Here's a good way of utilising autumn leaves to make a cheap but stunning container! I have used an ordinary black plastic flower pot, and blocked up the drainage holes using hot-melt glue. I collected a quantity of fallen Quercus robur (English Oak) leaves, and cleaned and pressed them for a few days between sheets of newspaper with some heavy books on top! (Other autumn leaves such as Beech would be equally suitable.) Next, I sprayed the outside of the pot with spray-adhesive (for quickness, but you could glue on each individual leaf using any other type of glue), and starting from the top, positioned the first row of leaves with their heads about 1.5 cms above the rim of the pot, and each leaf just overlapping the one before, to make sure there was no pot showing. Then I positioned the next row of leaves below the first row, just overlapping the base of the first row of leaves. I then continued to work down the pot, overlapping the rows of leaves, until the whole pot was covered. The bottom row of leaves came below the bottom of the pot, but once the adhesive was dry, I just cut them level with the base of the pot so that it stood properly. (See detailed picture at the bottom of the page.)

After filling the container with floral foam, I then grouped several leaves together, some with their stalks at opposite ends, and folded them in half across their width. I then inserted a wire pin through the centre, and stapled them together. These groups of leaves were then inserted into the foam, around the edge of the pot, to make a sort of "ruff". This had the effect of giving the pot a curved edge, which looked good! I then grouped the rest of the plant materials into the foam. (See detailed overhead view of the design, below.) I also tied some green raffia around the pot, to give an added decorative effect.

Finally, to finish the design, I grouped a couple of green candles next to the pot, with some dried Eucalyptus bark which picked up the green of the candles and the Reindeer Moss, and the brown of the leaves on the pot. Plant materials used in the design were Physalis franchettii (Chinese Lanterns), Peach Roses, Terracotta Chrysanthemums, Apples, Red Chili Peppers, Fortunella japonica (Kumquats), and Cladonia rangifera (Reindeer Moss). The fruits were inserted into the foam with barbecue sticks for stability. This design could also be made using all artificial or dried and preserved materials.

This picture is an overhead view of the design, showing the grouping of the plant materials, and the "ruff" of leaves around the edge.

Here's a close-up of the pot, showing how the Oak leaves have been overlapped, and tied around with green raffia.