September 2026 Just the Gist of it

 Master Forger Tina here with you to try and break down this kit for you. Here you'll find more pictures of this kit. 

 Here is a reminder what our inspiration kit looks like!

This kit provides so many fun destination items for a trip that involves many things. Lets first look at the papers. There is a variety of colors and patterns too. So just about anything would work, just need to add a few trip theme papers and you would have the perfect kit for any trip. The pocket cards can bring in more extra details for the type of trip it is without including all the papers. The black and white letters bring in the bold fun ways to express the fun of the trip! Add vacation phrases through colorful word art to add a nice touch leaving to bold to the black and white letters. The diecuts are what brings the trip collection to actually being a trip collection adding all the things! Cameras, compass, transportation icons, globes, mountains, buildings, binoculars and geotags. Then add some generic icons to for the fluff needed for clusters: flowers, stars and fun phrase stickers too. That's it.... that is what really makes up a fun trip kit and can be any color or any transportation to work. 

I look forward to seeing what your kit looks like and what you create with it.  

• 4th - Forgeries on the Fourth
• 6th - Mini Kit and Project Reveal
• 12th - Challenge #1: Ready, Set, Explore!
• 18th - Challenge #2: Travels Documented
• 22nd - Challenge #3: Let's Get Sketchy
• 30th - Baby Use Those Scraps

We'd love to see what you create! Share your projects in the Counterfeit Kit Community on Facebook or tag us on Instagram @counterfeitkitchallenge.  #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcSeptember2026

Happy Scraping! Tina

 

August 2026 - Just the Gist of It

Master Forager Amanda here, with a look at how to set up a kit! All of the master foragers set-up their kits a different way, and not even the same way each time! The important part is to get the gist of the kit, but you can take it any direction you would like! 

We are using the kit from Crafty Templates as inspiration this month -- as a reminder this is what it looks like:

Sometimes pulling a kit can be quite intimidating -- but there is no wrong way to pull a kit and no rules to break when setting up a kit!  There are so many bright colors and fun prints in this collection that I thought I would start with the strawberry print and dig deep into my stash to find some strawberry papers! I don't worry about matching a paper completely, or even with the scale of the print -- I find things that kind of work, and go with it! 

After I pulled the strawberry and cherry papers -- I had to pull butterfly papers because of the cute butterflies that are sprinkled throughout some of the papers in the kit.  I have so many butterfly papers I had to scale back what I had so it was more reasonable which ended up being three papers because I cannot scrapbook 20 papers of butterflies in one month, and keeping them all in the kit would have been overwhelming! 

Then I remembered that I had 49 & Market's Nature's Haven in my stash, and had to pull it too, those strawberries, bees and butterflies are perfect to add! (I am pretty sure I am not the only Master Forager that pulled these papers to play with this month!) 

The last papers that I gather from my stash are the patterns.  I try and pull items that are similar - such as the stripes, plaids, poka-dots and florals. In my stash, I have these papers organized by color and pattern/theme, so it makes it quite easy to see what I have. 

Last - I always pull a few embellishments -- if I have a ones that match a paper, those are easy to include - if not, I can dig deep to find stamps and stencils, and other bits and pieces that will work. I don't worry if I don't pull a lot -- as I can always add and make more later or as they fit with the photo that I document! 

Here's what we have coming up this month:

• 4th - Forgeries on the Fourth
• 6th - Mini Kit and Project Reveal
• 12th - Challenge #1: Summer Adventure
• 18th - Challenge #2: Let's get a little Messy
• 22nd - Challenge #3: Let's Get Sketchy
• 30th - Baby Use Those Scraps

We'd love to see what you create! Share your projects in the Counterfeit Kit Community on Facebook or tag us on Instagram @counterfeitkitchallenge.  #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcAugust2026

I can't wait to see what you come up with - I hope you will play along with your stash! 

Happy Scrapping!  XO Amanda Bass 

April 2026 Just the gist of it.

 This is to help those who have never curated a kit of their own or searching for more help putting a kit together.

I look closely at the papers first then try to match them with mine. Sometimes there is something that you don't have anything like it!

In this month's kit I have no woodgrain but looked closely at what i did have and came up with 2 Kraft papers. They have tiny neutral patterns on them but will do the job.

I also write a list for example birds, flowers, branches, wire pattern, chains. I then look at the embellishments and add to my list.

 

These circles have cow, sherbet, lemon, milk bottle, coffee, flower, star. Then go looking for those in your embellishments. OR use your stamps to create something.

The enamel dots might inspire your choices of embellishments. For example, pale pink washi to go with the blues and black and white in the kit.

I then other things that will match eg washi tapes, ribbons, buttons, chipboards.

(Hint: if you start early, you might find more over the next few days)

There is no hard and fast rule and if you look at the master forgers you'll see we are all different.

Enjoy making up your kits this month.

