How to Make Metallic Leaf Easter Eggs

By
Chelsea Foy
Chelsea Foy
Chelsea Foy
Chelsea Foy is a DIY expert, writer, author, and the founder of Lovely Indeed, a popular DIY and lifestyle website featured in notable online outlets, such as HGTV and Martha Stewart, She has over a decade of experience with hands-on crafting. Chelsea is also the author of two e-books on crafting and she has instructed DIY workshops across the country.
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Updated on 03/15/21
Metallic leaf Easter eggs with Easter grass

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Project Overview
  • Working Time: 20 - 30 mins
  • Total Time: 45 mins - 1 hr
  • Yield: 1-2 eggs
  • Skill Level: Beginner

If you want to decorate Easter eggs this year, try something different than dye. These no-dye, metallic leaf Easter eggs create a fun and sophisticated twist on the classic tradition. This simple DIY project, made with versatile and decorative leaf, is customizable, from the color to the patterns that you choose. You can find lots of shades of metallic leaf at craft stores, including gold, silver, bronze, rose gold, and more. Mix shades of leaf on one egg, or add a single shape out of leaf onto the surface. Read on for how to do it.

Materials for DIY metallic leaf Easter eggs

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What You'll Need

Equipment / Tools

  • Paintbrushes of various sizes
  • Fluffy, dry brush
  • Trash bag or bin
  • Baker's cooling tray (optional)

Materials

  • Eggs (hardboiled or faux wood)
  • Metallic leaf adhesive (also called sizing)
  • Metallic leaf
  • Egg carton

Instructions

  1. Paint on the Adhesive

    Paint the adhesive on the surface of the egg. Start with a thin coat, and add more if needed. You should never have so much adhesive that it starts to pool. Once the adhesive is painted on, place the egg between the edges of your egg carton, and allow it to dry for a minute or two until it starts to feel very tacky. You can also use a baker's cooling tray for a stable base to dry the egg.

    Warning

    If you're using faux eggs, they'll need to be made of wood or another material that the adhesive will stick to (regular plastic Easter eggs won't work).

    Gold leaf sizing adhesive for gilded Easter eggs

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  2. Add the Leaf

    Carefully and gently apply a sheet of metal leaf over the tacky adhesive. You may have to tear off some smaller sections from your sheet of leaf and apply around the egg to get full coverage. If you have the type of leaf that is attached to a sheet, press the sheet around the egg and pull the sheet away so that the leaf sticks to the adhesive.

    Gold leaf DIY Easter egg

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  3. Burnish Excess Leaf

    Use a dry, fluffy, semi-stiff brush to buff and burnish away the excess gold leaf. You can even use your fingers in some parts for a gentle touch. This is best done over a bag or trash can to catch all of the flakes as they buff off. Continue until you have a smooth, shiny surface. 

    Burnished gold leaf Easter egg

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  4. Patch Bare Spots

    If you find that, when you were buffing, the some sections of leaf peeled off and exposed the egg underneath, repeat the leaf process from the beginning, applying a thin layer of adhesive just to the exposed areas, add more gold leaf, and buff again. 

    Gold leaf Easter egg

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  5. Add Details

    To add detailed patterns or images onto the egg, brush on a small amount of adhesive to the egg's surface using a small, thin brush. Allow the adhesive to dry a bit before adding your detail or shape. After adding the shape, repeat the burnishing and patching process as needed. We used a heart-shaped piece of leaf that we glued onto a bare wood egg. You could also write words, create dots or stripes, draw flowers, or design just about anything in leaf to add to your egg's surface.

    Tip

    The key in this step is to find a paintbrush with a delicate enough tip that lets you create thin lines with the adhesive.

    Wooden Easter egg with metallic copper heart

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  6. Display Your Eggs

    Put your pretty eggs out as part of your springtime decor, or add them to equally elegant Easter baskets. Group eggs in a bowl filled with Easter grass for a glittering springtime table centerpiece.

    Metallic leaf Easter eggs

    Lovely Indeed