The season of Autumn, Fall or Herbst, as you may call it, brings with it a different colour palette. The earthy brown, the fiery red, the bright orange, the dazzling yellow, the calming blue and the life-giving green, among others.
These attractive hues and tones, the cooler breeze and the crisp crackling leaves make us want to get out of our homes and spend time outdoors. A nature walk in this season is an amazing sensory experience for kids and adults alike. However, Autumn does come with its share of grey and rainy days. Our contributor Chetana Parameswar shows us how to get creative this Autumn with her tried and tested DIY ideas.
Here’s what you need
- Leaves (which have just fallen off but not completely dried) in different sizes and shapes,
- Watercolor paper,
- Sketchbook paper,
- Large size craft paper,
- Watercolor paints,
- A bowl of water (which will need to be cleaned and refreshed a few times)
- Paint brushes,
- Scissors,
- Pencil,
- Eraser,
- Glue stick,
- Felt pens or fine liners,
- Art apron (for little ones),
- A plastic sheet to cover the table that you’re working on.
We’ve chosen to work with watercolors here as the clean-up effort is just minimal, which is just perfect for busy parents. However, feel free to experiment with acrylic or other colours.
DIY #1: Paint, press and peel
- Use watercolor paper (regular paper can’t retain so much water and will tear) and paint it overall with plain water.
- Use colours of your choice and paint the entire paper. It could be one single colour or a mix of different colours.
- While the paint is wet, press the autumn leaves over the paper. Let it dry fully and carefully peel out the leaves.
- All these steps have to be done in very quick succession before the paint dries out.
DIY #2: Create Autumn rings
- Place the leaves on a sketching paper.
- Press down one leaf at a time and use either a brush or a sponge dipped in color to paint the edges of the leaf.
- Press down another leaf and repeat the step above till you have finished painting the edges of all the leaves.
- Carefully take the leaves off the sketching paper.
DIY #3: Create Autumn leaf stamps
- Choose a leaf and paint it with a slightly thick layer of colour (or a mix of colours),
- Quickly before the colour can dry, place the leaf with the coloured side down on the paper. Press it down to create a beautiful leaf stamp.
- Repeat with different leaves and different colours.
DIY #4: Mix and create your own collage
One can use a mix of techniques mentioned in DIY #2 and DIY #3
DIY #5: Make your own Autumn leaves
- Draw a leaf on a sketching paper. Cut the leaf out.
- Use the leaf stencil to draw more leaves on the sketching paper. Cut them out.
- Now colour the cut leaves in colours of your choice and set them out to dry.
- Once dry, using felt pens or fine liners, doodle different designs on the leaves.
- Stick them onto a coloured or white large size craft paper to create a pattern.
All the above DIY’s can easily be done by 5+-year-olds. Smaller kids will need adult help. Hope you enjoy creating your own DIY autumn art wall!
Disclaimer: Opinions and methods expressed are solely of the writer. Namaste Switzerland does not undertake any obligation or liability which may arise from the content.
