Thankful

Today is the last day of October. That means it is mere weeks until Thanksgiving which I happen to love as much as Christmas. Maybe more. It is the one time every year that my family has always made it a priority to see one another. We are spread out all over from Maine (where my uncle just purchased the Black Boar Inn-- check it out-- Fabulous and historical!) to North Carolina and all the way to me, here in good old Indiana). We have a lot of fun together, and the time we all have with one another gets less and less as we get older and more busy.

Anyway, I love Thanksgiving. And this year I feel I have to ton to be thankful for. Besides my beautiful babies (have you seen how cute they are?!?!) and sweet husband, Remmy & Co has kept me fairly busy and I have loved watching it grow steadily. That brings me to the freebie!!! As with Halloween, I went hunting for a free printable that would work in my small 4x6 frame with no luck. All the beautiful things out there are made for 8x10 or 5x7 so it was time to make my own! It is simple but has quatrefoil so what isn't to love??

Here is the link for you to download it. I hope your holidays are filled with love... and food, of course. 

Flags and Fall

I love October. SO much. The cooler air, the leaves, the fact that a hoodie can be totally appropriate attire and pumpkin everything. It also means the best time of year is right around the corner- Holidays! Anyway, I had a lovely friend ask me to make her a burlap yard flag that she had seen. I was happy to do it and when I posted a pic on my facebook page, Remmy & Co,  they were quite a hit! She loves monograms probably more than I do and has great taste! Her flag is super cute and I wanted one of my own. I am selfish like that when it comes to cute things.

I had been inspired this fall porch I pinned on Pinterest last year and an orange version of this yard flag would complete the look! 

I love her door so much. And I just want to sit on the rocking chair and enjoy what I imagine is a great view. My attempt at re-creating this included a monogram my mother in law bought me last Christmas. It took 10 months for me to put it to good use (what a shame!) but it worked perfectly!

Here is my yard flag as well-- you can get one custom made for you in the colors you like for only $20 at Remmy & Co! 

I love custom orders like this one---

Happy fall y'all! 

Craft Show Virgin

I am getting ready to do my first craft show with my friend, Megan. I have never stepped foot in a craft show and had never even googled one prior to a few days ago when she asked me to do it. I am SO excited about it! Of course, I went to pinterest (yes, I use it so much it makes every blog post. Deal with it) and was browsing pictures of booths and great advice on how-to. I think it is super hard to decide what to make/bring along. Knowing what the customer will like. Who the demographic is at each show. How many of each item to bring along... there is a lot of thought and prep that goes into this. I totally respect ladies that are craft show vets! I can't wait to join in on the fun!

Halloween Printable

I love using seasonal printables to decorate my mantle. They are cheap and adorable (so what isn't to love amiright?) and easy to find on good old pinterest. After taking down the decor from Cohen's Superhero Party, I wanted to get Halloween festive and fill up my now empty frames. I had pinned a few really cute printables (you can see my printable pinterest board here full of my favorite freebies), but most of them were optimized for an 8x10 size frame. I had only a 5x7 and 4x6 that needed something so I decide I would bust out my computer and my cricut and get to work! 

For the 5 by 7, I wanted a black pumpkin (that I will later switch out to be burlap for Thanksgiving) on orange paper. I cut the shape, matted it and stuck it in the frame to get this--- You can purchase this already framed with optional monogram from my facebook page Remmy & Co

Then I was left with the 4 by 6. I knew I wanted some kind of words but the frame was too small to accommodate busy subway art that I am normally drawn to. So, you'll never guess where I looked for a Halloween font--- pinterest--- shocked? I found this pin and came up with a printable I would like to share with you! To get the free download of the "Boo" printable just click here and download! 

I have a blank frame waiting for a print from the family photos we just had done recently and a couple of pictures I need to swap out for seasonally appropriate ones as well as a burlap banner that needs a little embellishing still. But, my fall mantle is coming together! Hope you love the printable as much as I do! 

Super(hero) Party

It amazes me how kids can become fixated on certain characters so easily. My oldest loves loves loves Princesses. Did I say loves... because I meant mildly (totally) obsessed. Last year, Cohen was a fan of Mickey and then he decided that he is half boy half hulk. I don't know what made him switch gears, but it meant I got to plan a super hero party so I was totally happy with it! Talk about an easy party to create. Primary colors and basic shapes all mixed and matched made for such a fun looking atmosphere! I started by browsing both Pinterest and Etsy for invitation ideas and eventually realized I would have to just attempt my own. It seemed like a city skyline was the way to go so I googled a picture and came up with my own version.

