Antique trade card.  Decorative items are 2 panels, 3 ink lines, and one painted bevel.

Antique trade card.  This is one of my early painted bevels.  Note the variegation in the bevels.  This is from my Aunt Mabel's scrapbook from the 1890's to 1910's.

A museum postcard.  Simple single 8-ply bevel with 22k gold leaf, hand laid.

Grey Owl Framing is known for the unique decorative mat elements used with paper based media.  Historically decorative mats with lines and panels were called French Mats.


Although I do French Mats, I also offer many other decorative mat elements including multi-colored and variegated painted bevels, hand-painted or hand-laid panels, painted and unpainted decorative papers, metal leaf or genuine gold and palladium leaf, ink lines, marble mats and hand-painted or gesso laid mats.


Historically, panels for French Mats were done with very pale watercolor washes.  While I do pale watercolor washes and lines in the traditional French Mat style, most of my lines and panels are now from brighter colored media which I believe is more appropriate for many designs.

Closeup of a hand-wrapped bevel.  Rag paper is painted and then wrapped for a deeper bevel.  Bevel is blue with gold and silver.

Decorative Mats and French Mats

An example of a French Mat with several hand-drawn lines of different widths, and a hand-painted panel.  There is also a 22 kt. hand-laid gold leaf bevel below the French Mat.