Leaf cutting dies, irons and a squeeze mold, circa 1910-1970s

Five leaf-shaped cutting dies, three leaf irons, and one concave squeeze mold, used to make either plastic, wax, waxed cloth, or paper cutouts for exhibits, possibly between the 1910s and 1970s.

A leaf iron is a tool that is heated and then pressed together with the waxed cloth to leave an impression. For its part xutting dies are a tool used to cut and/or form material to a desired shape or profile. Leaves or flowers were usually cut out from waxed gauze, however plastic and paper were also used. The gauze was laid on a wet block and the die was also dipped into water to prevent adhesion of the wax. The die was forced through the gauze with a sharp blow of a mallet, which produced a clean-cut edge. A die was used when many small parts were required. Most of the dies in the box are possibly made of lead. This was important because the weight of the material helped with the die cutting, which is now done by machine or scissors by hand.   

Squeeze molds are sets of concave and convex molds. Concave molds are forms that work just like other molds in that the molding material is draped over their surface. With concave molds, the inside surface is exposed, while the outer face is in contact with the mold. This is opposite to that of convex molds, in which the mold is in contact with the interior side. These sets were attached to clamps for leaf-making.

To produce plastic leaves, a plastic sheet was put between the molds, and then clamped tightly under very hot water so that it could take the impression of the leaf. For wax leaves, after placing a thin sheet of cotton and wire for the leaf stem over the top of the mold, molten wax was poured over the cotton and then the squeeze molds were pressed over the hot wax. The wax was then cooled, and once the mold was removed the replica was ready for assembly.