Saturday, November 30, 2019

Killing Kits - An End & A New Beginning

Hello Counterfeiters! Today, I'm here with a little note to let you know that this is my last write up for the Killing Kits Series. In the New Year, the wonderful Shannon Allor will take on the role of 'Kit Killer' and will, no doubt, amaze us with her own tricks and techniques to use every, little, last bit of our kits!

I started the series in May 2018 because I had the leftovers of at least sixteen different kits stashed away. It felt like a such waste. I had lots of lovely stash, all bundled into files - and some of it had been around since c.2012 - that I felt I would never use, if I didn't make the effort. Today, as I write, I've killed all of those older kits and have breathed new life into my older stash with new ideas! 

If you haven't seen much of the series, or would like a reminder of the ideas I've covered, here's a little list.




 


 



I've discovered some new 'favourite' techniques for making the most of my leftovers and will continue to use them as I work on current kits. Perhaps I'll start to use every little last bit of my current kits before I move onto a new one? (Ahem!) Or more likely, I'll build up a new stash of kit leftovers. Either way, I'm happy!

Bye, for now. Clair x

Sunday, November 24, 2019

November 2019 - Follower Showcase

The month comes slowly - or maybe rapidly! - to an end and it's my pleasure to feature the last follower showcase of the year for you today.

New follower Dorothy Guinan caught my attention at the end of last month when she joined our group and I dared her not to be inspired right away with our November kit! She had planned to observe a little and find her feet first but then she agreed that our inspiration kit really was too tempting! LOL!

She filled her kit with fabulous Pinkfresh Studio productss - some of which I have in my own stash and very nearly also included in my November kit! With the soft lilacs and blues as well as some stronger shades of grey and the white contrast, her kit really stands out. And aren't those coffee cup dies cute?


And then she dived right in and created some super pretty layouts too after she had identified two challenges for herself - colours she doesn't usually work with and limited papers - only one of each - which would be tricky for her preferred double page spreads!

Well, all I can say is that she overcome all of that in a blink and created pages which are so good :-) 

She told me that this one below has hidden journalling on the pull out tags which is always something that I love and look at that adorable rainbow cluster there at the top! This layout makes me happy and the title is perfect!


And a good, harmonious, balanced double spread page also makes me happy and reminds me that I should do this more often. What a lovely capture of a long hike to the top!


Dorothy! Well done on jumping right in and making up such a beautiful kit and such lovely layouts. We are thrilled to have you playing along and hope that you'll be back for more!


Don't forget that we'll be back on the 30th and then in December, we'll be shaking things up as usual to offer you a different kind of inspiration which will allow us all to sit back and relax a little! 

December is always a month where things slow down in the Counterfeit Kit Challenge and we take the chance to focus on home and family and seasonal preparations so we hope you'll join us and share your own preparation along the way.

I'll be back soon with some sneaks soon ;-) 
  • November 30th: We'll be offering another installment in our {Killing Kits} series to help you find ways to use up all of your kit


We always love to see your work, so please share your kits and projects with us.
You can use our Monthly Link-up page, post them in our Facebook Community, or share them on Instagram (we are @counterfeitkitchallenge or tag us using #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcnovember2019).

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

Lisa

Tuesday, November 19, 2019

Don't forget the Counterfeit Kit Challenge Master Forger Design Team Call – 2020!!!


Don't forget that our Master Forger Design Team Call for 2020 is still open with a deadline of next Monday, 25th November!

To recap ... 

Design Team Call for the Counterfeit Kit Challenge team in 2020 (January to December 2020) - as well as Guest Designers for single months during 2020

We are looking for one passionate kitter and paper crafter to join the Counterfeit Kit Challenge Master Forger team to join us in 2020 (January to December 2020) as well as Guest Designers for our monthly kit showcases during the year. 

If you would like to apply to join our team as Master Forger - or for a Guest Designer position - for 2020 please apply to thecounterfeitkitchallengeblog@gmail.com by Monday 25th November with the following:
  • Pick an inspiration kit from one of the kits featured in 2019 on the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog 
  • Create your own kit using the inspiration 
  • Create a project using one of the two featured challenges from the month chosen 
  • Send us bright and clear photos of your CKC kit, your CKC project and two other projects you have created which showcase your crafting style to  thecounterfeitkitchallengeblog@gmail.com
  • In addition to your kit and project photos – along with a short write up about your choices, 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!
  • Please state clearly if you’d like to be considered for Master Forger 2020, Guest Designer for a month or both! 

