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Edible Autumn Leaves
1 bag of semisweet chocolate chips
1 bag of white chocolate chips
broad leafed herbs
{mint, basil, celery, etc.}
Select your sprigs of leaves in the produce section of your grocery store or from your garden. Wash leaves thoroughly and pat dry.
Melt chocolate with 2 tsp. of butter, stirring until smooth. Pour chocolate into small bowls and give each child a clean small paintbrush. Paint the underside of the leaves with the chocolate and place on a wax paper covered cookie sheet.
Refrigerate until firm. Slowly pull real leaves away from chocolate leaves.
(Explain to children how art is a reflection of the true beauty of Nature.)
Woodsy Flower Vase
Materials:
fallen sticks
scissors
an empty plastic (peanutbutter) jar
2 thick rubber bands
ribbon
glue
pinecones.
Break or snip sticks to about 1 inch longer than jar. Place rubber bands around jar, 1 inch from top and 1 inch from bottom. Tuck the sticks under the rubber bands, placing them together as close as possible.
Once the jar is surrounded by sticks, push the rubberbands to the center of the jar and cover with autumn colored ribbon. Ribbon can be tied into a bow. Glue on a few pinecones and fill the vase with flowers.
(While hiking and looking for sticks, explain why fallen sticks are more Earth friendly, but if live branches are needed, to take only what is needed and thank tree for gift.)
Animal Brethren
Materials:
An apple
paring knife
lemon juice
whole cloves
pencil
jar
glove
felt scraps
glue
Peel the apple and remove some of the core from the bottom.
To carve the animal's face, cut two holes for the eyes, slice two triangle flaps for the ears, cut a deep "X" for the nose and mouth, and some shallow slits for whiskers.
Soak the apple in the lemon juice for about 15 minutes, then remove to a paper towel to dry. Insert cloves into the eye holes. Push the pencil into the bottom of the apple, and set it in a jar to dry.
To hasten drying process, a food dehydrator works great! As the apple dries, lift the ears so they dry upright.
When the head has dried, use the glove and felt scraps to make the body. Glue on markings and paws. Cut off the middle finger of the glove, and drop the pencil through it, with the head attached.
Have the child grab the pencil with their 3 middle fingers, while using the thumb and pinkie for the animal's forelegs.
( Discuss the habits of different animals during the winter months. Explain why we leave bird food and other tidbits out for our winged and furry brother)
Leaf Painting
Collect a variety of fresh leaves
Acrylic paints
Paint brushes
Paper
Rolling pin
Begin by carefully painting the preferred side of a fresh leaf and place on the paper. Cover the leaf with another piece of paper and roll over it with the rolling pin to make the print. Be sure not to move the sheets of paper as this will ruin the print. If you find your sheets are slipping, weigh down the edges.
Gently peel back the top sheet and lift the leaf very carefully.Set the painted paper aside to dry. Some leaves may be used more than once.
This is an easy and attractive method of creating your own designs for stationery or homemade wrapping paper.
Making Bayberry Candles
Bayberries are coated with a wax that may be used to make candles. The colonists of America found that the berries warmed in water released the wax. The wax separates from the berries and rises to the surface of the water. It may be skimmed off when cooled. The wax was commonly used to make hand dipped candles. Five to eight pounds of berries yield one pound of wax. Bayberry wax is available from craft suppliers. The candles are long burning and rather brittle.
To make your own bayberry candles you will need:
Collected berries, sorted and rinsed
Candle mold or container
Wick or string dipped in hot wax and pulled taut to straighten
Cheesecloth
Small stick
Tallow, beeswax or paraffin optional
Remove the berries from the branches, carefully picking them over. Place them in a sieve and shake to remove dust. Put the collected berries in a container filled with water and place in a warm area. Let soak for 12-24 hours. Then set in a cool area until the wax has formed a solid block.
Remove the wax block from the container and brush off any remaining sediment. Place the wax in a clean container, again in a warm area, such as a gas oven with the pilot light on until it melts. Pour the melted wax through a strainer into a cheesecloth lined bowl. Allow to harden once more.
This time consuming process gives a pure wax. If you don't have the time, simply place the berries in a pot of boiling water, reduce the heat to simmer, and remove from the heat when the wax has floated to the top. Place the pot with its contents in a cool area and allow the wax to harden.
Use the following instructions for both methods. Use pure bayberry wax or augment with tallow, paraffin, or beeswax. The mold may be an antique taper mold or any can, carton or tin that will hold hot wax.
Put the wick in the center by wrapping the end around a small stick and placing the stick across the top of the mold. Melt the wax over low heat in the top of a double boiler. Carefully pour the wax into the mold.
Place the mold upright in a cool spot until the candle has solidified. Remove the candle from the mold when the wax is completely hardened. If a disposable mold has been used, gently tear it away from the candle. If you are using a metal mold, run hot water briefly over the outside to loosen it.
For a fine finish rub the candle with a soft cloth. A pure bayberry candle will not produce a light as bright as that of beeswax. Tapered candles may be made by dipping a long wick into a deep vessel of melted wax several times. Allow to dry between dips. The candle may be as thin or as thick as you like. Candles made from any kind of wax burn longer and better if refrigerated for several hours before use.
Homemade Notebooks
You will need:
Paper for pages
Stiff paper or cardboard for covers
Hole Punch
1 twig a little shorter than length of the book
1 long rubber band
Trim all pages to same size. Trim covers slightly larger than pages. Make holes in pages and covers, using one page as template for all pages.
Assemble notebook pages inside of both covers.Thread rubber band through the holes of the covers and pages. Pass twig through the loop of the rubber band, wrapping it around the twig a few times to secure it. Then pass the other looped end of the elastic band through the bottom hole and around the twig, secure by wrapping.
These make excellent dream journals and personal journals.
Pressed Flower Stationery
Stationery Paper
Small Pressed Flowers
Scissors
White Glue
Paint Brush
Tweezers
Envelopes
Ribbon (Optional)
Make a mixture of white glue and water, equal parts of each.
Using the paint brush, coat the back of the flowers completely. Place the flowers in the desired places on the stationery. Use tweezers, if necessary. Carefully coat the top of the flowers with the glue and water mixture.
Let the arrangement dry and match the paper with the envelopes and wrap the packet with a ribbon, if desired.
Variation: Strips of double stick tape can be applied down the sides or along the top or bottom of stationery paper and tiny dried flowers can be sprinkled on top to give the stationery a special touch.
Old Fashioned Witch Soap
4 lbs lard
13 oz lye
5 cups cold water
1 tbsp lavender oil
1 tbsp patchouli oil
1 cup fresh strawberry
1/4 cup dried soap bark herb (optional)
In a large enamel or iron kettle, melt the lard over very low heat. (Never use metal) In a separate pot, stir together the lye and the water. Heat lard until small bubbles begin to appear - do not boil.
Remove from the heat and slowly pour the lye solution into the lard. With a big wooden spoon, stir in the lavender and patchouli oils, strawberry juice and soap bark herb. Simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring frequently.
Pour into 2-inch deep greased pan and allow to cool overnight. Cut the soap into squares and leave in the pan for at least 3 days before removing. Place the Soap bars on waxed paper and allow them to age in a draft-free area approximately 4-6 weeks before using.
updated August 31, 2000
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