The Scarecrow – Wizard of Oz Style

Happy Thanksgiving! (from Canada) The spirit of the season can be found in many colourful decorations but who can resist a ‘GOOD’ Scarecrow?! You won’t see any like this out there… The Scarecrow – Wizard of Oz Style.

The leaves are turning colour already (come up here and visit) and the turkey is roasting. I’m the fussy type that doesn’t like really typical decorations; the curse of being a visual person, always assessing…

The Wizard of Oz Style Scarecrow

Whenever I’d see a scarecrow I’d reminisce about the wonderful one in the wizard of Oz. He had a burlap covered head and his nose would poke through a hole. That’s the look I wanted! – A great face!

Here’s my starting point; a pathetic but cute typical scarecrow that had see better days. It did have some nice grasses and frame so it would save a bit of work. Sometimes it makes much sense to buy before spending much time and energy to start from complete scratch.

The Important Face

Since the ‘Oz scarecrow is all about the great face I had been wondering how I could do that… Hmmm. I finally saw some inexpensive clear masks made to be a simple formed face cover. I painted the nose black and around the eyes. It was really only the form of the face that I was in need of here.

Here comes the burlap! Using an extra large square the is on the diagonal I covered the face and glued in spots to keep place. The diagonal will allow the stretching into the details and form of the face.

Once in place I gave him the typical rope around his neck and tucked the extra burlap behind his head (as a hat will be covering that anyways)

To make it all as one and weather friendly I gave the burlap a coating of Matt medium. That also secures it to the mask and it keeps the face shape. Doesn’t he look creepy real?!

Scarecrow’s Formed Face

Isn’t it amazing how much more character this fellow has now?! There’s no excuse for shoddy scarecrows…

The rest is pretty easy and can use whatever you have. Take a thrifted red plaid kids shirt and some old straw hat and add some sunflowers and red leaves.

Add the Details:

The eyes need a bit of painting to come alive ( a bit of acrylic paint). I used the fabric from the old dress and made fringe around his hat – there are no rules.

A pair of my kids old jeans were sized down with a bit of hot glue seams and tied at the ankles and waist. Much hidden hot glue and ties make it come together super easy and fast. A stick across his shoulders and he’s ready to get to work… To bulk up the body I use old plastic bags so they do not hold the moisture. Yes, he gets wet but will dry again quickly.

I have a metal 2-arm post that hangs planters in the summer and it becomes his roost in the fall. The warm reds and oranges accent all the fallen leaves.

Go ahead, upgrade your scarecrow or make a new one – Wizard of Oz style! I will be happy to bring him out each year. If you prefer decorations made of concrete I can help you with that as well.

In any event, take time to show thanks for all your blessings, big or small… I hope I’ve just made you smile if nothing else!

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33 Comments

      1. This is so cool! The flat faces on the $5 ones always bothered me but I never thought more into it as to how to fix it.

        1. I’ll admit; I have never really worn Halloween masks. I could imagine a covering that fits over top of the glasses, like the kind they wore at mystery balls, just embellished ‘eyemask’. Feathers and other things could jazz it up, hook on each arm. 🤷🏻‍♀️

  1. Barb, This beats it all. I never would have thought anyone (Well, yes you could.) could save that generic scarecrow. I love this.
    Ginene

  2. This is so cool. Who would’ve though of using a mask for the face. OH YEAH, BARB! Looks so real and amazing. Love you concrete projects. I plan on making two large concrete boulders/monoliths using your process.