As a Master Forger for 2020 we’d like you to: 
  • create a kit each month based on an inspiration kit and showcase it in a Design Team blog hop (or other social media platform) hop
  • 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 on our blog, 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
As a monthly Guest Designer we’d like you to:
  • create a kit based on an inspiration kit and showcase it in the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog hop (or other social media platform)
  • create a project for one CKC monthly challenge
  • voluntarily contribute to other CKC activities during the month such as Forgery on the Fourth or the second challenge 
  • take bright clear photos of your kit and projects and/or videos and share them online during your guest month


We will make the new team announcement in December, before Christmas, and the new Master Forgers will be able to showcase their first kit in January 2020!

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! 

Good luck!



Lisa

Monday, November 18, 2019

November 2019 - Challenge #2 - Twinkling fairy lights!



Welcome back to the second challenge of the month and I hope you're all having fun with your kits and are sharing all your fabulous creations with us!

Let's get straight down to the prompt today:

"This month's inspiration kit features a paper design covered with pretty fairy light chains which is the paper that caught my attention in the first place. I love hanging fairy lights on the tree, around my balcony and in dark corners for the dark days of winter and adore featuring banners on my scrapbook pages. So... feature fairy lights or banners on your project."

Why don't we take a look at the twinkling projects our Master Forgers have created for us:

Master Forger Julene

I chose banners as I had no photos of twinkling lights. I scrapped a photo from New York last year. While we were at the Flatiron building we saw a model being filmed for a commercial or perhaps a magazine. The colours went with this month's kit. I added some red.
My layout has "twinkle" in the gold star brads on the banner plus the yellow doiley.



Master Forger Lori

I used the banner paper that I had included in this month's kit for this layout. You can read more about it on my blog here.


Guest Designer Tara 

I chose to dig into the stamps that I included in my November kit and make a simple stamped border on a photo mat for this cute picture of my sassy little girl!!  




I have another new grand dog & couldn't wait to document it!



There is still time to be inspired and later this month we will be back with the following: 
  • November 24th:  I'll be showcasing one of the CKC community who's caught my eye this month
  • November 30th: We'll be offering another installment in our {Killing Kits} series to help you find ways to use up all of your kit

We always love to see your work, so please share your kits and projects with us.
You can use our Monthly Link-up page, post them in our Facebook Community, or share them on Instagram (we are @counterfeitkitchallenge or tag us using #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcnovember2019).

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

Lisa

Tuesday, November 12, 2019

November 2019 - Challenge #1 - Anticipation!


It's time for Challenge #1 today and it's all about the waiting
The excitement
The "how many sleeps until....". 
The build up to the main event!

So let's see what I challenged the Master Forgers with this time around as my favourite month progresses!

"For many, November is a time of anticipation - before the fun of Christmas begins, looking forward to - or maybe dreading - the weather turning colder and winter showing its face,  or the year coming to an end. Or, like me, it might be a time full of birthdays, wedding anniversaries and family visits. Whatever it is you're expecting, waiting for or feeling excited about, be inspired by the anticipation of something today!"


"Anticipation…many are anticipating Thanksgiving, Christmas, or the New Year at this time of year. Not me. Not this year. I am anticipating a move that will almost be exactly a year after our previous move. This is the quickest move the US Military has ever bestowed upon us! I find myself scrambling to make sure I have purged the things that need to be purged, but also making sure that I don’t over-buy things for our pantry this time. It’s crazy to have this sort of anticipation at what is already a busy time of the year for us!! The journaling on my layout that I created for this challenge talks about the anticipation of new memories to be maid and the addition of new friends and community to be added to our “tribe”."


You can find out more over on her blog here

 has started a two page layout documenting Thanksgiving preparations.

You can find more over on her blog post here.


I've documented a long awaited reunion with my kindred spirit,
celebrating my recent birthday with brunch & a little retail therapy!


