Make your own fab glitter shoes!

Check out these fab glitter shoes that our copywriter and sometimes model Chloë Tatro made using our Tulip® Fashion Glitters! Chloë had seen the same shoes on some high-end web sites and knew she could get the look for much less. She hopped on over to Target, bought some basic black shoes and totally glitterfied them! Here's how she did it.


Here's Chloë modeling the look along with a cool glitter hat (we took this two weeks ago, but it very much reminds of of Michael Jackson's style, don't you think?). Doesn't she look super cute?

Our heat tool was on The Fashion Show on Bravo!

The other day, we were flipping through channels when we came upon our very own Tulip® Cordless Heat Setting Tool™ on Bravo's The Fashion Show! They had a great challenge where the contestants were each given a backpack with contents that described a particular high school clique. They ranged from jock, to mean girl to tree hugger. They were then asked to create a graphic tee for a student presidential election based on that clique.

One contestant had "Preppies" and decided to accent his shirt using crystals (we're not %100 sure they were ours, but the Tulip® Glam-It-Up!™ Iron-On Crystals™ were created to go hand in hand with our heat setting tool)! Check out the heat tool and our crystals in the fashion aisle the next time you are there! It's a super cool that lets you apply mini crystals quickly and easily, just like James-Paul did on his pink and black design!

Products from the past

It is so cool to come across old promotions and products! Case in point, did you know that in 1993 we did a Paint 'N Dazzle™ Barbie® doll with Mattel? That's right, the queen of all dolls was sportin' her own custom painted Tulip® Fabric paint creations! See?


There were several variations of this Barbie® as well with different outfits that came with! You can see them on the back of this box (click on the pic to enlarge!) How great is the styling of the girls on the packaging? Pretty fantastic, don't you agree?
Oh and check it out! There even was a Paint n' Dazzle™ car!
And would you really think Ken® would miss out on this action! Of course not. In fact, he invited over his buddies for a fashion painting party! See?
Ken® is breaking out the stonewash and studded puffy jacket. He looks a little Andrew Dice Clay-like, does he not?

And for you enjoyment, there even was an over-the-top commercial! We love it!!


There was one for the car too! How cool that you could personalize your Barbie® car!!!



Do you remember this doll and customizing it with Tulip® paints? We'd love to hear your stories! Please leave a comment below!!

And special thanks to Man Behind the Doll for many of these great images! Click on the link for more information about this line of dolls!

Congratulations to our Onesie Contest winner!

Well, the time has come and we had lots of great entries for our Onesie Decorating contest! We had so many, in fact, that it would be just too hard to pick a winner. There were so many super cute entries! Check out all our adorable entries in our gallery!

So we had a drawing from our participants:


And the winner is...drumroll please....

PRINCESS DOODLEBEANS!


Princess Doodlebeans created her onesie design using Tulip® Soft fabric paint in Lime and Orange Zest, a handmade Vespa scooter stencil, and a "Love" custom stamp. She loves making hand painted onesies and even sells them on her Etsy shop, so go on over and see her awesome designs!
A fabulous prize pack of $30 worth of Tulip® Fashion Art products is on it's way!

Thanks to all that participated and be sure to check back, we are going to be having more contests in the months to come, so there will be even more chances to win if you didn't win this time!

5 questions with the Crafty Chica™!

We thought it would be fun to connect with our favorite "Craftmother" with a little Q&A session that asks a few questions that you might be surprised/intrigued to learn!

1) Do you have a favorite all-time project that you've created? Why is it
so special to you?
My favorite project is a mixed media headboard I made for my art exhibit. It is huge and is comprised of several wood panels. I painted, woodburned, glittered,, - all kinds of different techniques. It is super colorful and happy!


2) A lot of crafters look to you for inspiration, but is there any person(s)
that you really look up to for inspiration?
Sometimes I feel burnt out. I'll head out to our Phoenix First Fridays (artwalk) and by the time I get home, I'm ready to go! I alsolove interacting with people on Twitter to see what they are making and doing, that inspires me to get moving!

3) If you could add glitter to any national landmark, which one would you
choose and why?
Definately the Statue of Liberty, so she would sparkle even more. I would use my Glmaor Queen Green glitter and then seal her in resin so the shine would be weather proof and last forever!


4) Everyone assumes you can craft anything, but what art/craft technique
have you never tackled that you are dying to try?
Definately fused glasswork - I would love to make lampwork beads, dishes, wall art and more!

5) OK, this is incredibly random, but what is your favorite flavor of ice cream?
Brownie Fudge.

Father's Day Fun!

It's about that time! Father's Day is less than a week away? What have you gotten the most important man in your life? If you are looking for something totally unique and one-of-a-kind, check out these cool projects we've rounded up! And what's cooler than a handmade project? Definitely not another tie!


