The ancient Slavic holiday was so fond of the people for its mood, bright colors, traditions and folk festivities that it did not disappear into oblivion with the eradication of paganism, but continues to be one of the most popular and massive events to this day.
Shrovetide lasts a whole week, symbolizing the farewell to winter and the anticipation of the arrival of the spring months. The brightest impressions of this period are delicious pancakes, Maslenitsa amulets and souvenirs, the symbolic burning of a scarecrow.
Holiday attributes
Hand-made crafts for Maslenitsa reflect the main traditions of the holiday and its attributes. They are associated with the pagan sun god Yarila, expelled in winter and with doll amulets. The main symbols of Shrovetide include:
- Pancakes resembling a sun disk;
- Solntse-Yarilo in the form of various crafts;
- Traditional amulet doll;
- Scarecrow of Winter;
- Drawings and crafts depicting mass celebrations, folk amusements and a fair.
All these attributes are made during the Maslenitsa week from a variety of materials. Due to their varying degrees of difficulty, they are available for both toddlers and adults.
Shrovetide crafts options
The choice of creative ideas for crafts for Shrovetide is so great that you can pick up interesting options for any age:
- Kids,
- Schoolchildren and adults.
All items conceived for making must reflect the symbolism of the holiday.
For children, as crafts for Shrovetide, you can choose:
- Drawings,
- Applications,
- Origami,
- Plasticine figurines
- Cloth dolls
- Miniature copies of stuffed animals.
Solar products
The most common variant of the symbolic reflection of the holiday is the manufacture of solar attributes. It is quite easy to depict the sun, therefore, most often the kids in the kindergarten on Shrovetide make crafts in the form of a yellow disk with rays.
A few simple steps are enough for this:
- A circle with a diameter of 25 cm is cut out of a sheet of thick yellow cardboard, to which paper rays are glued along the edge of the circle.
- Older children make several holes in a circle and insert threads or fabric ribbons into them as rays.
- Decorated with a sun disk with a painted face, sparkles, glue rhinestones or beads.
You can take a simple paper disposable plate for the base. It is enough just to paint it yellow and arrange it in the same way.
The sun can also be molded from salt dough or plasticine. In this case, ordinary toothpicks can serve as rays. The product is painted with gouache or acrylic paints and decorated with various shiny elements.
Festive pancakes
Pancake week cannot do without the main symbol of the holiday.
- In this case, pancakes are not just a dish, but a real work of folk art. In its simplest form, a pancake can depict the sun with facial features painted with sour cream, berry eyes and a smile made from jam.
- A more complex creative approach will turn the treat into a pancake well or a hut, where the products rolled up in a tube are folded into a log cabin, into a cake with various layers and the design of the top pancake in the form of a sun or berry-fruit composition, into various origami pancake figures.
Doll-amulet
Making a Shrovetide doll requires some skill. Such crafts for Maslenitsa are made both at school in labor lessons and at home during leisure hours. To make the amulet, you will need materials:
- Cloth scraps;
- Threads and yarns;
- Ribbons, buttons, beads.
The simplest version of the Maslenitsa doll craft will be prepared like this:
- Roll a flap of dense fabric with a roller. It will be used as a body.
- Put a cotton ball in the center of the second flap and pull it off. It will be ready.
- Weave a braid out of yarn and attach it to the head with the help of threads that tightened the head flap.
- Roll up two small hand rollers and sew to the body.
- Dress up the doll in a ready-made or self-made dress, tie a scarf and an apron.
- Decorate the doll's face with threads, buttons and beads.
In a more complex version, it is supposed to make a wooden body of a talisman with a foam ball head. Ordinary plastic bottles can also serve as the basis of the doll.
Plasticine and dough souvenirs
Among the many vivid photos of crafts for Maslenitsa, you can find a lot of interesting ideas for depicting folk festivals and fairground fun in the form of multi-figure compositions.
For the basis of the souvenir, a sheet of thick cardboard is taken, on which figurines molded from plastic material are installed and fixed on glue. To decorate the composition, ribbons, fabric scraps, colored paper and various decorative elements are used.
Shrovetide effigy
Among the master classes for making crafts for Shrovetide, there are many options for making stuffed animals. It symbolizes winter, the expulsion of which will make it possible for spring to triumph. The expulsion process consists of incineration, which turns into a spectacular event.
- The structure is made of combustible natural materials: brushwood and twigs, hay and straw, bark and paper. Do not use rubber or plastic parts to prevent the release of toxic substances with smoke.
- The size of the stuffed animal depends on the scale of the event. If a purely symbolic burning in a narrow circle is planned, then a small product attached to the end of a stick will suffice.
- If a large structure requires a large pole on which straw or brushwood is tied, then a simple old broom is suitable for the base of a miniature scarecrow. The aesthetic side of the design of the symbol of the banished winter is not so important, the main thing is the cheerful organization of the action itself.
Making Maslenitsa crafts is very useful for both adults and children in terms of studying the history and traditions of the Slavs.
Returning to traditions during the week-long Maslenitsa celebration gives the whole family an opportunity to participate in festivities and the manufacture of various symbolic handicrafts.
Photo of crafts for Shrovetide
