April 2019 - Counterfeit Kit Challenge prompt #2 - Hidden!

I'm back with a challenge layout today and am thrilled to be able to say that I not only used my April kit for layout #2, but I also fulfilled the challenge on the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog - Hidden!, and also my own Whimsical Musings prompt WM#325 - be inspired by a blue-toned necklace.

I do love it when I get multiple challenges completed in one layout - although there are others out there much better at it than me.

Here's a reminder of my take on the Hip Kit Club March 2019 kit, "Balconia" and you can find all the details for the inspiration kit over at the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog here.

Right, back to business...

I challenged the team with the following:

Challenge #2 - Hidden!

Easter is coming and many little ones will be participating in Easter Egg Huts in the garden. Create you own "hunt" on your page by including some hidden elements on your page such as journaling, symbolism or more photos. Let the hunt begin!

I decided to go for lots of hidden symbolism as well as a truly hidden-in-plain-sight element to my page. 

Can you see it? 

It's right there in the middle and I have to admit to being rather proud of it and ever so grateful for my beloved Silhouette Cameo which has earned its keep this week in more ways than one. When I use it, I truly love it and don't know why I don't use it more often!

So... if you didn't notice, here are some of the elements I included in my page.

• I splatted gold and blue onto the background to mirror the state flag of Alaska where I bought this gorgeous necklace
• the title is a nod to the flowers in the necklace which also happens to be the state flower of Alaska too. The actual words of the title are of course, double meaning as I really don't ever want to forget my trip and experiences during the holiday of a lifetime.
• I also used blue and gold with the messy thread elements 
• the softer colours of the patterned papers I used reminded me of the autumnal colours I experienced during my travels around the Yukon and my short stay in Alaska
• I've included the constellations you can find on the state flag - subtle but clear to see if you know where to look!
• and the best bit... I've cut out the state of Alaska from my favourite constellation covered Studio Calico vellum and laid it underneath the photo. You have to really look carefully to notice it and that's the effect I wanted. The focus is on the photo and the bead elements I've attached to the page as embellishments but the negative space on on the vellum is there to discover. 

I've been including hidden symbolism on my pages for a long time - colours, motifs, patterns etc - and find myself going back to this technique over and over which makes me happy. I hope you'll give it a try if this is something new for you. Make sure you link up to let me know how you get along!

Head back to the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog so that you don't miss any of the other shares today and of course, there's heaps and heaps of inspiration and community shares over on Instagram here and the Counterfeit Kit Challenge Facebook Community here.

Counterfeit Kit Challenge - Challenge #1 A Little Bird Told Me!

Challenge #1 this month was inspired by the cute bird patterned paper in the original inspiration kit.

It made me think of the expression "a little bird told me" and I decided that this would be the prompt!

You can see the blog post over at the Counterfeit Kit Challenge here with the links to Julene and Alice's layouts and don't forget that we love it when you share using the Link-Up page on the blog, posting in the Counterfeit Kit Challenge Facebook Community  - or on Instagram (find us @counterfeitchallenge and share with #counterfeitchallenge )

Now I suspect that I "might" have twisted the rules a teeny tiny bit but I know that you'll forgive me because it's all about the fun here and getting our stash used up! Am I right? And I "might" have interpreted the prompt a little loosely too! But I was so excited by my weekend experience that I just knew that I wanted to make this layout and found a way to sort of match it to the challenge. But being inspired by the challenge is the main thing too, right?

So here's my layout.

I made the title into something that was said to me rather than the story of the layout being told to me and added in a bit of red paper (scraps from the MME collection I used in my kit) and some mini-alphas. I know there's not a lot of decoration on this layout but I really wanted my die-cut to stand out and make it that star of the show - pun intended.

And if you ever get the change to do a silent walking disco - do it! You won't have so much fun for a long time! I recommend it and challenge you not to get your boogie on while you're walking along, no matter how self-conscious you feel in from of all the people watching the disco, wondering what you're all doing! So much fun.

Have a great day everyone and don't forget that there's still a lot going on over at the Counterfeit Kit Challenge over the rest of the month - Killing the Kit #1 (15th), Challenge #2 (18th), Member showcase (24th) and we also have a surprise that I'm planning with our Guest Designer to appear at some point too - probably the 20th - which you won't want to miss.

Counterfeit Kit Challenge Challenge #1 - I love Paris

It's time for Challenge #1 over at the Counterfeit Kit Challenge and Julene asked us to make a page with the prompt "I love Paris".

No problem for me. Everyone knows that I love Paris and I've made several pages about that romantic city over the last month or so. Therefore, I decided to make a layout about my trip to the west of France from the beginning of the month instead.

I just couldn't reduce the number of photos I wanted to include on my page so I just jiggled the photos around until I found a way to squeeze them all onto one 12x12. It's not my favourite ever page but I still love it!

