Showing posts with label northern kentucky blogger. Show all posts
Showing posts with label northern kentucky blogger. Show all posts

A Tour Through Blogland

Nicole from Probably Polka Dots, a lifestyle blog based in Atlanta, GA, invited me to participate in A Tour Through Blogland. I actually learned about Nicole's blog a while ago from Sarah of Social Sara. It was so long ago that I can barely remember the context. Anyway, I've always admired Nicole's style. She has a knack for curating all things pretty! Nicole does a great job at highlighting small businesses. In fact, I have discovered many lovely Etsy shops just by reading her blog.

This Tour Through Blogland consists of two parts, so without further ado, onto Part I...

Part I: About Me

Q. What am I working on?

I'm very excited to be working on a brand new Simply Sarah Style initiative that will launch in January. I'm not ready to reveal the full details just yet, but can say it has to do with decorating and home styling, a pastime I thoroughly enjoy, and something people often ask me about.

Q. How does my work differ from others in it's genre?

One aspect of Simply Sarah Style I really take pride in is the fact that the items I talk about, the parties I plan and the spaces I decorate all can be accomplished on a very reasonable budget, which means it is obtainable for a broad range of readers. I love creating a space or event that looks like it could be found in a magazine using items a person already owns or finding inexpensive ways to create WOW factor. This is the same with fashion. I love creating the high/low cocktail as Hilary from Dean Street Society would say. The challenge of putting together something inspiring that doesn't cost a million bucks, or even a hundred bucks, makes me very happy.

I hope Simply Sarah Style readers enjoy the affordable (and obtainable) inspiration.

Q. Why do I write/create what I do?

Simply Sarah Style started a little over four years ago as an avenue for sharing inspiration and the projects I completed. This was before the days of Pinterest, so blog-reading was the best way to gather ideas. Since I loved reading others' blogs so much, I thought I would start one of my own.

Through the years, I've gone through ups and downs. When I first started, I would write several posts a week because I had so much to share, but then my schedule filled up and I found it difficult to make time to blog so often, so I set a new standard for myself. I would blog once a week - every Wednesday - and that would be that. I felt good with that commitment.

Sometimes, even making time to write once a week is hard with my schedule. When it gets difficult to fit in a post and I find myself wondering what to write, I wonder does anyone even read my blog.

Then, I meet someone new who is a friend of a friend and she tells me she reads my blog, and just like that, I am re-engergized, and flattered. I'm happy that people feel inspired when they browse the pages of Simply Sarah Style.

Heck, Simply Sarah Style, the blog, has led to great opportunities. Not only do I do parties, decorating, wardrobe styling and gift-purchasing for people, I also get to work with great brands, small and large. All the of those things make writing and creating worth it!

Q. How does my writing process work?

I publish a post every Wednesday. Sometimes they are planned. Sometimes they are spontaneous. On Wednesday nights, you'll find me snuggled up on the couch with my laptop finishing my post and watching the latest episode of Nashville.

My biggest challenge when making a decision on content is typically the quality of visuals. I'm excited to share that I finally broke down and bought a nice camera after years of debating. Hopefully, you'll see the snapshots of my projects improve with this new piece of hardware! Any beginner photography tips are greatly appreciated! ;)

Part II: Meet Some of My Favorite Bloggers

Now, let me introduce you to three blogs I love.

Oak Ridge Revival

Andrea is one home design blogger I just adore. What's better is that she lives in town, so I have the honor of running into her occasionally. I first formally met Andrea when I did a feature on her for Fort Thomas Matters. It received such a great response that it was selected to run in Fort Thomas Living as well. Andrea is crazy talented when it comes to decorating. Her home is stunning, especially her kitchen! You can check out her home tour here.


Sarah blogs about updating her historical home, which has quite the family history. I enjoy browsing her blog for inspiration. I was also inspired to make my own "30 before 30" bucket list after reading hers (although, I need to rename mine "30 for 30"). Head over to check out her latest home projects, plus she has some interesting gift guides. Sarah has already completed her blogger questions. You can find them here.

PS-I automatically love other bloggers named Sarah!

I first discovered Summer from Simple Stylings when I came across her back deck makeover. Everything about this space was perfect. It was so colorful, so inviting and ideal for entertaining. You'll find plenty of inspiration on her blog and Instagram accountSummer has already completed her blogger questions. You can find them here.
Please head over and show these ladies a little love!

Thanks for joining me for A Tour Through Blogland!

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A Monster Bash - Jacob's First Birthday Party

Last year, my best friend, Julia, hosted a playful monster bash to celebrate her son's first birthday which fell the weekend before Halloween. Since it was so close to Halloween last year, I decided to hold the photos and share them this year.

Julia selected an orange, lime green, blue and black color scheme and relied on the oh so popular chevron print as an accent. In the picture below, she used wrapping paper as a table runner. I'm a big supporter of this practice and suggest it to everyone I work with when planning children's birthday parties. It makes for super simple cleanup!


Who knew googley eyes could be so fun? Just glue those suckers on a variety of products and you have little "monsters."



She featured several desserts - cake, cupcakes and homemade cookies. 


The monster cookies were an easy addition. Just tint sugar cookie dough with food coloring and add candy eyes. 


She incorporated son's one year photos and asked guests to share their well wishes on a mat to frame as a keepsake. 


