March 2023 - Follower's Showcase

Let's have a quick look again at the inspiration kit this month.

Each month we like to share a CKC - follower who caught our attention. 

In the month of March we have had so many inspiring posts in the Facebook group! I really encourage you to join us over there if you haven't already. You can also find some of our posts on Instagram under the hashtag #ckcmarch2023

This month I was totally blown away by the posts from Brandi Jo and she was so sweet to agree to let me feature her here! You can find her on Instagram under the handle @scrappy.boymama

Here are some of the layouts and cards she has created this month (there are so many more to see in the FB group).

I love how she uses mixed media in her layouts and that she created cards as another way to use up that kit! Thanks for letting me feature you Brandi Jo!

Here is what the rest of March's month of inspiration will look like:

• 31st March - Killing the Kit - an idea or two focusing on using up the bits and pieces left in your kit.

You know that we always love to see your work, so please share your kits and projects with us. You can post them in our Facebook Community or share them on Instagram (we are @counterfeitkitchallenge or tag us using #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcmarch2023).

Thanks so much for stopping by! We can't wait to see your kits and projects this month!

March 2023 - Challenge #2 - Movie Poster Inspiration

 Alright, who's ready for another Challenge to get your creative juices flowing? 

Challenge #2 is inspired by an activity in an online class I took recently from Ali Edwards and Linda Jordan called Plan, Prep, Play. In the class Linda reviewed how we can find design inspiration from places outside of the scrapbook world, specifically our environment.

Think about all the time and design details that go into creating advertising in magazines or billboards or even record albums and movie posters!

When I heard that I was like YES! THAT has to be Challenge #2 for March! 

My favorite movie EVER is You've Got Mail. Here's the poster:

source: IMDB

Here is how I interpret this as a potential page layout:

which roughly translates to this as a sketch:

Here's the layout I created from this inspiration:

Master Forger Julene:

My layout is inspired by the movie "Eyes wide shut" starring Nicole Kidman.

These are the 2 posters that were used to advertise the movie.

Here's my layout.

Luckily, I have been to Venice! 

Master Forger Misty:

Found a what she thought was a movie poster (left) and started her design process there. At some point she realized it was a graphic interpretation of a movie poster! So she'll show you the entire line of thinking that ended in her project...

She liked the wide city scape image in both photos since it reminder her of a photo she recently took. Plus the single "person" image hovering over the city would work for the story she wanted to tell. From the left image she liked the word structure at the bottom left as well as the bold stripe under the images. With all of that in mind, here is what she came up with.

It did have to get re-worked a bit as her journaling was taking up too much space to get the title she wanted to span across the top. With the new title arrangement it opened up space for embellishment clusters.

Here is what the rest of March's month of inspiration will look like:

• 24th March - Follower's Showcase - who has caught our eyes this month.
• 31st March - Killing the Kit - an idea or two focusing on using up the bits and pieces left in your kit.

You know that we always love to see your work, so please share your kits and projects with us. You can post them in our Facebook Community or share them on Instagram (we are @counterfeitkitchallenge or tag us using #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcmarch2023).

Thanks so much for stopping by! We can't wait to see your kits and projects this month!

March 2023 - Challenge #1 - Mood Board

Welcome back! It's time for Challenge #1 - Mood Board

Have you seen the mood board challenges that various companies host throughout the year? One of my favorites is from Pink Fresh Studios and Paper Issues. A mood board helps to capture the look and feel of a collection and can be an awesome jumping off point for creating layouts! 

Here is the mood board I created for the March Inspiration kit:

As I've mentioned before, Traci Reed really packs so much into her digital kits and it was a fun challenge to narrow down what I wanted to showcase. For this challenge, create a layout inspired by the mood board. You can choose one element or multiple, you can even use the grid as your inspiration or just go off the colors. It's completely up to you! As always, remember to have fun!

Here is the layout I created for this challenge, I was inspired by the ledger paper, the theme of self-care and the butterflies. This is a two page layout using 6x8 paper.

