Cardstock Paper Leaves

Oh dear, I've done it again. There's something you should know about me; I'm a terrible multitasker. It's shameful, really. I should be better at it. But, I'm not. Therefore, this tutorial is lacking in the picture department. I started with a pile of paper and when I woke up, my project was finished. And, I had only taken 3 lousy pictures. Honestly. That happened. Let's try to muddle through this whole how-to thing and get to the after pictures. Deal?

I originally saw this picture on Pinterest and was inspired. Inspired to pin it to my Future Projects board. And, inspired to give it a try. Of course, I had to do it my own way. I'm terrible at following directions. 

Here's my take...

I started with a stack of pretty papers. I chose papers from my stash that had two printed sides. That prevented me from having to line up my leaves perfectly with another leaf. Smart, eh? Now, I did this project with my momma and she chose beautiful autumnal colors. But, I wanted to be able to potentially use this tree for another season (say, Spring, for example). My mom also differed in her method in that she used a leaf pattern to trace and cut her leaves. Pffft. I am not nearly that meticulous. I simply stacked a few papers together and cut freeform leaves. I didn't even worry about them being slightly different sizes. I just went with it.

I kept on cutting leaves until I had a nice pile. 

Oh goodness, this next picture is embarrassing. I may or may not have taken it in a dungeon with no light. But, it's helpful to see how I took a short length (maybe 3-4 inches) of wire and sandwiched it between two leaves. This is seriously the best picture I have to illustrate my method.

Here goes.

Judge not my photograph lest your photograph be judged. So sayeth me.

I know. That was bad. Are you still with me? 

Okay then. I wired all the leaves until I had a nice pile and then began the assembly. The sticks came from my mom's yard and I arranged them in a vase before I put the leaves on. To add the leaves, I wrapped each wire around an area of the stick.

See what I mean? Here's another look: 

And, that was that. I didn't add a ton of leaves to my tree because I kind of liked the "less is more" approach. And, if you know me, you know that's code for: I was ready to be done with this project. 

My tree is hanging out on my entry table. And, I really like it! I've always struggled with what to put on that table. I don't know if you can tell, but my entry mirror is really beautiful and I hate to detract from that. But, I think these leaves look great. Even if I do say so myself. They'll probably look great on a Fall mantel, too. Just saying...

Every other Friday I'll be showing off a DIY project at I am THAT Lady. Today is my first day! Head over to her site and check out all the money saving deals and ideas she has for you!! 

I'm linking up!