She provided coloring pages on each table to keep younger guests entertained. 


I felt it was only fitting to decorate my gift bag. A little card stock and double-sided tape went a long way in creating this lighthearted monster. 

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A Few More Housewarming Party Details

I'm excited to share a couple additional details from our housewarming. As you may remember, I revealed some major lessons learned from our housewarming party two weeks ago - one of which was don't be too busy to take pictures. If you are throwing an upcoming party, you should sneak over and catch up on that post. I'm hoping my experience can help others prep and entertain with ease.

I had also mentioned to you that I purchased several items from H&M Home for our party. I was thrilled when my friend and graphic designer, Christina Reinersman, was able to pull inspiration from the H&M pieces for my invitation. Christina created a double-sided design that featured a welcome mat concept on the front and party details on the back. The spunky floral pattern in the invitation matched our H&M table runner, plates and smaller cups I purchased for the kids. 


Katy from Spoonful of Sugar Cookies was also able to incorporate our desired colors and certain design elements from the invitation into our cookies. 


Another one of my favorite pieces were the pineapples we used as party favors. We gave each family a pineapple with a tag (also designed by Christina) that said, "You're always welcome at [our address]." Since pineapples are the international sign of hospitality, I thought these were perfect! They were a huge hit with our guests.  


You should have seen the faces on the sales associates at Target and Meijer when I asked to buy all the pineapples they had in stock. 

Party Planner Tip: Target ended up having the best price on pineapples - even beating out Kroger and Sam's. On top of having the best price, Target also offered a 5% off pineapples coupon on the Cartwheel app, which was a bonus!
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Calling All Pretty Parties

Do you love to throw pretty parties? Submit your favorite party to Simply Sarah Style! 


I'm looking to feature baby showers, wedding showers, birthday parties and any other celebration that inspires others, includes DIY components and showcases strong attention to detail. If you're interested in being featured, contact me at sarah@simplysarahstyle.com.

Cheers!
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Baseball Birthday Party Inspiration

"Take me out to the ballgame. Take me out to the crowd..." Yup, it's that time of the year again! Baseball season is in full swing. 

I'm currently in the process of helping a friend plan a baseball-themed birthday party for her adorable son who will be turning one this June. This birthday boy is the little brother to the twins who had the super hero birthday party I helped style back in January. You may remember seeing the inspiration boards here.

This baseball party will be so much fun to execute. The colors are classics. Plus, you can get away with a quick and easy grill out menu. 

Based on my friend's original ideas, here's what I suggest...

Invitations


Decor and Party Favors


Refreshments


Desserts



Want more ideas? Be sure to check out my full collection of baseball party pins here.
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Q&A with Gem Steady Jewelry Designer Brittany Stadtmiller

Today, we're chatting with local jewelry designer, Brittany Stadtmiller, of Gem Steady. Brittany grew up in the Northern Kentucky area, but then moved to Atlanta, Georgia to explore new interest and gather inspiration for her jewelry line, Gem Steady. Since then, her and her husband's line of gem-inspired jewelry has taken off. 

Q. What's the meaning behind the name Gem Steady? 

Brittany: I made up the term 'Gem Steady' first as a way to express how awesome someone felt and to express a positive attitude. It was initially my motto in my practice as a life-coach, but has turned into more of a brand name. You can read the Gem Steady official definition here.

Q. Where do you draw inspiration when designing your collection?

Brittany: I would say 90% of what we make are custom orders. I like to speak with my clients one on one to get a feel for their vision, and then input my ideas from there. A lot of the time people ask us to just do what we want and get creative with it. This is a lot of fun, because we can really let our imaginations run wild. I think we draw inspiration mainly from the stone. We love featuring the gem and playing up its character.

 

Q. On average, how long does it take to craft a Gem Steady piece? 

Brittany: That really depends on what we're dealing with. My husband hand-makes every single setting. If it's a piece he's really excited about, he might be able to bust it out in a couple of days.  If it's a design he's trying to perfect or is unsure of it, it might take a few weeks.

Before we started on the jewelry-making venture, I had no idea how much went into making a piece. Even the most simply, basic ring can take hours in just sanding, polishing and filing alone.

Q. Do you welcome custom orders? 

Brittany: Absolutely! A majority of our work is from custom orders. We've been doing TONS of engagement rings recently, and that is really special. Someone will see something they like on our Facebook or Instagram page and then contact me with their vision. It's a lot of fun.

Q. What are your three most popular gems

Brittany: The top three would have to be:
  • Moldavite is definitely my favorite. It's a super rare stone only found in the Czech Republic. It formed as a result of a meteorite crash 14 million years ago and is thought to possess extra terrestrial powers. 
  • Herkimer diamonds are super popular for us. They're a type of quartz, and are said to enhance clairvoyance and psychic abilities among other things.
  • Citrine is another personal favorite. It is one of the only stones that is able to dissolve negative energy. It is used to manifest money and abundance :)

Q. Where is your biggest customer base?

Brittany: Besides the US, we ship lots of stuff to Australia. Actually, our first online sale was for someone in Australia. Besides that, we have a nice following in Hong Kong, and have sent rings and things to places all over the globe, including France, Brazil, Canada, Ireland and Mexico.


Want to see more from Brittany's collection? 
Be sure to check out her Etsy shop.
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