There are many places from which you can start creating a scrapbook layout. For many people it’s about the photos or the story. Sometimes product can be your inspiration. This month, I am choosing to focus on product. I am a guest on the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog this month. The challenge is to create a scrapbook kit from your stash based on a kit chosen from a Scrapbook kit club subscription.

There are a lot of benefit to creating a counterfeit kit. You can mix old supplies with newer ones to make them feel new and refreshed. Instead of making a purchase, you save money as you “shop” your stash. It’s highly likely you will discover an older item you forgot about. In doing so, you may remember a project idea you had meant to try but didn’t have time for.

Tips for Creating a Counterfeit Kit

At first, it may seem daunting to think about combing your stash to replicate a kit. Here are a few tips to make it manageable:

1. Don’t feel as though the kit needs to be an exact replica. You are not going to have everything in your stash.
2. Focus on one aspect of the kit. What do you like about it? The color palette is usually the easiest starting point. Motif and pattern are another option.
3. You don’t need a huge kit.  A counterfeit kit can be as small as a single sheet of paper and a few embellishments.This one is hard for me. I have a tendency to add way more than I will likely use. I have to remind myself to keep it manageable. Set a time limit and once the timer goes off, you are done looking for items to add.
4. Remember that you don’t have to limit yourself to just the kit. You can always dip back into your supplies if need be.

It’s time to make the kit. The May inspiration kits were from Gossamer Blue. You can see those and kits from the other design team members on the Counterfeit Kit Challenge blog. I started with Gossamer Blue’s Life Pages kit as my first inspiration.

My starting point for choosing supplies was the color palette. I loved the orange, blue, green and pink/red blended together. It has a fresh, energetic vibe. Once I had the color palette, I explored my supplies and the photos that I might want to document with it. I was able to choose a few pictures to use with the kit which made it easier for me to choose the right embellishments.

I love that the colors from Gossamer Blue’s main scrapbook kit compliment the pocket page kit so well. I chose to do the same with my scrapbook kit. I hope to use them interchangeably with the pocket page kit. With this one, I let the animal motif of the Gossamer Blue kit guide more of my supply choices.

I created a video with a detailed walk through for both of these kits. You’ll get a better look at the kit contents plus see a few additional items not shown in the photos above.

Throughout this month, I will be creating with both of these kits. Watch the blog for more projects. Also be sure to watch the Counterfeit Kit Challenge Blog for more projects and challenges with this month’s inspiration kits from their creative team.