How to make leaf bookmarks DIY manual illustration of leaf vein bookmarks

The leaf vein bookmark is actually to remove the epidermis and The mesophyll tissue is made only of the lines of leaf veins. You can see on the bookmark that a thicker leaf vein in the middle is called the main vein. The main vein branches out into many smaller branches called side veins; the side veins branch out into smaller branches called veinlets. This is divided again and again, and finally the entire leaf vein system is connected into a network structure. Dye this network of leaf veins into various colors and tie it with a ribbon to make a beautiful leaf vein bookmark.
Must be hard leaves. In summer, soak the leaves in water and dry them in the sun. Wait for water to rot. The veins will appear in half a month. What comes out is light yellow. It still looks better with coloring.
In fact, it is not that dangerous. Although it is alkaline water, it is not very corrosive. There is no problem if you get it on your hands, just don't touch it for a long time. To make this kind of leaf vein bookmark, you need to have soft mesophyll texture, clear and hard veins, and apply even force during the brushing process. Under normal circumstances, almost every piece made is damaged. This is the rare thing about making a complete leaf vein bookmark!

How to make leaf bookmarks, leaf vein bookmarks Production method:
1. Leaves. Generally, evergreen woody plants are preferred. Such as osmanthus leaves, heather leaves, papaya leaves, eucalyptus leaves, tea leaves, magnolia leaves, etc.
2.Sodium hydroxide.
3. Anhydrous sodium carbonate.
4. Beaker. 5. Iron platform.
6.Alcohol lamp.
7. An old toothbrush with soft bristles.
8. Glass plate (pad when brushing leaf veins)
The leaves selected for bookmarks must meet two major requirements:
1. The leaf veins are reticular veins. Transverse veins such as ginkgo leaves and needle-shaped leaves such as pine needles are not acceptable.
2. The leaf veins should be clear and complete to ensure that the leaf veins will not be corroded together with the mesophyll, and also reduce the incidence of leaf veins being brushed off when removing the mesophyll.

Quick production tutorial
1. Select the blade. Choose leaves with thick, dense veins. Select leaves in late summer or autumn when the leaves are fully mature and begin to age.
2. Boil the leaves with 10% sodium hydroxide solution. Boil the prepared alkali solution in a stainless steel pot or iron pot, add an appropriate amount of washed leaves, and boil. At this time, use a glass rod or tweezers to gently turn the leaves to prevent them from overlapping and allow them to heat evenly. (The window should be closed for ventilation, because there is a smell when boiling the leaves)
3. Boil for about 5 minutes. When the leaves turn black, take a leaf and put it into a plastic basin filled with clean water. Carefully wash with clean water. (Note: Do not pick and place the leaves directly with your hands during this operation to prevent sodium hydroxide from corroding the surface of your hands. Use tweezers or clips to pick and place the leaves.)
4. When the residual alkali solution on the leaves is rinsed, take it out and remove it. Lay the leaf flat on a piece of glass. Use a small test tube brush or an old toothbrush with soft bristles to gently brush off the rotten leaf flesh on both sides of the leaf in the direction of the leaf veins. While brushing, rinse with a small flow of tap water until only the leaf veins are left. .
5. Soak the leaf veins in hydrogen peroxide for 24 hours to achieve the bleaching effect. 6. Brush the clean leaf veins, rinse and place them on a glass sheet to dry. When it is dry to semi-dry and semi-wet state, apply various dyes required, then sandwich it in old books and newspapers, absorb the water and take it out, and it can be used as a leaf vein bookmark. After drying, use red or blue ink or other dyes to dye it into your favorite color, and then tie a colored silk ribbon on the petiole to make a leaf vein bookmark with clear veins, bright color, beautiful and practical.
2. Water Soaking Method If you do not have the above-mentioned medicines or props, you can use the simplest water soaking method. The method is very simple, that is, soak the leaves in water for one to two weeks to let them rot naturally, and then use a discarded toothbrush to clean the rotten leaf meat along the direction of the leaf veins to make a beautiful leaf vein bookmark. ifIf you want to speed up the process, you can add some alkaline toiletries to the water (it seems that a suitable temperature needs to be maintained during soaking to allow bacteria to multiply. Try to avoid hot weather. Anyway, the weather is too hot, so I have never successfully soaked.). Dyeing the prepared leaf vein bookmarks with color and then taking them to a photo studio for plastic molding will make the bookmarks more exquisite and suitable for use as bookmarks and as gifts to relatives and friends. Although the gift is small, it is also very popular.