I also used this layout for my Scrap-Lift Crafternoon project so there is a process video which you can watch here

Our Guest Designer Amanda Castle has also created a layout:

"From the mood board, I was most inspired by the picture in the lower left corner. There was just something about those fuzzy heart string lights that got my creative juices flowing. From the moment I saw that, I knew exactly what I wanted to do! The combination of the patterned paper hearts and sequins really helped me achieve the look I was going for."

You can also view a video about this layout here.

Master Forger Cindy created a layout using the color blue, greenery, flowers, butterfly, self-care and meditation from the mood board. I started taking a few extra moments out on the patio during Covid and have continued it - even through this winter. 

blog post here.

Master Forger Tara created a layout using the theme of the mood board:  self care.  As a wife and mom, she knows how important it is to take care of herself so she can care for her family as they need and deserve to be cared for.  One of the ways she does this is to exercise regularly because without exercise, her bad back puts her in bed for days at a time.  This layout showcases a recent day when she was getting ready to do her strength training.  

Master Forger Leslie used elements from the mood board: a grid style, butterflies, flowers, ledger paper, coffee, and feel good sentiments.

Here is what the rest of March's month of inspiration will look like:

• 18th March - Challenge #2 - To inspire you to get creating from your own kit.
• 24th March - Follower's Showcase - who has caught our eyes this month.
• 31st March - Killing the Kit - an idea or two focusing on using up the bits and pieces left in your kit.

You know that we always love to see your work, so please share your kits and projects with us. You can post them in our Facebook Community or share them on Instagram (we are @counterfeitkitchallenge or tag us using #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcmarch2023).

Thanks so much for stopping by! We can't wait to see your kits and projects this month!

Goodbye and Good Luck!

Image by rawpixel.com

Once again, I find myself drafting a "Goodbye" post and I wanted to look back and see what I'd written in the past. 

I came across this post here "Musings, news and a Counterfeit Kit Challenge Master Forger Design Team Call – July to December 2021" and realised that every single word I wrote about what this team means to me is STILL true today. 

Who we are, what we do round here, what we want to offer the scrapbooking community, and how we want it to look to the outside world. 

We are truly a low-key challenge community. We are still gentle and still a little bit "old school" (basing our posts on the blog), and we still stay true to our core mission of creating kits from our own stash and making pages and projects in the hope that our community is inspired to do the same! 

The team at the Counterfeit Kit Challenge is STILL friendly, fun and talented and I'm STILL grateful to have them as my crafting buddies! And it's STILL sad to have to say goodbye to anyone on the team. 

So, again, it is with a heavy heart that I say goodbye to the very talented Juliet. We already miss her a lot and hope that she hangs around in the community to make us smile with her layouts and creations! 

A very heartfelt thank you Juliet for being such a fabulous member of our happy team!

Which brings me to a happier part of this post: 

Design Team Call for the Counterfeit Kit Challenge team in 2023

We are looking for a couple of passionate kitters and paper crafters to join the Counterfeit Kit Challenge Master Forger team for 2023. 

If you would like to apply to join our team as Master Forger for 2023 please apply to thecounterfeitkitchallengeblog@gmail.com by Friday 31st March with the following: 

• Pick any inspiration kit featured in 2022 on the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog

• Create your own (new) page kit / mini kit using the inspiration

• Create a (new) project using one of the two featured challenges from the month chosen

• Send us bright and clear photos of your page kit, your kit project and two other projects (don’t need to have been made in connection with CKC) you have created which showcase your crafting style
• Include a short write up about your creative  process, choices, design decisions for the kit and layouts your are showcasing

• In addition to your kit and project photos your email should include some information about you, any current design teams you contribute to, your crafting story and where we can find you online (social media, blog, online galleries, YouTube etc). We’d like to get to know you!

