Art Ideas for Fall Leaves

Leaf Stencils

• Nearly foolproof, using real leaves as you would a stencil and acrylic spray paint results in a nature collage that looks airbrushed. Use small pieces of double-stick tape under flattened leaves and apply the leaves onto a sheet of medium-weight watercolor paper. In a well-ventilated or outdoor area, lightly spray over the leaves and onto the paper with fall colors such as orange, red, yellow and brown. Allow to dry, and then move the leaves to painted areas of the paper and re-stick. Spray with another paint color, and repeat with a third color. Frame as one piece, or cut up the collage to use as cards or bookmarks. With the use of adaptive equipment that makes the traditional spray can nozzle a squeeze grip that is easier for young or arthritic hands, this project can be used successfully with a wide range of ages and abilities.

Digital Leaf Preservation

• Arm students or grab your own digital camera, and take close-up images of fall leaves. Whether you find them in an urban area or a park setting, take the pictures of the leaves as you find them. You can also take colorful fall leaves and place them in unusual settings or in a place with contrasting colors to capture more interesting images. Print the images directly or have a lesson in cropping or photo enhancement with the use of art filters. Add an extra dimension to the project when you challenge photographers to try to frame the shots so that the leaves are not identifiable or are placed in a setting to make a symbolic statement.

Clay Leaf Collage

• When you roll out standard firing pottery clay into a slab of about one-fourth inch, you create a surface that begs to be impressed upon. Cut the slab into a square to make a tile or into a circle or oval to make a plate or dish. Press leaves, vein sides down, into the wet clay. Roll over the leaves with a rolling pin to capture the delicate edges and details of the leaf in the clay. Cover the entire surface with leaf impressions, and then fire and glaze to make a dish, birdfeeder or decorative arts piece.

  More skilled hands can cut leaf-prints out of clay and then press the clay leaves gently together to form a lacy ceramic piece with cutouts that add interest to the piece.

Resin Leaf Art

• Clear resin, available at craft supply stores, makes it possible to encase nearly anything in plastic. With molds that help you create a perfect oval, dome or square of resin, you make key chains, paperweights or pendants that are one-of-a-kind. Collect small fall-colored leaves and match them to suitable molds that are large enough to contain the leaf. Mix the resin as directed on the packaging, and pour one-third into the mold. Place the leaf on top of the resin, facing down into the mold, and press into the material lightly. Top off with the rest of the clear resin, allow to dry and pop from the mold to see the resulting preserved leaf.