Cards of Kindness - Introducing The Gray Muse

Hello Friends!
Despite my hope to hang onto a few more balmy days, we're into full Autumn mode here! 
Pumpkins everywhere, glorious golden leaves, and so much Autumn splendor everywhere you look. 


While I don't love the chill, the one thing I certainly do look forward to with cooler weather, is the ease with which crafting becomes almost second-nature. 
There’s something about cozying up to a fire...Scissors, stamps and paper in tow, crafting the day away. 
Especially when paired with some new floral stampies gifted to me by the fabulous new-to-me company, The Gray Muse


Sweet Ruby and I have been Insta friends for some time, and I've adored all the gorgeous, crafty pins she showers our little crafty world with. But did you also know that her newest line consists of these STUNNING clear stamps?! 


My heart skipped a beat when her sweet parcel arrived. They are so, so beautiful.
Spoiler alert - her packaging is just as delightful!
I sure hope you'll skip on over to her shoppe and see all the pretty things she makes.


For my cards today, I kept things really simple and heat-embossed both of the designs onto some cardstock. The first card was colored with Copic hues since I heat-embossed on a white base.


For the second card, I had to get a little creative, as the dark cardstock was a little too vibrant to cover well with any mediums I had. Coloring pencils weren't quite doing the trick and neither were pastels. 


So I opted for gouache!
If you follow me on Instagram, you'll notice I've posted one of my recent doodle pieces, which I've also colored up with these lovely mediums. If you've never used Gouache, I highly recommend it. It's a water based paint, similar in consistency to acrylics, just a tad thinner and easier to spread, especially with the addition of some water. Since they are water-based colors,  they can be watered down a fair bit to act as a watercolor, however you will find gouache to be more opaque than watercolor. It's a fantastic option as is (a.k.a. undiluted) for painting on dark cardstock and getting great coverage. I'm still playing with these, and I may do an overview post once I've got a better handle on their properties.

You can get a variety of these paints, in different quality levels just about anywhere. This set is a good middle of the road option, and this is a good budget option. Just keep in mind, the higher quality paints will provide a much smoother coverage and more pigmented hues.

For a super high-end option, I would recommend purchasing larger tubes of red, yellow, blue, black and white, and mixing up your own hues! A good brand to look for is Windsor & Newton.


I did end up having some issues staying within the lines, so once I was done coloring, I heat-embossed the image once more over top, and that cleaned up my lines nicely.

Have you had a chance to play with this medium or these lovely stamps yet?

Thanks for visiting, Friends!

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4 comments

  1. Ivana, you are so lucky to have gotten first dibs on these gorgeous stamps - that Grey Muse knows what she's doing!! GORGEOUS stamps, FABULOUS cards! xx
    =]

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  2. What STUNNING stamps!! I LOVE your creations and you are so lucky to be able to preview these!!

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  3. I love the soft autumn shades you've used Ivana, these are just so pretty!

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