Cinderella Tutu

Cinderella Tutu
www.etsy.com/shop/glittertulle

Friday, December 21, 2012

Valentine's Gowns Coming Soon!

In just a few short days, Christmas will be over.  We'll be taking down the trees, packing up the dancing Santa's, picking tinsel out of the carpet (okay, that one will last a few months, weeks) and looking around wondering what we are going to do with all of this free time (ha!) and what we need to plan next.
Well, your little girl is gonna need to look amazing for Valentine's Day, whether she is old enough to go to a school dance, or a Daddy Daughter Dance, or just likes to spin around the room with her one-true-love, Mickey Mouse. Luckily, I've got you covered. I am working hard (no, not hardly working!) on my new Valentine's Day gowns and they will be revealed shortly.  I've got some new designs you are gonna love! Stay tuned because you're gonna want to see this!
Sneak peak:  New Year's Eve, December 31st
Reveal: Thursday, January 3rd (because what else do you have to do on a Thursday?)
You know,  my tutus are not like everyone else's tutus!  I have designs you cannot find anywhere else, such as this adorable woven-bodice Christmas dress, which incidentally would also work for Valentine's Day and is available for immediate ship.  Just sayin'!

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Top 10 People Who NEED You to Buy them a Tutu!

10: Your daughter. This is one of those, “Well, duh, if they’re all going to be that obvious than why bother to read the rest,” statements, but come on, your little girl really wants a tutu! She loves tutus. She loves dressing up and pretending to be a princess, or pretending to be a queen and bossing you around. Much less, she needs a tutu. If she doesn’t have a tutu, how else will she go to the ball? And if she doesn’t go to the ball, she’ll never meet Prince Charming. And if she doesn’t meet Prince Charming, SHE WILL LIVE IN YOUR HOUSE FOREVER!
9: Your granddaughter. Okay—again obvious. But let me explain why. You know how Grandma and Grandpa are the most awesome people in the universe? Or at least, they are supposed to be. But if your granddaughter does not have a tutu specifically selected for her by you, then she’s only going to think you are mostly awesome, not completely awesome, and while mostly awesome is okay, completely awesome is sooo much better. Let’s face it, she’s probably asked mom and dad for a tutu and either A)they got her one or B) they didn’t. If they did, chances are the one you get her will be so much better because it’s from you. And if they didn’t, well then, the logic is circular--she needs you to get her a tutu!!
 8: Your niece. When you pick out a tutu for your niece, I recommend the following: Pick out a Rock’n’Roll, funky tutu that necessitates making a lot of noise while wearing it. After all, whether it’s your brother or sister’s kid, chances are you need to pay them back for something. Get them a tutu that says, “It’s okay to party! Go enjoy yourself! Put on lots of make-up, jump on the furniture, throw your guitar threw the TV!” Okay, maybe not the last one, but loudness must be encouraged in the style you select for your niece’s tutu.
7: Your best friend’s daughter: Your best friend’s daughter is always telling her mom how cool you are. Her mom doesn’t dress nearly as cool as you do. Her sunglasses are not as cool. She doesn’t even chew the coolest kind of gum like you do. Your best friend needs to hear how cool the tutu you picked out is. She needs to hear it repeatedly, several times a day, for weeks, and months and years. Because best friends love to hear about how cool we are. It’s a fact. Just ask my best friend. Message me. I’ll give you her cell phone number. She’ll thank me later by telling me how cool I am.
This is one of my best friends. And she doesn't have any daughters, though her sons would look cute in tutus as well. She does however have her photo taken with me in an accessible place on my camera, and that makes her blog worthy! :)



