I’m a firm believer in creating outside of your comfort zone every once in a while to grow as a crafter and keep away the doldrums…but when I saw this month’s challenge over at A Blog Named Hero, I wasn’t so sure how this was going to go. Muted tones. They’re just not me. I love bright, bold colors and high contrast. Subtlety is not my strong suit.
But you know what? I kinda loved it once I got going. Putting down the black cardstock and reserving my darkest Copic colors for only the deepest crevices of my image really showed me that soft and pretty could make an impact too.
I started by stamping a handful of cute images from the Winter Time Fun stamp set in Obsidian Amalgam Ink onto some Neenah Classic Crest Solar White Cardstock. When I color images (especially when I’m unsure of a new technique), I usually like to stamp a couple of copies so I can practice, so my MISTI comes in handy for this.
Coloring the images in “muted tones” was tough for me at first, but really I was using the same range of markers as usual…I was just tucking the deepest shades in the tiniest of shadow areas with the very tip of my brush nib and blending out using a lot more of the lighter shades. Once I had finished, I used the coordinating dies to cut the images out.
To create the background, I started by die cutting a circle out of a 4.25″ x 5.5″ piece of masking paper and hand cutting a wavy snow bank out of a scrap of the same masking paper. I adhered them to a piece of Neenah Classic Crest Solar White Cardstock measuring 4″ x 5.25″, placing the small snow bank over the bottom of the circle.
I lightly blended Cornflower, Soft Lilac, and Soft Pink inks over the masked cardstock with a blending brush to create a soft, winter sky. When I pulled back the masking paper, I was thrilled with the results!
After adhering the inked panel to a white top-folding A2-size card base with foam adhesive, I arranged my critters over the winter sky and attached them with more foam adhesive. I nearly ruined the whole muted card with a black sentiment strip, but caught myself just in time…and instead stamped a sentiment from the stamp set in Versamark ink onto Pebble cardstock, covered it with white detail embossing powder, and melted it with my heat tool.
I’ve hope I’ve inspired you to join us over at A Blog Named Hero for this month’s “Muted Tones” challenge. Get creative with your favorite Hero Arts products for a chance to win a gift voucher to the Hero Arts store!
Supplies Used:
Note: This post contains affiliate links. This means that I receive a small commission if you purchase a product through some of the links in this post or below at no additional cost to you. Thank you for helping to support this blog!
 Winter Time Fun Stamp Set Shop at: SB | HA |
 Winter Time Fun Dies Shop at: SB | HA |
 Hero Arts Cornflower Ink Shop at: HA |
 Hero Arts Soft Lilac Ink Shop at: HA |
 Hero Arts Soft Pink Ink Shop at: HA |
 Obsidian Amalgam Ink Shop at: GKD |
 Versamark Ink Shop at: SB |
 Masking Paper Shop at: SB |
 Picket Fence Life Changing Brushes – 4pc Shop at: SB |
 MISTI Shop at: SB |
 Neenah Classic Crest Solar White Shop at: SB | CCS |
 Hero Hues Pebble Cardstock Shop at: SB | HA |
 White Detail Embossing Powder Shop at: SB | HA |
 Foam Squares Shop at: SB |