Finally got around to using my Airbrush. Works great for getting in the small places. Haven't tried blending colors yet not enough free time.
Paws

Debbie, I really like your "sunny" pot. It just looks so cheerful. Fleur, really like those color choices on your leaves, just beautiful.I really have to get some metallics , they really add to the leaves. Louisiana, I love the finish on that bowl. Guess I better get painting, you are all inspiring me.
Cindy

Thanks Cindy.

Thanks fleur. I'm looking for a before pic of the planter.
What's a round TUIT ?
I'm looking forward to pics.
Good luck with the fund raising

Debbie

Debbie, I'm assuming it's "around to it" = round TUIT :)

Help me here. I love the bowl. I do bowls with the leaf pattern on the inside but how do you get the leaf pattern on the outside of the bowl and have it so smooth?

I'm missing something here.

Carol

tufaleaf, You work inside the bowl. She sprayed the front of the leaf with adhesive and attached them to the inside of a plastic bowl. Then sprayed the back (vein side) of the leaf with a release then gently place your hypertufa mix over the leaves. You want to press the hypertufa mix firmly on top of the leaves but don't play with it too much because you can dislodge the leaves or embed them too much. Does that make sense?
Sorry Fleur, we're getting a little sidetracked from painting. How's the painting going? Billie

billie_ann -- Actually, I was just messing with a disaster from last fall, trying to reclaim a large "bowl". I rubber cemented a LARGE petasites leaf over a 18" play ball and quikwalled over it. When I unmolded it, the leaf stuck to the crete like crazy and I just sort of set it aside for months. The edges were very thin, but strong. I wasn't happy with the result so today I mixed up a batch of quikwall, put bonding adhesive around the edges and down a bit, spread quikwall down the center of cling wrap and squished the quikwall around the rim. Now the rim is definitely thicker. Don't know if it will hold or if it will separate. Anyway, the point of this is that the inside of the bowl was smooth as glass around the leaf. When I have the rim "cured", I'll take a picture and post it. FWIW -- my 9-yr. old granddaughter made a similar project without the leaf and the inside of hers is perfect. She left the edges very ragged and her "ball/bowl" looks like a broken egg shell. I'm thinking of covering a small hollow ball with crete, painting it egg yolk yellow and floating it inside her bowl. And maybe a rubber duckie too.

Sorry if I misled anyone, but I didn't use tufa mix for these planters. I used portland, sand and a bit of fortifier, it makes for a smoother surface. If you click on the pic, you can see detail better.
Here are a couple of other planters I did with the leaves.
bonnie

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Ooh! Aah! Those planters are terrific! What more can I say?

Fleur- I just saw the rest of your photos. Thanks for posting the link to them! That cabbage leaf with the purple edges is gorgeous and dramatic. I am going to go try to paint one just like it! I hope you won't mind. Actually, you don't need to worry since I can never even paint a duplicate of one I just painted myself.... I do like that color combination though.
Laura

Now I get it on how to do the bowl!

I use thinned acrylic craft paints for my leaves. I usually paint the leaf all one color, let that dry and then dry brush a contrasting color or use rags.

I have also experimented with painting a leaf all one color, letting it dry and then dip the leaf in a very watered down contrasting acrylic, let it sit for a few minutes and then just lean the leaf on edge and let the contrast color drain off.

Then I seal the leaves with regular concrete sealer. My leaves have been outside for varying times (3 years-6 months) and I only have a few that need another coat of sealer.

I paint the backs of the leaves with a solid color - usually green or brown. I use a latex house paint and then seal the back, too.