As a Master Forger for 2023 we’d like you to: 

• create a kit each month based on an inspiration kit and showcase it in a design Team hop via social media (please state your preferred method - blog, YouTube, IG, FB)

• create a project for at least one CKC challenge each month

• contribute to the Forgery on the Fourth blog post on a regular basis with your own creations or links to ideas or tutorials online

• take clear, bright, good quality photos of your kits and projects and/or videos

• contribute to the Counterfeit Kit Challenge Facebook community on a regular basis

• comment on projects which are linked up by our followers in the CKC FB community and Instagram 

• organise, be responsible for, and coordinate the inspiration kit, challenges and blog posts for one kit month a year

• be an active team member and contribute to the smooth running of our small, close and friendly team 

I will contact you and make the new team announcement at the beginning of April so that the new Master Forgers can showcase their first kit in May 2023!

We are excited to hear from you and are looking forward to adding you to our team of friendly, motivational, supportive and inspirational crafty peeps! 

Please don’t hesitate to contact us on thecounterfeitkitchallengeblog@gmail.com if you have any questions or queries or DM me (Lisa) on FB – I’m here to answer any questions you have! 

Image by rawpixel.com

March 2023 - Mini Kit Reveal & Projects

Sometimes you just don't have the time or motivation to make and use a full kit. No problem, you can make a mini kit! 

Our Master Forgers Lisa, Misty and Laura are here to get you started.

Let's have a quick look again at the inspiration kit this month - "Time to Thrive" by Traci Reed.

MF Lisa: I thought about making a mini-album but after a less than successful LOAD in February (I only managed 11 layouts in total), I decided to make another page kit from my huge Mabel kit and tell another of my "28 Days of Mabel" stories.

Looking at the original kit, I decided to go with the yellow, blue, green colour scheme with a red/pink heart paper which could be useful and matches the inspiration. I also decided that the floral embellishments, labels, twine bows and banners were good things to include and I liked the idea of hearts, florals, stars, leaves and dots so made sure my papers or embellishments highlighted those parts of the inspiration as well. I brought together some papers (all of which are partial sheets), some tags left over from last month's mini, alphas, some floral die-cuts and a handful of dies to make some extra embellishments if needed. My "Mabel kit" is full of peach, lemon, pinks and soft pastels so it was interesting to sort through and find some items which didn't exactly fit that colour scheme and was pleased with the resulting kit. It looks bigger than it really is! I might squeeze out two pages but this was really only designed for the one.

As I've been doing recently, I also added in a sketch, some photos I wanted to use and the story I wanted to tell before I considered my page-kit to be completed. The story to tell featured Mabel's friend - a black Labrador - so I felt that this stronger colour scheme would work well and still fit into my album of mostly softer shades.

The sketch was adapted for my 12x12 preference and the two photos. However, I still think the little line of tags is super cute and the addition of some leaves and flowers, as well as keeping those stronger shades to smaller proportions, keeps the layouts looking sweet and girly! They are both gorgeous "little" girls after all!

I'll post some extra, detail shots on my blog here

Master Forger Misty: Was inspired to make a simple page kit. Her photos were neutral in color so she felt she could freely choose from the inspiration. She went with a navy floral (combining two ideas from the inspiration), a coral rainbow shaped print (again combining ideas) and a star print with a rainbow tail. Embellishments were hearts and labels plus some pattern paper to cut apart images & words. All of this had a "take care" theme to it with a nod to Traci Reed's self care theme.

And here is the page she made with these products.

Master Forger Laura had this to say about her mini kit:

My kit may not look mini, but the papers are. I used papers cut down to 6x8 size and a couple of 6x6. I included the embellishments I made myself, mostly out of scraps. I enjoy using the smaller sized papers and seeing how far I can stretch them. I made a card using my kit.

Here is what the rest of March's month of inspiration will look like:

• 12th March - Challenge #1 - To inspire you to get creating from your own kit.
• 18th March - Challenge #2 - To inspire you to get creating from your own kit.
• 24th March - Follower's Showcase - who has caught our eyes this month.
• 31st March - Killing the Kit - an idea or two focusing on using up the bits and pieces left in your kit.

You know that we always love to see your work, so please share your kits and projects with us. You can post them in our Facebook Community or share them on Instagram (we are @counterfeitkitchallenge or tag us using #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcmarch2023).Thanks so much for stopping by! We can't wait to see your kits and projects this month!

