How To Preserve Fall Leaves in 3 Easy Steps

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Ever wish you could bottle up the colors of fall?  Well, you can!

Preserving fall leaves into art is perfect family activity for this weekend! Choosing the perfect fall leaves to use will be the hardest part of this project.  It takes about 15 minutes total and except for using some extra wax paper – it shouldn’t cost you a dime!  

This method is what I call the “standard method” which is pressing them between wax paper, but keep reading to see some of the other methods that you could try as well.  I have also included some fun ideas to display you fall artwork!

To get started preserving your fall leaves you will need:

  • Some Beautiful Fall Leaves
  • Wax Paper
  • Iron/Ironing Board

Gather up the most beautiful leaves that you can find…I know that there are a lot of metro parks with great trails in my area – so if you can, make this into more than just a trip to the backyard and enjoy a fall hike! Gathering leaves along the way will make the journey even more fun!

Bonus points: When you get back from your hike, have the kids look up what type of tree each of their leaves came from.

Pressing the Leaves

  1. Once the leaves are gathered you can press them right away – or if you prefer – you can leave them in newspaper overnight pressed under a book.
  2. Put the iron on a medium heat setting and warm up (do not use the steam function)  While the iron is warming, arrange leaves between two sheets of wax paper
  3. Carefully place the iron on the wax paper and slowly and gently glide across until the two sheets of was paper are joined together.

Here are a couple ideas on using pressed leaves as art decor for your home:

pressed fall leaves
Frame them separately or in one larger frame!
how to press fall leaves
Cute way to display their artwork!

 

Press in a book:

Instead of pressing them between wax paper, try placing the leaves between the pages of a book, generally one with some weight to “hold” them down.

 

Modge Podge:

Okay – I am literally making this up and plan to try it in a couple of weeks, but got to thinking, “could modge podge have the same sealing effect as wax paper?”  If you have already tried this method let me know!  I will update this post once I do!

 
Happy leaf hunting and have a beautiful fall weekend!
 
 
 
*Hey Kids – If you are reading this article- make sure an adult is the one using the iron when pressing the wax paper 😉
 

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Love the colors of fall? Here is how to preserve fall leaves all year long.

Fall Idea: Apple Oat Peanut Butter Dog Treats

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Fall Idea: Apple Oat Peanut Butter Dog Treats - ProjectMommy.com

 

Fall is officially here.

While your dog has no clue what that even means, he will appreciate these yummy Apple Peanut Butter Dog Treats.

We have made a couple batches and they have somehow “disappeared” when I have left our 5 year old alone with our dog 😉

Best of all they are super easy to make.

 

Here is what you will need for this recipe:

1/2 C. Applesauce

1/2 C. Peanut Butter

1/2 C. Oatmeal

1 C. of Whole Wheat Flour

1 Egg

Mix all the ingredients together. Roll out and place on sheet with parchment paper.  (If you don’t have partchment paper that should be fine too.) Bake at 300 for about 20 minutes (depending on how thick you roll them out.)

Let them cool and then feed to your puppy who will be happy that fall is here…all he will know is that fall tastes pretty good.

 

Easy (and Inexpensive) Fall Porch Idea

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I love the way this fall porch set-up turned out.  And the best part… It’s easy and was under $20 to put together by using a lot of what I already had on hand.

Here’s how I did it:

East and Inexpensive Fall Porch Idea

My summer flowers were starting to get to the end of their rope so I was able to find discounted mums at Lowes for a steal of  50 cents per one quart mum.  I planted about 4 in each large planter and 1 in each of the smaller planters (which I already had on hand)   although you could improvise and use buckets – or the Dollar Tree will also have fall planters usually in stock.  The small hay bale was about $5 at Lowes.  (Hint:  Use it for covering up new grass seed the following spring so the money you spend on it actually goes to good use.  This at least works for us at least as over the winter our dog bathroom trips to the yard kill off a large spot of grass and we end up patching it up each spring.)

The pumpkins on the sticks were also from the Dollar Tree and the Beware of The Wicked Witch sign was in the Dollar Spot at Target (I don’t want to brag, but it was actually $3…)  The ghost in the hay bay was actually from a craft show and was something we had on hand… but I am sure you can find something similar at Dollar Tree or Target.

Now the amount of pumpkins may be more than some of you would prefer… It’s okay..no offense taken.

We tend to take a trip to a pumpkin patch or two each year… so we end up with several decorating pumpkins no matter what… you could scale the pumpkins back and I think this would still be a great, easy and inexpensive set-up… so go with what you got and make it your own.

The only thing I hate about all of this is that the Halloween Wreath was actually behind my screen door when I took the picture.  So it loses a little in this picture since it wasn’t showing.. most likely you already have a fall wreath, so use whatever you have on hand.

Okay, that’s it!  In total it cost me about $5 for the bale of hale $3 for the sign and $2 for the pumpkins and $5 for the mums… ( Your patience will be rewarded if you hit up Lowe’s at the right time in the season. )

Total Project Cost… $15

What are your favorite porch decorations for fall?  What other ideas would look good in this display?

