Making Wax Leaves 



The method of making; leaves described in this Leaflet, depending 

 on the use of Mousselaine tie Soie, the mysterious "fabric" of the 

 Mogridges, has been largely superseded by the use of cotton batting. 

 The advantages of cotton batting are that the leaf is homogeneous in 

 composition and is less liable to curl or split, and that the stem wire is 

 more securely imbedded in and attached to the substance of the leaf. 

 The material is also more readily obtained, especially in small places. 

 The finer the quality the better, but it is not necessary to use the finest 

 and softest for large leaves. 



A thin layer of cotton is spread over the lower half of the mold, the 

 stem laid on this and, if the leaf is thick, a very little cotton laid on the 

 stem; melted wax is then poured over this and the upper part of the 

 mold pressed upon the mass. 



The use of molds hardened in paraffin, as noted on page 12, is 

 attended with some difficulty, as wax has a tendency to adhere to them; 

 a simpler method of hardening molds is to boil them for from ten to 

 twenty minutes, according to size, in a strong solution of borax. 



If a mold is to be used a great many times a good plan is to place 

 it in hot linseed oil for about 5 minutes and let it dry for a week or ten 

 days before using. 



Finally where large numbers of leaves of a kind are to be made, the 

 molds are often made in type metal or bronze and these are fastened to 

 wood or metal frames, hinged together at one end on the principle of an 

 old-fashioned lemon-squeezer. The lower arm may be fastened to a table, 

 and, in the case of large leaves, it frequently happens that two persons 

 may work together to good advantage, one spreading the cotton and 

 pouring the wax, the other doing the squeezing and removing the leaf 

 from the mold. In the case of large parti-colored leaves, for example, 

 green and white or green and red, two colors of wax may sometimes be 

 used to advantage. 



