Corn husk dolls

My neighbor was kind enough to gift us a bag of fresh corn from her garden. Now granted All of my husks are still pretty green at the moment but I went ahead and shucked all 12 ears to make corn husk dolls and just realized I don’t know a thing about making them. Have any of you made them? Any pointers? Do I need to let the husks turn brown first? Lemme see them please. I’m a bit of a perfectionist and I want them to be amazing or I will end up taking them back apart :rofl:

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Yes! You can find some photos for inspiration by members of the Coven here:

Here’s a nice step-by-step tutorial I found on Pinterest:

And here are some ideas to celebrate Lughnasadh the First Harvest Sabbat :bread:

BTW you don’t need to let the husks turn brown first, they will do that on their own! Here’s my Brigid’s Cross from last imbolc:

Imbolc-Craft-Brigids-Cross

And this is what it looks like today:

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@Francisco that’s really neat. Is it made with corn husks too? I’ve only been practicing my craft about 6 months or so so the first sabbat I really got to do stuff for when I felt I could branch out from researching was Beltane and I didn’t really get to do much because I was moving but I did get to light a small fire in my make shift cauldron. I really got into and enjoyed litha but it was also my birthday as well. I’m really excited about lammas and I intend to do a little more reading up so I can really celebrate it. I’m not really sure if corn Dolly’s are tied to lammas other than the harvest aspect but I have been itching to try making one. I have plenty of husks too so I may make a few and add them to my fb shop too if my prototype turns out good. Thank you for sharing your cross with me as well as the other information. I’ll update with pictures when she’s made. Blessed be

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I can’t speak to what Francisco’s is made of but a Brigid’s cross is usually made of rushes. I made mine of reeds that we have available here in Texas.

Here is the video tutorial I used to make a Brigid’s Cross: Making a St. Brigid’s Cross - An Easy Step-by-Step Guide

This is the video I watched to learn how to make the corn dollies for this weekend: How to make a Corn Dolly for Lammas, Mabon, Samhain, Magical Crafting, Witchcraft Corn Husk Doll DIY

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Follow the process of making high quality corn husk dolls

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@phoenix_dawn Like Jessica mentioned, I used rushes. Corn is definitely associated with this sabbat since right now it’s corn season in this hemisphere!

Corn dolls were used as a representation of the Harvest and also as a symbol of good luck and fertility.

Among the customs attached to the last sheaf of the harvest were hollow shapes fashioned from the last sheaf of wheat or other cereal crops. The corn spirit would then spend the winter in this home until the “corn dolly” was ploughed into the first furrow of the new season.

There’s some more information and designs here

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@Francisco I absolutely love learning about the sabbats/esbats. It’s so fascinating and there are so many different traditions for each that the endless sources but it’s something so special about the different ways that you can blend the rituals into the daily non magical routines that the whole holiday super charged. I’m super excited about lammas even though corn dolls may be the only activity I get to do. @Amethyst ah a few bread recipes that looked great but baking bread is not on the list of things that I do well. Cooking any type of dish I’m great at as long as I have a basic recipe to build from I can make the recipe to suit my taste but I can not bake anything that is not premade in a tube or box mix that I would feed people :woman_shrugging:t3: oh though I just got inspired to do some of the corn I shucked and make some grilled corn to add to the festivities since bread is not an option.

I’m not even going to pretend that I’m not already on a samhain countdown because this is my first new year but my husband and I are discussing having a handfasting done that night in place of renewing our traditional vows. As he and I will be doing the the spells8 wiccan self initiation as well we’ve had a rough year so samhain countdown is going to be so special and we’ll always remember that our first new year we rededicate our commitment to each other and dedication to our craft… I feel like it will be a powerhouse renewal ritual for a blessed year ahead (and as a “bonus” I get to get swept up with romantic symbolisms)

Sorry I tend to get carried away with all the holiday magic haha. so I look forward to seeing all the lovely things that you’ll share for entire wheel

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Even if you don’t bake bread it doesn’t mean that you can’t buy some locally-made artisan bread and share it with friends or family.