Documenting the newest treasure in our family to arrive just in time for Christmas




Come back again soon for more fun and inspiration.  
  Here's what we still have coming up this month:
  • November 18th:  We'll give you two challenges to help you use the kit you've made.
  • November 24th:  I'll be showcasing one of the CKC community who's caught my eye this month
  • November 30th: We'll be offering another installment in our {Killing Kits} series to help you find ways to use up all of your kit

We always love to see your work, so please share your kits and projects with us.
You can use our Monthly Link-up page, post them in our Facebook Community, or share them on Instagram (we are @counterfeitkitchallenge or tag us using #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcnovember2019).

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

Lisa

Thursday, November 7, 2019

Some news and a Counterfeit Kit Challenge Master Forger Design Team Call – 2020

The team at the Counterfeit Kit Challenge is fun, active and incredibly talented and I’m so, so grateful to have them as my crafting buddies. I love having them in my life and value each of them for their fabulous crafting, their friendship and their contributions to our community - both “front of shop” as well as behind the scenes. 

Master Forger Susan has decided to step away from the creative activities of the CKC team, which means we will all miss her immense talent and kind words of support. Her projects have me ooo’ing and ahh’ing each and every month and she makes me want to be a better scrapper. But I’m thrilled that she will be staying with us in a support function helping us over on Instagram as well as creating the incredibly awesome mood boards each month for our sneak peeks. 

Ex-Master Forger Clair has delighted us all for many months with her {Killing Kitsseries where she has inspired us all to use up those pesky little scraps and embellishments we find at the bottom of our kit box. Her videos and blog posts have offered simple but effective ideas which were easy to adapt to our own supplies. November will be her last month as she has decided to focus her energies in new directions! I wish her all the very best and hope we will see her over here at CKC from time to time. We miss her already. 

So a warm and heartfelt thank you to both of you for all that you’ve done for us and I hope you will still hang out here at CKC with us!

Which brings me to a happier part of this post: 

First up, I’d like to welcome two new members to the Counterfeit Kit Challenge team – drum roll…. Please join me in welcoming the fantabulous Shannon Allor and Tara O’Rourke who will officially start their CKC team work in January, but no doubt we will be seeing a lot of them until them as they begin to flex their counterfeiting muscles! We are beyond thrilled that they agreed to join us and I know that they will be a perfect fit for the group with their kit skills, not to mention their wonderful craftiness! Shannon will also be offering us ideas at the end of the month for using up our kits as she continues the {Killing Kitsseries as of January
. 

Please join me in welcoming them both to our crafty family! 

And that’s not all… we have space for ONE new Design Team member so…..

Design Team Call for the Counterfeit Kit Challenge team in 2020 (January to December 2020) - as well asGuest Designers for single months during 2020

We are looking for one passionate kitter and paper crafter to join the Counterfeit Kit Challenge Master Forger team to join us in 2020 (January to December 2020) as well as Guest Designers for our monthly kit showcases during the year. 

If you would like to apply to join our team as Master Forger - or for a Guest Designer position - for 2020 please apply to thecounterfeitkitchallengeblog@gmail.com by Monday 25th November with the following:
  • Pick an inspiration kit from one of the kits featured in 2019 on the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog 
  • Create your own kit using the inspiration 
  • Create a project using one of the two featured challenges from the month chosen 
  • Send us bright and clear photos of your CKC kit, your CKC project and two other projects you have created which showcase your crafting style to thecounterfeitkitchallengeblog@gmail.com
  • In addition to your kit and project photos – along with a short write up about your choices, 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!
  • Please state clearly if you’d like to be considered for Master Forger 2020, Guest Designer for a month or both! 

As a Master Forger for 2020 we’d like you to: 
  • create a kit each month based on an inspiration kit and showcase it in a Design Team blog hop (or other social media platform) hop
  • 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 on our blog, 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
As a monthly Guest Designer we’d like you to:
  • create a kit based on an inspiration kit and showcase it in the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog hop (or other social media platform)
  • create a project for one CKC monthly challenge
  • voluntarily contribute to other CKC activities during the month such as Forgery on the Fourth or the second challenge 
  • take bright clear photos of your kit and projects and/or videos and share them online during your guest month


We will make the new team announcement in December, before Christmas, and the new Master Forgers will be able to showcase their first kit in January 2020!

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.comif you have any questions or queries! 

Good luck!

