OAK LEAF HYDRANGEA

I couldn't resist this colorful Oak Leaf Hydrangea bush in Lincoln Park.  I picked some of the colorful leaves and found one flower where the petals had some color, pink edges - the rest were just plain white.

I took them home, spread the leaves evenly out on a prepared piece of fabric and ran it through the press.

There was color instantly - the red turned purple and there was a lot of green.  I should have taken the stems off.  No color came from them, and they actually inhibited color, and left a blank spot on the fabric.

Check out where the fabric and leaf hung off mat that was under the fabric and didn't get pressed.  The pressed part turned greenish-red, the unpressed part is the red that the leaf was originally:

I rolled the fabric up, leaving the leaves on it and left it overnight.  Here's the fabric.  You can see the outline of the leaves and the veins, it's very interesting.

Yes, this is the fabric!  It looks you're looking at the leaves through frosted glass - it's beautiful.

The one flower I brought home, I cut each little four-petaled flower off and arranged them in rows.  There wasn't enough to cover the little piece of fabric I was using, so I added some leftover leaves to the bottom.  Then I ran this whole thing through the press.  Afterward, I took the leaves and petals off and sprinkled salt over it and rolled it up and left it overnight.  The salt, an afterthought, caused the color to 'melt' a little, as you would expect salt to do.

The flowers left a mostly green imprint with a darker outline, where the pink had been, and in the very center is a little red spot.  I think there was a small pistil, yellow or pink, I can't remember.

I want to go back and get more!