Julene suggested that we channel our inner Paris by using elements which remind us of the city or incorporating lace, beads, pearls or anything that suggest the romance of the place.

I had included lots of these types of embellishments into my February kit, Amour, and had a lot of fun using some bits and pieces that I haven't used for a long time - beaded flowers, lace, metal corners. The layout is a bit more dimensional than usual but I really do think it's reminiscent of Paris and France in general.

The paper in the background here is actually postcards and envelopes covered in French printing and writing. You can't really see it but I know it's there and therefore, it's perfect.

The title just came to me when I looked through the photos. I also picked out the softer colours from my kit that seemed to complement the stone and antique shades in the photos. Soft aquas, stone, cream, gold, greens.

Several visual triangles have been used in the hope of helping the viewer work their way around this rather busy page. Hope that works!

And that's it for now! My third page with my Amour kit and a layout that is a perfect reminder of one of the best weekends I've had in years. This is such a beautiful part of the country and I can imagine making one or two more layouts about my time there.

In the meantime, head over to the blog to see what the others have produced and don't forget to link up your own creations:

• the Link-Up page here on the blog
• the Counterfeit Kit Challenge Facebook Community Group 
• Instagram (find us @counterfeitchallenge and share with #counterfeitchallenge )

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July at Scrapabilly (part 2)

I'm late sharing but I couldn't resist showing you the layouts I made using the Scrapabilly July Kit des Monats because it was such a lovely summer collection of paper and products and I loved what I made with it.

You can find my first three layouts in the blog post here and I'm back today to show you the final three.

Just to recap, here's the gen on the July kit:

The Scrapabilly July Kit des Monats featured Echo Park's Summer Dreams collection.

There are six summer papers from the collection, the matching sticker sheet (and there are a lot of stickers on there!), a gorgeous washi tape, a lovely slim pack of Thickers white alphas and a smooth-writing, black pen.

I added in the collection enamel dots and also added in the other two washi tape (the kit comes with one of three designs). You can find these products over in the Scrapabilly shop.

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My fourth layout is another from our "Scrap & Sea" weekend and uses some less than stellar Instax shots (I have an older model and my photos seem to be much more hit and miss than others I've seen.)

This might be my favourite layout using the kit. I used three photos to represent the hanging of a love lock in Cologne when I took my family there last year. It could be that this memory is particularly sweet which makes it a particular favourite.

And last but not least, the sunny yellows in the kit reminded me of these sweet mini cocktails we enjoyed last month.

You know how much I love a banner.

I think you can still get yourself one of the July Kit des Monats over at the Scrapabilly shop and if you have any sunny themed layouts to make, this is the perfect collection of products.

I have no idea if I'll manage to keep up the sharing but I'm willing to try if you're willing to drop by from time to time to see if I do!

July at Scrapabilly - part 1

I recently shared my August makes using the Scrapabilly Kit des Monats which features the Fancy Pants Dream Big collection. You can find my posts here and here if you are interested.

It made me realise that I'm very behind in sharing here on the blog and at least I should share the July makes too because that kit was particularly lovely and I really liked what I made :-)

The Scrapabilly July Kit des Monats featured Echo Park's Summer Dreams collection.

There are six summer papers from the collection, the matching sticker sheet (and there are a lot of stickers on there!), a gorgeous washi tape, a lovely slim pack of Thickers white alphas and a smooth-writing, black pen.

I added in the collection enamel dots because you know who much I love to sprinkle. I also added in the other two washi tape (the kit comes with one of three designs) because who could resist the gold foil design and let's face it, pink, mint, pineapple, flamingos and gold? It just had to be done! You can find these products over in the Scrapabilly shop.

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I received the kit just before I had the good fortune to spend a long "Scrap & Sea" weekend with Mrs Scrapabilly herself, Sylvia and another scrappy friend, Silvia at the North Sea coast in The Netherlands. Time to be creative and inspired by the sights and sounds of the sea. It was a perfect weekend.

I took along my printer and printed photos we had only just taken to use on my kit layouts. By the second day, I was finished and five layouts were ready to be photographed for the Scrapabilly shop. I don't think I've ever been that quick to complete a kit!

This page features the pen included in the kit. I love it and wanted to record that this pen-loving girl is adding it to my list of faves.

I added in some gold thread to my supplies and used it liberally here and there as well as a mini alphabet which helped me with my longer titles.

This photo was from our very first day together and I just wanted to record the fun that we had and the kit just summed up all that hot, sunny friendship we shared.

This layout #3 features a banner along the bottom edge made from lots of stickers from the sticker sheet. I was surprised to find so many ice-creams and lolly pops and they were perfect for this whimsical banner. Lots of gold thread and a smattering of ink splats complete the page which talks about how great it is to be with people who get the need for selfies!

There are another two layouts to share from this kit so come back soon to check them out.

You can still grab one of the last of these kits over at the Scrapabilly shop and other items in the Summer Dreams collection. Get it while you can!