Jacksonville Does Halloween 2015!

***Appended with new content 10-26-2015

With only nine more days until Halloween, things are heating up (or should we say cooling down) here in Jacksonville! We’ve gotten our first few days of seasonably cooler temperatures and we couldn’t be more thrilled about it! Pumpkin patches have sprouted up all over town, and even our own Jacksonville Zoo has gotten in on all the Halloween fun. So in the few days before Halloween what’s on your weekend radar?

Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens Halloween Spooktacular Jack-O-Lantern displayNo matter where you are in Jacksonville, we can guarantee that a pumpkin patch isn’t far away. Oftentimes pumpkin patches can be found in front of churches. This year is no different; many of our neighborhood churches in fact, have set up not just a wide variety of pumpkins for visitors to choose from, but also staged spots for photo ops for families and friends. For a complete list of pumpkin patches in your area as well as general fall activities, jaxmomsblog.com is a great resource to check out!

If you’re looking for more fall fun than just a standard pumpkin patch, our very own Jacksonville Zoo and Gardens is putting on a magnificent Halloween spectacle. Together with their staff, they have created a series of scary houses, fun zones for the kids and young at heart, and bounce houses and games galore! With specific zones dedicated to the Land of Oz, Neverland, Charlie Brown, not to mention special – the zoo is pulling out all the stops this year. With tickets for non-members priced at $10 and members at $8 (cheaper when ordered online), the Zoo is an absolute must see this Halloween season! ***

corn maze fall fun
Photo courtesy of fieldtripswithsue.com

Better get your potion’s organized, your cauldron brewing, and your broomsticks at the ready! Halloween night is almost upon us!

Every year there are many great and glorious things that fall brings with it. The children go back to school, the air picks up a distinct chill (a BIG deal for those of us here in Florida), and Halloween is never too far away. We start planning our costumes a month in advance and contemplate just what outrageously terrifying costumes we can get away with at work. But sometimes, dressing up at work just isn’t enough. It’s often not enough for just our coworkers to see us in all of our frightful Halloween-ish glory – we want to have some fun too! And with such a big city, a diverse population, a number of local colleges, and a beach that’s never more than 20 minutes away, there’s no end to the number of Halloween activities on the horizon this year!

So for all of us Jacksonville locals, what exactly does the city have in store for us? We’ve taken it upon ourselves to find out and compile a list of some of the best upcoming Halloween events in and around town!

1. Conner’s Amazing Acres

Few fall attractions stand out as much as Conner’s Amazing Acre’s. Every year the activities range from pumpkin patches, to hayrides, and of course a corn maze with the option of doing it at night for an added creep factor! Year in and year out, Conner’s has proven to be fun for the whole family and has become an annual family tradition for countless families in the Jacksonville and St. Augustine area’s.

This year Conner’s amazing acres is open for fall and Halloween activities from September 22nd to November 13th. For more info check out their website!

2. Ghost Tour in St.Augustine

haunted st. augustine
Photo courtesy of residency.medicine.ufl.edu

Did you know that one of America’s most haunted cities is right in our own backyard? St. Augustine, FL is in fact that city! In fact, there are few cities in the country with a history as rich and as varied as St.Augustine, so it makes sense why so many spirits seem to have a hard time letting go.

From its lighthouse, to the Castillo itself and everywhere in between such as the halls of the illustrious Flagler College and the old jail, it’s safe to say that the spirit of St.Augustine is alive and well. And while we would love to recommend one tour in particular to you, the truth is that there are just too many to count! From the adventuring sort, we would recommend a haunted pub crawl (oh yes, it exists), for those more interested history, all you need to do is pick anything from the Castillo itself, all the way to the Ripley’s Museum house. No matter what you do, we recommend a camera!

