Fall Crafts With Leaves
When it comes to seasons in Los Angeles, there are slim to none. Fortunately, we do get some fall leaves every now and again. So when we do, we try to enjoy it. I vividly remember one of my favorite childhood memories as raking the leaves and jumping in them. Well, since we can’t do that, we might as well have fun with the few leaves we have … somehow.
This past week, Brooksie and I ran around outside and picked up all the leaves in our backyard. It barely made a pile but we took them inside and used them as our main craft supply. It’s a great way to save paper and recycle!
Here are some cute and easy DIY crafts we came up with that are perfect for fall:
Fall Leaf Wreath:
Items needed:
- 1 paper plate
- Scissors
- Staples/Stapler
- Ribbon of choice
- Paint, glue, and glitter to decorate
Steps:
- Cut center of plate out leaving only outer rim.
- Go outside and gather as many leaves as desired.
- If you want to add an extra step, have your little ones paint the leaves different colors. Add glue and glitter. Or you can leave the leaves their natural color like Brooksie did.
- Place end of leaf onto outer rim of plate and let the child press down the stapler.
- Repeat step 4 until entire plate is covered with leaves.
- Tie desired ribbon into bow, place on plate, and staple down.
Autumn Scarecrow:
Items needed:
- 2 sheets of large white paper
- Stapler/staples
- Markers and/or paint
- Recycled newspapers
- 1 paper plate
- Leaves
Prep:
- Lay paper on flat surface stacked on top of each other, using a pencil or pen draw an outline of pants and shirt (make sure pants and shirt connect in the middle and do not cut.
Steps:
- Once paper is cut and laying flat you will staple all sides EXCEPT the top of the shirt. Brooksie loves to staple, so I will get the stapler aligned in the right spots and count to 3 allowing him to push down on the stapler. He gets so, so, so excited!
- Once the paper is all stapled its time to decorate. Color the scarecrows outfit with paint and/or marker. Add stickers, glitter, glue, etc.
- After scarecrow’s outfit is designed, you will begin to stuff it with newspaper or anything you have around the house. Have your little one push the paper through the top of the shirt filling both pant legs and shirt.
- Once the scarecrow is full of paper, it’s time to staple him shut.
- Set scarecrow aside and using the paper plate draw the scarecrows face. Brooksie asked me to draw the face and told me what he wanted it to look like. A scary scarecrow, of course!
- With your left over scrap paper, you can design a hat. Staple on top.
- Now it the time where creative and outside play become one. A “leaf hunt” adventure is a good way to put the project aside and allow kids to stretch out. With a bucket or bag, go outside and find as many leaves as possible. Once leaves are found, staple them to the bottom of each pant leg, arm sleeves, a few under his hat, or the whole body if you managed to find enough.