Carol

Fleur, your metallic colors are great, what kind of paint is that? They look kind of like mother of pearl or opal.
Carol have you any pics of your leaves?
Debbie, I also like the way you worked the little face into your planter.
bonnie

Fleur, Sorry, I was explaining Louisiana greetings leaf bowl not something that you did. Billie

Fleur, your leaves are beautiful, love the metallic. Please share with us what you used. Thanks, Rhonda

I've been painting again and posted a few more photos at my webshots page. Rhonda, I've just been using the small craft acrylics I got at the craft store (or walmart). I used both the flat and the metallic on most of the leaves. Flat colors first then highlighted with the metallics though I think I did a few with all metallics. (Funny people should be asking ME of all people how to paint leaves when every one I do is an experiment and there are many more accomplished leaf painters here who have shared suggestions with me. I just keep painting til I think I'm finished. Then I come back later and add something more. Can you tell I'm indecisive?)

Here is a link that might be useful: A few more leaves

Oops! Clarification needed. I didn't mean "Funny people". I meant "It's funny that people are" asking me of all people...

Mea culpa

Fleur, your newest leaves are great. That black wash over a painted leaf idea is working very well. Do you just use more of the same type paint you used originally on the leaf or do you do the black wash in something different?
Laura

Fleur,
Nice with the black wash. It definitely adds a good look.
Dena

Thanks ladies. Laura - I didn't repaint any of the colors. I just wiped the wash off with a damp paper towel. (I tried wiping with a damp sponge but it was taking the black out of the veins too.) The paper towel left the darker color in the veins and got most of the wash off the higher surfaces.

Fleur your leaves are GREAT!!!!
Tell us how you made the paint box explosion sphere. I love it.
How does the copper paint stand up to the weather?

P.S Thank-you Lousiana greetings
Debbie

Debbie, Laura could tell you better how to make a sphere. I picked her brains for spheres and ended up with this disaster. I wanted to make a sphere with a hole at the top but got overanxious and tried covering too much of the ball with crete and mesh. Some slipped off the ball and just hung there. I cured it anyway and painted it to cheer it up for being so different.

Basically, I put a kids play ball in a bowl for support, covered it with quikwall and overlapping mesh triangles, another layer of quikwall and that was it. I patted cling wrap around the outer surface and got some neat textures. After a couple of days of misting, I took off the cling wrap, wrapped the whole thing in a sopping wet towel and stuffed that in a large plastic bag to cure.

Someone else will have to report on how well the metallic copper paint weathers. I have no clue. I just started painting a few weeks ago.

My experience with the metal paints, or the irredescent paints;
If they are not sealed the color will fade and the sparkle will lessen. But they are still very nice to see.
I have leaves with copper and the irredescent paints that have been in the yard for more than a year.
Dena

Dena, you are such a fount of knowledge and information. Do you know if one can repaint over a sealed surface if necessary and then seal again? I'm not at that point yet but thought it would be good to know.

Dena, I just looked at the pics of your leaves, they are beautiful and I'm amazed at the size of some of them. My question is, how thick are most of them?? Thanks again.
Rhonda

Rhonda,
Most of the leaves I do are about 1/4-1/2" thick, leaves that are about 7".
Leaves that are bigger are a little thicker and up to about 2" in the middle, to hold the splayed weight of the leaf. Many people seem sort of obsessed with making the leaf very thin, not necessary. Viewing from the finished top they will appear thinner than they are. Especially if you do a little finish work while the leaf is being made, I brush the edges of the leaf with a semi dry/wet brush of water mixed with bonding agent.
hope that helps,
Happy casting.
Dena

Fleur - love your "antique rhubarb" and the paint box explosion sphere! You are really branching out. I think I will start a thread to ask what in the world I could do with my biggest sphere- maybe you would have an idea.