3. Catty Shack Ranch Haunted Forest

If your family is full of animal lovers, we’ve got the perfect Halloween activity for you! Every year Jacksonville’s very own Catty Shack Ranch puts together a Haunted Forest fit for the whole family to enjoy! This year the annual festivities will be taking place over a period of three evenings in the beginning of October. The ranch will have a special craft and activity table set up under their usual tent and will have attendants throughout their big cat enclosures in case anyone has any questions about their care. One of the great things about Catty Shack Ranch is that all the money they earn goes to the extensive care of their magnificent animals.

Boo! Smile Halloween Craft Rubber Stamp Holmes Stamp & SignWant more Halloween? You’re in luck! We’ve recently added a whole new collection of high quality Halloween Stamps to our online catalogue! From spooky Address Stamps to fang-tastic craft stamps, we’ve got Halloween covered for this year and beyond! Go ahead and check out our new selection and don’t let the ghouls keep you from having a terror-ific Halloween season!

Inspiring Change With Random Acts of Kindness

charitable giving random acts of kindness love
Photo courtesy of blog.mint.com

There comes a point in nearly everyone’s life, where they sit back and look at all of the things they have accomplished with their lives. For some, this simple realization is enough – for others, they decide to do something about it by giving back.

For those that may not have the time to volunteer at their preferred local charity, they choose to join groups full of other like-minded individuals and take part in random acts of kindness. But what started as a phrase to describe an event has turned into a whole movement by the same name. All over the world millions of people are joining together to give back and to send a little more positivity out into the world.

From well thought out organizations to small close knit groups of friends – these groups are helping out others all over the world. Together they send out packages, envelopes, and more with the express hope of brightening someone’s day.

cool to be kind holmes stampIt’s no secret that there is a great deal of negativity in the world today so when one person does something good or charitable for another person, the hope is that it will produce a domino effect and inspire others to go out of their way to do something kind for someone else. It doesn’t always have to be a gift of some sort – a random act of kindness could be as simple as smiling at a complete stranger you pass on the street or in your office building.

We are so happy to see the Random Acts of Kindness movement picking up steam and gaining in popularity! With that being said, we’ve taken it upon ourselves to do what we do best and make some stamps! So now when you or your group send out a special gift or package to someone, you can mark it with one of our RAK stamps!

To make sure we got it right and in order to help out with this awesome concept, our designers consulted with some of the groups who send these RAK (Random Act of Kindness) packages out all the time. We wanted to know what it was exactly that they would like to see in a stamp. As a result, we have six new RAK themed stamps for sale on our website!

RAK stamp at holmes stamp & signUnlike our address stamps, these stamps can’t really be customized with your own personal information, but we do allow you to choose from our assortment of ink colors! Each of our stamps has been made up with high-quality materials and has been designed in a way that guarantees you the best possible impression every time. To ensure a superior product, we check each and every one of our stamps before they leave our manufacturing facility.

Feeling inspired? There is no reason to wait for someone to send you a gift to start the domino effect! Order a stamp that spreads an act of kindness.

Need some random act of kindness ideas? Here’s 101!

Fall in Love With Our New Wedding Products!

cool fall wedding
Photo courtesy of Weddingomania.com

The summer is finally winding down! Here in North Florida, this summer has felt even hotter than usual with days feeling as if it’s over a hundred degrees! It may seem surprising to some of our northern friends, but there are limits as to just how much heat we can take down here.

We don’t really get any joy from breaking out into a sweat when we walk to our cars in the morning, or when we decide to go to the beach on a Saturday afternoon and burn the bottoms of our feet when we walk on the sand. So for those couples who decide to tie the knot during the summer months down here in Florida, they may end up with pretty pictures but disgruntled guests who can’t seem to keep cool.

This is why Fall is usually a pretty popular month for weddings! With its cooler temperatures and warmer colors, it’s easy to see why Fall weddings are becoming the latest trend to take hold of the wedding scene. But one thing that never goes out of style is couples trying to save a couple bucks anywhere they can, and with the average cost of a wedding over twenty five thousand dollars, who can blame them?

