Have you ever seen anything like this???

Here's a quick scan of some purple smoke bush leaves I just pressed.  Has anyone ever seen anything like this?  Only a few of the leaves at the very top of the bush had this incredible design.  These are so cool!

A celebration in the trees...

I like everything about making Autumn Leaf Cards.

From tramping in the woods searching for the perfect autumn leaves with my family, to pressing them in the Microfleur, and then spreading the colorful leaves out on the table and enjoying the riot of color before I adhere them onto handmade paper.

God certainly thought of a great way to celebrate the end of a glorious summer - by throwing a bright and colorful party in the trees. I am always amazed.

treasure box

Here's what I did this morning.

Friends from the gallery, who just happen to have a spectacular garden, invited me to come over and raid it. Since we are expecting a hard frost any day now, Dennis and Karen allowed me free reign. I gathered hosta, elephant ears, and calla lily leaves for leaf casting. I also found many interesting leaves including japenese maples and tulip tree leaves, and even a few flowers to press.

I was especially happy to get the solomon's seal, because I think it's such a beautiful, graceful plant. I'm hoping it will press really well.

the Lord Reigns

I'm back - I missed "you frame it Friday" last week because my computer had a bit of a nervous breakdown. Apparently I added one too many high resolution scans, and my computer rebelled. One new flash drive later, things are thankfully back to normal.

Here's the scan of the "you frame it" picture that upset my computer. "The Lord Reigns" features a simple yet graceful sprig of leaves that are just on the cusp of turning from bright green to autumn yellow. Underneath is a verse from 1 Chronicles 16:31, which says:

Let the heavens rejoice,
let the earth be glad,
let them say among the nations,
"The Lord reigns!"

Times uncertain as they are, I have been finding much wisdom in this verse. Despite the financial uneasiness we are all facing, there still is so much to rejoice in, to be glad about...
and besides, when all is said and done, the Lord reigns!

Northern Wisconsin

I'm interrupting my normal flower/plant post to bring you this stunning picture I just found on our camera. It was taken on Sunday just before we headed home, by my husband. I'm not sure what I like looking at better...the beautiful fall foliage, the reflection on the lake, or the silhouette of the wispy beach grass in the forefront. Part of me wishes we were still there, in that peaceful place.

Below is another picture, of one of my enthusiastic leaf hunter helpers and I, deep in the north woods looking for "perfect" leaves. We found quite a few - several gallon ziplock bags full.

I will be pressing most of the leaves in regular flower presses , but some of them I will be pressing in the Microfleur, so that I can use them right away.
I was thrilled to find an abundance of really, really red maple leaves this year - some years they tend to be more orange than deep red. They'll come in handy for maple leaf collages.

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.

How does one press this?

Two weeks ago we took a family trip to St. Paul, to see my sister and her family. One of the places they took us to was the Como Park Zoo and Conservatory, bless their hearts. Much to my delight, the Conservatory had the most wonderful rainforest room, complete with a waterfall, birds, and the most incredible tropical foliage plants, with absolutely huge, incredible, exotic leaves. They were immense! And so varied - with such strong veining. If I wasn’t a Christian, I’m certain I would have tried pilfering some of those stunning leaves, but I’m not sure if they would have fit under my coat.

I found out that many of the large leafed wonders were Alocasia and Colocasia plants, also known as elephant ears. I located a number of these bulbs on ebay, but then I stumbled upon a tantalizing website called Plant Delights Nursery that has a wonderful, very tempting array of specimens. I'm so excited! I haven’t made my final selections, but I’m leaning towards Alocasia macrorrhizos (Giant Upright Elephant Ear), and possibly Alocasia wentii. I think the two will contrast each other nicely in my front garden, and I can hardly wait to try to press them…what a stunning display they would make! I’m also thinking of trying to do nature prints with them as well. I’m not sure exactly how to press something so big, (I certainly won't be able to use my Microfleur) but I have a few ideas. Have any of you tried anything like this?