Easy Tape-Resist Tree with Fall Leaves

Check out this fall tree I made, with absolutely no drawing or painting skills required. It's like magic! Affiliate links below. 

Tape-Resist Tree with Fall Leaves

Materials:

• chipboard
• painter's tape (3 different widths - 3/4", 1/2", and 1/4")
• sponge
• Folk Art paint - blue, yellow, red
• q-tips
• colored pencils (2 shades of brown)

Steps:

Orient your chipboard vertically, then put a strip of 3/4" tape straight down the center to make the tree trunk. Fold the ends around to the back of the chipboard.

Use the 1/2" tape to add branches extending diagonally up from both sides of the trunk. Stagger them with uneven intervals between them for a more realistic look.

With the 1/4" tape, add twigs to the branches. Vary their length and angles. 

Dip the edge of the sponge into sky blue paint. Dab it over the tape, covering about half of the exposed chipboard. 

Put red and yellow paint near each other on a palette. Dip a q-tip into one color, then make dots to fill in the unexposed chipboard. Each time you dip, alternate paint colors between yellow and red. This will create the oranges and give the tree a more realistic, random look. 

Carefully pull up the tape, revealing the unpainted chipboard tree.  

When the paint is completely dry, use a dark brown colored pencil to draw lines on the tree to simulate bark. The lines should always go the length of the trunk, branch, or twig. 

Finally, use a lighter brown colored pencil to color in the tree. 

See? No drawing or painting skills needed! And it's a lot of fun. Give it a try!