The kit you have when you're not having a kit . . .

Well, I don't know how you other Counterfeiters out there go, but the state of my past Counterfeit Kits is a bit of a mess.  Three kits worth of supplies all mixed up together with any other bits and pieces I had pulled out thrown in as well.

Lots of scrappy offcuts!

Plenty of paper - with plain card-stock filed away but extra Basic Grey "Hey Girl" papers included.

Other bits and pieces

  Now obviously part of the reason for that is the busyness of the last 12 months has left less time than usual for craft, and perhaps I was a little over-enthusiastic in kitting up . . . but regardless, something needed to be done! I'm too lazy busy to put it all away, so I came up with a different plan . . .
I decided to see how many "page kits" I could come up with using only (or mainly) the papers I had out.  Maddy soon joined in the fun, and the kits came together suprisingly quickly . . .

I wasn't sure how it would go at this point . . . I mean, I've made page kits before, and I've even done a few at a time before, but my general rule of thumb is to start with the photos first and pick the colours from there.  So my next step was to go through some albums and find some photos to go with each kit. 
The obvious place to store these "page kits" is a "work in progress" folder which I own.  Of late, it's gone from a place that pages move in and out of fairly regularly, to a bit of a lost corner where the end bits of kits and pages I haven't quite finished go to hide.
So while I was in the kitting up zone, I swapped around some of the papers from kits already in the folder, in the hopes of making those pages more appealing . . . 

So what I've got to play with for the next few months is a mammoth "kit of kits", consisting of a whopping 29 page kits and another 10 half-finished pages!

Silhouette page 10, and some bonus backgrounds . . .

Well it seems that no sooner had I posted my "mixed media" pages last week, but Ashli Oliver posted yet another beautiful page in which she used the "left over" diecuts from her previous page.
You can see that beautiful page (complete with video) here.

And so I was inspired to make a page that resembles Ashli's page . . . not at all!!!! But that's OK, because I had a lot of fun and challenged myself to see what diecuts I had that I could use on a "boy" page (like I said, not like Ashli at all, who has 4 daughters!)

This page for Rohan, back when he was ten, will sit next to a divided page protector with a bunch more photos, journalling and a couple more diecuts.

But then I was feeling in kind of a mixed media frame of mind, so I pulled some more "boy-friendly" diecuts and placed them on a sheet of cardstock in a colour I don't love . . .

and gessoed over the whole lot!

Then, while I had the gesso out, I did another background, using the negative pieces from a stencil I had cut, which I'd saved for just this reason . . .

Can you foresee some more mixed media fun in my future?  I hope so!  And do you think I might have pressed the "checkout" button to purchase my new Silhouette blade before the gesso dried . . . ?  Well you might not be far wrong!

Last question: do you think I've managed to "use up" my die-cuts?  Lets have a look, shall we . . .

Me, attempting to go all mixed-media!

. . . and pages 7 to 9 of my Silhouette challenge.

Can you think of any Scrapbookers out there that you love . . . but your style is nothing like theirs?  I can't get enough of the beautiful Mixed Media work of artists like Wilna Furstenberg and Ashli Oliver . . . but my own work tends towards the Clean And Simple.  I had to have stern words with myself when my local Scrapbooking Shop offered a pre-order discount on gelatos . . . I don't use the media I already own any way near enough to buy any more, no matter how beautiful they are!

But I thought that my Silhouette challenge I've given myself might just be the perfect time to take some inspiration from those lovely ladies I've just mentioned, and see what I can come up with . . . 
(supplies from a range of past Counterfeit Kits, as well as my stash)

This page started with one of the scrap paper backgrounds that I gessoed a couple of months ago.  I tried adding a bit of extra dimension with some stamping, as well as misting over a mask (white mist, so it's a bit hard to see!) Then I went to town with white die-cuts!  I decided it needed a little bit more, so I added paper flowers and kindy glitz, as I was using these quite a bit at the same this photo was taken, so in that respect it will sit quite well chronologically in the album.  Does it look better, worse, or just confused?  I'm not really sure!

This one I am sure about - I absolutely love it!I started out by covering a thin sheet of white card-stock with gesso.  Once it had dried, I used my Inktense pencils, then added enough water to get some flow.  The pencils certainly didn't apply in that beautiful way that I've seen gelatos used, but once there was enough water, I was still plenty happy with the results.  Die-cuts on this page include the kraft "journey" card, vellum doilies and white leaf sprays which I also used Inktense pencils on (note to self, thin white card-stock on its own doesn't cope with watercolour so well, try Wilna's idea of cutting from watercolour paper, or use a drier method of adding colour next time!)

Ok, so this one isn't mixed media, but it is page 9 of my Silhouette challenge, and there is a funny story that goes with it!  Maddy was hanging around as I was doing some work on the computer, and I suggest that she choose some shapes that went with this photo.  She chose an owl with glasses.  I had cut a bunch of owl shapes for a previous Counterfeit Kit, some made up and some still in pieces.  The problem was, I didn't have a piece for the body in a colour that matched the page.  Maddy's solution?  Cut one out. . . 

With scissors. . . .

Oh.  That was easy, wasn't it?

Some of you have been sharing that you're working on your own stash-busting challenges, which always makes me so happy to hear!   If you're not, I dare you to try!

Silhouette challenge, pages 4 to 6

Continuing with my self-appointed challenge to make 10 scrapbook pages using Silhouette cuts, I have three more pages to share . . .

Occasionally I  get an attack of the guilts that Angus, as the "neglected middle child" is missing out in his scrapbooks, so I've pulled a few of his older photos to work on.  This one is about a visit to our local dog beach.

. . . and one showcasing a relationship with a special Uncle.  If it is possible to have a regret which is both intensely deep and incredibly trivial, mine is that I didn't teach my children to call their Uncle Stephen "Uncle Sbg" (his nickname, pronounced Sbug) when they were small.

And another doggy page.  I'm really enjoying the DIY flair at the moment,  and the DIY "enamel" dots continue to get a workout.

Six pages down, four to go. . . if I'd really looked at how many pre-cut shapes I had, I might have challenged myself to do 20 pages instead . . . or even more . . . but I'm starting to miss using my Silhouette for titles, so I think I'll stick to the original challenge!