Over the course of the past five to ten years a new trend has started where brides-to-be are focusing more on DIY wedding looks for less than the outrageous cost of planners, boutiques, and more. Countless magazine articles, websites, blogs, and whole magazines in general, have sprung up all over the place dedicating themselves to helping couples plan the wedding of their dreams on a shoe string budget.

Sites like Pinterest have become a treasure troves of tips, tricks, and hacks designed to make your life easier when planning your wedding. So what’s one of the number one ways to cut costs? Stamps! Now we know it might sound a little odd, but the right stamp can save you hundreds of dollars that you can put towards an awesome honeymoon!

Here at Holmes Stamp & Sign, we make it our mission to go out of our way and make sure that our customers get exactly what they need to get the job done – even if that job is to plan and host a wedding! Our team of designers has spent months putting together a variety of wedding stamps and Save The Date Stamps, designed to help you fly through your guest list and let everyone know that your special day is just around the corner!

We also sell some awesome gifts for the newly joined couple and their bridal parties. From wine bottle cases, to humidors and more, Holmes Stamp & Sign is here to help you make your special day even more memorable!

Looking for something extra special? Send us an email with your idea and our awesome Customer Focus team will do everything in their power to help make your dreams come true just in time for your big day!

Kicking Off The Political Season In Style

political yard signAbout once every three years, the political field starts to shift. Politicians who believe that they have what it takes to be president will step into the political ring to battle it out against others who think the same thing. In the end only one will rise above the rest and become the next President of the United States.

For this upcoming election, speculation over who will be running for office began way back in 2012 and has only picked up steam towards the end of last year. And if the massive amount of announced candidates are any indication, it’s safe to say that we’re in for a wild ride in 2016!

Despite being in an age where countless presidential hopefuls can buy as many ads and as many commercials as they want, they still rely on word of mouth and countless volunteers to get their message out there.

So just what can you do to help get your favorite candidate get elected? By helping them to spread the word about their campaign! With so many candidates running, the candidates will need all the help they can get to make sure that their voices are heard. Not in recent memory has there been an election quite like this one. With over twenty candidates in the running, the presidential race of 2016 is sure to be exciting!

So what kind of products are we able to offer you and your local campaign headquarters to make sure that you are prepared to show your support for your favorite candidate for 2016?

1. Buttons

Over the course of the past century, buttons have been used to get people’s attention and spread awareness for causes and candidates alike. Back during the 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln, buttons consisted of the circular display face and a ribbon used to attach the button to your clothes. While it didn’t damage their clothes, it also wasn’t always the most practical. For the past century pin backings have been the way to go. Able to be worn anywhere on your clothes, traditional pin backing buttons are easily applied, removed, and are able to stay in place all day long.

Holmes Stamp & Sign Political Presidential Products 20162. Bumper Stickers

Take your candidates message all over town with one of our vinyl Bumper Stickers! For the past number of decades, bumper stickers have grown in popularity and have been designed to cover a multitude of subjects and opinions from pets to politics. Here at Holmes Stamp & Sign, our bumper stickers have been made for the 2016 presidential election and are guaranteed to survive all the mudslinging (you know, that may accumulate on your car) and more!

3. Yard Signs

Yard signs are among the most popular ways to showcase your support for your favorite candidate. Easily placed anywhere in your yard and able to withstand the elements, yard signs are a great and timeless way to spread the word when it comes to your candidate of choice.

We know it’s a long road to the White House in 2016, but we work to get ahead of the game any way we can. We’ve got a product for every candidate so you can deck out your clothes, yard, and even your car – in your favorite candidates political swag! Grab yours today!

How To Have a Successful Summer Yard Sale

summer garage yard sale
Phot courtesy of frugalmom.net

Having a summer yard sale is a great idea and the perfect excuse to clean out the garage and attic, and make some money in the process! It’s the perfect way to get rid of all that junk you don’t really want, need, or even use anymore. In fact if you go about it the right way and you get lucky, having a garage sale can make you more money than you may have initially expected – maybe even enough for a second summer vacation! Want to learn some tips and tricks to help make sure your garage sale makes you as much money as possible?

