Scarecrow

Inspiration

rowing up, I shared a bedroom with my twin sister Claudia. Our bedroom was a magnificent place for make-believe. A place where Scarecrow would frequently come to life. It was a nice size room, large enough to fit two twin beds, a large low antique dresser, and still have, between the two beds, plenty of area to play. The north wall was a half wall painted royal blue with windows that expanded from side to side. The south wall had a wall to wall and ceiling to floor built-in-closet. The east wall was white, and my bed was against it. The west wall was covered with light cherry paneling, and my sister Claudia’s bed was against it. Disguised by the wood paneling, there was a secret door to the bathroom. Our bedroom was far from ordinary, as it welcomed Scarecrow from time to time.

The bedroom floor was tiled with large 16” by 16” square yellow tiles. Those yellow tiles were fantastic. They came very handy when sorting Barbie’s clothes, colored pencils or blocks. They were perfect for playing hopscotch. And the tiles provided a nice surface for playing jacks, and pick-up sticks. But the best of all, was when we pretended to be Dorothy as we skipped across the bedroom following the yellow-brick-road. I remember, in the evenings after brushing my teeth, following my own yellow-brick-road, arms-linked with Scarecrow, from the bathroom until I would reach my bed. I would crawl in bed, close my eyes, and imagine having reached the Emerald City with my friend Scarecrow. And then, my dreams would take over, transporting me to the magical worlds I used to draw with my color pencils. Until the next day, when I would trace back my steps into the bathroom, and into an ordinary world where there was only room for yellow tiles, and none for yellow-brick-roads or Scarecrow.

Scarecrow Figurine and Ornament Design Process

In his book, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, L. Frank Baum describes Scarecrow as wearing a tattered Munchkin hat. If you are not aware, Munchkin’s hats are blue. So, I chose a blue color palette for the Scarecrow’s outfit. And I selected cotton fabrics on several blue tones and patterns.

To make his head, I used a light cream fabric resembling a canvas material. The type of material used to make produce bags, like the ones you would find at a farmers market filled with fresh produce. I used real straw and glued it in a way that it would appear as if it was coming out from under Scarecrow’s head. Then, I used a hemp string to tie the canvas bag around the neck as if to secure the hay inside his head. In the book, when the farmer makes Scarecrow, he paints one of his eyes smaller than the other. So, I replicated that same mistake as I was painting Scarecrow’s face.

I gave Scarecrow a belt as if to help keep Scarecrow stuffed with straw. Just like the head, I glued some straw coming out from under his shirt. One of the recognizable elements of the Scarecrow character, based on the book, is the walking-cane he carries. So, I gave Scarecrow a walking cane like in the book. Years ago, my husband bought our dining room set at a tag sale from one of his customers. The back of the chairs were made of cane, but were in bad shape. As any newlyweds, I took the task to fix them myself—it was too expensive to have them fixed professionally. The chairs turned out great, but I was left with extra cane and extra spline. Stored in my attic for over 25 years, I dug out the spline and used it to form mini walking-canes for the Scarecrows. I cut the spline to size. Then I soaked it until it was bendable. I bent it and secured it with a rubber band and let it dry holding that shape. Once dried, I had a nice tiny walking-cane that I glued to The Scarecrow’s side.

To complete Scarecrow’s outfit, I made a blue Munchkin hat with blue felt. A Munchkin hat resembles a witch hat. I bent the tip of the hat to give it a distressed and tattered look. For the final touch to bring the character to life, I perched a crow on his hat. As I did with Dorothy, Cowardly Lion, Tin Woodman and Toto, I placed Scarecrow on a yellow base that represents the yellow-brick-road that, just like me, you might have dreamed of following, once upon a time.