Now is the time to start collecting long grasses or harmless weeds and drying them so you can use them to make fall projects, including scarecrows. While there is plenty of hay within easy access of my home, and it can even be purchased nearby, in some areas, it’s not going to be easy to find. You can make a substitution for hay by drying out grasses.
A simple way to make a scarecrow is to use things you have lying around your home and yard. Fill up plastic grocery sacks with leaves and grass clippings and use these to form the scarecrow’s body, arms, legs, and head. Attach all the pieces together. Twist ties, string, rubber bands, or even duct tape will work. If you want to add hands and feet, stuff an old pair of gloves and a pair of socks and attach those too.
Dress the scarecrow in old clothes or items that no longer fit anyone in your home. If you don’t have something suitable, you can pick up an old pair of overalls and a flannel shirt at a garage sale.
Note: If you want to make a smaller scarecrow for an indoor decoration, choose new items and use fiber fill instead of clippings and raffia instead of dried grasses. The rustic look is great for outdoors, but you may want a “cleaner” look for inside the house.
Next, stuff some dried grasses or hay into the shirt and pants cuffs and let it stick out a little bit. Add some more around the neckline of the shirt. You can even have an adult help you make a few holes in the shirt of pants and let some hay show through those holes.
You can use some fabric or a pillowcase to cover the scarecrow’s head and draw a face or make one using buttons for eyes, yarn for mouth, etc. Don’t forget to give your scarecrow a hat! Any hat will do, such as a ball cap or anything else you have handy, but if you can find a straw hat, that’s even better.