I was wondering who would get the first St Pat's challenge in front of me  - this year's winner is Fusion's St. Paddy's, with this fun sketch and inspiration combo!
I actually found this sketch to be a challenge, so I had to take a few liberties, of course, lol.  The picture shows this cute little upside-down flower pot leprechaun suit, so I tried to pull that in a little in my own little corner feature, and I added some leaves and texture.  This sentiment is from Lovely Friends, which I have been neglecting terribly!  It has an amazing set of thinlits to go with that I have ended up not exploring as I should, sigh.  Hopefully all this luckiness will push me along now, lol...
Lovely Friends Stamp Set; Delightful Daisy DSP; Garden Green, Whisper White, Pear Pizzazz, Lemon Lime Twist & Always Artichoke CS; Old Olive Ink; Basket Weave DEF; Lots of Labels & Layering Circles Framelits; Flourish Thinlits; 1" & 7/8" Square Punches (retired); Old Olive Enamel Shapes; #FusionStPaddys.

Bubbles & Raindrops Class March 10!
Time for a focus class:  Bubble Over and Sunshine & Rainbows!  There's so many fun features to explore for these two suites that we have to make it all about them!  Class will cover 6 (!!) projects, three designs for each set, and includes all your supplies and accessories (bring your own snips and adhesive.) Snacks and drinks, good company and a special gift from me are all also included, all for $25!  This class can also be FREE with your purchase of $30 or more!  RSVP today to save your spot for Saturday March 10 at 3 pm - I have prepped like crazy for you!  See you there!

This week's Retro Sketch #52 is a BIG deal - must be their one year anniversary!  To celebrate, we got to pick out any sketch we wanted to use - OOooOO!  I originally thought I might make a play on that big ole question mark as a joke, but then I started digging through the sketches and went all the way back to #9 (before my time!) - perfect for the stamp I wanted to use today...
I just rolled over the hall table from Valentine's to St. Patrick's, and you know what?  I just don't have that many "green" cards!  Well, I can fix that!  On top of THAT, I'm already starting to experience some anxiety about Lucky Limeade retiring for the new catty in June - not sure I can live without it!  Of course, I felt the same way about Kiwi Kiss last round...
Lucky Day stamp set; Lucky Limeade & Whisper White CS; Gold Shimmer Specialty DSP; Lacy Brocade embossing folder; self-adhesive Rhinestones, Gold embossed; Lucky Limeade 1/4" organdy ribbon; Corner Rounder punch.

Here's our first of two projects for next week's class (Thursday, February 21, 630 pm, $20, all materials provided, don't forget to RSVP!)  I decided it was time to fill in some Spring holes in our shadow box collection!  This first one, obviously, is for St Patrick's Day, and should go great with the "other side" of our clothespin wreaths!  My version shows pretty much EVERY option I came up with, I couldn't seem to stop (go figure, right?), but you can do as much or as little detail as you like - fun stuff!  It'll be good to have a little Saint on my hall table!  Keep an eye out for our other project - an April Showers theme!

OK, you guys can totally blame Lisa V for finding this project for us - she saw a Valentine's version of a clothespin wreath out on Pintarest (where I don't go, to prevent sensory overload!) and sent me a picture to figure out.  So, like, ok, 10 minutes later I was on eBay ordering us a giant crate of clothespins!  WHAT A COOL PROJECT!  The version I saw was by Sharon Cheng - brilliant!  I think the part that was coolest was when I realized that if we put it together right, you could, hee hee, make it REVERSIBLE!  So that's what we'll be doing.  The Valentine's side uses this year's More Amore DSP and Spring Mini 2013 accessories.  Sweetness!

The other side I figured we would work ahead a bit to St. Patrick's Day - which I always have a tough time decorating for!  This ended up being a mix of all the green DSPs I could dig out of my stash - so fun!
SO, the January bonus class will be on January 31, 630 pm here at Chez Heroldt, and will be to make BOTH versions of the clothespin wreaths shown here, all materials provided, $25.  I can even throw in some extra ribbon for hanging if you see something that catches your eye!  This was so fun to make, and you know I'll do the tedious stuff ahead of time so I can to make it painless and perfect for you!  I really worked out a system!  There might be other font choices for the words by then, too, I have a couple of new alphabet sets on the way!  RSVP for your spot today, so I can make sure to have your wreath base ready!

Whew, I needed a little break from planning my upcoming Easter class, and I realized we're a little light on the green around here!  That's a problem!  So I quick whipped up a March shadow box insert that's been on my mind to create for a while...
Starting to fill in all the little holidays on my shadow boxes!

Subtles DSP; Garden Green, Pear Pizzazz and Lucky Limeade CS; button from Springtime Vintage pack (Clearance Rack!), various embossing folders; Hearts Framelits; Afterthoughts stamp set.  Stem from my string stash.