Scarecrows are an iconic fall decoration, but did you know that making one can also be a fun family experience?
We hope our parent community will take up this project as an opportunity to build connections with their child, because we are launching our annual Scarecrow Competition SOON! Keep your eyes on your inboxes and on our social media pages so you don’t miss the announcement OR the chance to win a MONTH OF FREE TUITION! May the most ‘out standing’ entry win!
And, speaking of fall – don’t miss our Fall Fun Fest & Open House THIS Friday from 4:30pm-6:30pm! Carnival games, bounce house, facepainting, snacks, scavenger hunt, crafts & more! Bring your family and friends and celebrate the season with us!
Back to scarecrows! Never made one before? It’s really not as difficult as it looks! Here are some helpful tips as well as some photo inspiration from some previous years’ competitions!
Get Ready to Build a Scarecrow!
Choose a Theme
Choose a theme for your scarecrow! It could be traditional, or based off a movie, fairy tale, story, or an iconic real-life figure. Get creative and get the whole family involved!
Choose A Frame
You’ll need to mount your scarecrow to a sturdy support: use a metal or wooden stake in the ground. Or, if you prefer, mount your scarecrow to an existing fence or prop it up on your porch or in an outdoor chair. You’ll also need some twine to help hold everything together.
Choose A Body
You can stuff an old piece of clothing with straw (about a bale, depending on how large your scarecrow is), leaves, shredded paper, newspaper, sticks, or even plastic bags. Classic clothing choices for scarecrows usually include overalls and flannel shirts!
Choose A Head
A head can be a pumpkin, a stuffed pillowcase or burlap bag, or even a beach ball/sports ball (wrapped in burlap or used “as is”)! Add a straw hat for a nice touch. For hair, consider using straw or yarn. Pipe cleaners make adorable mustaches, and eyes can be painted on, drawn on with Sharpies, or consider extra-large googly eyes and hot-glue them on.
Choose the Hands & Feet
Use old garden or work gloves for the hands and tie off the pants with an old pair of shoes.
Choose Your Accessories and Props
Use a garden hoe or pitchfork or other themed props to make your creation unique!
Make sure you choose props, accessories and other elements that are weather-proof!
Putting It All Together
Once you’ve decided on a theme and collected the materials you need, you’re ready to go!
- Make a t-shaped support out of 1×2” pieces of wood securely nailed together. One 5 ft section and one 1-ft section should be sufficient. You’ll want the 1-ft cross section to be about a foot down from the top of the 5-ft section, as it will be support for the scarecrow’s torso.
- Attach the head to the top of the support. If using a pillowcase or burlap “head” stuffed with a filler, push the support into the “head”, then using twine, securely tie-off the head around the support.
- Place the shirt over the horizontal beam of your support and use twine to tie off the ends of the sleeves – you’ll want to do the same with the bottom portion of the shirt, so that your stuffing cannot fall out. Now, let the stuffing begin! Start with the sleeves and move to the torso! (A button up shirt is very handy here, as it allows you to open/close the shirt to do a better job stuffing the arms/torso of your scarecrow.)
- Next, add your pants or overalls. You’ll want to tie off the bottom of the pant legs to hold that stuffing in place, and if using pants, secure the pants to the torso by using twine or a belt. Overalls are handy as you can secure them to the torso easily using the bib portion of the overalls. Stuff the pants, starting with the legs then working your way up.
- Add the final touches: hat, scarf, gardening tools, or any other accessories, painted on or decorated face, etc. If adding garden gloves, secure them to the end of the straw-stuffed arms using twine. If adding boots/shoes, stuff the legs of your scarecrow into the boots/shoes and secure with twine if needed.
- Place your scarecrow in your desired location and step back and enjoy your work of art! (Maybe with a cup of hot cocoa?)