Debbie, here is a link to my photos of the spheres Fleur mentioned. I thought the info on each photo would explain the process but I just looked at them and that isn't really true. You could get the basic idea from the photos. You could do a search for "sphere" and get a lot of threads from last summer when we all got to exchanging ideas and results.
Laura

Here is a link that might be useful: try this

Morning,Laura.
I think you and I have about the same size of mold for the balls,about 26 inches.I'm going to use one of them on a pedastal(18 inches high)to create our front door fountain.We had a reservoir dug(about 3 ft by 3 ft,18 inches deep),then I put liner in,then made a 2by4 frame to hold the grill.The ball will bring up water from the reservoir,and spill back in,plus we'll be putting a 10w light in the ball,and we'll top it with a mister.
Another use,as soon as I can get the part,is to create a simple water feature for condos and very small yards.Same ball size,put a pump on the inside(wiring thru a hole to the outside)and attach a frother to the pump.Adjust it so that the water stays in the bowl,just barely frothing outside of the opening(say 9 inch opening).Would put a light in that as well,shining up thru the hole,illuminating the froth.These lights come with coloured lenses,so it'll be fun to experiment with them.Have other plans for the smaller balls that I use(basketball size)and am looking forward to the challenge of dealing with larger balls still(32-40 inches.Those I'd double the meshing,so they would be heavier as well.can only do them in the summer,door frame too small!)
To all who showed their work on this thread,Damn fine!!And,sorry I got carried away about balls.They're just so much fun to figure out what to do with'em.
Cheers from here
Cheers from here

Rick, are we "esp"ing each other? I've had a similar idea, without the lights, in my idea file for a couple of months. I just shared another large ball idea with Laura this morning. My idea was to create a large ball with a large enough opening to place another ball within it, again with an opening in which to place another ball or other ornament, ie. grot, budda, etc. Maybe drain holes in the large & medium balls.

Are we all having a ball yet? Have you put any pictures of your work up on the web yet? We're all anxious to see them.

So far, this is my experience with the Metal Masters reactive copper paint: used it last year on a piece, and left it out all winter hoping to get more green "aging" on it than had been achieved with the initial "aging" spray, as well as less shine. That thing looks just as shiny today as it did the day it went out!! Also had another piece with just the reactive paint on it (with no "aging" spray applied) outside all winter to see if the copper flecks in the paint would tarnish/turn green on their own -- still shiny :) So, through cold, rain, sleet and snow and subzero temperatures, after one winter they are still glowing away!

Well, the fundraiser I mentioned at the beginning of this discussion is over and of the 20+ leaves I donated, 6 of them sold and someone is waiting to buy another. 3 or the round TUITs also sold. Altogether, the leaves brought in $310 and the TUITs another $27. I was pleased to say the least. Thank you everyone for your encouragement and advice. I couldn't have done it without you.

WAY TO GO FLEUR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
WAY TO GO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
All of those people who acquired a leaf will look at theirs wonderful leaf and know they made a GREAT choice.
Happy casting,
Dena

Fleur - All your hard work was worth it! That crowd came for new plant starts for their gardens, not new art work. It is quite a tribute to your leaf-making-talents that they sold so well. What will you do next????
Laura

I have some planting to do before I do more with concrete. However, I'm having a demo/workshop on leaf casting for my garden group later this week. Maybe I'll try a few bowls from neat items I've been collecting. Then I think I'll try again to make a sphere. Do I use bonding stuff around the edges where I leave off until the first application (top side) hardens enough to turn and work on the unfinished portion of the ball? So spheres are made over a period of days, right?

Good for you fleur!!!!
Thanks for the lovely pics and happy planting.
Debbie

Fleur - it depends on the size of the sphere. Last summer I showed 5 people how to do spheres and we used walmart 18 inch balls and got done in one big session of maybe 90 minutes. Sadly, I had not taken into consideration the fact we were doing the work outdoors in the sun and - while we thought the spheres were fine and could turn them and finish them in one setting - evidently the heat was expanding the balls. When people put them in their cars to take home 3 hours later they seemed "safe" to move (very carefully of course) but the change in temp caused the ball to deflate slightly and made lots of nasty things happen to the spheres that had all looked perfect. The moral of this story is that - while you can make the spheres in one session - it avoids a lot of problems to do the work in 2 or 3 sessions so one side can dry before you start on the other side. I have never used any bonding liquid or additive. You know I use Quickwall so perhaps other recipes would benefit from the additives...
Laura

Thanks for that information, Laura. I just had another pea sized "brainstorm". I was deleafing one of the things I call "plops", extra cement plopped on a leaf. It occurred to me that, had I flattened the back, the things could be used as trivets. I'll be doing that in the future for inexpensive plant sale items. FYI - two more plant sale leaves sold today adding another $100 for the cause.