– Tulip® One-Step Tie-Dye Kits™ let you whip up this easy apron for the big kid (that special Dad) in your family and the cute shirt for your favorite little guy.

– Make an elegant frame for Dad reminding him of yesteryear using the pulled paint technique with Tulip® 3-D Fashion Paint

– Dimensional fabric paint and nuts and bolts – what an awesome combo for a great frame!

– The guy in your life will be super impressed with a platter created with http://www.ilovetocreate.com/ProductDetails.aspx?id=d5399ae0-753f-4fa4-8642-623045cf8ded made just for him!

– Recycle Dad's favorite newspaper section into an extra special card using Tulip® Soft Fabric Paint™ and Aleene's® Memory Glue™.

– Show your dad that you’re hooked with a T-shirt that’s sure to be his favorite! All you need is a little help from Tulip® 3D Fashion Paint™ and Tulip® Soft Fabric Paint™ … the rest is up to you!

Hope you have fun making your projects and that dad loves them!

Starbucks employees love our Tie Dye!

Today, while making a much needed coffee run to Starbucks, one of our team members, Gloria Bottaro, spotted her barista wearing a tie dye shirt.

When she inquired more about the tie dye creation, she found out that one of the baristas had made tie dye shirts for that store's entire crew using our One-step Tie Dye! How freakin' cool is that? What a fun and easy way to show unity and add a little more color and spirit to the workplace!! Gloria snapped a pic of her barista wearing a shirt made with the Tulip® Ultimate One-Step Tie Dye Kit™.

If you create your own tie dye shirts or clothing as part of a sleepover, kid's camp, or work or school activity, please share them with us. E-mail us at ilovetocreateblog@yahoo.com and attach your project! Welove to see what you make! You might just be featured here on our blog and other social media sites :)

A peek inside our crafty world!

People have often referred to our company as "the Willy Wonka Factory of Crafts", so we wanted to give you a little glimpse into our crafty world. There are a lot of products from paints to glues to bottles of glitter that we use on a daily basis, so we have to be well-stocked to meet a last minute rush project! Of course, like other crafty places, we sometimes make the occasional craft store run. Even with our many supplies, sometimes we still can't seem to find a white piece of felt or the exact pink ribbon we need!

But as far as our own products go, we usually have plenty to choose from. Case in point, check out this stash of Tulip® Glam-it-Up Iron-On Crystals™ that I noticed today at Cheryl Ball's craft desk!


I asked Cheryl why she had so many and she said, "Well, there's always one color we seem to be out of, so we have all of these on hand."

So in our craft decorating department, it's crystals that are a girl's best friend!

Check out this cool technique! We show how to apply our crystals here!

We love creative teens!

Check out this awesome Star Trek Communicator Badge by the Paper Ninja, son of Collage Diva. He's just 13 years old and made this awesomely creative craft (he used Aleene's® Paper Glaze), which we personally think is way cool! Check out his pattern! Love the organization and dedication to detail that he displays in his step by steps!

And he is giving away one of his very own communicator badges to a lucky blogger who blogs about his project. Read all about it at the bottom of the post.

So hop on over and check out his blog. I'm sure there will be some great projects upcoming geared towards boys and we definitely need more teen boy crafts, don't you agree?

Check out our latest tie dye video

If you've been "dyeing" to try tie dye (yes we meant the bad pun), check out our new video showing you a wide range of techniques! It is so easy and soooo fun using our Tulip® One-Step Fashion Dye™.

If you do make a creation with our tie dye, share it with us and it may be featured here on our blog! E-mail us at ilovetocreateblog@yahoo.com and attach your project! We'd love to see what you do!

Where Crafty Chica™ goes, glitter follows

This past weekend at Maker Faire, our www.ilovetocreate.com booth was under attack...by glitter! It all started with the Crafty Chica™ glitter canvases. Everyone had a blast pouring tons of Crafty Chica™ Glitters onto each of their canvases, but not all of the glitter ended back into their respective bottles.

Soon glitter started showing up everywhere...on hands:

On purses and bags:

All over the floor:

On phones and cameras:

Yeah, just about everywhere! We can't imagine the reaction of the San Mateo cleanup crew when they saw the remains of our booth area...and by area, we mean the 100 foot radius around it. The bathroom floors weren't spared either. It was covering the floors in there too! Ha!

Even Crafty Chica™ got glittered up when she put Bollywood Blue Crafty Chica™ Glitters into her hair for an impromptu photo shoot. We even noticed a few kids following suit and sprinkling the sparkly flecks into their hair. I'm sure the parents loved that!

But, our booth wouldn't have been the same without the glitter attack. Young and old know it's a craft supply they just simply can't resist!

