how to preserve autumn leaves

Four Ways To Preserve Autumn Leaves

Hello! In this tutorial, we are going to learn about four easy ways to preserve autumn leaves ready for use in your nature crafts or nature journal. Are you ready? Lets get started! Here are your quick links:

Why preserve autumn leaves?

Who can resist swishing through a pile of autumn leaves? Scuffing and kicking them up with your feet? Stopping to pick up a beautiful leaf? There are so many things you can do with them ... press them in journals, weave them into wreathes; crown yourself queen of the forest ...
 

You can of course use them just as they are. But, it helps if they are supple - they are easier to work with or, if you have a bit more time to enjoy them before they disintegrate or break. One way of making them last longer and increasing their flexibility, is to preserve them. There are multiple ways to do this, some more complicated than others. In this tutorial, we will look at the four easiest ways to preserve autumn leaves:

How to press leaves

This method is the simplest and easiest way of preserving autumn (or any) leaves. You simply use a heavy weight and some kind of blotting paper to dry the leaves out.

Uses:

Leaves dried by pressing are useful for sticking into nature journals or creating pictures. They can also be arranged with pressed flowers to make a more interesting feature.

You will need:

  • Flat, thin leaves
  • Newspaper or other blotting paper
  • Heavy books or weights

Directions:

  1. Lay your leaves carefully on half a sheet of folded newspaper.
  2. Gently lay the other half of the newspaper on top of the leaves.
  3. Place the heavy books or other weights on top.
  4. Keep them somewhere cool and dry.
  5. Gently lift the top sheet and check up on your leaves once a week.
  6. If any are looking mouldy, make sure to remove them.
  7. Your leaves are ready when they are completely dry.

Tips:

  • To make the leaves softer, you can soak in them in a little diluted laundry conditioner first.
  • Alternatively, you can gently brush them with a thin layer of vaseline or oil.

How to preserve leaves with waxed paper

This method uses a blanket of waxed paper to enclose the leaves. Applying heat, then makes the wax melt and coat the leaves.

Uses:

Leaves dried by this method can be used for garlands, bunting and lanterns.

You will need:

  • Flat, thin leaves
  • Waxed paper
  • Hot iron
  • 2 cloth rags
  • Ironing board

Directions:

  1. Lay one of your rags on the ironing board.
  2. Lay a sheet of waxed paper, waxy side up, on top of the rag.
  3. Carefully places your leaves on top of the waxed paper.
  4. Gently place another waxed paper, waxy side down, on top of the leaves.
  5. Carefully place the second rag on top of this second sheet.
  6. Slowly and smoothly, run your hot iron over the cloth on top of the waxed paper/leaf sandwich.
  7. Next, gently press down and hold the iron over the cloth for a few seconds, before moving to the next area.
  8. Do this for the whole cloth/wax-leaf-sandwich area.
  9. Make sure the wax has al melted, then remove the iron and allow to cool.
  10. Once they are completely cool, you can carefully tease the paper off the waxed leaves, then cut the leaves out.

Tips:

  • Try and leave a margin around each leaf when cutting them out. This helps ensure they stay sealed.

How to preserve leaves in a microwave

This method uses a microwave oven to dry out and preserve your leaves. 

Uses:

Leaves dried in the microwave can be used in nature journals, book marks and for inserting in clay tiles.

You will need:

  • Fresh, pliable leaves. 
  • Paper towels
  • Paper
  • Ceramic coaster or flat, microwaveable plate
  • Microwave oven

Directions:

  1. Fold a piece of paper in half, then open it up
  2. Carefully lay your leaves in one half of the open paper
  3. Fold the paper in half, sandwiching the leaves inside it.
  4. Then sandwich the paper-leaf sandwich inside your paper towel.
  5. Place this bundle carefully in the microwave
  6. Gently place a ceramic toaster or flat plate on top of the bundle.
  7. Microwave on medium heat for 30 seconds, then check your leaves.
  8. Keep checking every 30 seconds.
  9. Your leaves are ready when they are nice and dry and no longer stick to the paper.

Tips:

  • Make sure you keep checking your leaves every 10-30 seconds - if they become too dry, they may scorch and burn.
  • Thinner leaves will dry much faster than thicker leaves. So, it may be useful to dry thick and thin leaves in separate batches.

How to preserve leaves in a glycerine bath

This method uses a mixture of water and glycerine to preserve your leaves.

Uses:

Leaves dried in a glycerine bath, maintain their soft, supple quality. They can be used in bunting, vase decorations, leaf crowns or other crafts.

You will need:

  • Fresh leaves or twiggy branches
  • Water
  • Glycerine
  • Container

Directions:

  1. Mix 1 part of glycerine to 2 parts of water
  2. Carefully submerge your leaves into this water-glycerine mix
  3. Place a heavy dish on top to help push the leaves under and keep them submerged
  4. Leave them in the solution and check on them every 2-3 days
  5. Your leaves are ready when they are soft, flexible and shiny.
  6. Take them out, and blot them dry on  some paper towels
  7. Voila! Your leaves are ready to use.

Tips:

  • You can also preserve whole branches with leaves attached too. Just crush the ends of the branches and place them in a vase containing the water-glycerine solution. Store it away from heat and sunlight. The branch is ready once little dew-like beads appear on the leaves. Take them out of the solution, blot them off and leave them to dry.

Other leaf preservation methods

Above, we have discussed four methods of preserving autumn leaves ready for use in your autumn leaf nature crafts. But, there are also several other methods you can use. Some of these include,

  • Dipping in melted wax
  • Coating in PVA glue
  • Laminating in plastic
  • Using nail varnish
  • Painting in glitter glue

Why not experiment and see which methods you prefer? If you want to identify the leaves you find, you can check out this post here.

Summary

Well... there we go! A quick introduction to four ways you can use to help you preserve autumn leaves ready for use in your nature crafts. I hope you enjoyed this tutorial? Let me know in the comments. Happy nature walking and see you soon!

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