Hi, I'm new to this forum, but I am already so impressed with the work you're all doing! I've cast several leaves, A 4 ft. Gunnera and a 3ft. Tetrapanax 'Steroidal Giant' (love that name!) being the largest. I haven't painted any of them yet but this forum has gotten me really jazzed to do that. Dena you mentioned Little and Lewis... I love the way they painted their Gunnera a chartruese, lime green combo. If any of you know what technique and paint colors would come closest to acheiving that look I'd really appreciate the info. Dena, thanks for the pics of the Darmera leaves with the copper fittng, I made one yesterday!

Funstuff,
I also am very fond of the Tetrapanax, and while I have not cast one I have cast caster bean leaves, also quite impressive. I have the Tetrapanax on my list of plants for the yard. What area do you live in? Heronswood located near Little and Lewis would have been the place I would have gone, however after having sold to Burpee company a few years ago, then Burpee announcing Heronswood was not profitable and it will be sold; Burpee is moving all the plant operation to Pennsylvania, so that option is out.
So anyone out there in the Pacific Northwest with a place they purchased or a supplier of Tetrapanax, please speak up, please?
Colors on leaves; I often take pics of leaves I like, to get the color, I have scanned some as well. Go to either a paint store, some have taken the leaf to the store to get a color match, or check out the little paints at Michaels for ideas of the colors you are mentioning. I usually start with a base color (Ceramacoat Leaf Green is a favorite, and KIWI or Citron offers that nice limey color), then add colors as I go, check out all the oranges and decide for yourself which will compliment the other colors. I squeeze the paints into a little color tray and have a couple containers of water and some brushes, and some dry cloths for drying the brushes and blending the colors. One of the best things about the L and L leaves is the coloring. They have often put small dots of color that are contrasting to the major color. I think the dots catches the eye without knowing it then sort of blends it to the overall color (I know that did not really make a lot of sense, You would have to see the leaves up close). With painting and those who have finally jumped in will comment, I do not think you can really make a mistake.
I NEED the TETRAPANAX, as in NEEEEEEEEEEEEEED, not just a want. This is serious.
Happy casting,
Dena

Thanks for the tips and paint suggestions. I too will miss Heronswood. I've saved their catalogs over the years...they are great reference guides for the unusual. I can't believe I've never made it to the L & L gardens, maybe this year! I know just what you mean about the small dots of color... a bit of the pointillist method. I thought that Coldsprings might have a T. Steroidal for you but they said possibly this fall. Steamboat Springs has had them in the past, also Collectors Nursery (mail order). I have a baby that I planted last year,but its so small it can't even be divided yet.(the leaves are just now poking up out of the ground) I got my leaf from Coldsprings at the end of the season.My T. died back to the ground in my cold garden near Duvall, but in your warm Edmonds garden it would probably take off and not even die back in winter! I was just in Edmonds the other day... have you been to ZU Cafe? They have a wonderful little courtyard with lots of unusual plants. It's great to find people as passionate about plants and garden projects as I am! I'll keep looking for the T. for you...
P.S. Iwould love to know your method of casting the savoy cabbage leaves on both sides. That is truly a work of art!