For the font, I went to my favorite font site (dafont.com) where I can always find a fabulous FREE font --- I love free---- and downloaded one called ba da boom. It was so comic-bookish! Next up, I wanted to find some thrifty ways to have a perfect day. Lots of parties on pinterest had city buildings made of boxes. I wanted to do a photo booth with big boxes made into buildings, but our weather didn't cooperate for that to happen out doors. I purchased tissue paper ($1.24 per pack at Target aka my favorite place on earth) and a large yellow poster board and got to work. I used these boxes as the center piece and as cupcake stands etc. 

Then my friend, Taylor, told me about a big project board she was using to create a skyline for her son's birthday. I loved that idea so much. So, I went to Michael's and picked up a blue project board for a whopping $3 and a 2 pieces of black poster board for about $1.70. Using more of the yellow poster board, I made windows and then put the finished product in our fireplace cutout to start decorating the mantle. I bought a primary color pennant banner (.97 at walmart --- which I avoid at all costs normally) and borrowed my brother in law's comic book art for the weekend. I also used my cricut to make basic framed art that went with the theme in frames I already had. It was super cheap and easy. I think it made for a great center piece in the living room. 

I decided to do bubbles as the party favors (another great dollar store find) and wanted to create a label for them. That printable is featured for free here. 

An idea I loved but didn't execute well was making the kids lightning bolt crayons to take with them. I failed to remember goody bags (so frustrating!) and had to send some home in ziplocs. Haha. I grabbed the molds a few months ago and used a bag of old crayons to melt them down. I printed out a printable sign that said "POW" and put it around an existing glass vase I had to display them. Again, super cheap and easy! 

For their activity, each child made a mask. It suited both genders and a variety of ages. We really had a fun time! Here are some more pics of the day. Thanks for reading along! 

Turning 3

Today was Cohen's superhero party and I believe it was a success. He was thrilled and had such a good day full of laughs and love. He is such a sweet boy. I wanted to share a printable I created with people that read my blog and are fans of my fb page Remmy & Co. I decided to make bubbles the party favor and needed them to go with my theme. So, I created a label that says "POP" (of course) and here was the result!

Click here for the printable. Thanks for checking it out. 

Birthdays Galore

I feel like I hardly have time to breathe from the time school starts until about January 1st with everything that occurs in those months. Emmy's birthday is at the end of August, Andy's is in September and then Cohen's birthday is the beginning of October. Basically it is one event after another to plan! I have to admit I do love it a little bit, but it does seem to keep me super busy (and my house messier than I would like). Right now, I am working on a super hero party for Cohen and with every project I finish, he gets more and more excited. There are so many great ideas on pinterest that I wanted to tackle!! Here is a pic of boxes I covered with tissue paper to make buildings. They will be the center piece on our table. I hope Co loves his party!

GIVEAWAY

I posted a pic of my monogrammed ornaments available in my etsy shop or via my facebook page yesterday. Well, I figure why not give one away?!?! Check out my facebook page here and enter to win.

Christmas in September?

I am not one to rush the holidays because then you miss the fun of Halloween and the FOOD of Thanksgiving trying to rush to December 25; only to wake up December 26 broke, exhausted, and a bit sad. But, I had to think ahead and create something fun for Christmas! Though I consider myself a Northerner disguised as a Midwesterner living in the Southern part of Indiana, which would probably classify me as a Southerner geographically (follow all of that?), I was born in good old Kentucky and a love of everything monogram runs in my veins. Naturally, that means I had to make monogrammed ornaments! Here is one version available for purchase at Remmy & Co. At $8, they make a great personalized gift for teachers, friends, and anyone with a soul. Many more versions to come!

Lemonade Stand

Every time one of my kids have a birthday, I realize just how quickly a year passes. I don't know how twelve months seems to go as quickly as three weeks in retrospect, but it inevitably does. Our youngest just turned a year old last week and I decided to do a pink lemonade themed party. I loved the combination of pinks and yellows and knew after seeing this on Pinterest  I had a  new project for my sweet husband. So we got to work and our house soon looked like a grown man's worst night mare-- pink and yellow galore! It was a beautiful day for a beautiful, sweet and loving little girl. We are so blessed to have E in our lives.

