Will we ever run out of great things to do with paper bags? Probably not – crafting experts across the world continue to find new ways to repurpose these fantastically versatile and eco-friendly items, and one of our new favourites is the paper bag scarecrow.
They’re really fun to put together, and you’ll find them simple enough to engage the interest of kids of all ages. You don’t even need much to put a few paper bag scarecrows together. For each one, simply start by gathering the following items:
- Black, Green, Orange, and Brown Card Stock
- Two Buttons
- Scissors
- Glue Stick
- One Brown Paper Bag
- Raffia
- Scrap Paper
Raffia doesn’t have to be used, but it’s perfect since it looks so much like hay. Start by threading a piece through one of your buttons twice. Tie it up, cut off the excess, then move on and repeat with the other button.
Next, take your brown card stock and cut it into the shape of hat – you can adopt any style of hat you want, but you’ll need to make sure the base is a little wider than the paper bag.
Cut a small triangle from your orange card, plus several black strips around half an inch long and a strip of green card about an inch wide – glue that last one to the hat.
You can now glue down the buttons to make eyes and add your orange triangle to make the mouth. The black strips can be glued down to make the shape of a stitched smile. Take some lengths of raffia around 14 inches long, fold them in half, then glue them close to the top of the bag. When you glue the hat over them, you’ll create the appearance of hair. All you need to do now is fill the bag with crumpled scrap paper and glue the top closed.
Once you’re done, feel free to get creative. You can draw on a face, use googly eyes instead of buttons, and experiment with different materials for your paper bag scarecrow’s hair.