1. Advertise, advertise, advertise. The key to making more money at your yard sale isn’t just pricing things right or even holding the yard sale at the right time of day – but actually getting the word out there! The more people you attract to your yard sale, the higher the chance you have of selling more of your things! When putting ads in your local papers, be sure to include any hot ticket items you may be willing to sell. Kids toys are always a hit, and furniture always draws a crowd!

2. Newsprint and Online ads. Speaking of ads in local papers, don’t hesitate to advertise your sale in print, on street corners, and even online. A week before your sale, start placing ads listing a few specific items you will be offering. In the past, people were limited to just advertising their yard sales in print but now it has become easier than ever to advertise your upcoming sale online through messaging boards, community websites and social media.

3. Use Professional-Quality Yard Signs. The very best way to advertise your yard sale is by using actual yard sale signs. There’s simply no replacement for a good old fashioned yard sale sign – it is one of the oldest, yet still one of the most effective way to advertise. A good yard sale sign connects with buyers at just the right moment, and is key for those who are already driving around with errands to run.

When looking to purchase a custom yard sign that will last you through the years and for many more yard sales come, be sure to buy only high-quality yard sale signs from a reputable source. Yard signs have the ability to withstand the elements and survive outdoors for a number of yard sales. Lower quality yard signs will fade in the sun, or rip and tear in the rain and not be able to attract many visitors, this is why a higher quality sign is important. A colorful, and professionally printed yard sale sign attracts more people than a lower quality sign.

4. Price it Right. Last but certainly not least, make sure you price your items properly for a yard sale crowd. Part of the appeal of a yard sale is the ability to buy things you like at a tiny fraction of department store costs. One of the worst things you can do is to over-price things at your sale. Keep the prices low, if you are unsure what you should price things, check out a couple yard sales in your neighborhood before you have yours so you can get some ideas.

Barbecue This Summer with Holmes Stamp & Sign!

summer bbq party
Photo courtesy of Parkstitle.com

Summer has finally arrived here in Jacksonville, FL and we’re already feeling the daily high temperatures! But with the weather heating up, the kids out of school for the summer, and the ocean waves calling out to us from our offices and production floors, it’s hard to keep our minds from wandering out of doors.

Every year people throughout the country get excited for summer vacations, traveling, beach days, and barbecues. Even here in our production facilities, we can still find traces of summer to get excited about from time to time. Every once in a while, we get an order placed for one of our awesome Personalized BBQ sets!

Perfect for summer and just in time for Father’s Day, we have three different product options for our customers to choose from. Each set comes with a variety of essential grilling utensils guaranteed to make your next summer cookout a sure-fire success! Embrace the summer atmosphere this year and throw a party your neighborhood won’t soon forget! Just make sure to follow some basic outdoor grilling safety tips!

Lesson #1:
Only grill outside! When the weather is this great why not enjoy it? Trying to operate a grill inside is definitely not the way to go! Many apartment complex’s won’t even let you have a grill on your balcony because of the potential fire hazard.

Lesson #2:
Never leave your grill unattended! Anyone who has a history of cooking anything knows that things can go wrong very quickly. So when grilling outside it’s best to always keep an eye on things! If you have to go inside for a minute, make sure to grab someone and tell them to keep an eye on things just in case. Chances are your guests will love feeling helpful and will feel special that you hand selected them for the task of managing the grill in their absence. There’s no harm in asking!

Lesson #3:
Keep kids away from the grill area! Now we know that we said if you leave the grill area you should find someone to take over, but make sure it is an adult! No one wants to have to make an emergency trip to the hospital for burn treatments before the meal even starts. It’s one thing for your kids to want to be just like you, it’s another for them to try to operate a fully functioning grill.

