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These cards make frugal use of all those leaves carted home and pressed in books in late October. They are reborn again in a pretty set of stationery cards for correspondence with loved ones or as a gift for a friend who loves to write. If leaves aren't available, dried flowers work well too and look particularly festive formed into a wreath for Christmas.
Materials and Equipment:
- a large plastic bag or several sheets of newspaper
- several plain stationery cards, with envelopes
- craft glue
- a lid from a used plastic container (such as a yogurt container)
- a glue spreader or Q-tip
- a gold or silver ink pen (optional)
- thin ribbon (color of your choice) (optional)
- corrugated cardboard or coloured paper (optional)
- tissues
- pressed dried leaves (one or more per card)
OR
- pressed dried flowers (a dozen or so per card)
Instructions:
1. Before you start, clear the table and cover it with newspaper or a large garbage bag to avoid getting glue on the table.
2. To begin, make a "practice card" by arranging your dried leaves or flowers on the front of a card until you are satisfied with the arrangement (this will take longer if you are making the flower wreath).
3. Place this card carefully aside and take out a fresh card.
4. Pour some glue onto the plastic lid.
5. Using the glue spreader or Q-tip to spread glue across the back of each dried leaf or flower, transfer each leaf or flower from the "practice card" to the fresh card, gluing each item in place as you go. This method allows you to recreate your original design accurately. You may choose to place a piece of corrugated cardboard or colored paper behind the leaves/flowers as a background (see photo). Clean off any glue peaking out from the edges of the design with a tissue or fingernail.
6. Allow the card to dry and repeat steps 2-5 for each card you want to make.
7. Once all the cards are completely dried, embellish them in any way you would like. For the leaf cards, I sometimes like to write the botanical name of each leaf in gold ink at the bottom of each card. For the dried flower cards, try tying a ribbon into a bow and gluing it to the bottom of the wreath to give it a festive feel, or simply write a greeting across the bottom of the card. The cards are also lovely unadorned.
8. Place cards in a pretty box or tie with a ribbon if you are giving them as a gift.
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