Leaf at First Sight; Creating a Leaf Collage in Photo Frame

Fall is my favorite time of year.  I love the brilliant colors of the trees up the canyon. My bedroom even has a leaf theme.  It all started with a leaf, 14 years ago on our first date. My husband took me for a Jeep ride off-road in the mountains to see the beautiful fall colors.  I found a leaf and stuck it in my back pocket and it survived.  I framed it (I did nothing more than stick it under a glass frame) and here is what it looks like 14 years later. It has a few brown spots as you can see.

For our anniversary a few years ago we took a hike in the mountains to collect leaves.  I decided to make a collage with the leaves we collected.  (Our bedroom now has a leaf theme.) I did not dry them out properly but I did spray them with a varnish to make them glossy and hopefully preserve them better. They have kept their brilliant colors for 5 years now.  Try taking your kids for a walk around your neighborhood and see what you can find then make your own collage.

HOW TO:
1. I would recommend drying the leaves well (microwaving is one option) so they may dry more flat and not look as wrinkly. For more tips on preserving leaves click here.
2. I laid all the leaves out on the picture mat in the design I thought looked best.
3. I carefully sprayed them so they would have a nice even cover of varnish. 
4. Let the varnish air dry (I waited 2 hours).
5. Stick the glass frame on top then add the wood frame. 

ObSEUSSed Lit Link:
We suggest reading The Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert. We checked it out from the library and the kids loved looking at images made out of leaves and wondering where the wind will take the Leaf Man.  You could also have your kids try making similar images.

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