How to Preserve Autumn Leaves

Autumn leaves with their bright colors are perfect for craft projects and seasonal decorating. The trouble with using freshly fallen autumn leaves is that they dry up within a week and lose their vibrant colors.

However, with a few ordinary household supplies, you can preserve autumn leaves so that they last for years. You can use them in scrapbooks, incorporate them into collages, or make unique jewelry with small leaves. Just follow the simple steps below!

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• glycerin or glycerin & water based lotion
• petroleum jelly
• waxed paper
• small pan (cake or brownie pan works well)
• plate
• heavy books

1. Place 10-20 autumn leaves in a small pan. Use an aluminum or non-stick pan that can be completely covered by a plate. Do not use a pan that can rust, since you will be keeping a water-based solution in it for several days.

2. In a small bowl, combine 1 cup of glycerin with 1 cup of water. Alternatively, you can mix 1 cup of lotion with 1 cup of hot water. If you use lotion, it must be a water based lotion with a high glycerin content. Stir the mixture until it is completely dissolved, and pour it over the autumn leaves.

3. Place a plate on top of the pan, and let the autumn leaves soak for 5 days.

4. At the end of 4 days, remove the autumn leaves from the solution and pat them dry with a paper towel. At this point, glycerin has taken the place of water inside the plant cells, so the leaves are plasticized.
   
   (The leaves will be fairly well preserved using only this process, but you should follow the next steps to keep their colors extra bright...)

5. Rub a small dab (less than a pea-sized amount) of petroleum jelly onto the front and back of the autumn leaves. Then, place them between sheets of waxed paper.

6. Place the waxed paper and leaves onto a flat surface, and weight them with several heavy books. After a week of being pressed, they can be used for crafts. You can save the pressed autumn leaves for later use.

[sabrinacareer]

on 9/26/2009 WOW this is really cool. Thanks