This month’s Aurifil Artisan challenge was to embellish the tote bag we received in our welcome packages. A pretty open-ended prompt, which naturally meant that I decided to make things a little more complicated than they probably needed to be.
I’ve been seeing a lot of really cool textile art with sewn leaves so I decided I wanted to sew actual fall leaves onto my tote bag.
The kids and I collected leaves while we were in Pennsylvania, choosing a mix of beautiful yellows, oranges, and reds. I’ve always loved how spectacular fall leaves are, and how quickly they disappear, so I thought it would be interesting to try preserving them with glycerin and stitching directly onto them. But as with many of my wild hair ideas, I really wasn’t sure what to expect or how it would work out.
Preserving the leaves
I soaked the leaves in a glycerin solution for several days, hoping to make them pliable enough to withstand stitching. The recommendations ranged from 1-2 days all the way to 5-7 days - I did about 4 (although we had one small leaking fiasco).
After removing them from the solution, I ironed them between layers of paper towels to absorb the excess glycerin. That worked reasonably well, although I discovered that the yellow leaves were particularly sensitive to heat. Too much ironing turned them brown and made them brittle, which was exactly the opposite of what I was trying to accomplish!
Once they were dry enough to work with, it was time to figure out how to sew them onto fabric.
Sewing something that doesn’t want to be sewn
My original plan was to use my longarm quilting machine. I love drawing with thread, and some of my favorite art quilting happens on the longarm, where I can move much more freely.
Unfortunately, the stitch regulator was far too aggressive for the delicate leaves. Rather than creating beautiful stitched lines, the needle essentially perforated them, leaving them ready to tear apart.
So, change of plans.
I moved to my Bernina 570QE, switched to a Microtex needle, dropped the feed dogs, and reduced the presser foot pressure. Working free-motion without stitch regulation gave me much more control over the placement and spacing of my stitches.
Finally, I was getting somewhere.
I used Aurifil 28/2 in colors 1130 and 2140, 12/2 in 2568, and 12 wt in 2260, 5015, and 1147. I love mixing thread weights to create different marks and textures, and it was especially interesting to use them on a material that already had so much natural variation.
An unexpected bit of visible mending
To make the stitching easier, I’d taken the tote apart so I could work on the fabric more freely. An excellent idea, right up until I had to put it back together.
During reconstruction, I accidentally damaged some of the leaves I’d so carefully preserved and stitched into place. Rather than replace them, I decided to add some visible mending, using additional stitching to reinforce the damaged areas.
And I actually rather like that this became part of the project.
After all, the whole idea began with trying to preserve something naturally fragile and temporary. It seems fitting that the finished piece should include a little evidence of that fragility—and the effort to hold it together.
What I learned
As with most of these challenges, I came away with a list of things I’d do differently next time.
I’d definitely soak the leaves in glycerin longer to make them more pliable, and I’d stitch them sooner after removing them from the solution. I noticed they seemed to become more fragile the longer they sat. I’d also be more careful with the heat, especially with the yellow leaves.
So far, the preserved leaves have held up for about two to three weeks, although this is certainly not a washable tote bag! I’m curious to see how the leaves continue to change over time.
What I loved most about this project was the opportunity to work with a material that didn’t behave anything like fabric. I had to adjust my tools, my techniques, and even my expectations along the way.
I started with a simple idea: preserve some beautiful fall leaves and sew them onto a bag. And while the finished piece may be a little more delicate than your average tote, I love the idea of capturing a small piece of fall and giving it a little more time.
The Aurifil Artisan Year
Month 5 of my year-long creative journey as a 2026 Aurifil Artisan—following each challenge through experiments, discoveries, finished pieces, and whatever I learn along the way.