Fall Leaf Animal craft ideas

Collecting fall leaves has always been such a fun thing for me, and making crafts with them is even more fun. It is a great way to spend some time with your kids, or even make for yourself. Getting out in nature – enjoying the fall air, foilage and scenery will lift your spirits. There are several fall leaf animal craft ideas listed below, but have some kind of idea before you start gathering so you can make sure you get all the right sizes and “accessories” that you need.

You will want to plan ahead, this is a two day project. The first day, you will want to gather all the fresh fallen leaves you will need and press them. The next day, use paper, sciccors, and school glue to create your art. Before you glue anything down, I recommend playing around with the leaves to come up with the design that you want.

GATHERING LEAVES:

This is always fun for me. I love looking for leaves. You may have to drive somewhere like a park or canyon to get the leaves you want, but those are also fun to visit!

When you have a bag full (don’t forget to get some accessories like little pieces of trees, acorns, pinecones, pineneedles, etc) head home and lay all the leaves out to be pressed. The leaves will naturally curl when they dry, so this keeps them flat so they don’t break when you glue them on. You can lay a big towel out, put the leaves down (don’t overlap) and then put another towel and something heavy on top (books, card table, full box, etc. Wait overnight for them to dry out – don’t wait longer than the next day – they will be too dry.

NOTE: – You may also want to dry out some flower petals to use as accents

MAKING YOUR FALL LEAF ANIMAL

Supplies:

Dried leaves, flowers, etc
Paper
Scissors
White school glue
Sharpie markers

With the leaves dried, you will now want to take paper (I recommend cardstock) and pick some of the leaves out and start putting together your fall leaf animal. I have shared 10 fall leaf animal ideas below but the possibilities are endless! I would love to see your ideas – tag me @coralieseright if you share on social media!

After you have came up with your animal idea, be sure to choose some “accessories” to go with it and use as accents on your page. You can also use things like googly eyes, dried flower petals, etc. Feel free to trim the leaves to fit where you need them too. And you can use stems, etc for things like whiskers, and antennae.

With your fall leaf animal ready, take some white school glue (like Elmers) and start gluing the pieces down one at a time. You won’t want to use too much, but make sure each piece has enough to stay when it dries. If the leaves curl a little, you can either add a little more glue or leave it – depending on your picture. Also be sure to glue on any additions like googly eyes if using, tree branches, flowers, berries, etc.

After 30-60 minutes you will be able to use a marker and add things like eyes, etc if you want. Once your animals are done – be sure to put them on display so you can show off your work. These are such a fun addition to any fall decor!

Fun tip – these are great to make fall greeting cards with!