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Jamie Gremillion, Bloom Co.

Growing up, I didn’t know much about the season of Advent and what it meant. I heard the word, but it wasn’t something my family observed, nor did my church talk much about it. I certainly couldn’t have known how important the observation of Advent would become when I had my own family.

advent – ad·vent/ˈadˌvent : noun – 1. the arrival of a notable person, thing or event; 2. the first season of the Christian church year, leading up to Christmas and including the four preceding Sundays.

Webster

When Clark was two, a friend of mine shared something with me that our family has grown to love and look forward to every Christmas. We were in a “mom group” together when she told me about a family-friendly Advent curriculum that her mom had written. Over the last ten years, we’ve made it our own and do what works for our family. The time we’ve spent together on Advent nights has created some of my favorite holiday memories with my children, plus I feel like this tradition has helped keep us stay grounded and focused on Jesus during this incredibly busy season.

Of course we keep it simple and doable, but also super meaningful for families of all ages and religions. I put together a video with all the details and FREE download. Check it out here!

If you and your family use our Advent plan this year, I’d love to know how much you love it. Comment below or send me a message/email. Merry Christmas and I hope you enjoy spending this time with your family as much as I do.

Thanks for stopping by, Jamie xo

We always have our fair share of King Cake (we even made our own one year!) and try to make it to the Children’s Parade here in our hometown. I have only a few decor items that I consistently put out each year, and it’s because they’re special to me.

Mardi Gras decor can get a little tacky, honestly. If you’re decorating for a ball or a big party, you should totally go all out! But if you’re wanting to leave a few things out around the house for the season, I have some tips for doing that seamlessly.

1. Vintage Mardi Gras touches.

Vintage “anything” is going to immediately elevate your decor, so the same is true for vintage Mardi Gras pieces. Vintage figurines can be a great way to incorporate the colors and “feel” of the season.

Additionally, vintage Mardi Gras items tend to have more muted colors and less glitz and glitter. This type of decor blends beautifully with most neutral home color palettes.

2. Masks. Real masks.

You already know I’m not talking about the plastic masks you can get anywhere, I’m referring to the real-deal masks. You can buy them anywhere in Nola, or order them online directly from local artisans. These beauties are truly art, and will certainly give you the feeling of Mardi Gras!

3. Subtle purple, green and gold tones.

Bringing in the colors of the Mardi Gras season need to be done subtly, but intentionally. I love the idea of color blocked book stacks to achieve this look! I think Mardi Gras is fun and playful enough that an idea like this just might be perfection! Here are a few colored book stacks available for purchase on Pinterest. A quick search turned up these and a lot more!

4. Mardi Gras beads as a focal point.

I realize using Mardi Gras beads as decor is a no-brainer, but hear me out. Choosing the right beads is important. I’m always careful to only use the traditional purple, green and gold colors; and I’m choosy about the beads themselves. I like to pick out the biggest, and most special ones to display. These are perfect in a large vase, draped over a jug or tray, or filling a decorative bowl. Beads are a great way to add a small pop of Mardi Gras to any room!

5. Traditional Mardi Gras art.

Art is relative, and I use the term loosely. There’s no shortage of New Orleans art on the market, so this should be an easy one to incorporate. You can easily find traditional street scenes of New Orleans, beautiful abstract pieces that reflect the revelry, vintage posters, or some type of mixed media that is created by an artist on the streets of New Orleans. What you choose for your walls fully depends on the style of your home and what you’re naturally drawn to.

When thinking about any or all of these ideas, keep in mind the style and functionality of your home. Choose items that make sense for you and that you LOVE. Decorating just to decorate isn’t what we’re going for. I want you to find joy in each and every piece of your home, even during Mardi Gras season! Laissez les bons temps rouler!

I hope these tips were helpful and encourage you to incorporate a new item or two into your Mardi Gras home decor this year.

Thanks for stopping by, Jamie xo

I rounded up my favorites this year and added the links below. They’re all price points, and all sizes! Hope you find something to cozy up your space this winter!

Thanks for stopping by, Jamie

Use the link below to download a FREE gift tag for your gift of potpourri!

DOWNLOAD FREE POTPOURRI GIFT TAG

Thanks for stopping by, Jamie xo

That was me before I realized I could actually use The Elf on the Shelf tradition to point my kids toward Jesus and help keep their focus on the real meaning of Christmas through his silly shenanigans.

‘Everything but the Elf’ is a Christ-centered digital download. Each elf shenanigan is meaningful, positive, centered around family and giving-focused.

When you purchase, you’ll get instant access to a month of files to print at home including: an elf themed grocery shopping list for everything you’ll need, a December calendar organized by elf ideas, colorful printables, scripture cards, good deed ideas, 1 minute set-up videos and daily emails to remind you to move the dang thing!

You’ll spend your December mornings watching your little ones grow in their faith all while having fun and being silly!

Here’s a look at some of the fun you can expect!

‘Everything but the Elf’ downloading will be available through December 25th. If you are wanting to be reminded when it becomes available for the 2023 season, join the mailing list below.

Jamie

Making a king cake from scratch shouldn’t intimidate you, it’s much easier than you may think! It’s basically a giant cinnamon roll dressed up for Mardi Gras!