When it comes to outdoor parties, the most important rule overall is always just to have fun. What better way to spend your summer than socializing with your friends, neighbors, and family! Grab your new barbecue set today and get ready to throw the party that everyone will be talking about this summer!

Our barbecue sets are among the highest quality sets on the market today and come with a beautiful storage case that you’ll be able to hang on to for years to come. As an added bonus, we give our customers the option to customize their barbecue sets which makes them perfect for the special man in your life who has everything! Order your new custom barbecue set today!

What’s 95% Water but 100% Fun?

Moon Jellyfish

A jellyfish of course!

Being the tight knit family that we are, we get a little excited when we add a new member to the Holmes Stamp & Sign family. This time, we are pleased to announce that there is not one new addition, but two. And while we would love to be able to take them by the hand and introduce them to everyone, we can’t really do that because – well they’re jellyfish.

Jellyfish? Yes, our own CEO is now the proud owner of two bouncing, translucent Aurelia aurita otherwise known as moon jellyfish! They flitter and float in their unique spherical tank and have positively fascinated everyone from longtime employees, to visiting guests. After all, it’s not every day that you come across pet jellyfish.

moon jellyfish feed Dian Lofton
Photo by Dian Lofton

But needless to say, some of us have become rather knowledgeable about the unique species since their arrival in our CEO’s office. We’ve learned how to feed them properly, how to take care of their tank, and how to make sure they don’t get too big. Many pet stores don’t even carry the unique little creatures. So how exactly did our CEO get his hands on some? Someone gave him a specialized jellyfish tank for his birthday this year! Who knew that jellyfish needed a specialized tank to survive in captivity, let alone be kept as pets? Certainly not us!

In the wild, Moon Jellyfish can “range between 5 to 40 cm in size” according to Jellyfishfacts.net. Naturally we don’t want our new jellyfish friends getting that big or they won’t fit into their tank anymore, therefore we try to be careful as to how much we feed them. Jellyfish are unique in that they grow and shrink depending upon their food intake, and seeing as how it is illegal to set pet jellyfish free, we need to keep our little guys-girls…erm jellies relatively small.

But with all the excitement surrounding their arrival and getting them all set up, we forgot to name them! They don’t really have personalities, or genders (from what we can tell) so we can’t really say whether one is a Suzy, Sally, or Sampson; and with our busy schedules, we don’t really have the time to ponder potential names. So with that being said, we’ve decided to hand over the task of naming our new jellyfish friends to our fabulous customers!

Whether you have two names to offer up, ten, or twenty – leave us a comment on our Holmes Stamp & Sign Facebook page! Our CEO Mr. Bryan Croft himself, will hand select the winner(s) who will receive their choice of an ocean or marine inspired return address stamp pictured below! But hurry up and get your entries in! Contest ends April 24th – good luck!

Holmes Stamp Ocean Stamp Jellyfish Contest

 

Holmes Stamp & Sign Wants Your Blood!

the blood alliance jacksonville busFor anyone that frequents our blog or follows us on social media, it’s no secret that Holmes Stamp & Sign is a big believer in giving back. Between taking time out of our Saturdays to participate in a stroll around downtown for a good cause, volunteering our factory for a day for a good cause, and fostering creativity and competition at our own University of North Florida, it’s amazing that we have any time left over to get our work done! But with so many big-hearted employees here we can’t help but do what we can for those in need!

So what are we up to this time? As previously reported by various news sites and stations around town, The Blood Alliance here in Jacksonville has been running very low on a variety of blood types. The blood supply is so low in fact that the alliance, held a blood drive on the 15th of this month in Orange Park where the first 125 people to register were given two tickets to Monster Jam this past Sunday.

As previously reported by various news sites and stations around town, The Blood Alliance here in Jacksonville has been running very low on a variety of blood types. The blood supply is so low in fact that the alliance, held a blood drive on the 15th of this month in Orange Park where the first 125 people to register were given two tickets to Monster Jam this past Sunday.

