A light and airy mobile, whether it’s hung over the dining room table or the kitchen sink, is a wonderful way to show off the colorful autumn leaves that you’ve preserved, and it’s a fall decoration that easily works all the way through Thanksgiving.
Read on to see how to make your own autumn leaf mobile with your preserved leaves and just a couple of other stash or repurposed materials:
Start by preserving your autumn leaves using your favorite method. For my mobiles, I prefer the shine and the natural shape of beeswax leaves, but this project is amenable to any method of preservation that you’re used to.
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Choose your favorite leaves, and cut off a length of string, twine, or jute cord for each one. I tend to prefer the look of rough, natural twine, but pretty ribbon wouldn’t look out of place.
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Tie one end of the twine around the stem of a leaf, and the other end around a good base for your mobile. For the mobile in this project, my girls and I are using old wooden quilting hoops. Embroidery hoops, dowels, sticks, and even clothes hangers also work well. Don’t worry about how your mobile will balance as you tie your leaves on–you’ll find the right balance when it’s time to hang the mobile.
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You may choose to reinforce your knots with glue. If you keep glue off of the mobile hanger, then you’ll still be able to take the mobile apart later.
If your mobile hanger is a stick or rod, balance it on your finger to find the spot where it balances perfectly, and tie another piece of twine at that point, making a loop to hang the mobile.
If your mobile is on a hoop, tie three pieces of twine each a third of the way around the hoop. I have a partner hold the mobile by holding the strings together in a pinch grip, then I straighten the hoop by pulling on one piece of twine at a time through my partner’s grip. When I’ve found the point of perfect balance, I tie all three pieces of twine together just above my partner’s grip, then make a loop for hanging with the excess.
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Hang the mobile from the ceiling somewhere where it will catch the occasional breeze, and enjoy it through Thanksgiving.
After Thanksgiving…doesn’t a snowflake mobile sound nice?
