3 Different Uses for Duct Tape Leaves

I recently made these duct tape leaves for a demo at my favorite art supply shop A.I. Friedman . I used stencils for a maple, oak, and elm tree leaf from A-Z Coloring (they are free). After making a duct tape fabric (see my quick You Tube video on how to make a duct tape fabric), I traced these stencils onto the fabric and cut the leaves out.

What's great about duct tape leaves is that they are re-usable and easy to store. You can write on them with marker or ball point pen. To remove the writing, simply wipe them down with a little oil on a paper towel or cotton rag. Store them in a resealable zip lock bag when not in use.

Here are 3 ways to use these leaves during the holiday season.


Table Centerpiece: What I'm Thankful For

What are we thankful for this year?

I filled a small glass bowl with dried lentils and popcorn kernels. Because I live in the suburbs, there are dried branches practically everywhere I look. So I grabbed 3 of them, trimmed them down, and placed them in the glass bowl. I wrapped a little tape around the base of the branches to give it some extra support.

The bowl with the branches will sit in the middle of the dinner table. On Thanksgiving, I'll ask every family member to write down what they are thankful for on each leaf, and then hang the leaves on the branches. And as we eat our Thanksgiving dinner, we can see what everyone is thankful for. Here is a little preview of what it will look like:




Place Cards


I usually have plain white plates and solid color napkins for my dinner settings. My friend once asked me why, especially since the rest of my house is so colorful. (I am not shy about color!) My explanation: I like to treat every meal like a work of art, with its mix of colors and shapes, so having patterns or colors on the plates is really not my thing. As a result, my dinner table can look a little ho-hum.

Using a duct tape leaf as a place card can add that bit of color that the table (when the food is not yet served) needs. You can re-used them by simply wiping off the names with a little oil on a paper towel.





Holiday or Occasion Banner

Attach the leaves to ribbon or twine and voila! You just made a banner. Make some duct tape letter stickers to personalize it.  (You can get instructions on how to make duct tape stickers from a tutorial I did for the blog A Fancy Girl Must.)