Lisa

Wednesday, November 6, 2019

November 2019 - Mini Kit Reveal and Projects

Are you feeling overwhelmed by the idea of a big kit this month?

 Perhaps you just want to pull together a few products to get those creative juices flowing again.

Maybe a mini kit is the answer!

Today we'll be sharing a couple of mini kits and projects to give you a little inspiration.

First, here's a reminder of our November inspiration:

Susan puts together the sneak peeks each month and when it came time to put together her mini-kit, she kept returning to the second grid in the top row of the sneak peek:


She decided to base both her mini-kit and project on that framed stripe print so she pulled pieces of gray, blue and pink papers from her overflowing box of scraps. The design was already going to be busy so she limited her embellishments to one 3x4 pocket card and a sheet of heart puffy stickers.  



Susan has been working on a 6x8 album documenting her favorite quotes and used her mini-kit for this entry about another favorite hobby, gardening:


For MF Laura, the concept of a mini kit was a little bit tough! Once she started pulling supplies she couldn't stop, so instead broke them down into smaller page kits.



And made a layout with page kit 2




  • November 12th & 18th:  We'll give you two challenges to help you use the kit you've made.
  • November 24th:  I'll be showcasing one of the CKC community who's caught my eye this month
  • November 30th: We'll be offering another installment in our {Killing Kits} series to help you find ways to use up all of your kit


We always love to see your work, so please share your kits and projects with us.
You can use our Monthly Link-up page, post them in our Facebook Community, or share them on Instagram (we are @counterfeitkitchallenge or tag us using #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcnovember2019).

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

Lisa

Monday, November 4, 2019

November 2019 - Forgery on the Fourth



Our November inspiration kit: 


Scrapdelight Scrapwinkel 2019 Winter theme

Pale & painterly with cool slatey colors paired with pink and warmed up by a touch of an orange hue. Great patterns for forging include a painted plaid, broad brushed color swatches, loose pink stripe with tiny stars, take-out coffee cups and bold stylized snowflake icons.

What do you think our team of Master Forgers chose to counterfeit?
 


Guest Designer Tara got straight to it and created some great forgeries about five minutes after I'd sent out the details of November's kit!

"Hey!  It's time for Forgery on the Fourth! I decided to attempt to forge that cute coffee cup patterned paper. I had a stamp and some markers and just started stamping away. I think it turned out cute!"


You can check out all the details over on Tara's blog here!

MF Julene was inspired by the secondary papers in the kit


She duplicated the painted stripes paper in the front.


There are matching journal cards in the original kit lower centre front which she also made.



MF Cindy was inspired by the embellishments in the kit. 

Check out the details here  

MF Lisa got happy with her Cameo and came up with these cute shapes inspired by the light chains, banners, die cut words and coffee cups in the original kit. There's some basic paper piecing there as well as plain old white die cuts which are super cute, super easy and super useful! 

You can find more details over on her blog here:



She used files from the Silhouette online store for these but here are a couple of links for free files online:
Poofy Cheeks - "Be the light" cut file
Pinterest find - Christmas lights - Dropbox link here
19th Studio - Coffee cup cut file
Make It Create - set of 6 coffee cups cut files
I Should be Mopping the Floor - set of 10 winter themed words cut files

MF Leslie sharpened her scissors, did a little fussy-cutting & wielded a Sharpie to do a little masterful magic!

Blog post HERE

MF Lori was inspired by a few of the embellishments that are in the inspiration kit and she used the dies that she had included in her kit and her computer to come up with some quick and easy forgeries:



There's more to come this month as we aim to give you some tips, ideas and challenges as you put together and use your kit.  

Here's what we have coming up:

  • November 6th:  We'll reveal a couple of mini-kits and projects, in case you're a little limited for time this month and would prefer a more petite kit.
  • November 12th & 18th:  We'll give you two challenges to help you use the kit you've made.
  • November 24th:  I'll be showcasing one of the CKC community who's caught my eye this month
  • November 30th: We'll be offering another installment in our {Killing Kits} series to help you find ways to use up all of your kit.
We always love to see your work, so please share your kits and projects with us.
You can use our Monthly Link-up page, post them in our Facebook Community, or share them on Instagram (we are @counterfeitkitchallenge or tag us using #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcnovember2019).

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