Arts and Crafts

Augustinian Lutheran Church in Guatemala

In Guatemala, tiny worry dolls are made out of scrap materials. Before children go to bed, they tell their worries to their dolls, one at a time. They believe the dolls take away their worries while they sleep. Often six dolls are kept together in a tiny wooden box. The dolls, about 1-1/4 inches tall, are made with wire with paper wrapped around, and yarn or cloth scraps wrapped on for clothing.

Your worry doll can be easily made from twist ties (it will be about 3 inches high, taller than those usually made.)

Worry Doll

Materials needed:

Twist ties (3 per doll)
Colored embroidery floss or yarn
Scraps of construction paper
Scissors
Glue
Narrow tip black marker

Twist two twist ties together about one inch from the end. Leave the short ends together for the head, and separate the long ends for the legs.

Wrap the third twist tie around the first twist for the doll’s arms. Cut if necessary for the doll’s arms to be the same length. Bend the ends of the ties for hands and feet.

Tie the end of a long piece of yarn or floss around the center of the doll, and wrap the yarn around body and down one leg. Then wind the yarn back up the leg. Wind down and up the other leg, and tie off the ends.

Wrap the chest and arms the same way that the legs were wrapped.

Fold a small piece of construction paper in half, and trim to a circle shape for a head. Leave it joined at the fold. Fold the head over the twist tie ends, glue in place, and add a face. Now you have a worry doll!