Here’s my recipe, have fun with it, it won’t be perfect and may not look neat, but it’ll taste delicious, I promise!

Dough:

• 1 (8oz) container sour cream
• 3 TBSP sugar
• 2 TBSP unsalted butter
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 (¼ oz) envelope active dry yeast
• 1/4 C warm water (100° to 110°F)
• 1 large egg (lightly beaten)
• 3 to 3 1/2 C bread flour

Cinnamon/Sugar Filling:

• ⅓ cup unsalted butter (softened)
• ½ cup granulated sugar
• 3 TBSP ground cinnamon

Glaze:

• 1 C powdered sugar
• 1 TBSP butter or cream cheese, softened
• 1 TBSP milk
• 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice
• ¼ tsp vanilla extract
• Purple, green and gold sprinkles

1. For the dough, add the sour cream, butter, sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan over low heat, stirring often, until the butter is melted. Remove from the heat & cool down the mixture to 100° to 110°F
2. In a glass measuring cup or small bowl, stir together yeast and 1/4 cup warm water, and let stand for 5 minutes. The yeast should become foamy and be ‘activated’ after that time.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, add the sour cream mixture, yeast mixture, eggs and 1 cup of flour. Give a quick stir with a spatula and then turn the mixer on medium speed. As the ingredients start to come together, reduce speed to low, and gradually add the remaining flour until a soft dough forms.
4. Once the dough forms, lower the speed setting and allow the dough to knead until smooth and elastic (this can take up to 10 minutes).
5. Place in a lightly greased bowl and cover with a linen cloth or plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place (85° is ideal) for 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size.
6. While dough is proofing, make the cinnamon/sugar filling. Mix the ingredients together in a small bowl.
7. After the dough is finished proofing, divide the dough in half.
8. Roll each portion into a long rectangle using a rolling pin. Spread 1/2 the cinnamon/sugar butter evenly on each rectangle.
9. Fold each dough rectangle in half long ways, and add the remaining cinnamon/sugar butter.
10. Roll the dough rectangles up long ways.
11. Place the dough rolls parallel to one another, pinch the tops together, and twist the dough rolls over each other to give a braided look. Bring the other ends around together to form a ring, ensuring to make a good seal at the seam.
12. Cover and let rise in a warm place again, 20 to 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
13. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
14. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes or until golden.
15. If the outside is golden, but the inside is still gooey, lightly cover with foil and bake in 5 minute intervals, checking carefully in between until cooked through.
16. After the cake is done baking, allow to cool most of the way.
17. Meanwhile, in a large bowl mix the glaze ingredients until smooth & creamy.
18. Pour glaze evenly over warm cake; sprinkle with colored sugars, and alternate colors.
19. Let cool completely & serve.

Check out the Instagram reel here:

Thanks for stopping by, Jamie xo

Let me know what you think if you try them out this Christmas!

Thanks for stopping by, Jamie xo

Just like any small business, Bloom Creative Co. earns money when you shop. This post contains affiliate links. Thank you so much for your support.

Jamie

I didn’t include links for Santa gifts because they weren’t linkable. The girls are getting the Melissa and Doug “doctor’s office” (sold out online) and Clark is getting a crossbow (Adam bought it from an outdoor store). I hope you and your family have an amazing Christmas.

Thanks for stopping by, Jamie xo

With a free tree, and my inspiration pictures, I decided to take my chances and create a sparse tree from an ordinary Christmas tree. The tree we found was left by the previous owners, and was in great shape. Most of the lights were out, but we knew they would have to come off anyway. The transformation ended up surpassing my expectations and I’m so excited to share the three easy steps with you!

Step 1 Remove Lights

My husband, Adam started by cutting the plastic light clips off of each individual branch, but quickly realized that was too tedious of a process. Although extremely messy, pulling and jerking the light wires worked very well and made the process go quickly. The plastic light clips broke off very easily. I recommend you do this part outside!

Step 2 Remove Branches

Some trees have removable branches… that type of tree is ideal for this project. However, our tree did not have removable branches, they were hinged, like most trees these days.

To create a sparse look, I removed every other branch on each row all the way up the tree using bolt cutters. Once I got closer to the top, I could remove the smaller branches with tin snips. I cut as close to the trunk as possible to minimize the hardware leftover from the missing branches.

I kept the bottom row of branches intact to create a thicker look toward the bottom. It also helped to “ground” the tree and look more natural.

Step 3 Hide the Hardware

You might’ve already wondered about the look of the Christmas tree’s trunk. Obviously, this tree wasn’t made to have the trunk part seen, so it had parts that needed to be hidden, especially after removing half of the branches.

I knew that once the tree was decorated, your eye wouldn’t “see” the trunk, but it still needed to be somewhat camoflauged. I used dark brown burlap ribbon to hide the hardware and was pleased with how it turned out!

Tip: I also used the dark brown burlap ribbon to hide the light plugs once I began decorating.

Jamie

How you decorate your sparse tree is totally up to you, but I kept it really simple. I love how you can see all the ornaments and how the garland “floats” on the branches. Less is more when it comes to these types of trees.

I’d love to know if you try this with a tree in your home! Be sure to comment below or send me a message on Instagram!

Thanks for stopping by, Jamie xo