Build your own scarecrow
By BETH BENCE REINKE
for Smart
You don’t need a field full of corn to have your own scarecrow. Even in the city or suburbs, homemade scarecrows adorn lawns and front porches across York County every fall.
For 11 years, Linda Knaub has helped folks build their own scarecrows at the “Make and Take It Scarecrow” workshop during the Fall Festival at Stauffers of Kissel Hill in Dover Township. She says some people decorate with scarecrows year after year because they like the old-fashioned, traditional feel of them.
“They have always had a scarecrow in the fall, and it is a family tradition that gets handed down,” Knaub says.
Scarecrows may have found their true calling as fall decorations since they were largely unsuccessful at scaring birds. Historically, the best scarecrows were real people — elderly men and young boys who made their living shooing birds from crops using noisy wooden clappers.
The scarecrows Knaub sees taking shape at her workshop don’t scare birds or anyone else. They range from the usual “flannel-shirt-and-jeans” type to the unusual and creative.
“I have seen a scarecrow wearing a business suit with a tie and collared shirt,” she says.
Last year, some participants in Knaub’s workshop made their scarecrow into a Harley rider. “They brought in one of their dad’s muscle shirts with the Harley-Davidson logo on it and put it over the long-sleeved shirt.” Motorcycle-riding boots were the final touch.
Knaub says people combine scarecrows with other popular autumn decorations such as straw bales, corn stalks, potted mums, Indian corn and gourds. “Most people will use one large straw bale and sit a scarecrow on it with a pumpkin beside him,” she says. Finishing touches might be mums around the base of the straw or corn stalks and Indian corn tied to the porch railing.
In England, scarecrows have all kinds of funny names like hodmadod, mommet and tattie-bogie. No matter what you call it, you can build your own scarecrow at home.
MAKING YOUR SCARECROW
Supplies:
• Scrap wood: One 2-foot-long piece and one 18-inch piece.
• Tree stakes or other pole, such as a broom handle (for a freestanding scarecrow)
• A shirt and pants or skirt
• 3-foot-by-3-foot piece of burlap or other object to use for head
• Twine
• Staple gun
• Paint pens
• Straw
1. Build a backbone.
For a sitting or leaning scarecrow, Knaub suggests a wooden cross-shaped frame about 2 feet tall and 18 inches wide. For the frames provided at her workshop, she uses wood that is about ½-inch thick and 2 inches wide. For a standing scarecrow, tie it to an upright structure, such as a porch post or clothesline pole. To make your scarecrow freestanding, you will need tree stakes or a broom handle to stick down the pants legs and into the ground.
2. Create the head.
Cut a square of burlap that is about 3 feet by 3 feet. Place straw in the middle, then fold it over and round it to look like a head. Staple the burlap shut and attach the head to the frame with the staple gun. Knaub notes that only adults use the staple guns at her workshops.
3. Construct the chest.
Put the shirt on the cross-shaped frame as if it were a clothes hanger. Stuff the arms, then button the shirt all the way and stuff the chest. Tuck the shirt into the pants, thread twine through the belt loops and tie it tightly. Allow some straw to stick out for hands, then secure at the wrists with twine.
4. Build the bottom.
Stuff the pants with straw, allowing a bundle to stick out at the bottom for feet. Tie off the pants with twine at the ankles. Staple the waistband of the jeans to the cross-shaped frame. Now is the time to insert the tree stakes or broom handle into the pants legs if your scarecrow is going to be freestanding.
5. Fashion a face.
Use paint pens to draw eyes, nose and mouth. At her workshop, Knaub displays a poster with samples of what facial features might look like to give kids some ideas. To produce a traditional “Wizard of Oz” scarecrow look, Knaub says to go with googly eyes, triangle nose, oblong mouth and rosy cheeks. “Some people really get creative with theirs and some stick with the traditional scarecrow face,” she says. Last, top off your “tattie-bogie” with a hat, leaving a bit of straw peeking out for hair.
Sources: “The Scarecrow: Fact and Fable” by Peter Haining, and “Scarecrows: Making Harvest Figures and Other Yard Folks” by Felder Rushing
Family funThe Fall Festival at Stauffers of Kissel Hill will be held Sept. 29-30 and Oct. 6-7. Saturday hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday hours are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The festival will be held at both locations: 3949 Carlisle Road, Dover Township, and 4450 Lincoln Highway, York. Activities include pumpkin painting and musical entertainment. Food will be available for purchase. The “Make and Take It Scarecrow” workshop for children runs all day.
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