Lessons I Learned from a Butterfly

I posted last week about a super-cute idea a customer had involving some butterflies made of fabric, cardboard, beads, yarn and pipe-cleaner.  Yesterday, I created a sample butterfly, just to see how long it took, how difficult it was, etc. This is what I learned!
Do: Get some really sharp scissors or a knife to cut the cardboard.  It's a diaper box so it's really thick and it kinda hurts to chop through.
Don't: Run with scissors. It's all fun and games until someone loses and eye! (This did not happen to me yesterday--just sayin')
Do: Find a way to remove or cover up the words on the diaper box.  Unless you are using super-thick fabric, they show through, as you can see in the pictures of my sample butterfly below.
Don't: Make things more complicated than they have to be. It's probably easier to use thick white paper to cover up the words that would otherwise show through, as opposed to using multiple layers of fabric.
Do: Use a lot of modge podge to glue down the fabric.  I actually had both hands coated in it by the time I was done but it held the fabric down along the edges and it wasn't complicated.
Don't: Trim the fabric too short. Leave enough that it wraps around the edges.  You're going to be covering it with yarn anyway.
Do: Be careful gluing the yarn on with the hot-glue gun!
Don't: Burn the crap out of your fingers like I did! (This is almost unavoidable since you're using very poofy yarn that sticks to your modge-podge covered hands!)
Do: Use beads that fit on the pipe-cleaner.  Mine did not. I had to put the beads on a wire and then glue the whole thing on top of the pipecleaner
Don't: Cut corners. I felt like it would have been a better piece if the beads had actually gone over the pipe-cleaner but I didn't have any beads big enough and this was just a sample so I think it's okay for it's purpose.
Do: Use glitter glue or whatever you like to add some sparkle and shine to your butterfly.
Don't: Leave your decorated but still wet butterfly where your two year old can get ahold of it.  Yep, smeary butterfly wings.  Awesome.
This is my first attempt and it turned out pretty good.  Both of my girls love it and it will be hanging in Lucy's butterfly garden room as soon as I get a clip for it. What do you think? I will be listing these in my Etsy store as soon as I get the supplies I need to make them correctly. Price point will be around $15.

My first attempt at the butterfly. This is the same fabric I used for the dress I sewed for Lucy.

Other than being able to see through the fabric, I think it turned out pretty well.

You'll Love This Zombie Tutu, Even if You Don't Have a Brain!

Okay--I was thinking maybe, "This Zombie Tutu Will Eat You For Lunch" or, "This Zombie Tutu is Happy to Meat You."  I don't know, it's Monday and all of my cleverness was spent up already giving math tests to lots and lots of first graders!
But, the good news is, the Zombie Tutu is done!  I think it turned out just as I had imagined it!  Here are a few pics, though it will look even more awesome when my sister models it for me (hopefully next weekend!)

Zombie tutu, zombie on the left, human on the right

It has 8 layers of tulle and I used 8 different colors.  The tutu consists of the "human" side and the "zombie" side.  On the human side, we have a nice white, then, light pink, then pink, then shocking pink transition, while on the zombie side, it goes from black to plum, to wine, to red--blood red.  And the sides are not exactly cut in half either.  I wanted them to melt into each other so the two pieces overlap.

This is the bottom of the tutu with the red on the zombie side and the shocking pink on the human side.

A lot of college students are playing Zombies v. Humans, where they literally run around and try to "kill" each other, like tag or something, I don't quite get it.  Wouldn't this be a great costume for that?  I have heard of teenagers having zombie parties, too.  How fun would it be to show up in this?  Even if you just want to wear something interesting to a concert or out on the town, this is definitely going to catch a lot of attention.  I can make it in any size or length.  This one has a variety of lengths from 12 inches down to 6 inches, which creates a poofy-effect, but I can make it however your tween/teenager likes.  Or maybe it's for you! Feeling a little un-dead these days?
What do you think??

To Swag or Not to Swag??

So, I've got a decision to make and I'd like some advice--particularly if you have any experience with this--but even if you're just good at making decisions, I want to hear from you!
I got an invitation to participate in one of the Swag Suites for the Oscar's.  It's not THE gift bag that the nominees get but it is a gift bag that celebrities get.  I have the opportunity to go to Hollywood, meet some celebs, and introduce them to my products.  Of course, it costs money. It's through an advertising company and they want--and deserve--compensation for such an opportunity.  I think this could be a really great opportunity, but I also think it would be a lot of fun! I've never been to California, I love the Oscar's, and it is possible that it could get my business some exposure.  But it's also a hefty investment.
So, what do y'all think? To swag or not to swag, that is the question!

7 Tips for Applying Rhinestones

Yesterday I posted about how I figured out how to make my own template and lay down Rhinestones to make my own pattern.  Today, I'm going to share some tips for doing this, should you decide to try it on your own.