                                                                   Master Forger Julene

March 2026 - Just The Gist Of It

OK, so you've seen the Inspiration Kit for this month and now you are wondering what to do next?  Or how to shop your stash?  This is the post for YOU!  Let me remind you of the March Inspiration Kit first:

Cocoa Daisy February 2026 Kit - Inklings

 

The very first thing that I do when I am shopping my stash to curate one of my kits is to look at the papers in the Inspiration Kit.  Do I have anything from that collection?  If not, do I have things that are similar.  Since I do not own this kit, I will have to dig in deeply to curate my kit this month.  Here's the papers from the Inspiration Kit as a reminder:

 

The paper that caught my eyes first is in the middle row, far right. I know that I have a piece of 49 & Market's Spectrum Gardenia, which is similar.  So, I'll grab that piece first.  

From here, I just started adding papers that I thought would work with this one and kind of go with the Inspiration Kit.  My kit isn't an exact match, but I am happy with my selections.

Here's my papers:

I included a mish mash of papers from various designers!  I have two papers that I forged for my kit, three papers from Cocoa Daisy, two papers from Spectrum Gardenia (49 & Market), two papers from Hip Kit Club, and two papers from Vicki Boutin. 

Here's my scraps and a mini paper pad that I included in my kit: 

 

 The scraps are from creating my forgeries and the mini paper pad is from Vicki Boutin's Print Shop.

Here's my embellishments: 

These embellishments came from Spectrum Gardenia, Discover & Create (from my February kit), Bramble Fox Perspectives, Print Shop, and Hip Kit. 

My kit is a mixture of pure color and joy!  I am very happy with how this kit came out and I hope my choices help inspire you to go digging into your stash for color and joy for your own kit!  

Here's what we have in store for you this month:

• March 4th - Forgeries on the Fourth
• March 6th - Mini Kit and Project Reveal
• March 12th - Challenge #1
• March18th - Challenge #2
• March 22nd - Challenge #3 Let’s Get Sketchy
• March 28th - April Sneak Peek(FB Community & Instagram)
• March 30th - Baby Use Those Scraps

We love to see what you are working on!  Drop in your projects to our Facebook Community Group and of course tag us on Instagram at #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcfeb2026  

Master Forger Tara

 

February 2026 - Just the Gist of It

 

 

Here is a reminder of what we are using for inspiration this month The Scrap Room's Flavor of the Month and embellishment kits from January 2024.

When I first put together my kit, I take a look at the patterns and colors of the inspiration kit.  I have most of my papers organized by color, and then by pattern. For example looking at the inspiration, there is the paper that is orange and blue striped - to find something similar to this, because of how my paper is organized I would look in blue or orange colors and then in my stripes.  I choose something that is similar but not perfect - because most of the time I don’t have perfect matches!  Some of my papers are not color organized but themed organized - I found a perfect snowman paper in my winter/Christmas iris case! 

 

After I have all my papers picked out - I take look to see if there was anything in the inspiration kit that wasn’t represented in my kit - two things stand out for me - the Vicki Boutin paintbrush page and the Photoplay video gaming are not represented at all - this is when I lean into my stamps, stencils and embellishments to build out the rest of my kit!  I know I have a Wild Whispers stamp set with video gaming as a theme, so I am going to put that in my kit and I have a die set that has paintbrushes in them that I am just dying to use! (Pun intended)  Both would be great to use to make forgeries.

 

 

Then I round out my kit with things that I know I might need and haven’t used much lately - acrylic titles might be fun to use this month, some old hip kit stash fits in well and some winter themed embellishments will fit that snowman paper nicely!  Sometimes, but not always, I choose photos to go along with some of the papers - I know I have a photo of my husband and our youngest gaming while camping in the rain, so that’s a definite with this kit!

Now I have a massive kit to play with all month long! If you would like to see a real-time run through of how I put the winter portion of my kit together - going through the papers and most of the embellishments- you can see that here.

We have a full month of inspiration and challenges.  See you back here on the Fourth for Forgeries!

• 4th February- Forgeries on the Fourth: Creating elements from the inspiration kit using your own stash
• 6th February- Mini Kit & Project Reveal:  See how the Master Forgers create a smaller version of the inspiration kit
• 12th February- Challenge #1 -10 Things I love about... 
• 18th February- Challenge #2 - Birthday Blessings - create a birthday themed layout that focuses on a birthday tradition
• 22nd February- Sketch Challenge from our Guest Designer - Kathy!   
• 27th February- March Sneak Peak (In Facebook Community) 
• 28th February- Baby, Use Those Scraps 

The Master Forgers love to see what you create.  Share on our Facebook Community Find us on Instagram @counterfeitkitchallenge and tag us in your posts #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcfebruary2026.

Happy Scrapping!