Meet Madison...a new www.ilovetocreate.com blogger!

We have a wide range of bloggers here on the www.ilovetocreate.com team and we'd like to introduce a new blogger to our family...Creativity Confessions!

Creativity Confessions is the blog of Madison Gellar, one of our new team members in our Duncan Ceramics division. Madi is super friendly, smart, and enthusiastic and her energy can be felt throughout the entire building. Her blog definitely shares that same energy!

So, we thought we would ask Madi a few questions to get to better know her, her inspiration, and her style!

What do you hope to achieve with your new blog?
By detailing my adventures into the world of ceramics, I hope to inspire and encourage others who, like me, doubt their artistic abilities and are too intimidated to give ceramics a try!

What's the most exciting thing you've learned about the world of ceramic arts thus far? Is there anything that has surprised you?
I've been surprised by how easy and fun it is! Obviously we have tons of projects for highly talented ceramicists at www.ilovetocreate.com , but there's also plenty of fun and easy projects for those of us just starting out. Duncan really does make it easy to experience creativity and the excitement of personal accomplishment.

Do you have a favorite product within the Duncan Ceramics line? What is it and why?
So far the Crystals Glazes are my favorite product line. They're super easy to use, and the finished, fired product is so unpredictable and awesome! Each result is different, so you can't really "mess up" with crystals. As a beginner, I like that :)
We hear you are a fashionable gal, what kind of styles and trends are you totally addicted to right now?
I'm totally into "bohemian chic". I love anything from Anthropogie. I would live in their store if I could :) I'm super into tie-dye and ombre tees, especially in this summers' pretty pastel hues.
Are there any ceramic projects on the I love to create web site that you totally love and best represent your personal style -or-- you want to try yourself?
I love the "A Plateful of Peace" project. I think the marbleizing technique is super cool. I think that will be the next one I try. I also love the "Contemporary Cool" collection from the latest bisque brochure, but I'll be awhile before I try that one!

What do you do exactly in your job? Give us a little scoop as to what you do on a day to day basis.
In a nutshell, I do whatever I need to to support and promote the Ceramic side of Duncan Enterprises. That includes helping to develop new products, supporting regional account managers, Duncan Ambassadors, and distributors, helping to develop advertising, pricing, and packaging, and attending various trade shows to promote our awesome Duncan product!

We see that you were really inspired by your first ceramic experience, why do you think you didn't think you were creative and how did it feel to complete a project and have creative success with it?
My "art" growing up was ballet. My few attempts at drawing, painting, and crafting were horrible failures, so I just assumed that meant I wasn't creative. It feels awesome to have completed my first few projects, and it has definitely boosted my confidence. This kind of creativity might not come as naturally to me as it does to others, but Duncan has helped me to see it's a talent you can learn, and I'm definitely invested in learning as much as I can!

Be sure to add Madi to your RSS feed or follow her here on Blogger as she rediscovers her creativity and shows you how you can to!

Check out our Maker Faire Creators!

We LOVE seeing people create and be inspired! At Maker Faire this weekend, these are just a handful or the artists that stopped by our booth to make a glitter canvas, time capsule tin, or memory journal. We are so glad they stopped by and created with our products and shared their creativity with us! Check them out! Click on the pic to see it larger on our Flickr page and then click all sizes. If you want to see more of our Maker Faire pics, click here to see our Flickr Photostream.

www.ilovetocreate.com at Maker Faire 2009

We had a blast in our booth at Maker Fair SF Bay Area 2009! There was a LOT of creativity spreading in our booth! There was definitely an element of inspiration surrounding us that could be felt by all in attendance!

The booth itself was packed all day long. Many times, people had to be put on a waiting list in order to do one of the glittery Crafty Chica™ canvases, time capsule tins, or memory journals. No one wants to see a glitter fight break out! Hee hee. Everyone seemed really enthusiastic with their creations and to be working with our fab products. It was so cool to see a 75 year old woman sitting next to a 3 year old working on the same project! We love to see people create and unite in their creativity!

Check out some of our pics from the day!


We were non-stop busy! It was crazy!


Mandy, Maya, and Kathy were hard at work preparing for the crafters!


Our products filled the tables!


Crafty Chica™ created 300 of these canvases for people to do! The cupcake and chihuahuas ran out first.


Maya did tie-dye demos and was totally rockin' it!


What a mess! It just means people were inspired and in the words of Martha, "It's a good thing!".

It was a super busy, inspiring 2 days and we are so glad we were able to connect with makers of all kinds. As we were closing down on Saturday, one lady said, "What a nice way to end our day at the Faire!" We are so appreciative to all those who attended and crafted with us!

If you want to see more of our Maker Faire pics, click here to see our Flickr Photostream.