tim holtz sizzix: leaf fragments

Hi there crafty friends! Remember these fall leaves I made a while back…these Leaf Fragments dies were part of the Tim Holtz Sizzix Halloween release and I turned them into a small Etcetra tag that is perfect to add to your fall decor! Today, I am sharing a little tutorial on how I created this tag and a few of my favorite tips and tricks for creating these fall leaves that would be great on so many projects, I made an entire bowl of them and am happy to have some left over for a few quick fall cards. 

To create this small Etcetera tag, I began by covering it with a piece of paper from the Backdrops Idea-ology paper pack. We are going to cover most of it up, but I like to know that there is a layer of text under there. Pick one of the more lighter, neutral colored pieces of paper and cover up as much as you like. I used Distress Collage Medium and a Collage brush to adhere my paper to a Small Etcetera tag. There will be some overhang, but we will fix that after it dries. Once the paper is dry, turn your tag over and cut off any excess with a craft knife. Make sure to do this on a surface that is safe to cut on 🙂 

Next, you are going to want to paint the paper on your tag. I used Distress Paints in mostly Antique Linen, but then added a bit of Rusty Hinge and Hickory Smoke to give it a bit of depth, sprayed it with water using the Distress Sprayer and then added another layer of paint until I achieved the look I wanted. 

Now onto the leaves! Before we get started I want you to notice that all my leaves have multiple colors in them. I cut a bunch of leaves from Distress Mixed Media Heavystock. I recommend making a big batch of leaves at once so you have them for all your fall projects. I took out a few of my favorite fall colors of regular Distress Spray Stain (See them in the supply list below) and my Distress Mica Stains. Don’t forget to shake your Mica Stains well so the mica is not all on the bottom while you are using them, and I keep them lying down while I use them so I have less shaking to do. 

I created a batch of each color (yellow, orange, green, purple, brown and dark red). I sprayed a batch of the leaves that I placed inside a Splat Box with water using my DIstress Sprayer and then added colors by color family. I sprayed the leaves with water, then Distress Spray Stain and Distress Mica Spray in the same color family. Once the leaves were dry, I gave them a very light spray with a different color of the Distress Mica Stain. Keep in mind, the further away you hold the sprayer, the smaller the drops will be. 

Once all of my leaves were dry, I inked the edges with Black Soot DIstress Ink using a foam blending tool. This definitely makes them pop. Then I gently bent the leaves in half without giving them an actual crease to mimic real leaves. On some of the leaves I bent the tips backward or forward so they looked more organic. 

To finish the tag, I stamped the sentiment from the Handwritten Thoughts set in Black Soot Archival Distress Ink. Then I placed the leaves onto the tag where I thought I would like to place them. I added some of the leaves onto the tag flat using Collage Medium, and for the others I used super sticky foam squares to hold them onto my project. As the final touch, I added some more light splatter of the Distress Mica Stains over the entire project using a paintbrush that I dipped into the bottle of stain. Don’t forget to put your caps back on tightly when you are done doing this. 

I hope you enjoyed this fun tutorial and will make some fall leaves of your own! 

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