Amanda Bass

January 2026 - Just the Gist of It

Hello!  Now you've seen our inspiration kit for the month and how the Master Forgers took on the challenge.  Have you begun to create your own counterfeit kit yet?  If you're struggling with how to start, today's post is for you.  I'm going to show you how I put together my kit for the month.

Before we start, let's take a look at the inspiration kit, Curiosities in Willow Grove by Vicki Boutin for 49 and Market.

                                

There are A LOT of great elements in the inspiration kit.  The papers are amazing, too.  When I start my kit, I usually pick out a paper that includes the colors I want to represent in my kit. For me, this was the library card-ish paper.  I found something similar in my stash and built on from there.  A book is included in the ephemera of the inspiration kit, and I found a patterned paper with books in similar colors as my initial paper.  Perfect!

Here are the patterned papers that I chose.

Next are the solid papers.

I pulled a handful of stamps I think I might use.

I'm in love with wood veneer and want to use some this month.

I have a ton of leftover embellishments from Vicki Boutin's Flower Emporium, so I included them in this kit, in hopes of using them up.  I also pulled some labels and puffy hearts.

A girl can never have too many options for alphas.  I was sure to pull a BUNCH of alpha stickers in different colors and sizes.  I even selected a couple of alphabet stamps to hopefully use.

Finally, I found that I still had quite a bit of the Fernwood collection, and it happened to have butterflies and a cool magnifying glass.  I am including that collection in this month's counterfeit kit to see what I can use.

I feel like my kit took on a life of its own and that's okay.  The counterfeit kit doesn't have to perfectly match the inspiration kit.  It's okay to add an element of your own.  Also, don't be afraid to keep adding to your kit as you see fit.  I see a lot of opportunity for forgeries this month.  I'll definitely be creating some things to use in my kit.

I'll see you back here on the fourth to take a look at forgeries created by the Master Forgers.

 Be sure to come back and see everything we're doing on the blog this month.  

• 4th January  - Forgeries on the Fourth: Creating elements from the inspiration kit using your own stash
• 6th January - Mini Kit & Project Reveal:  See how the Master Forgers create a smaller version of the inspiration kit
• 12th January - Challenge #1 - Use Those Doilies!
• 18th January - Challenge #2 - 2026 Goals
• 22nd January - Sketch Challenge  
• 28th January - February Sneak Peak
• 30th January - Baby, Use Those Scraps 

The Master Forgers love to see what you create.  Share on our Facebook Community Find us on Instagram @counterfeitkitchallenge and tag us in your posts #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcjanuary2026.

Happy Scrapping!

Master Forger Vikki

November 2025 - Just the Gist of It

Whether its your first time building a kit or you're looking for a new approach, today's post is all about  how Master Forger Brandi built her November kit! 

Before we get into that, let's take another look at our inspiration kit, October Glow by Cocoa Daisy! 

Everyone has their own unique approach when it comes to building a kit from stash, for me, I almost always start with colors and theme. I knew I wanted to keep with the "October" theme, but I did want to bring in some more Halloween-y vibes as well, so I stretched my color palette a little and included black from those fun photo corners in the inspiration kit. Here's a mixed media color palette I'm using for November! 

I really love the warm-tones and almost water-color feel to the inspiration kit. I actually found quite a few newer kits in my stash that seemed to fit the mood I was going for - I pulled from PhotoPlay Paper's Autumn Junque and Halloween Junque; Harvest by Carta Bella; and finally, Curiosities of Willow Grove by Vicki Boutin for 49 & Market. Here's some close ups of some of those items. 

Next, I knew I wanted to try to bash some stash & use products I tend to forget about... so I pulled a lot of neutral alphas & some stencils to use this month. 

And finally, because I personally have a "I don't like putting things away" problem; I went through a ton of little bins I have around my space filled with bits & pieces from various kits I've made in the past. When I do this, I focus first on color, then theme. I love layering in all sorts of pieces as embellishments on my layouts and this method really ensures I have lots of options to use in my clusters! 

And after all of that, I have one gigantic, full of options, stash kit! I gave this one the name "Haunted Harvest" - isn't it fun?! 

Here's a look ahead at what we've got coming up in November!

• 4th November  - Forgeries on the Fourth: Using your own stash/tools to replicate products in the kit! 
• 6th November - Mini Kit & Project Reveal: A full-sized kit not your style? Or just short on time this month? The team shares ideas on a smaller-scale! 
• 12th November - Challenge #1 - Tickets, Tags & Library Cards 
• 18th November - Challenge #2 - Thankful, Grateful & Blessed 
• 22nd November - Sketch Challenge - Single Page, Two Photos 
• 30th November - Baby, Use Those Scraps Challenge 

We would love to see what you create this month! Join our Facebook Group or tag us on Instagram! Find us @counterfeitkitchallenge or use the hash tags #counterfeitkitchallenge and #ckcnovember2025. 

Happy Scrapping! 

*Brandi*