It’s always exciting to receive emails and be tagged in social media posts by happy customers who love their products. Our custom stamps and other branding tools help small and growing businesses across the country represent their brands. Our passion helps them establish their passion – and it doesn’t get much better than that.
We wanted to share the story of one of those businesses because not only are they located in Jacksonville just like us, but their passion is making a difference in the lives of those who, to put it very lightly, haven’t had it easy.
Founded by Kristin Keen, “Rethreaded started with a simple idea, and a strong passion,” reads their website. That passion was to positively impact victims of the sex trade industry by providing them with dignifying work and “allowing them to be who they were created to be.”
According to Rethreaded’s website, Human Trafficking is a $32 billion a year industry and between 75% – 95% of prostituted women were sexually abused as children. 90% of women within the sex slave industry want to escape, but lack access to jobs and resources. Rethreaded’s mission was and still is to change that.
In November of 2012, Rethreaded hired its first full-time employee. They empowered victims by giving them opportunities and allowing them to express their creativity through the women’s accessories they made. They purchased a custom stamp from Holmes Stamp and Sign that they used to brand themselves when they first began and still orders things like name tags, doing business with us regularly.
Over the past four years, Rethreaded has impacted the lives of 24 survivors in Jacksonville, provided over 17,000 hours of work to local survivors and helped to sustain the freedom of over 2,200 women internationally.
To support this magnificent cause, you can shop their products. They create and sell beautiful and unique accessories like scarves, bags, jewelry as well as home goods like coasters and plant hangers. Rethreaded even has pet toys! You also can contribute by hosting an event, volunteering your time and/or donating.
Visit their website at www.Rethreaded.com to learn more about their story and support their mission!
If you believe that everything gets better with coffee, you may not be able to buy happiness but you can buy an iced frappuccino that comes pretty close, and that a yawn is nothing more than a scream for something caffeinated – you might be addicted to the rise and grind mantra of coffee lovers all over the world. But don’t worry you’re not alone! According to a 2014 article by Huffington Post, it is estimated that nearly 83% of adults in America drink some form of coffee. Morning coffee runs, full cups, mugs, tumblers, and thermoses have become one of the few things that unites us as human being regardless of race, religion, or politics. Yes, coffee makes the world go round. Go ahead and try to think of an office that lacks a coffee maker, we’ll wait.
Anything? We didn’t think so. In all honesty, the world’s addiction to coffee is nothing new. The earliest origin story of coffee dates back to the 4th-6th century in Ethiopia, according to the National Coffee Association USA, it was a goat herder first discovered the effects of coffee “it is said that Kaldi discovered coffee after noticing that his goats, upon eating berries from a certain tree, became so energetic that they did not want to sleep at night. Kaldi reported his findings to the abbot of the local monastery who made a drink with the berries and discovered that it kept him alert for the long hours of evening prayer. The abbot shared his discovery with the other monks at the monastery, and slowly knowledge of the energizing berries began to spread. As word moved east and coffee reached the Arabian peninsula, it began a journey which would spread its reputation across the globe.” From humble beginnings, coffee spread throughout the Arabian Peninsula and eventually to Europe and beyond. It has been estimated that by the mid 1600’s there were over 300 coffee houses in London alone. Brands like Starbucks, Maxwell House, and Keurig have made countless billions on our dependency on coffee. Today it would be a challenge to find somewhere coffee isn’t served.
Photo courtesy of quotesgram.com
Our own offices at Holmes Stamp & Sign are no different. At least one coffee cup can be found on almost every desk. Our stamps may run on ink but all of us certainly run on coffee. With that being said we’ve created a whole host of coffee mug designs perfect for any individual style. All of our mugs have been painstakingly created by our design team and printed by our dedicated employees. Dishwasher and microwave safe, our mugs stand the test of time, even after cup after cup after cup of piping hot coffee.
Are you like us? Does your day just not feel right unless you’ve got a healthy amount of caffeine coursing through your veins? Be sure to check out all of our coffee cup designs and styles! Have a request for a special design? We want to hear about it! Sound off in the comments section below and we’ll do our best to make it happen!
It’s beginning to look a lot like the holiday season here at Holmes Stamp & Sign! Even if it may not look like it outside, we’re beginning to feel the effects of Jack Frost and Old Man Winter here in North Florida despite the fact that some of our northern neighbors are already finding themselves, not to mention their vehicles, fully submerged in icy snow. And while we may not be able to see any snow on the ground, there are other ways for us to tell just what time of the year it is. Our production floor is jam packed with brand new products being made, our shipping offices are overflowing with packages to be sent out, and there is more than just one new face wandering our halls helping us out during our annual holiday rush!
