Wednesday, October 24, 2018

Autumn leaves ...


Lucas Countyans always have appreciated autumn's leafy display, although most these days who choose to bring some of it inside opt for dollar-store fabric recreations rather than the real thing. 

Here's a recipe for the real thing, published in The Chariton Herald during 1889: "Sparingly introduced, autumn leaves have a lovely decorative use which is all their own. Too many of them in an apartment vulgarize it and spoil each other, besides gathering dust and holding it. A few leaves, perfectly pressed and daintily disposed, are very charming with their whisper of outdoor breeze and sunshine.

"No better way of pressing autumn leaves has been discovered than the simple device of laying them smoothly, as soon after getting them as possible, between the leaves of an old book, or between newspapers. A heavy weight should be laid on them, and the papers should be changed every three or four days.

"When thoroughly pressed, says an authority on the subject, they should be wiped over, using for the purpose a piece of soft cloth, with a mixture consisting of three ounces of spirits of turpentine, two ounces of boiled linseed oil, and half an ounce of white varnish. Ironing, either with or without melted wax, changes the color and makes them very brittle."

Preserved leaves are good for some things, but not for others. By way of admonition, I found the following "filler" paragraph in The Leader of Sept. 11, 1880: "A woman in Jericho, Vermont, having heard a great deal about preserving autumn leaves, put up some, but afterward told a neighbor they were not fit to eat."

1 comment:

Brenda said...

I gathered some leaves yesterday, and they are pressed between the pages of an old dictionary now. I like to stack three different varieties of dried leaves on top of an old book and tie twine around the book for a decorative accent on a coffee table or side table.