CSI: Color, Stories, Inspiration: January 2018

We're excited to share our mid-month challenge with you! And in case you haven't heard, we've got a brand-new twist on our challenge! We're calling it Freestyle, and it's tailor-made for everyone. Like the old, traditional way we've had our challenges? We've still got the traditional clues, which you can find at the bottom. Want to try something new? Freestyle the challenge by interpreting the Case File Scene any way you'd like. Or, combine the traditional with the Freestyle and pick and choose the clues you want. No minimum requirements because CSI is all about inspiration and telling your stories YOUR way.

So, are you ready for the new challenge? Grab you forensics kits, CSI players, and get ready for some serious sleuthing as we open Case File No. 246.

CASE FILE

January is the birth month of Lewis Caroll, author of Alice in Wonderland. We've got a lovely and intriguing Scene to inspire you. Feel free to interpret the Case File in any way that inspires you, or for our traditional clues, scroll down to the bottom of this post.

Remember to scroll all the way down to the bottom of this reveal post for RGB codes, color descriptions, and more detailed explanations of the Evidence and Testimony prompts.

For our Russian players, Detective Anastasia has translated our Case File into Russian:

Правила на русском языке вы можете прочитать здесь.

SPONSORS

We're so excited to have twelve generous sponsors this month! Our sponsors are among the best in the crafting industry, offering unique and trendy products. CLICK HERE to read more about these generous sponsors and the prizes they're donating.

INSPIRATION

So...are you ready for some serious inspiration?

Here is how the CSI Detectives have expertly cracked the case. You can read more about how the Case File inspired them on their blogs.

How Annie solved the Case File: I was inspired by the colours, several of the elements such as keys, crown, hearts, playing cards. I also wanted to capture the feeling of seeing the world through a child's eyes - in this case, my little great-nephew Logan, viewing the world from the safety of his Granny's arms.

How Sylvia solved the Case File: Hi all! I know, I know my Alice in wonderland is not THE Alice in wonderland. THE Alice did however inspire me to make a page of my very own Alice. I was inspired by the scene mostly this time. I sort of used the colour scheme and found some additional hues in the scene. From the evidence list I used a solid white background, Swiss dots, text print, a doily, tags and labels. My journalling is hidden on the tags behind the photo and speaks of dd munching away at I don't know how many apples or other fruit a day. I find myself carrying home a large amount of fruit every week. No veggies though.

😱

How Kim solved the Case File: I was inspired by the colors and I used lots of the evidence. I went with playing card, hearts, crown, key clock, text print, swirls, doilies and flowers.

How Nina solved the Case File: I was most of all inspired by the bunny, which made me think of Maja in her bunny coat 15 years ago. I used the color scheme, and from the evidence list; solid white background, text stamp, hearts, cup, clock stamp, animals, cards and fancy letters.

How Debbi solved the Case File: In addition to using the colors from the traditional clues and most of the Evidence clues, I was inspired by Lewis Carroll's "six impossible things before breakfast" quote as my starting point for the layout, which led to the teacups.

How Vivian solved the Case File: I was inspired by the actual SUBJECT of the photo - it gave me a chance to finally scrap about taking our kids to see Lewis Carrols Alice Through the Looking Glass at the Stratford Festival in 2014.

I've used the traditional clues and colour scheme, with the addition of a tiny bit of pink to help solve this case.

How Carrie solved the Case File: I loved the inspiration photo's Alice in Wonderland theme, so I used a few Alice inspired items that were also found in the original style case file: solid white background, Swiss dots, stripes, floral pattern, animals (bunny of course!), and a club from a playing card.

How Debbi solved the Case File: I was inspired by the nostalgic feel of the challenge, this photo of my grandson asleep while studying reminded me of finding his mother doing the very same thing..!!

How Libeeti solved the Case File: I used the colors, and from the clues I used flowers, tags, flower pattern, doily, solid white background, stripes, hearts, script stamp, monograms letters. I was also inspired both by the word "Wonder", and the Alice in Wonderland theme, so I docomented my boys at the Alice's labyrinth in Disneyland Paris. My hidden journaling is on a tag, attached with the paper clip.

Image may contain: 2 people, people smiling

How Patty solved the Case File: I was inspired by the inspiration words and a recent photo of my husband and myself.

How Magali solved the Case File: I was inspired by Alice's theme of childhood and sillyness, the blue, beige and red colors. I also used the clues : Tags, text pattern and stripes. I chose to write my title on a tag.

How Natsuko solved the Case File: I took inspiration from the colors, teacups, hearts and the rabbit.

How Nupur solved the Case File: Inspired from the happy playful color teal, feel/mood - playfulness, fun, laughter and not to forget sparkle - glitter-gold, always shinning called for my attention.

How Tracee solved the Case File: I Freestyled the Case File. Alice reminded me of my daughter, who I sometimes think of as "pretty chaos." I knew I wanted to use some form of script in the background. The Simple Stories Winter Wonderland collection was sitting on my desk, and it reminded me of the colors in the Case File. I added lots of interesting details to reflect the Case File image. After I was almost finished, I looked back at the clues and added some lace.

CASE FILE CLUES

THE SCHEME

255.255.255 – bright white
129.192.199 – sky blue
125.121.73 – olive green
205.193.139 – mushroom beige
150.62.60 – muted brick red

EVIDENCE

Solid white background
Swiss dots
Stripes
Floral pattern
Text print
Swirls
Hearts
Flowers
Doily
Teacups, teapots
Crown
Lace
Border punch
Tags
Keys
Clocks
Text/script stamp
Animals
Playing cards
Labels
Monograms/fancy letters
Stick pin

TESTIMONY (Journaling ideas)

Topic: Document a childhood memory
Prompt Idea: Choose a prompt from these random ideas.
Presentation: Write your journaling on a tag and attach it to something.
Writing Format: Write in the form of an invitation.
Inspiration Words: crazy, curiosity, wonder

We trust we've left enough clues for you to solve the case!

The deadline for completing this Case File is Wednesday, January 31, at 11:59 p.m. EST. Be sure to link your layout using the link tool in the sidebar, and mention the Evidence and Testimony clues you used. Also, please title your link with your name and country.

Happy New Year! We're so excited to begin a shiny new year here at CSI! We've got some new Detectives making their debut this month, along with many returning Detectives. We've got lots of awesome new sponsors, along with many returning sponsors.

And--have you heard?--we've got a brand-new twist on our challenge! We're calling it Freestyle, and it's tailor-made for everyone. Like the old, traditional way we've had our challenges? We've still got the traditional clues, which you can find at the bottom. Want to try something new? Freestyle the challenge by interpreting the Case File Scene any way you'd like. Or, combine the traditional with the Freestyle and pick and choose the clues you want. No minimum requirements because CSI is all about inspiration and telling your stories YOUR way.

So, are you ready for the new challenge? Grab you forensics kits, CSI players, and get ready for some serious sleuthing as we open Case File No. 245.

CASE FILE

We're celebrating winter with our first January Case File. This lovely, frosty Scene by Andrew Bannecker is sure to inspire you. Don't worry if you don't have winter photos. Can you imagine these colors with a summer page? Feel free to interpret the Case File in any way that inspires you!