Cattail Doll
by Bob Gillis
Find some cattail near a pond or creek. You will want the cattail to be brown but not brittle. If green is all you can get, then dry it out in the shade. Use narrow leaf cattails if you can find them. If you can not find narrow leaf cattails then consider splitting it for some of the doll.
Get your leaves wet overnight. Form a ball by winding up one or more leaves.
Make your ball an oval shape so it will look like a head.
Run the leaves over the head ball from side to side. Wrap a leaf around the neck. Do not strip leaves.
Take several leaves. 1/3 from one end and twist the leaves to start it to "twine" back on its self. This will form one arm.
At approximatly 2/3, repeat this twining to make the second arm.
Divide neck leaves in two and stick arms up to base of neck . Take two bunches of leaves and fold in half.
Drape these leaves over the shoulders.
Insert a leaf into the body. Wrap and tuck the end back in.
Trim the base leaves and shape the arms as desired.
E-mail your comments to "Bob Gillis" at bob@shelter-systems.com
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