Our very own CEO Mr. Bryan Croft himself alongside his daughter Avery.
This year our very own CEO Bryan Croft decided to do something extra special for all of his employees. On the morning of the start of our busiest month of the year, he decided to wake up early, grab his daughter, pack up the car, and beat everyone else to work. As we all began to trickle in through the doors bundled up in our coats and scarves, we immediately noticed something was different in our warehouses. Curious, we followed the sounds and smells coming from the break room and discovered the both Bryan and his daughter, serving up a massive breakfast spread intended for everyone in the company to enjoy! Wasting no time, we dug in and got to work for the day! When all was said and done, our team of 68 employees had devoured 156 fresh pancakes, 5 gallons of orange juice, 4 lbs. of bacon, 3 lbs. of sausage, two boxes of Dunkin Donuts coffee, and more maple syrup than we knew what to do with! Was this a bit unexpected? Absolutely. Was this an unpleasant experience? Never! The super special breakfast gift from our caring and considerate CEO was just the thing we needed to get us in the holiday spirit!
We couldn’t have been any more surprised or thankful when we walked in and saw all of the food ready and waiting for us! With the holiday season comes, longer hours, tighter deadlines, and lots of coffee runs! That’s why mornings such as these are just one of the many examples that makes working at Holmes Stamp & Sign so great! We’re proud to consider ourselves one big happy stamping family – especially during this time of the year where things can get particularly hectic!
Looking to get the best deals going into the holiday season? Our high quality products make great gifts for yourself or your loved ones. Sign up for our exclusive mailing list offers and skip the lines, and save!
Worried about getting your items in time for the holidays? Don’t be! We work extra hard to get all of your items shipped within one business day! Place your order today and enjoy spending more time with your family and friends than out at the mall!
The Holiday season has officially kicked off here at Holmes Stamp & Sign! From our company wide decorations to our new product designs, there’s no holding back our holiday spirit this year or ever! And even though there’s a lack of snow on the ground here in North Florida, that hasn’t stopped us from feeling the icy fingertips of Mr. Jack Frost himself (sure it was only a few days, but it counts right?). While it’s true we haven’t felt as much fall weather as we have in years past, we’re hopeful that things will continue to cool down for the winter Holidays!
So just how are we kicking things off this year? If you’re a part of our mailing list, you’ve got a pretty good idea! This year we’re going above and beyond to bring our customers the best possible steals and deals that we can manage! Miss out on Black Friday and Cyber Monday? We’ve got plenty of more specials and one of a kind holiday stamps coming your way!
So what can we offer you to help you breeze through your holiday to-do list? Plenty!
Nothing says the Holidays are approaching quite like the mass amount of Holiday Greeting cards that cycle through the mail every year. For those with families, this is a great time to update friends and family that you may not get a chance to talk to much on all of the things that have gone on this past year. Whether you choose to send out a full length letter or just a standard Season’s Greetings card, our famous address stamps can help you save time where it counts – and when it comes to the holidays, EVERY minute counts when you’re trying to get stuff done! Self inking address stamps are a super fast and trendy way to get your mail ready to go in half the time! Simply make your impression and move on to the next envelope. Capable of countless impressions, these little guys make excellent time savers for you or stocking stuffers for others!
2. Gift Labels
Ready to tackle yet another time consuming aspect of the holiday season? How many times have you been wrapping presents only to end up fighting with cheap gift labels that rip, tear, and even peel right off of your packages? Never again! No more struggling to apply gift labels, and no more running to the store at the last minute to buy more because you ran out! Save your time and money by making your own! Now we know this may sound more time consuming than going to the store, but we promise it’s not! Just purchase some cheap labels from your local office store and stamp your gift tags with one of our gift tag stamps! Or you can choose to get really creative by cutting up bits of scrapbook paper and using ribbon, tape, or glue, to attach it to your gift bags or packages.
Whether you have kids or know someone who does, our Santa Signature stamps are the perfect tool to use this holiday season. Nothing encourages kids to be on their best behavior quite like a personalized letter from Santa! Just type the letter up yourself and then use one of our Santa Signature stamps to give it an authentic touch!
Here at Holmes Stamp & Sign, we’ve worked especially hard this year making sure that you won’t have to! It is our Holiday wish to you, that you are able to sit back and relax this winter and enjoy the season!
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?
No 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! ***
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
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.
Want 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!
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!
About 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.
2. 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!
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.
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!
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.
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!