March 2023 - Forgery on the Fourth

 We are back today to give you an idea or two of how to make your embellishments or elements for your own March Counterfeit Kit! 

Let's have a quick look again at the inspiration kit this month. 

This feature is all about the fun of having a go at making up your embellishments or re-creating the papers as a way of getting the same look as the inspiration kit even if you don't have any of the original items.

These tutorials are often so simple and easy that it really is a perfect chance to try out an idea or two. Make sure you share if you do, we love it when you are motivated to give it go! 

Master Forger Misty created a couple of different items. First up was some accordion hearts inspired by the digital kit embellishments. It took her a while to come up with just the right pattern but she figured it out and shares the tutorial on her YouTube channel.

Secondly, she used a Tim Holtz label die, that both stamps and cuts at the same time, to create a pile of labels.

Master Forger Julene forged 2 papers for her kit. 

Using white paper, she used various coloured gel pens to recreate the "plus sign" paper and an old rubber star stamp for the front paper. This is to match the navy planets paper in her kit. 

Master Forger Laura brought out some punches and die cut flowers to create clusters and banners. Easy!

Here is what the rest of March's month of inspiration will look like:

• 6th March - Mini Kit Reveal and Project Showcase - Inspiration for a smaller kit or project ideas.
• 12th March - Challenge #1 - To inspire you to get creating from your own kit.
• 18th March - Challenge #2 - To inspire you to get creating from your own kit.
• 24th March - Follower's Showcase - who has caught our eyes this month.
• 28th March - Killing the Kit - an idea or two focusing on using up the bits and pieces left in your kit.

You know that we always love to see your work, so please share your kits and projects with us. You can post them in our Facebook Community or share them on Instagram (we are @counterfeitkitchallenge or tag us using #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcmarch2023).

Thanks so much for stopping by! We can't wait to see your kits and projects this month!

March 2023 - Just The Gist of It

Welcome back to Just the Gist of It where I hope to offer you a possible starting point for creating your kit.

Here's a reminder of our inspiration kit this month:

Inspiration Kit – Traci Reed Designs – Time to Thrive Digital and Printable Kit

Papers:

Pocket Cards:

This kit has three different card options

Set 1 - body positivity

Set 2 - mental health

Patterned Cards

Stickers

The separate Digital Kit has a TON of inspiration (and cool stuff if you do digital) She doesn’t give a full view of it but here is the product image:

Unboxing Videos - Time to Thrive Kit on YouTube (Traci Reed)

This is another big kit full of inspiration and I know that can also be a little overwhelming.

When I create my kit I like to spend a few minutes just looking at the inspiration kit and take some notes, I always look for:

1) patterns and designs on the paper (plaid, repeated shapes, dots)

2) the color palette of the overall kit

3) repeated icons in the stickers and ephemera (hearts, flowers, etc.)

4) font styles

This helps me to pull from my own stash without feeling like I have to match the designs exactly. Usually once I start working from my list, I find one pattern paper that I really like and it just goes from there.

Don't forget to dust off your stamps and inks or sprays to use as well! Those can certainly come in handy for creating your own coordinating elements.

Here's a little inspiration for just the gist of this kit:

I chose one of the pattern papers, word stickers and some ephemera to get me started.

Always remember HAVE FUN!!

Here is what the rest of March's month of inspiration will look like:

4th March - Forgery on the Fourth - Master Forgers share simple ideas for creating kit elements.

6th March - Mini Kit Reveal and Project Showcase - Inspiration for a smaller kit or project ideas.

12th March - Challenge #1 - To inspire you to get creating from your own kit.

18th March - Challenge #2 - To inspire you to get creating from your own kit.

24th March - Follower's Showcase - who has caught our eyes this month.

28th March - Killing the Kit - an idea or two focusing on using up the bits and pieces left in your kit.

You know that we always love to see your work, so please share your kits and projects with us. You can post them in our Facebook Community or share them on Instagram (we are @counterfeitkitchallenge or tag us using #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcmarch2023).

Thanks so much for stopping by! We can't wait to see your kits and projects this month!