 

Get Organized: The Fall Checklist

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Fall is here.  Which means Winter isn’t far behind.  Here is our Fall Checklist to help you get organized and prepped for everything winter brings.

The Fall Checklist

 

The Fall Checklist

This post contains affiliate links.

Once cold weather strikes, its no fun to drudge out into the cold unless you have to, so stock up on:

  • Pantry items (flour, sugar, butter, coffee)
  • Freezer items (Meats, cheese, frozen veggies/fruits)
  • Essentials (toilet paper and toothpaste)
  • Ramen Noodles (there are those days… usually about Sunday nights where a cheap bowl of Ramen just feels right)
  • If its been awhile since you have cleaned out the fridge… wait until its as empty as possible then throw out old condiments, unused ketchup/sauce packets and wiped the inside out.
  • Here is a more extensive list of staples you want to have on hand for winter (This list is general so if you are looking for gluten-free or vegan list… there are about 2 million of those on Pinterest.  I suggest you carve out about 2 days to get through all of those pins.)
Energy Efficiency:
  • Consider and air duct cleaning since the vents will get used more than they probably did over the summer
  • Change your furnace filter
  • Make sure screens are taken out and the exterior glass panes are put in in the windows and doors.
  • Invest in insulated energy-efficient curtains
The garage
  • Go through do a fall cleaning… get rid of old toys and items you no longer need.
  • Invest in some clear storage totes (You are more likely to stay organized if the boxes are clear)
  • Build or buy shelving if you do not have enough to store remaining items after a cleaning.
  • We invested in Rubbermaid fast track system to hold bikes, toys, beachchairs, strollers, etc and it saved us a ton of floor space by storing these items on the wall… and you can reconfigure the hooks in any order anytime you want to change things around.

Prepare for frozen precipitation:
  • Assuming that you already have a snow blower or at least a snow shovel you probably are already prepared for that but you may want to stock up on salt for ice and go ahead and put it in a container by your front or back or even both (We sometimes save the “shake” containers and refill them from a bigger bag which is much cheaper than buying melting ice in those small containers.  An old pitcher from your kitchen or dollar store is an easy solution too.  Then just keep the heavy bag in your garage and refill the containers as needed.
Inside the home:
  • Consider doing a fall cleaning room by room (take one each day) and go through drawers, containers, etc and get rid of broken things or things you may no longer need
  • If you also have the energy and time, you could also move furniture around in each room and sweep and wipe down floors/walls… you may want to at least do this for your main living areas if nothing else.
  • Turn mattresses – I do this when the time change takes effect – makes it easy to track
  • Check your fire and carbon monoxide detectors
  • Take comforters, heavy blankets to the dry cleaners or laundry-mat
  • Get our mittens, gloves, scarves etc and clean as needed then store in bins by the door.
  • Make sure everyone can fit into their snow boots/winter jackets from the previous year…
This “inside list” could go on forever, but for me these are the things that have the biggest impact in my fall cleaning.
And finally, don’t forget the birds! The snowbirds who manage through winter are always appreciative of your hospitality
 What other tasks are included in your personal Fall Checklist?

Family Friday! Pressing Fall Leaves

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With fall in full bloom, making beautiful fall leaves into art is perfect family activity for this weekend! And except for using some extra wax paper – it shouldn’t cost you a dime!


You will need:

  • Some Beautiful Fall Leaves
  • Wax Paper
  • Iron/Ironing Board



Gather up the most beautiful leaves that you can find…I know that there are alot of metro parks with great trails in my area – so if you can, make this into more than just a trip to the backyard and enjoy a fall hike! Gathering leaves along the way will make the journey even more fun!


When you get back from your hike, have the kids look up what type of tree each of their leaves came from.

Pressing the Leaves

  1. Once the leaves are gathered you can press them right away – or if you prefer – you can leave them in newspaper overnight pressed under a book.
  2. Put the iron on a medium heat setting and warm up (do not use the steam function)
  3. While the iron is warming, arrange leaves between two sheets of wax paper
  4. Carefully place the iron on the wax paper and slowly and gently glide across until the two sheets of was paper are joined together.

Here are a couple ideas on using pressed leaves as art decor for your home:

Frame them separately or in one larger frame!
Cute way to display their artwork!
Happy leaf hunting and have a beautiful fall weekend!

*Opt out of the wax paper method by keeping the leaves pressed between book pages or pressing them in a picture frame. And as always, adults should be the one using the iron when pressing the wax paper 😉

How to make the most of a beautiful fall day…Pumpkins!

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It looks like it is going to be a beautiful day and I am so excited! We are going to take my son to a local pumpkin farm this afternoon… what are some of the most creative ways you have used pumkins?

The links below give you ideas on decorating with pumpkins and books about pumpkins !


Enjoy the Day!
Valerie
Pumpkin Cutie Pie BabyPumpkin SoupFrom Seed to Pumpkin (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science, Stage 1) (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science 1)Pumpkin JackFive Little Pumpkins (Harper Growing Tree)It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie BrownThe Pumpkin Book