Turn Hollyhock Into Lovely Flower Dolls
Making Hollyhock or Hibiscus flower dolls, is an age old craft. Many country girls have memories of creating dozens of these delicate little friends out of the colorful flowers.
Early summer is the perfect time to introduce your favorite little herbalist, to the joys of playing with herbs. On this day, we went to grandma's house, and found many flowers waiting.
Choose Additional Flowers If Available
These are additional flowers that looked like they would make wonderful dolls for our herb project.
Mixing colors is a fun way to make the loveliest dolls. We chose as many colors as grandma had in her yard. Aren't these pretty?
Simple Equipment Needed For Making Hollyhock Dolls
Talk about simple, these dollies are traditionally made in the shade of a tree, on a sunny day. What makes them so appealing, is how easy they are to make. We would gather the blossoms and buds of the hollyhocks, and find a little twig.
Here are the things I used to make my dolls at the kitchen table. Plenty of flowers, buds, a pair of scissors and a pencil. My helper is only 2 1/2, so corralling her at the kitchen table was a bonus.
Remove Stems Of Each Flower
Pinch or snip off the stems, so they are flush with the blossom. Gently place each blossom upside down, to avoid damaging the petals. Pinching off the stem is easy enough to do with your fingers, if you are happen to be sitting under a tree while assembling.
Create A Hole To Insert The Bud
Using a sharp twig or other tool (here I am using a pencil), poke a hole into the center of each blossom. You are creating a place to insert the stem of the bud (head), so make sure it is deep enough to accommodate the length of the stem.
This can be quite tricky for little fingers, since the flowers will split easily. Use a gentle touch, and it try to poke the hole without rocking your tool back and forth.
I recommend having extra blossoms just in case. If you are working with a little helper, they might want to do another task, such as lining up the finished blossoms.
If the hole is too large, or the blossom splits, the bud(head) will fall over at the most inopportune moment. Can you tell that I share this from experience?
Insert Hollyhock Bud For A Head
Insert a bud into the hold you created, to make a head for the doll. This is best done, if there is a long enough stem left on the bud. Once the stem is pressed into the hole, the dolls are pretty sturdy.
It is fun to use buds in different stages of opening for a unique look each time.
Even when you have a limited number of hollyhock plants to choose from, it is easy to make a wide variety of dolls. Mixing up the colors and stages of buds, makes completely different looks for each toy.
My favorite has always been using a spent bloom as a head. This seems to resemble long, flowing hair, and these were the dolls that always became my queens. Many hours were spent playing royal court with this fun herbal craft.
It is a great way to cool off after a busy summer afternoon, and especially magical if done on a porch during a summer thunderstorm.
A very pleased little herb girl. This is a wonderful way to spend the afternoon, don't you think?
Making Hollyhock or Hibiscus flower dolls, is an age old craft. Many country girls have memories of creating dozens of these delicate little friends out of the colorful flowers.
Early summer is the perfect time to introduce your favorite little herbalist, to the joys of playing with herbs. On this day, we went to grandma's house, and found many flowers waiting.
Choose Additional Flowers If Available
These are additional flowers that looked like they would make wonderful dolls for our herb project.
Mixing colors is a fun way to make the loveliest dolls. We chose as many colors as grandma had in her yard. Aren't these pretty?
Simple Equipment Needed For Making Hollyhock Dolls
Talk about simple, these dollies are traditionally made in the shade of a tree, on a sunny day. What makes them so appealing, is how easy they are to make. We would gather the blossoms and buds of the hollyhocks, and find a little twig.
Here are the things I used to make my dolls at the kitchen table. Plenty of flowers, buds, a pair of scissors and a pencil. My helper is only 2 1/2, so corralling her at the kitchen table was a bonus.
Remove Stems Of Each Flower
Pinch or snip off the stems, so they are flush with the blossom. Gently place each blossom upside down, to avoid damaging the petals. Pinching off the stem is easy enough to do with your fingers, if you are happen to be sitting under a tree while assembling.
Create A Hole To Insert The Bud
Using a sharp twig or other tool (here I am using a pencil), poke a hole into the center of each blossom. You are creating a place to insert the stem of the bud (head), so make sure it is deep enough to accommodate the length of the stem.
This can be quite tricky for little fingers, since the flowers will split easily. Use a gentle touch, and it try to poke the hole without rocking your tool back and forth.
I recommend having extra blossoms just in case. If you are working with a little helper, they might want to do another task, such as lining up the finished blossoms.
If the hole is too large, or the blossom splits, the bud(head) will fall over at the most inopportune moment. Can you tell that I share this from experience?
Insert Hollyhock Bud For A Head
Insert a bud into the hold you created, to make a head for the doll. This is best done, if there is a long enough stem left on the bud. Once the stem is pressed into the hole, the dolls are pretty sturdy.
It is fun to use buds in different stages of opening for a unique look each time.
Even when you have a limited number of hollyhock plants to choose from, it is easy to make a wide variety of dolls. Mixing up the colors and stages of buds, makes completely different looks for each toy.
My favorite has always been using a spent bloom as a head. This seems to resemble long, flowing hair, and these were the dolls that always became my queens. Many hours were spent playing royal court with this fun herbal craft.
It is a great way to cool off after a busy summer afternoon, and especially magical if done on a porch during a summer thunderstorm.
A very pleased little herb girl. This is a wonderful way to spend the afternoon, don't you think?