I should also tell you, not only is it much easier to order pre-set rhinestones on-line but you can do this relatively inexpensively. There are sites that sell really great rhinestone transfers for less than $3.00 a piece. I really like Dakota Collectibles. There are several options for companies that make high-quality transfers so if you don't want to make your own, this is a great option. You can even special order rhinestone transfers so you can put your logo or company name on your t-shirt without all of the work that went into my company shirt!
You can also buy templates that are already made. These are re-usable and often much quicker than what I was showing you yesterday. Many companies offer templates where you simply spread the rhinestones over the template and the rhinestones collect in pre-cut divots and all you have to do is make sure they are facing the right way.  Again, much simpler than how I did it.  You can check out templates on sites such as Dazzling Designs and Apparel.  I've never used their templates but they look interesting. Just make sure you know what you are getting when you order.  Some templates are just a paper drawing and you will still have to hand place all of the rhinestones with tweezers the way that I did.
There are also a lot of places where you can order loose rhinestones. You can get them at specialty craft and hobby stores, like Michael's but they are probably going to be more expensive if you get them at a store instead of ordering on-line.  I order 10 gross of loose rhinestones from Blingin' It Wholesale for about $11.00, plus shipping.
Okay, so this is what I learned from my first attempt at applying bling to a template!
1. The bigger the better! It's much easier to manipulate the rhinestones and use the tweezers if you have a pattern where the rhinestones are spread apart.  When you get into designs where they are touching, it's harder.  If you think it looks better for them to be closer together then by all means, take the time to do it, but if you can spread them out and your design still looks great, then go for it!
2. Start off simple.  I started off with some pretty intricate letter stencils.  It made it a lot harder than if I would have just chosen some straight lettering or a simple picture.  It turned out just as awesome as I had envisioned it would but, like many things in life, starting out simple and building to the more complicated is probably a better idea.
3. You will get better with the tweezers the more you use them. At first, I felt like I was trying to use chopsticks for the first time.  After about an hour, I noticed I was really getting the hang of it and could move pretty quickly.  (It took about an hour and a half to do the shirt I showed you yesterday.  I also did a few other small projects after that.) So, don't give up.  Keep working at it and eventually you will find your rhythm.
4. Dumping the rhinestones out helps.  So does shaking the plate.  I never tried to turn a rhinestone over with the tweezers.  I just shook the plate until they were facing the right direction.  The rhinestones are weighted so they naturally tip over.  If they are face up then it's pretty simple to get them to flip and it's much easier to do it by shaking the plate or pouring out more rhinestones than it is to try to turn them with the tweezers.
5. Tape is sticky!  I taped the template to the table and then taped the tape (the transfer tape I was placing the rhinestones on) sticky side up so that I could put the stones directly onto the transfer tape. Be careful when you are doing this not to touch the tape because it's hard to get un-stuck from the tape.  A couple of times I flipped the whole design when I was trying to move one rhinestone.
6. Watch the edges!  You want to cut the tape so that you leave plenty of clearance around the outside edges of the design. One of my templates was very close to the edge and not only did it make it difficult to manipulate the rhinestones and the template that way, it made it more difficult to apply the transfer to the t-shirt.
7.Be proud of yourself! I know I was a lot prouder of myself than anyone else was when I finished my "Glitter and Tulle Boutique" shirt.  But that's okay!  Only you know how difficult the task was to finish.  And it's not simple, it's tedious work!  So, if you show someone the finished project and they say, "Oh, that's nice," continue to be proud of yourself and try not to throw anything at that person. (This is difficult! You will want to throw something at him or her!)
*Bonus* Though this post is not about applying rhinestone transfers,  (there's a lot of info on the web about that, especially on YouTube) I do want to tell you something I have learned while I'm applying the rhinestones that I haven't seen on any tutorial.  If the shirt happens to stick together (back and front stuck, stuck, stuck!) you can easily pull it back apart as long as the glue is still hot.  So, if you don't put something non-sticky between the front and back of the shirt (or whatever you are applying the transfer to) like a sheet of Teflon, just pull it back apart as soon as you pick the shirt up.  It'll be fine! If you wait until it cools, that makes it a little harder but I've never messed a transfer up by pulling the shirt apart.
What questions do you have?  Let me know!  You can always email me here: Glitter and Tulle Boutique

Second Christmas!

My husband asked me what I wanted for Christmas about three weeks ago. My answer? Tulle, of course!
What kind of tulle?  All kinds of tulle!  Regular tulle, glitter tulle, sparkly tulle. All kinds!
What color of tulle?  All colors of tulle!  Red and pink and green and blue and purple--all of them.  All of the colors!Well, it was a little late, but this arrived today.  Hard to complain about it being late when I opened it up and saw what was inside!

The box!!

Yards and yards of tulle in every color imaginable!

Close up of the yards and yards of tulle!

