Susanna Bauer Uses Her Crocheting Skills To Transform Fallen Dried Leaves Into Elegant Works Of Art

Contemporary artists are expanding their creativity and resourcefulness by using unorthodox mediums. Today, anything can serve as a medium to create a work of art. From ordinary rocks and old newspapers to manhole covers and dirty cars, the options are endless. Painting and sculpture can indeed make use of unexpected items that are commonly seen everywhere. But the art of crochet has been faithful to its traditional tools which are the yarn, crochet hooks, darning needle, and scissors. While other forms of creative arts are adopting new mediums, crochet hasn’t changed that much over the years. But that’s about to change now. Cornwall-based crocheter Susanna Bauer still uses threads, hooks and needles. But aside from these traditional crochet tools, she also makes use of one surprising medium – dried leaves.

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Fragile leaves with finely woven thin cotton threads look amazing and intriguing at the same time. The creative crocheter admits that dried leaves crochet art requires a steady hand and a lot of patience. By combining the fragility of the leaves and the strength of the woven thread, Bauer reveals the delicate beauty of nature. She starts by collecting autumn leaves and sorting them according to their compositions. Naturally, dried leaves would decay due to weather, exposure to UV rays, insects and microorganisms. Furthermore, Bauer doesn’t coat or treat the leaves with anything to make them firm and protected. Instead, she keeps the dried leaves behind conservation grade glass to keep them dry and away from insects or microorganisms. Additionally, the glass filters out UV rays from the sun to conserve the leaves.

“All my leaves are washed and thoroughly dried for several weeks after collection. Sometimes a leaf stays at the studio for years before I select it for a piece of work.”, Bauer shares.

After completing each piece, she frames it in a custom made white washed ash frame with premium UV filter glass. Take a look at her stunning dried leaves crochet art that will make you appreciate the fragile yet beautiful autumn leaves.