Who doesn’t love the look of a gorgeous tropical leaf? Even better…. who doesn’t love a tropical leaf that will never wilt? This post features a fun art activity in which artists will create a painted paper monstera leaf and glue it to a creative background. This blog post features a materials list, video tutorial, and step by step photos if you wish to work more at your own pace. Let’s get started!
Materials list:
- 2 pieces of paper
- Scissors
- Pencil
- Acrylic paint, brushes, and cup of water*
- Glue
*You could substitute paint for another art medium, such as oil pastels, watercolor and more!
Video tutorial:
Step by step photos with instructions:
Step 1: Fold a piece of paper in half vertically.
Step 2: Draw your monstera leaf outline.
Step 3: Open your fold to reveal the symmetrical leaf. Make adjustments if needed.
Step 4: To create holes in your leaf, fold the paper in half vertical and then horizontally. Draw half circles and cut along the fold.
Step 5: Open your fold to reveal the holes. Add a few more, and explore some asymmetrical holes as well by creating some holes on only one side.
Step 6: Using a variety of green tones begin to paint your leaf. Create directional brushstrokes to create the veins in the leaf. Use white paint to create a defined vein in the middle and some smaller veins on the left and right side.
Step 7: On a separate piece of paper, create a contrasting background. Get creative with how you use pattern, color, and line.
Step 8: Once dry, glue your leaf onto your background.
I hope you had a fun learning about how to make a paper monstera leaf! I would love to see your finished work. Feel free to tag me on Instagram @makeamark_studios or email me a photo at makeamarkstudios@gmail.com. With your permission, I’d love to feature it here on this blog post. 🙂 Let me know! Feel free to share your feedback below. I love to hear from my readers!
-Stephanie Villiotis
Painted paper projects are SO MUCH FUN! As a self-proclaimed crazy plant lady, this project looks like a blast and turned out beautifully!
Thank you so much! It really is fun to make! I wish I was a plant lady, I seem to have a brown thumb with keeping plants alive 🙁
This is such a great idea and so simple! My daycare will love doing this!!
This is so pretty! Thank you for sharing how to make it 🙂