Professional artist Judy Mulford has come up with a great way to recycle those old jeans that you've outgrown or that have gone out of style. Make life-sized dolls that can serve as decorations around your house. Although Mulford's dolls are large and life-like, they're very easy, and also inexpensive because they're comprised of recycled materials from your home and garage.
Materials:
six to eight large sheets of newspaper
Scotch tape
Crayola crayon or pencil
scissors
old bed sheet
one foot of stacked newspapers shredded into small strips old clothes - shoes, socks, hat, and wig that will fit person
18-inch stick or straight branch
one ruler or short stick
straight pins
Steps:
- For the pattern, tape four to six large pieces of newspaper together at the edges.
- Have your subject lie down on the newspaper with their arms and legs spread out (figure A). Trace around them with a crayon or pencil. Avoid using a marker since it will seep through the newspaper to the surface below.
- Cut out head and body to crotch. Cut out legs and arms separately. Angle feet sideways before cutting out (figure B).
- Fold sheet in half and pin patterns on. Cut around pattern one inch from the pattern edge. Remember to cut four pieces for the arms and legs.
- Machine- or hand-stitch the pieces together and clip the curves.
- Stuff the body with 1/2 inch of shredded newspaper (figure C). Stuff three-fourths of the head and add the 13-inch stick. Stuff solidly around the stick in the head and as it goes down the neck. Use the ruler or shorter stick to solidly pack the newspaper. This is important to keep the head upright.
- Finish stuffing the body and whip-stitch the lower body together. Stuff the arms and legs the same.
- Tie strings around where the elbows and knees are. Sew the arms to the top of the shoulders and the legs to the bottom of the body.
- Dress the doll with your subject's clothes (figure D). Wigs and hats are important to the character of the final piece. If it is a woman, breasts can easily be created by putting on a bra and stuffing the cups with old socks. Remove the bra and "she" can become a "he." Faces can be left blank or drawn on.
Some Additional Advice From Mulford:
These soft "people" are great fun to make and place around your house. You can make one in less than a day. If you are a female and drive long distances alone, leave the legs off a "man" and have him sit in your front seat. You can even get life-like head masks that will make the person look more real.
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