Even shimmer and glitter tulle!

Even more tulle!

It just keeps going!

Another layer of tulle!

It filled up an entire plastic bin!

And was practically over-flowing! (Tulle circles on top, neat!)

Well, at this point, there's only one thing for me to do.  Make tutus--lots and lots of tutus!  Any requests?  I've got every color you could possibly imagine and probably every shade, too!
Thanks, honey!!!  I'll see you in four months, when I am finally done making tutus.
Remember, sneak peek
of Valentine's tutus coming today!

Tutu Tamer Tutorial!

Nothing is more annoying than a staticy, frizzy tutu!  Fixing this problem is very simple, as you will see if you watch the short video below!  This is my first attempt at a video tutorial  Enjoy!

Here are the directions again:
You'll need a spray bottle
Fabric softener
A measuring spoon is helpful but not completely necessary if you are good at "eye-balling" it
A tutu! (www.etsy.com/shop/glittertulle)
Water

The ratio is about 2 tablespoons of water per quart, or 32 oz.  It does not have to be exact.  Mix the fabric softener with the water, shake it up, and lightly mist the tutu.  Pull down on the tulle and straighten as needed.  That's it!  Repeat as needed, usually around every two hours on a day where there is a lot of static in the air!

Thank you for watching and please pass this along to all of your tutu-wearing friends!

Let's make a Tutu: a Tutu-Tutorial with Pictures!

In my opinion, the best thing about Christmas is watching your loved ones' faces light up as they open the "perfect" gift. For me, those perfect gifts have often been hand-made. My Grandma Imogene used to make me beautiful gifts for Christmas this year. So, you still have some time to make your little princess a beautiful hand-made tutu. Let's get started! You will need: app. 4 feet of ribbon (I prefer satin ribbon in 5/8 inch but just about any ribbon will do.) Length is app. because it will depend on the child's waist exactly how much ribbon you will need. app. 25 yards of tulle in any color(s) fabric tape measure (optional) caredboard (optional) scissors about 30-45 minutes. That's it! Step 1: Measure the child's waist. You can do this with the tape measure, or just use the ribbon. If you choose to use the ribbon, make a knot on each end where the two sides come together. So, you will have some ribbon (at least a foot) then a knot where you begin measuring, the length of the child's waist, and then another knot, followed by the rest of the length of the ribbon (again, I try to leave about a foot.) !

Step 2: Measure from the child's waist to where you would like for the bottom of the tutu to fall. This is actually optional. If you know you want a short tutu, then you'll just need to calculate for a 6 inch tutu. If you want it a little longer, 9 or 12 inches will work. I don't make any children's tutus over 24 inches and when I do, they are generally floor length on most 5T size children. Measuring is helpful but not essential. Step 3: Once you know how long, in inches, you want the tutu to be remember that you will want to double that number because your tutu needs to be at least 2 layers. So, if you want a 6 inch tutu, you will want to measure your tulle at 12 inches. Here's a tip: It is much faster to wrap the tulle around a pre-measured length of careboard and cut it that way. So, you would pre-measure 6 inches of cardboard, cut the cardboard to 6 inches, then wrap the tulle around the cardboard and then cut one end of the tulle. This will leave you with 12 inch lengths of tulle, which is exactly what you need to make a 6 inch tutu. Whether you choose to use the caredboard or not, measure and cut app. 60 lengths of tulle to the length you have decided upon. Step 4: Using a simple slip knot, tie the tulle around the ribbon. Fold the tulle in half. Make an opening at the fold (the half-way point of the tulle), place the fold behind the ribbon, and take both loose ends and slip them through the loop,around the ribbon. Pull tight. Now, the tulle is securely fastened to the ribbon and the ends are even.

Step 5: Slide the slip-knot completely down to the knot on one end of the ribbon. Step 6: Repeat until the ribbon is covered from one knot to the other. The amount of tulle it takes to cover the ribbon will depend upon a number of things: how long the ribbon is, how thick you want the tulle, how tightly you tie the tulle. Continue to add tulle until the tutu looks the way you had envisioned it.

Step 7: Use the ribbon you left on each end of the knot to tie a bow around your child's waist. As my two year old would say, "All done!"

Just a couple more tips: When I tie the ribbon on, I actually hold the loose end of the ribbon behind my knee because I can pull the knots in the tulle tighter that way. I also go back through and put a quick stitch in each knot of tulle to ensure it's not going to come off. Finally, I seal the ribbon with a candle to ensure that it won't fray. I hope you learned a lot from this first tutorial! Please message me or comment if you have any questions. You can buy these supplies from any craft store or even Wal-Mart. I also sell Tutu kits at my etsy store (www.etsy.com/shop/glittertulle). If this is just not up your alley or it seems too complicated, feel free to order one of my tutus and just tell people you made it--your secret is safe with me