The belief that a human figure made in a special way has magical powers has existed since ancient times. Until now, in the homes of the Old Believers in the chests, dolls-charms have been hidden that fulfill an important mission - to preserve the family hearth, save the house from the evil eye, protect young children from illnesses and misfortunes, help the traveler on the road.
Such dolls were made by women, custodians of the clan and family, in the evenings with a lit splinter, with great love and kindness, with a saying and conspiracy, giving them special magical power.
It is significant that such dolls did not have a face, they were all faceless. It is believed that this indicated the inanimateness of the doll, therefore, it was inaccessible to evil dark forces. The absence of a face also emphasized the neutrality of the image, aroused imagination. A child could associate such a doll with any loved one who gave her love and kindness, and with her face she could look like anyone, including a person promising unkind to the house. Such products were hung over the crib, in the hallway, in the attic of the house under the roof.
How to make a doll with your own hands?
In the image of a rag amulet, every detail was important and endowed with a certain meaning. So, in her (dolls) costume, they necessarily used red as a symbol of joy, warmth and health, and various embroidered ornaments, the elements of which had a deep symbolic meaning: circles and crosses - traditional solar signs, symbols of the sun; figures of women - symbols of fertility; horizontal and vertical lines - symbolic designations of the earth and tree, eternal life; diamonds with a dot inside - designation of the sown field and future crop.
So, how to make a doll with your own hands from shreds of multi-colored fabric so that it protects the house and family? To work, you will need shreds of natural fabrics (cotton, linen, wool), satin ribbons, threads and a needle, thick twisted threads of cotton or wool for braids, as well as necessarily a good mood.
1. How to make a doll yourself from fabric? For the body we roll up a thick tube of white dense fabric. Its height is about 20-25 cm. Next, we throw a square flap of thinner white fabric on top of the tube so that its middle falls on its top. These will be pens. Now with a strong cotton thread we drag the body together with the flap, stepping back from the top a few centimeters - we designate the neck and head. We tuck the flap up from below and also drag it with a thread - we designate thus the hands. In a traditional beregini doll, arms are spread out to the sides, like wings of a bird. In order to give them the necessary shape, insert pieces of cotton wool into the fabric.
2. How to make a doll with your own hands further? Now the improvised figure needs to be put on. For a blouse, we take a small square of colored fabric, cut a hole for the head in the middle and thread it into this hole. Near the hands, the gloves are pulled together with a thread, making them lush. We put a two-layer or three-layer skirt on the waist, which can be decorated with ornament, braid and lace. In front we tie a rectangle of fabric in the form of an apron, also decorated with lace and braid.
3. A female figure must be adorned with a long thick braid woven from woolen or thick cotton threads. The braid is sewn from the back to the head or tied to the neck by the thread. A scarf is tied on top of his head.
These are general recommendations on how to make a doll with your own hands to protect the house and children. Rag magic dolls had different symbolic meanings. A krupenichka doll or a grain-feed was the nurse, the keeper of the harvest, and the nurse was a symbol of wealth and prosperity.
Grain doll and feeder
How to make a rag doll with your own hands, protecting wealth in the family? This can be done traditionally, only the body is a bag filled with grain (it was taken immediately after harvesting). The pupa was filled with any cereal, as well as peas, lentils, and small beans. This amulet was stored in a red corner all year until the next harvest.
The feeding doll was made in the form of a magnificent full-breasted woman-mistress. To make the breast, under the flap of the tissue from which the hands are formed, in the chest area put cotton or other soft filler. Such a doll was necessarily given to the expectant mother, and she put her in the crib before the birth of the baby. After the baby was born, the product was hung at the head of the crib, it protected the baby from the evil eye.
Puppet amulets of travelers were given a bundle with a lump of native land. A bundle of red fabric near the shoreline symbolized happiness and joy that she would never let go of her hands.