more fall color and decor.

This whole experiment just goes to show a person that there is no need to spend big dollars to decorate for fall and make a home cozy.  Just using what is available and a little imagination can produce decorative items that are unique, and that you can't find anywhere else.   Besides, I really hate shopping, but I DO love to decorate for fall.   Fall is my favorite time of year - the bright leaf colors and cool temperatures and no bugs make for a very enjoyable season!