Styling My Husband's Flannel

My husband came home tonight all excited after a trip to Cabelas. He's been getting ready for the ice fishing season and picked up a bunch of necessities. One of his new items - this awesome black and white plaid flannel shirt. I'm so into oversized everything right now and this flannel is the pure definition.

Today on the blog I'll be showing four easy ways to style an oversized flannel. So get ready to raid your husband's (or boyfriend's or dad's...) closet!

First I layered my flannel over an oversized t-shirt with my favorite go-to leggings and Golden Goose sneakers. I threw on an oversized denim jacket, and I have a super laid back, comfortable outfit perfect for hanging out at home, hitting the park with my kids, or running errands.

For my next look, I put on a simple t-shirt dress and my favorite lug-sole boots. I threw on a crossbody bag to give a little definition to my frame. I love the casual cute vibes of this outfit.

This next look is probably my favorite. I put on a knit sundress and layered the flannel over. Because the flannel is so oversized, I was easily able to knot the shirt and have it casually fall off my shoulders. I finished this look off with a baseball cap and a pair of combat boots. For spring, I will definitely wear this outfit with a pair of cute sneakers. I love how comfortable I felt AND I really love getting extra mileage out of my clothes... like this summer dress.

Lastly I threw on a pair of high waisted jeans, a cute crop top, and layered on my flannel. Cute enough to run around town in... comfortable enough to just hang at home.

I hope I've inspired you to try styling a men's flannel. You will love the oversized cozy vibes it will bring to your wardrobe. I know I'll be borrowing my husband's flannel from time to time... to time. Happy styling!

Remember to check out my Instagram @smalltownme

Love Emily.

One way I give back

My three boys have all attended our town's small Catholic school from grades Kindergarten through 6th grade. Small class sizes and an education rooted in faith are just two of the reasons we chose St. Max for our children. The school's staff makes every child who walks through the doors feel special and the families who attend welcome every new comer with open arms. Back when my kids first started school at St. Max, I knew I wanted to give back. I wanted to do something to really make an impact on our teachers, letting them know how appreciated they were.

Today on the blog, I'm sharing how I give back to our Catholic school each Christmas season. What started out as an idea has blossomed into an annual tradition that our school and parishioners look forward to. My hope is that you take my idea, make it your own, and pay it forward to help another school in need.

I knew that our teachers and staff had various things they wanted to see in their classrooms. Maybe it was a new area rug for story time... or a certain poster for the classroom wall. Whatever the need, big or small, every classroom had one. And so the Wish Tree was born.

All the teachers and staff were told to make a list of all their classroom wishes. These wishes, both big and small, were made into our wish tree ornaments. Here's how I did it...

First I cut circles out of used Christmas cards to act as my ornaments. The Punch I use is linked herea. The first year I managed to come up with enough old Christmas cards to fill our tree. Then, as years went by, parishioners started delivering their used Christmas cards after the holidays. Now I have an endless supply and I love that!

The ornaments need to be double sided, so I also cut circles out of lined and plain white paper. I run the plain paper through an adhesive machine, and stick the circles back to back - so one side is a christmas image and the other side is blank. I then punch a hole in the top of each ornament. And now for the wish...

I took those wish lists from teachers and wrote every single wish on an ornament. I made sure to label the top of the ornament with the recipient in red ink so it really stands out... (Kindergarten, 5th Grade, Music, or even the School Office). This will readily tell people who they are buying for.

I'm always as detailed as I can be with the school's wishes. I include the item's description, price, and the website or store it can be found at. No wish is ever too big or too small. Some ornaments might be for dry erase markers for $8, water color paper for $40, or a specific amount of money for a classroom field trip. Every single ornament is for a specific need. Tuition money, uniform gift cards, or reams of colored paper. People know exactly what they are buying and what their money is going for. I think that is one of the reasons why our school wish tree has been so successful.

Lastly I take ribbon loops and attach them to each of my ornaments. The ornaments are all hung on our school's wish tree set up in our Church gathering space. As people come and go, they'll stop, look at the ornaments, and maybe take one or two to help out our school. On our wish tree I have instructions...

Please considering helping out our school by purchasing one of our wishes on this tree.

Wrap up your donation and be sure to use the ornament as the gift tag so we

know where to deliver your gift. Wrapped gifts can be left under our wish tree or

delivered to the school office.

It is so important to label each ornament with the specific classroom. Not only will the school know who to deliver the wrapped gift to, but parents will typically find ornaments specific to their child's grade.

Presents are all delivered to each classroom after the holidays ... and sometimes teachers will have students help unwrap the classroom gifts. It's really beautiful to see how excited the students are when they receive new books and things for their classroom.

The wish tree as been such a blessing for our school. From Sharpie markers to field trips to even a Cricut for school bulletin boards... so many needs have been filled by people's generosity... and you gotta love that.

Remember to check out my Instagram @smalltownme

Love Emily.

Turning your Christmas cards into memorable books

Thanksgiving is over and any day now our mailboxes will be filled with christmas cards and greetings from family and friends. So much fun to get, but what do you do with all those holiday greetings after Christmas is over?

Today on the blog, I'm sharing an easy and fun way to hold on to all those holiday greetings for Christmas's to come.

These little holiday flip books are so easy and fun to make. With only a couple supplies and a little bit of time, you can transform your family's Christmas greetings into the cutest holiday books to enjoy year after year. So pop in a Christmas movie and let's get started.

First, gather together your Christmas cards and pull out all the cards with a blank back. You are going to cover the backs with patterned Christmas paper so that your book's pages are decorated on every side. Don't stop at paper... you can use Christmas cards or pages out of Christmas books... even wrapping paper. Another thing you can incorporate are handwritten holiday notes... because a persons handwriting can be even more precious then a picture. Think outside the box and make this book your own!

Next, gather all your cards and pile them up, aligning the top left hand corner. Your pile is not going to be perfect. Some cards will be portrait, others will be landscape... and they will be in all sizes. This will make your book fun and homemade. IT'S NOT SUPPOSED TO BE PERFECT - THAT'S THE BEAUTY. Take a hole punch, and punch a circle hole in that top left hand corner of every card.

Next your going to feed all your punched cards through a ring. You have just assembled your flip book. Take a couple ribbon scraps and tie a few knots onto your ring for a festive finishing touch.

I love displaying our books in our living room. They get looked at, shared, and loved all season.

I've linked everything you need to make your Christmas card books. All you need are your holiday cards and greetings.

Stay merry my friend and happy crafting!

Remember to check out my Instagram @smalltownme

Love Emily.