Wednesday, September 9, 2009

Fall Facts with Leaf Project

Here are some fun Fall facts that I found at http://www.lookingforadventure.com/fallfacts.htm:


Fall colors are best when late summer is dry & autumn has bright sunny days & cool nights below 40 °F.
Fall days become shorter & many plants stop making food. That is when the green chlorophyll starts to disappear from the leaves.
Most leaves fall from trees because the ends of the branch are sealed off near the leaf stem to protect the tree through the long winter months.

At left is a birch leaf (approximately 10" high) I made using my stash - I am going to make this into an art quilt/wall hanging and I will share the final product with you.

How to do this:

  1. Take a digital picture of a single leaf using your driveway or sidewalk as a contrasting background. Pick a leaf with a shape that you like - the color is not important.
  2. Load the photo into your computer and open your photo editing software. Crop close to the leaf.
  3. Resize the image to the size that you like.
  4. Print out a picture of the leaf in black and white.
  5. With a sharpie, outline then divide the leaf into different sections along natural divisions, such as the veins of the leaf. Use the different gradations of gray to determine where you will use darker and lighter colors. Number each section.
  6. Now trace each section onto paper backed fusible web, and follow the manufacturer's instructions for prepping and fusing.
  7. Zig-zag onto backing and have fun!
  8. I used ribbon floss for a stem.

Have fun with this! -Kris

2 comments:

Yolanda V. Fundora said...

Really nicely done, Kris! If I weren't up to my ears in pre-Market madness I'd be out there picking those leaves up.

masko said...

Ooh, pretty! I'd love to try this.
This will make a quilt with very interesting look.