Interested in an exciting craft project? Whether for kids or adults, these dried leaf picture ideas are a great fall activity!
When it's raining outside, there's nothing I'd rather do than try out new craft ideas indoors with my kids. And for me, autumn is the season that stimulates the imagination the most. The beautiful colors and patterns invite us to get creative and collect and reinterpret everything nature has to offer us. That's exactly what today's post is about. I would like to show you how you can use the fallen autumn leaves to make pretty pictures with dried leaves. There are a few important points to consider before letting your creativity run wild. I will address this below. There will be no shortage of ideas here either. So: read on and get inspired!
Drying leaves: Why it's important and how to do it fastest
Crafting with leaves is one of the most popular projects for children in both kindergarten and elementary school. Everyone has access to this inexpensive material and can reuse it as they wish. And although this idea for homemade pictures made of autumn leaves seems very simple at first glance, there are a few things you have to take into account. One step that is often skipped is drying the leaves. But this is fundamental for a beautiful and long-lasting work of art.
If the leaves dry naturally in the air or in the sun, they can contract and deform. If the sheets used are not completely dry, they will curl in a few days and can ruin the design of your picture. Therefore, it is advisable that you only use dried leaves for crafts.
There aremany methods to dry leaves– between books, with salt, washing powder and even in the microwave. Personally, I like the book method the most because it always works well. But if you want to dry and press the leaves quickly, you can do this with an iron. It's really quick and easy and is suitable for leaves of any shape and size. Here's how:
- Place the sheet on the ironing board.
- Cover it with a piece of wax paper or a thin t-shirt or piece of fabric.
- Iron on medium heat until the sheet is dry and pressed.
- Peel away the paper or fabric slowly to avoid breaking the sheet.
If your leaves are already dry, pressed and ready for crafting, you can get started right away. Ideas are a dime a dozen. Would you like to be inspired? Then I'll present some super simple suggestions. Let's start with the easy-peasy ideas:
Autumn trees
A very popular project for kindergarten and elementary school is autumn trees. Instead of thatMaking autumn trees,The children can depict this on a piece of paper using dried autumn leaves. Older children can draw the trunk themselves, although small children would need a pre-drawn template.
You can also use a single, large leaf for the treetop, but it's more fun if you stick several leaves on at the same time. Speaking of glue: both normal school glue and a glue stick are suitable, although the second variant is much cleaner, especially when it comes to crafting with small children.
Big butterfly
Although it is more of a spring motif, the butterfly is popular with young and old and therefore finds its place in our collection. This idea is also very easy to do: you paint a large butterfly on the leaf and then let the child decorate the wings with colorful autumn leaves. Maybe you can create some little butterflies to go with it?
Make a bunny picture
A few small dried autumn leaves are all children need for this beautiful picture. You can't always come up with such an idea yourself, so an example like this can be very helpful as a role model. So you already know what kind of leaves you need for this craft idea and can search for them directly.
A classic autumn image: the hedgehog
Anyone who already had children in kindergarten most likely received such a hedgehog picture with leaves as a gift. This is a very popular craft project for little ones that never gets boring. You just needa suitable templateand the dried leaves if you want to try the idea at home.
Cute foxes
In recent years I have come across ideas for more and more oftenpainted leaves. This has basically become a trend and I think it's really great. I particularly like the ideas for animals that you can conjure up on the autumn leaves with just a few brush strokes. The orange leaves, for example, are ideal for cute foxes or deer if you paint the appropriate facial features on them. The finished animals can then be added to a larger image.
Cool projects for adults
It's not just children who love making crafts with autumn leaves. Adults can also create great pictures with dried leaves. These can then serve as a gift for a loved one or be hung on the wall as an autumn decoration. Let's look at a few ideas together.
Make a picture of a vase with dried flowers
For someone who loves vases with flowers, you can make a similar picture using dried leaves. For this you need a canvas or cardboard, as well as a vase template. You stick these directly onto the base and then use the autumn leaves to create a beautiful arrangement in the vase.
Beautiful autumn bouquet with frame
Instead of a bouquet of flowers, you can use this idea forBirthday children in autumnapply. It's super easy to make and you can enjoy it for a long time. Not many things are necessary at all: 1-2 dry autumn leaves, a hydrangea flower, small ferns and whatever branches you like. Tie them together into a mini bouquet and frame it. Complete.
Colorful autumn collage
If you want to combine all the colors of autumn in one picture, then make a collage! This craft idea is so easy and so beautiful at the same time! Collect leaves of all possible colors and glue them onto a sheet of kraft paper. Glue the most beautiful ones in the middle. Take a second sheet of kraft paper and cut out one or more motifs. Then stick it on the leaves, press briefly and that's it. You can use the colorful autumn collage as a greeting card or in small format as a gift tag.