Pantry Redo

When we first moved into our home, I was really excited to have a walk-in pantry. Our house had been a foreclosure and the pantry was proof just another area we needed to work on. It was missing a door and had old nasty contact paper lining every shelf. I wish I had a picture, but who has time to snap pics when you are trying your best to make a house liveable in a matter of days? We stripped the paper, cleaned the shelves, and began to fill it with stuff. A year later, we were still planning a door solution. The location of the pantry and the refrigerator (which is a built-in space surrounded by cabinets) didn't allow for a basic door. We looked at special ordering but never fell in love with anything. I have a beautifully generous and creative friend that said "someone gave me an old carriage door that you could have!" So, we began searching pinterest for ways to make this door work. It is 84 inches tall and quite large. I finally found a tutorial that suggested using electrical conduit and casters. WAY less expensive than buying a track. Before we hung the door, we needed to de-clutter the pantry, recover the shelves and put a system in place that make the massive shelves useful. Warning--- what you are about to see may disturb well organized people. Brace yourself. 

 This is the panoramic shot of how my pantry junk exploded throughout my kitchen. Because I didn't think to get a shot of how bad the pantry really was.

 This picture was after I had started the cleaning out, shelf covering, organizing process. The top shelf became a catch-all for party supplies and such. Don't judge me. I may or may not buy things for the kids' parties months in advance.

These pictures are before Andy, my sweet husband, had added drywall and finished the door way. He had to remove the old door frame so the new door could sit flush on the wall. 

Now for the door... 

We still have plans to take down the ugly florescent light and add a chandelier that would be seen through the glass. I think that would finish it off perfectly!!!!

Labor of Love

When we purchased our house last June, I had roughly 2 months until my due date with our 3rd child. I knew I wanted an amazing nursery so I did the rational thing and went to Project Nursery to find inspiration. I found a room here that I loved but when I found the bedding on etsy I about died at the price. Hello, I am cheap! I decided I needed to learn to sew something besides a cute fabric onto an existing burp cloth... why not make my own crib bedding. It can't be THAT hard! Right?!?! Let's just say it was a labor of love--- emphasis on labor. Not only did I need that bedding, I saw a wall on pinterest that I wanted to recreate. LandeeSee had a really amazing entry way makeover that I found very inspiring. And it seemed like a rational idea to cut a shape from cardboard, trace it a bajillion times, and then paint it up at 8 months pregnant! Luckily, I have a friend that loves me enough to do the painting over my pencil lines. Thank you, Anne! The nursery may be my favorite room in the house (even though in these pictures it wasn't 100% complete).

This is a better view of the wall and the Easter dress I made. More on that later! 

Six year old and a Spa Party

My sweet little girl turned 6 on Valentines Day. Anyone that knows her would certainly say she is incredibly loving and ALL girl! After she scanned pinterest with me one night, she decided she wanted a spa birthday party. Who could blame her? It sounded perfectly girly and fun! So, I began creating what turned out to be a party she so enjoyed! I knew I wanted to have the girls all make a pair of flip flops to take home. I bought fabrics that coordinated with our party colors and cut them into strips for each girl to tie onto white flip flops. Luckily, target had some perfect bins in their dollar section (am I the only one that simply can NOT walk by that without stopping and finding something I can't live without??) and I grabbed enough for each guest to have one. I then used my cricut to monogram each one and filled it with little goodies. I found the monogrammed mats over at For Chic Sake and decided to print and laminate them so each girl had a little nail-painting mat. They loved having everything personalized for them! Here are some pictures of my sweet girl's party.

I'm baaaaaack

Clearly I am horrible about keeping up my blog! Here goes my attempt to keep it up! I have started a new business called Remmy & Co where all of my pinterest dreams come to life...  Well, most of my pinterest dreams. There are things I pin that, if I am being honest, I will never ever do. Instead of blowing this blog up with every project I have done in the last several months today, I will start with today's little project---- drum roll please----- The burlap passport cover! My sweet cousin is going to Spain in a few weeks (and I am not jealous at all because that wouldn't be nice) and she wanted something to carry her stamped up travel book! I, of course, wanted to make her dream a reality and started searching the web for tutorials. I found a good one at Handmade is better and after a few attempts and some sizing adjustments came up with this---

It is lined with the aqua chevron fabric seen in the background and I must say I am happy with how it turned out! If only I could fit inside and join her on her amazing adventure!