This sabbat is all about celebrating the harvest, and since it falls on a weekend, I am thinking of going to the local farmer’s market and getting some fresh produce. Especially corn and other grains, and seasonal fruits or flowers.

Very soon I’ll be harvesting my own squashes and tomatoes! :ear_of_rice:

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Finally finished her this morning about 3 a.m…
She gave me a good bit more trouble than I imagined she would. She isn’t quite the work of art I had envisioned but she’s complete and surprisingly enough even my ocd about perfection is okay with it considering the difficulty I had assembling her. I can’t remember which tutorial I ended up watching because it was 3 a.m and my focus kept being broken by my shadowy guests and the racing thoughts about the goings on in my everyday life but kudos to who made it and her crafting skill because I ended up with an okay looking doll after tweaking the assembly process a few times and quite a few cuss words :woman_facepalming:t3:
@Francisco @Amaris_Bane I probably should have done Brigid’s cross first because after my corn dolly (who in my head I believe I made to resemble Rhiannon and I think I know why I did it subconsciously) I was so aggravated that I couldn’t bring myself to attempt it. :woman_shrugging:t3: Maybe next year. Now I’m going to dive into reading up on Mabon and start thinking about the fun ways I can celebrate it.

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It turned out great!! I never did make mine, lol. I’ll attempt to this week if I can carve out the time.

Don’t worry about the Brigid’s cross. They are typically made during Imbolc, which is also known as Brigid’s Day. You hang them above doorways and windows to protect the home from harm. I have mine hung above the RV door using a command hook. You typically leave it year round and replace it the following Imbolc. If you follow Celtic/Gaelic traditions.

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Well done, @phoenix_dawn!! :+1: :+1: I love the colors you chose, and the connection to Rhiannon makes it all worth it!!

I hope you are having a Happy Lammas! Mabon is also super fun, this is definitely my favorite time of the year :smiley:

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@Francisco I love fall. It’s my favorite time of the year. The beautiful colors, football season, and of course Halloween. I’ve always loved Halloween but I’m super excited to celebrate this year and partake in Samhain activities. Not to mention all the insects decide to go hide. And I won’t have to hide from the heat anymore… Well hopefully. Alabama is kind of indecisive sometimes about when we will actually get cool weather lol

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I planted squash for the first time last April! Now I’m thinking I should have planted pumpkins :laughing: but I’m really excited for the harvest in general!! :jack_o_lantern:

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Turned out awesome!!!

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Thank you @walter she’s not quite the doll of my dreams but I’m satisfied with her. I think I will hold on to her for a while. I’ve been receiving a lot of signs including the subconscious decision to make my dolly in the image of Rhiannon so I believe it’s time to start doing some research on her and the message or assistance she has for me. I think my dolly would be a very powerful offering when the time comes

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Tomato’s and squash, yummy

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I’d like to give those a go also, doll and the cross. Got my corn planted and growing. Should be ready in a couple months.

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Happiness is a green tomato turning red! :tomato:

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Your plants look amazing

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@Francisco holy cow those are some huge tomato plants! I’m not a tomato fan but they look great. I wish I had a green thumb. I was trying to grow sage, yarrow, thyme and peppermint and aloe but sadly my aloe plant is the only one that is still alive. I call him Alvin because a couple of months ago I was living on the streets because my husband missed a week of work due to MRSA and we couldn’t make the rent and I got so sunburned that I blistered so I ran in Walmart and bout this tiny little $5 aloe plant for my burn and that little guy rode around in my purse while I walked all over town for 2 weeks, got knocked over by my dog a lot, and I never got the chance to water him until I came home to my mom’s about in 2 months Alvin has doubled in size and his little arms have muscles now lol.
In my defense though the plants that died had been growing in the ground in Minnesota and got shipped down here to me in Alabama in ziplocks with their roots wrapped in damp paper towels and this was around litha. So that Alabama heat was just starting to mean business and my mom decided to drown them because they were slightly wilty from their trip :woman_facepalming:t3: I thought she legit knew what she was doing because all my life she’s been a plant whisperer but I guess l that’s a trait that isn’t going to age gracefully with her lol lesson learned. I did get a decent amount of fresh herbs to dry out and use in the end so there’s a silver lining.

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