Pressed Elephant Ear Leaf

Last spring I discovered elephant ears, and set out to find, grow, and press some. I put together a large botanical press but my first try failed - the elephant ear actually disintegrated. It was a mess. I think I clamped it too tightly.

Just before our first hard frost last fall I picked another leaf and put into my large press, but forgot about it until a few months ago. It had held together really well, and what was really amazing was its unusual coloration - it's translucent in the middle, which seems to give it a surreal "glow."

It's mounted on my handmade paper with Perfect Paper Adhesive, but in order to make the paper large enough(and strong enough), I pieced several sheets onto rug hooking fabric. The square pattern of the cloth subtly shows through the paper, as you might be able to tell in the picture below. It's an interesting effect.

For someone who has never framed anything larger than an fern, this is a large piece for me! The leaf itself is 24" long, and the frame is 30" x 26".

I am still working on finishing my leaf paper casting. I finally jumped in and started painting it, and it's going really well. I hope to have it ready to show you really soon.