6. Your daughter’s best friend: Remember how you told your daughter that if she didn’t insert threat here (make her bed, clean her room, get all A’s, get into Yale Law) you were not buying her a tutu? By the way, if you haven’t tried that one, it’s such a motivator! Well, if your daughter did not make her bed, clean her room, get all A’s or only got into Stanford, then add some emphasis to what is generally, in my experience, an empty threat. Don’t buy her a tutu. Buy her best friend a tutu! Then, you can explain, “I told you if you didn’t get a perfect score on your ACT and get accepted into that Ivy League University, there would be no tutus. I don’t want to hear it young lady! Samantha always gets into Ivy League Universities when her mother asks her to!” (I have no affiliation with any university, nor do I actually rank universities for a living. No universities were harmed in the making of this post.)
 5. Your daughter’s best frenemy: Let’s face it, we all have at least one frenemy. Someone we know socially, we work with, someone who drives us crazy but we are always nice. It’s not because we are two-faced (or that’s not completely why anyway) it’s because we are attempting to avoid conflict with someone we truly believe may in fact be Evil Incarnate in disguise. And your daughter probably has at least one frenemy, too. If you can’t tell who your daughter’s frenemy is, try this experiment. Ask her who she is texting. When your daughter stops texting , if she sighs and rolls her eyes, she’s probably communicating with a frenemy. So why would you want to get your daughter’s best frenemy a gift? Simple! Your daughter’s frenemy is constantly saying things are, “lame,” “gross,” or “disgusting.” She could not possibly think one of my tutus is lame or gross or disgusting. If you get her one of my shabby chic, bohemian tutus, she would be OMGing for all of the right reasons. Then maybe she can be just a friend to your daughter and no longer a frenemy! Unless she truly is Evil Incarnate, in which case ain’t no amount of tutus gonna fix that.
 4. The girl who has everything! You know her, she may be related to you, she might be friends with one of your kids, or the child of one of your co-workers. She’s always upset on Christmas or birthdays because the stuff she gets is never what she wants. And the reason she never gets good presents is because she already has everything! If she wants something Daddy buys it for her. Well, I guarantee she does not have a custom made tutu. You can finally be the one to get her something she doesn’t have, something she won’t return, something she won’t repurpose, something she’ll actually enjoy!


3. The girl who has nothing. All joking aside for this one. There are thousands of little girls who would absolutely love to have a tutu. I know because I watch the faces of little girls who do have other toys, other dresses, and their little faces light up when they put on one of my tutus. This is the reason I make tutus. When I give a tutu to a little girl who has nothing, I feel like Santa or an Angel. You will, too. There’s nothing, nothing like the glimmer in the eye of a little girl who feels like a princess. Making that happen is a little piece of Heaven. If you know a little girl who would love a tutu but you cannot afford to get her one, message me and we’ll make it happen.
Making one little girl feel like Cinderella, one tutu at a time!




2. (Back to the silliness) Your mother or grandmother. Okay—I know, you’re an adult. You’re what, 22? Maybe 25 (again)? So that makes your mom, roughly, I don’t know, 28? (I love how I stop aging even though my children continue to get older and more mature each day.) Grandma’s gotta at least be in her 40’s by now. They need tutus. They will love tutus. Why? Because a tutu is a symbol of magic and youth. Who wears tutus? Princesses and fairies. Magical princesses and fairies. Young princesses and fairies. Giving them custom tutus is a way of saying, “You are youthful and timeless.” Besides, when your daughter goes over to Grandma or Great-Grandma’s house to play, they’ve got to have their own custom tutus. I mean, come on, they’re not gonna fit in your daughter’s extra tutu. I mean, I can’t fit in my daughter’s tutu. (Of course, I am retaining water. And I’ve put on a few pounds during the holidays, or else I probably could squeeze my way in). But it’s not nearly as comfortable to play dress-up in someone else’s tutu. I need my own, perfect fit, just the right length. And then I am ready to be FABULOUS! Doesn’t Grandma deserve to be fabulous, too?
My Grandma would have worn a tutu!


 1. Yourself! (Did you see that one coming?) You, you deserve a tutu! Just like your mom and grandma you are young, and fun, and hip, and groovy, or whatever the kids are saying these days. You’re with it. You've got it going on. Show them your carefree side. Your husband will thank you for it. Don’t have a husband? No worries! My Cinderella tutu is bound to bring your man scurrying over from his castle post haste. You see, I don’t just make tutus for little girls. I don’t just make them for make-believe-dress-up time. I make tutus that are real dresses for real occasions, like parties, and weddings, and annual visits to the gynecologists. That doesn't sound like fun? Then you've never worn a tutu to see your OBGYN! Life is too short, we are all too serious, we need some magic and whimsy and pixie dust. YOU need some magic and whimsy and pixie dust! And that’s what I do. For a living. (In my spare time. When I’m not at my real job.)


I seriously hope that this made you laugh or at least crack a smile once or twice. Have any other great ideas for who needs a tutu? The bus driver? The postal carrier? The dentist—after all, the tooth fairy wears a tutu!?! I’d love to hear them! I know I have a lot of people reading who don’t follow and I’d love to hear from you, too! Please leave a nice and/or constructive

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

Why I LOVE and HATE working with Glitter Tulle

Love glitter tulle because it is sparkly and shiney!
Hate glitter tulle because it makes an enormous mess! There is always glitter everywhere! And I keep finding it for weeks!
Love glitter tulle because it adds a bit of whimsy and fantasy to any tutu!
Hate glitter tulle because it's very hard to pull through the loop and often tears if you're not extremely careful.
Love glitter tulle because it makes little girls happy! They feel and look like fairies. Anything that makes this little girl happy works for me!

