Crocheting Real Leaves for Eco-Friendly Crafts - Material Mondays

Come and join me in Material Mondays. Working with different materials can be a great way to experiment and try new skills. I never would have thought of combining the following elements - dried leaves and crochet. 

I worked on a couple of leaves to create different designs, I think one of my favorite one was the leaf with the center piece cut out.  It was the most tricky one to work on because of the size, but with perseverance and handling it really delicately I was able to do it.

I share with you in this video how you can add crochet to your dried leaves that you may have in your craft supplies. They look really pretty and along with slow stitching is a therapeutic activity that brings about calmness. Once complete I will be placing them in a frame to help preserve them.  I hope you enjoy, check out the previous Material Mondays video where I show you how I slow stitch on the leaves.

Let me know if it is something that you try, I would love to see what you do.

Leaf Art and Slow Stitching - Material Mondays

Welcome to Material Mondays, I recently tried my hand at embroidery on leaves and it turned out to be quite an addictive activity. 

I saw an artist - Susanna Bauer and her work - which is amazing, and thought I'd give it a go. 

The leaf I used for this particular project is from a sea grape plant. The plant is normally found by the sea and has edible grapes. The plant acts as a good windbreak and when it dries out, it feels quite sturdy and turns a beautiful reddish color. If you would like to know more about sea grapes you can check out my Gardening Channel HERE.

I also experimented with another leaf from a trumpet tree, which has pretty trumpet-like flowers. 

To begin, I harvested the leaves from trees that had been trimmed or had fallen naturally. It's important to handle the leaves delicately as they are quite fragile. After picking them up, I soaked them in some olive oil - You can use whatever oil you have to hand to give them a nice sheen.  While the leaf will eventually degrade over time, you can preserve it by varnishing or using a gel mat or gloss medium.

For the actual stitching, I used embroidery thread and doubled up two strands and then created a spiral effect on the leaf. I'm still experimenting with different designs, but I'd love to try some crochet designs on leaves as well - check back next week on Material Mondays to see the results. 

The finished product can be framed or used as an outdoor hanging mobile. Overall, this has been a fun and creative way to use leaves from my surroundings. I'm excited to keep experimenting and sharing my projects.  Check out the video to see the process, and also the supplies below.

Supplies:

You can collect dried leaves from your garden or park, or you can purchase dried leaves below:

Dried Leaves varied-

Dried Eucalyptus Leaves 

Embroidery Thread - Arteza 

Awl

Needles

Self-healing mat

I hope you get to try them yourself and look forward to seeing what you come up with.

Love is - Mixed Media Art Journal Page

Love is

Welcome to today's Art Journal page. I I really enjoy using my paper ephemera/fodder  on my pages.  You are always creating these elements in projects and so when I get a chance to use them in my art journal, I find it quite a relaxing activity. There are so many ways you can use your ephemera, including creating mini cards, using them on tags and much more.

I am using book pages and I had applied paint to the opposite side of the paper and then proceeded to cut out heart shapes and stick them to the page.  I prepped the page which already had markings on it from a previous activity and I added additional paint and scraped it with a card. This helps it to dry quicker.

I added doodling on the page with ink, drawing around the heart shapes.  I like to add encouraging words to my art journals and it is great to later come back and see the messages and reminders. Check out the full video to see the process.

Additional Resources

Mixed Media Art Tags

The 100 Day Project 2023 - A Journey of Creative Exploration

 

As a mixed media artist, I love finding new ways to challenge myself and develop my skills. That's why I decided to take part in another 100 Day Project.  I committed to creating 100 collages and sharing them on a weekly basis.

This project will be a journey of creative exploration allowing me to experiment with different techniques and materials, using up my supplies and creating collages that I might not have thought to make otherwise.

One of the things I love about the project is the sense of community the challenge creates. I am joining the hashtag #100daysofusingfodder created by Wendy of Willa Wanders on Instagram. I will be sharing my collages on Instagram and it will be great to see the work of other artists/creatives who are also taking part in the challenge. You can feel a real sense of connection to the creative community.

Of course, there will be challenges along the way, some days you might struggle to find the time or motivation to create, and other days you might start to judge and compare yourself with others, but the beauty of the 100 Day Project is that it's a marathon, not a sprint. It's about showing up every day, even when it's hard, and allowing yourself to be imperfect and vulnerable in your creativity.

Looking back on my previous 100 Day projects, I can see how much I've grown as an artist. I've developed new techniques, honed my skills, and gained confidence in my creative voice. But more than that, I've learned that the process of creating is just as important as the finished product. It's about the journey, not just the destination.

I eventually did 50 days for the Embroidery project, but I was fine with what I had done.

For the 100 Days of Pastels, I created 100 Pastel Paintings

You can see the Videos I created with the pastels HERE

For the Foam Stamps I created 100 handmade foam stamps to use in my creative projects.

If you're considering taking part in the 100 Day Project, I encourage you to go for it. Whether you're an experienced artist or a beginner, this project offers a unique opportunity to challenge yourself and grow your skills. And who knows, you might just discover something new about yourself and your creative potential along the way.

So start where you are, grab your art supplies and join the journey. I can't wait to see where it takes you.