Did you ever splash drops of ink on paper using a toothbrush? My mum taught me this technique when I was a child and suddenly, when Ava and I were picking up pretty leaves the other day, I remembered how fun it was.

All you need is an old toothbrush and some coloured ink. Dip the toothbrush in the ink lightly and use your thumb to spray little drops of ink on the paper. Don't move the leaves when you're doing it!

When you're done, carefully remove the leaves from the paper. Voila! So pretty!

Your thumb will be coloured for the next few days — I think my mum used liquid water colour, 'ecoline' for this, which is probably a better idea if you have it handy. If not, a coloured thumb is actually pretty cool we thought : ).

Pim and Ava made a few very pretty leaf print-splash paintings (or whatever you would call them), and they look really cool on the wall of my office. Simple is best, isn't it?

xxx Esther