Kimberly

Kimberly,
I do know where the ZU cafe is. My daughter works at a different coffee cafe a few miles from there, so she popped in there the other day and said it is one of the nicest places with really good organic coffee, and they gave here a discount because she and her friends all work at an Edmonds shop... That was nice and supportive. Now I will have to go in, my purpose will be for the plants they have. I also picked up a really cool leaf this morning, and had it identified as a Loquat leaf, I have yet to look this up.
Please do keep looking for a T for me, I called a couple local nurseries today and no one had them.
About the cabbage, Savoy took first place in sculpture category last year at the Mukilteo Lighthouse Festival, and Savoy was accepted at Edmonds Arts Festival. Regarding how the leaves were done, it is so far one of only two things that I have been guarded about how it was done, they were cast individually and then re positioned into that cabbage. There were others last year who decided how this was done. I think for this piece especially the acid stain is what makes it what it is.
Please keep me in mind.
Happy casting,
Dena

Congrats on your Savoy! I can understand why you want to keep that to yourself. I love the look of acid stains...that would be my first choice for outdoor leaves too if I could find a good green stain that could hold up to the elements. Any ideas? A bonus of casting the Tetrapanax is that the leaf peels away from the castings so easily....exact opposite of the large gunnera leaves! Steamboat Island in Olympia does have them in 1 gallon pots for $22.50. Also Steamboat sells them to Jungle Exotics in Tacoma(doesn't that sound like a great place to find wonderful leaf casting material!) I know neither of these places is exactly in the neighborhood... you might ask Laine @ Steamboat if she will bring one to Sorticulture in Everett next weekend. I know she will be at the NPA plant study weekend, but unless you're a participant I don't think you can buy plants there.Or you can wait till the end of the season and try Coldsprings, I help out there so I can keep an eye out for you...If you ever want to make another alder twig chair, I've got plenty of alder saplings on our acreage and nail guns. I would love to have someone show me the procedure!

Kimberly,
I will definitely follow up on the Sorticulture lead. I may be able to go for a very limited time on Friday.
For the chairs you need to wait til spring, say around mid march to mid april when the sap is rising. This is a fun process. We did not use a nail gun, however that may work if you can put, hmmmm shank spiraled nails into the gun.
Your saplings for the bending part need to be straight and about the size of a garden hose.
Have a great day!
Dena

I am not sure if anyone is following this thread but it has helped me and i have started to make leaf castings.
My question is-How soon after you make these can you paint them. Do you have to either mist them or keep them in water for 7 days first?

justadncr --
I wait til the leaves are cured. Then I moisten them before I paint. Others may have other opinions, but this works for me.

I guess my question is how long does it take to cure. Is it alot different than the HT planters. I know with them you have to leach out the cement but I am new to the leaves.

I started making leaves last year, I used the acrylic paints in the 2 oz bottles and everything I painted last year still look good. I used the metallics on mine and it gave them a real nice look. Also, this year I tried a dark green first on a cabbage leaf, then lightly brushed over the high spots with the metallic, it was awesome and dramatic. My favorite color is Folk Art Peridot, this is really pretty.

Hi,
I am more of an artist, so I needed to understand and experiment with color. You should never use oils, or enamels on cement, as after a year in hot sun... it pops off. I found you have to use water based color so it leaks into the pours. I use pigments that are found in paint stores plus water colors or the small bottles of craft paint. I use a water based matt spar varnish to seal it. It has a shine. If I do not want a shine I make a cement and pigment slurry and paint it on the surface, add a small amount of water based paint for touch ups. And use a matt spray fixative at times to seal. The older the cement ...the more it will take the color....as the cement does eat some pigment colors. If I want molds to grow on the cement which makes it look super old....I have to use an unsealed color pigment mixed with cement. then I spray the cement with milk and apple vinger mixture every week and later grow moss on the vessel. Hope this helps some people.
Di

If you use the acrylic paints in little bottles, just spray with walmarts gloss or matte spray acrylic,,,,I also use patio paints, then just spray with acrylic and color never fades,also dry brushing helterskelter ,after you've done your complete paint job,gives it a nice demure look

Nice job.
So you were able to sell them for $50.00 each. I made 6 of them and I want to sell them in my little boutique, but I was not sure what to charge.

Great post from many years ago. Some of the photos that link to a WEBSHOTS file may go away soon.
Mike