Forgeries on the Fourth: Crafting My Own Bits and Pieces

When I look at the monthly Counterfeit Kit Challenge kits, I usually try to substitute something from my stash, but, from time to time a certain piece or two from a kit will catch my eye, and I know that I can usually alter something or make something from my own stash that will be very similar.

First item on this month's agenda, this paper from My Mind's Eye Jubilee Tangerine:

I didn't have it, but I knew I could make a lovely stamped woodgrain paper! I chose a rich woodgrain paper from Cosmo Cricket. I only had one hot air balloon stamp that I could find, in a mixed set from Hero Arts. I hadn't used it yet, so it seemed like the perfect time to break it out.

I used a couple of different sentiment stamps,

Which I cut apart and rearranged to fit the space. I stamped the images with white ink, then heat embossed. Ireally wasn't happy with the messiness of my embossing (I got in a hurry and didn't brush off the excess, so it had white speckles around the image). I just decided to embrace the messiness and add more!

I spritzed it with gold lame Color Shine across the page on the diagonal, and then dripped Mr Huey's (dark gray) and watered down white acrylic paint, then splattered the white paint some more by flicking my paint brush.

This is what it looks like all dried up:

(It says: "The best memories inspire the soul")

I also was quite enamored with the Doodlebug Doilies that were in the inspiration kit:

But, again, I knew I could make something similar from my stash. It's the reason we buy die cutting machines and tools, right?

I grabbed one of my favorite doily dies, and my folder of blue scraps:

I pulled out several scraps that I thought might work, and laid them on top of my kit papers to see which ones would best suit the kit:

I came up with four scraps that I like quite a lot to go with my kit:

And made myself four adorable doilies to go in my kit:

And the last little tidbits that I decided to counterfeit were the exclusive cork tags. I , and my Tim Holtz tag dies and a piece from my 6x6 Cork Stack, and put my Cuttlebug to work again:

I quite like the little cork tags and bits:

I hope I have inspired you to rethink some of your own stash!


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