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

The Design: From Idea to Reality

One of the things that is most satisfying to me about crafting is seeing my ideas become a reality. By the time I actually begin working on a new design, I've been thinking about it for weeks, sometimes months. I think about all of the intricate details, the materials, how to assembly each tiny part. I think about colors, in some cases fabric though right now I am using tulle for the majority of my designs, length, layers, accents, all of those components come together to create a new, hopefully fabulous! design.
This dress is one of my favorites dresses. The inspiration is probably obvious to anyone under the age of 10 or anyone who spends much time with little girls. Of course, it is based on the dress Cinderella wore to the ball, wear she met Prince Charming, fell in love, and had all of her dreams come true! My wish is the same for the little girls who wear it.
This was one of the first dresses I made with the woven bodice. I had seen a lot of pictures posted on etsy and other sites of beautiful, full dresses, and a crotchet-elastic bodice that was practically see-through. No offense to anyone who makes or wears those kind of dresses, but I am a very modest person myself and I wouldn't want to wear that! Why would I ask my daughter to? Other designs try to cover up with fake flowers. That doesn't work for me either. I don't sew on a machine and, quite frankly, can't follow a sewing pattern very well. So I had to come up with a way to create a top without having to sew. After nights of pondering this problem, I invented the woven-bodice top. It's simple, really, though quite tedious. I simple weave the strands of tulle through the holes in the crotchet-elastic top. When finished, the top is no longer see through and we are left with a beautiful dress anyone would be proud to put on her little girl.
I wanted this dress to be very full and elegant. I used light-blue for the majority of the gown but also accented it with silver tulle. I also used light-blue and silver ribbon. There are six layers of tulle and enough ribbon that it almost creates a layer by itself. When I first put it on Lucy, it was very poofy at the top. I thought it looked cute but I also knew it would bother her so half-way through the photo shoot, I decided to tie a ribbon around the waist to keep it down. I absolutely love the way it looks with the ribbon sash.
This particular dress was sold on etsy to a wonderful family in Florida. Coincidentally, we happened to be in Florida, in Cinderella's castle, when I got the notification from etsy that someone wanted to buy it! Since that time, I have gotten to know this amazing woman and her beautiful, incredible daughter and we have become very good friends. It's funny how a dress can bring two families together! Though I don't have this exact dress anymore, I would love to make another one! If your little girl loves Cinderella as much as mine does, let's chat. We can make her the perfect gown as well. Who knows, maybe someday that little boy next door with the skinny legs will turn into her Prince Charming!

Monday, December 17, 2012

Helping Little Girls In Need, Final Giveaway 2012

It's the holiday season and I'm all about giving! Today, I'm asking you to think about the little girls in your community. Many of my readers are educators. Maybe you attend church or another religious affiliation. Perhaps you volunteer at a shelter or hospital. Today, I'm asking for nominees. Do you know any little girls who would love a tutu but can't afford one or whose parents are going through a rough time and just wouldn't be able to get them one right now? If so, send me a message by Wednesday evening, December 19. Let me know the circumstances and I will do my best to get all of these girls a tutu by Christmas. I don't need names just yet, only circumstances and sizes, color preference if you know it. Generic size will do. I may also need your help getting if to them. In return, I will randomly choose one of you to also receive a custom tutu. Please share this with others who may know children who could benefit. This isn't about building an audience, it's about giving back. Thank you for participating!

Sunday, December 16, 2012

We have a winner!

The winner of a $50 Gift Certificate for Glitter and Tulle Boutique is . . . Margie Bowman! Congratulations, Margie! I'll be contacting you shortly to discuss what item(s) you would like from the shop! And to my other 2 contestants, Valery and Dani, to thank you for entering, each of you will receive a free tutu! Let me know what color(s) size you would like and thank you for your support!

Oh, Instagram, Where Have You Been My Whole Life?

Don't forget to sign up for our giveaway!

Disney Princess or Fairy? Which Does Your Girl Prefer?

Lucy likes Princesses!
And Lucy likes fairies!
Who does your little girl love?