The Simple Way To Turn Fallen Leaves Into Beautiful Home Decor

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After the summer finally comes to an end, there's nothing better than surrounding yourself with everything that feels autumnal. While there are some really cute pumpkin decor DIYs — leaves from your yard can also be transformed into beautiful home decorations that are perfect for the season. Fallen leaves are already symbolic of fall, so it's a beautiful way to utilize all of the ones that are just lying on the ground and turn them into something spectacular to hang on your walls. 

The other main supply you'll need for this simple but engrossing project is a decoupaging medium like Mod Podge. Since it acts as a sealant, it works well at preserving leaves for home decor projects. To begin, head outside and grab handfuls of colorful leaves for the project. You should never let the raked leaves in your lawn pile up, which is why this could help give them another purpose. Or, you could stroll around and pick up just your favorites. The next step is to get them all washed off. Run the leaves under water to rinse off any dirt and germs. Then, spread them out on a paper towel and cover with a separate piece. Set a heavy, flat object on top, and leave the foliage to dry.

Start by brushing a thin layer of Mod Podge over one side of the leaves, then let dry. Flip them over, and apply a coat to that side as well (let dry). Repeat these steps so that each leaf has two coats on both its front and back. After they're dry, cover with a paper towel or wax paper and place a hefty book on top to help flatten them out. Your preserved leaves should now be ready to do some crafting!

Open up a picture frame and remove the back. Next, cut a piece of cardboard that will fit inside of the frame, and paint it any color you'd like. Once the paint is dry, it'll be time to decorate the cardboard with all your leaves. Attach them using a strong glue, either filling up the piece or keeping it simple with just a large leaf or two. You could even create a mosaic look by adding in small pieces of leaves that you've painstakingly cut up with your craft scissors. The goal is to craft festive wall art that will match your autumn theme. Not only will it honor the natural beauty of the season — it's very budget-friendly, too.

But why stop there with these leaf DIYs? After completing the Mod Podge steps, you can clip the dried leaves to a string and hang it up in your home as a garland. You could even put a spin on the project and decoupage leaves to the outside of a frame instead. Or, you might want to find out how to turn a glass jar and leaves into an illuminating statement piece that would liven up any tabletop.