But to make it more convenient for us, we gathered the necessary amount of signatures, set the date, and when we all arrived at work on this past Monday, the big red bus was sitting there waiting. So for a few hours, a number of us took a break from our machines, computers, and work spaces to donate the gift of life. According to the Red Cross website, it is estimated that “every two seconds someone in the U.S. needs blood” which translates to an overall everyday need of more than 41,000 donations. The Red Cross goes on to estimate that while there are 38% of eligible donors in the United States, less than 10% actually do on a yearly basis.

So can’t our friends in white lab coats come up with a solution for blood bank shortages? Science may have accomplished some great things but duplicating human blood in a way where it can actually help out those in need, and not just scare the neighbors on Halloween, has yet to become a reality. For thousands of years, doctors, shamans, and other types of healers have been unable to duplicate that one thing that gives life; Blood. Nothing can replace it; nothing can compare to it, and once it’s gone, it’s gone. Despite some truly remarkable technological advances in the fields of science and medicine and a couple close calls, scientists are still unable to reproduce the precious life giving substance and must therefore be forced to rely on the generous hearts of others to maintain their supplies. So with blood unable to be synthesized in a hospital ready format, the need for donations is here to stay!

We were so glad that we were able to do our part to help out, and while some of us may have been feeling a little bit lightheaded afterwards, it was worth it to know that we were saving lives!

Miss out on all the fun? Not to worry, you don’t need for the big red bus to pull up in your own work parking lot or even in your own driveway. The Blood Alliance has a whole host of donation centers scattered about the city. For a link to some of their donation centers click here and schedule an appointment today!

holmes stamp & sign team blood drive

Holmes Stamp & Sign Has A Massive Secret!

For anyone who has ever been a part of a small business, you know that there really are no secrets that stay secret for long! And for anyone who has ever come into contact with our Holmes Stamp & Sign CEO Bryan Croft, they would know that he is always up to something.

Holmes Stamp & Sign Art UNF Ian SkinnerFor all of us that work here at Holmes Stamp & Sign, it never surprises us when Bryan does something- well…surprising! But it just so happens that our mischievous minded CEO has really outdone himself this time!

First came the workers that started digging mid-day in front of our building. We all watched and wondered what they were doing, but most of us chalked it up to nothing more than city workers doing something that only the city knew or understood.  Then about a week later, the mysterious digging site was getting even more attention, this time it was from a cement truck.

Ian Skinner installing sculpture at Jacksonville business Holmes Stamp & SignThis was about the point where everyone knew that something was going on. We all went outside and participated in the hand-print-in-wet-cement ceremony that has become a tradition. Employees started asking questions but surprisingly no answers could be found – Bryan just smiled his Cheshire cat smile and said “It’s a surprise! You’ll have to wait and see!”

So what was really going on? A few months ago, Bryan reached out to Sculpture Professor Jenny Hager of the art department at UNF to orchestrate a contest where students were tasked to design a major sculpture, and our own CEO would be the judge. The winner of the contest would then take their model design and make it into a full scale sculpture and then have their finished product displayed outside of our very own Holmes Stamp & Sign!

So who was this grand winner? Bryan selected art student Ian Skinner’s design to be installed on our property! Tall, green, and unique in its abstract form – the great thing about art is that everyone sees something different. A little known secret about Mr. Bryan Croft is that he is a great lover of the arts and believes that art is something that can beautify any space, including the front of our building and surrounding area. A huge fan of community involvement and growth as well as art, Bryan thought, what better way to do both than by reaching out to his Alma Mater the prestigious University of North Florida for a special project!

The finished result is something we can all be very proud of. And now that the big unveiling is over, we are all very grateful to Professor Hager, and the talented Ian Skinner for beautifying not just our Holmes Stamp & Sign campus, but also our local community!

For decades Holmes Stamp & Sign has been a constant of the Jacksonville business community, and now we’re so pleased to be able to do our part to further beautify this already beautiful city that we are fortunate enough to call home!

What do you think of our latest attraction?