I finished my felt fall leaf garland...and I love it!
Isn't it pretty?
And it's easy too, here's how I did it:
I googled "Oak leaf images" and spent time free hand cutting all different leaves in different sizes and colors. I knew I wanted to use wire vs. string to connect the leaves so that I could shape the garland as desired. I decided on gold wire that I had because gold just seems so much more fall than silver. I used 24 guage so that it had a low profile and would pretty easily push through the felt. Occasionally, I needed to use an awl to make a hole before pushing through the heavier (stiffer) felt.
Every so often, I would put the wire in a slightly angled loose zig zag pattern like seen above on the front and below on the back:
Which when pulled a little caused the leaf to gather down the center:
I made some acorns too:
Acorns and Oak leaves in different colors and sizes.
I cut the wire in lengths of approximately 12" to make it easier to string and adjust when putting together. I figure that way, I can also use them for different things later.
To angle some of the leaves, like the deep orange one above, I put the wire in at an angle, vs. going straight down the center.
Once I had about 8 different strands of leaves, I then wired them together on the fireplace mantle. I used a few glue dots to keep it attached to the mantle at different points.
And there you have it! Easy, right? And super inexpensive. (I talked about where I got my felt in the last post.)
If any of you out there give it a go, leave a link in the comments, we'd love to see!
Happy Fall Y'all!
(beautiful painting over the mantle by Jennifer Mercede)
