I didn't know the story of Rapunzel very well. The fact that her mother and father could not have a baby for a long time, and that the herb that the husband steals from the witch's garden is called Rapunzel. It is horrible really because they lose their baby until she is quite old. The morals are hard to fathom. The husband was only taking the leaves because he was worried about his wife, and the witch was only taking the child because she was stolen from. I don't think a child for some salad really constitutes an eye for an eye though. Ah well, those are questions I did not have to worry about today when I used my dolls to help tell the story. And I expect, like me, most of the children will remember the most exciting part of the story, the fact that Rapunzel has extremely long hair which people climb up and down. I bought some herbs for a touch of realism-today was mint-we all had a sniff and some liked it more than others. Tomorrow is dill and coriander.
I made two of each of the main characters-so each carpet had a set, and there is a set for the children to play with afterwards, and one to keep for the adults to use. I was most proud of the design feature that Rapunzel has detachable hair! A long plait, a bit of weaving and some elastic worked very well.
Here are a few pictures of the Rapunzels, the Princes and the witches posing on my book ladder. (It became my book ladder earlier in the year, rather than my lovely but doesn't have a purpose ladder. It works well, though needs to be attached to the wall at the top or it pushes away with the weight of the books and falls over)
Two shades of green and curly wool tops from Skye became the hair for the witch. I needle felted it on which worked really well. Some yellow wool I have had for about ten years is the hair. I used some recently bought hessian to make the bodies, and wrapped pipe cleaners with wool to be the arms. Don't cut up loads of hessian while wearing flanelette pajamas. I had to get the sticky roller out even after they had been washed. I really enjoyed making these as they are quite rough and ready, and I am better at that than polished and smart!
I embroidered the initial sounds of the characters on their fronts so they can never forget who they are.
I went to the shops to buy some compost to make the witch's garden tomorrow. When I got back in the car I sat for a few minutes looking at the sky. The way the clouds were made me think of fabric-particularly Ikat fabric like this. (Image found here)
