Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Design Studio Eye Candy

As I walked through the iLoveToCreate Studio this week, it occurred to me that the room is filled with crafty eye candy.  I grabbed my iPhone and captured some images to share with you on my blog.  At any given time, there are dozens of dyed, painted, glued and decoupaged pieces of art in progress.  Here's a snippet at what you'll find in this amazing flurry of activity that I love so much!














Monday, February 14, 2011

Love Pillow

Designed by Pattie Wilkinson
 
Happy Valentine's Day everyone!
I hope you get lots of chocolate, kisses, and lots of love today.

Here's a 'lovely' idea for the day.  When I designed this pillow, I thought the contrast of the burlap with the glitz would be nice.   Fun textures enhance its appeal with the felt letters and jewels you add onto the stylish burlap fabric using Aleene’s® adhesives. It’s an accent piece you’ll love to have in any room in your home not just for Valentine's Day, but EVERY day.

Materials List

  • Aleene's® Fabric Fusion® Permanent Dry Cleanable Fabric Adhesive

  • Aleene's® Jewel-It Embellishing Glue™

  • Miscellaneous

    •   Black craft felt square
    •   Burlap fabric – ½ yard
    •   Fiberfill
    •   Assorted jewels and buttons
    •   Straight pins
    •   Jeweled Trim – 1 yard
    •   Scissors
    •   Black bias tape – 1 yard
  • Instructions

    1. Cut two heart-shaped pieces from burlap fabric.
    2. Sew pieces together, edging with black bias tape and leaving approximately a 4” opening.
    3. Stuff pillow with fiberfill and sew opening closed at seam.
    4. Cut out “Love” letters and heart from black felt.
    5. Lay cut-out letters and heart onto pillow for placement.
    6. Use Aleene’s® Fabric Fusion™ to glue “Love” letters and heart to pillow. Pin in place until set.
    7. Use Aleene’s® Jewel-It™ to adhere jewels and jeweled trim around edge of pillow. Pin in place until dry.
    8. Use Aleene’s® Jewel-It™ to adhere jewels and buttons to heart shape. Pin in place until dry.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Grammys Fashion Favorites

 
I love to watch the awards shows just like everybody else.  And it's totally out of control to see the fashions  at the Grammys.  This year was just as crazy and fun as all the years past.
Rihanna stole the show on the red carpet in a daring peek-a-boo gown with ruffles by Jean Paul Gaultier and Christian Louboutin shoes.  
Outrageous, and I love it!
Lady Gaga was in Thierry Mugler by Nicola Formichetti and shocked everyone as usual.  
She arrived in a "womb" and emerged in latex for her performance.
Nicole Kidman was stunning on the runway and was hands-down my favorite as she chose Jean Paul Gaultier for her turn on today's Grammys red carpet, and what a frock it is! The strapless, floral print column dress suits Nicole Kidman's slender frame, and the ruffle edge detailing on the bust, and lower tiers of the dress adds texture and a sense of fun to her frock. Opting for contrasting rather than coordinating accessories, her leopard print peep toe heels and gold and emerald jewels stand out against her dress of choice.
Jazz bassist Esperanza Spalding pulled off the biggest upset of tonight’s Grammys when she won the award for best new artist over far better-known competition, including rapper Drake and pop star Justin Bieber.  I fell in love with her fabulous dress.


Rihanna performed with Eminem, Dr. Dre and Skylar Grey, wearing an absolutely fabulous gown that mimicked the fire graphics in the background of the huge stage.  
Katy Perry showed up in a princess-like frock and sang "Not Like the Movies" from her 
latest album "Teenage Dream" while sitting on a sparkly swing.
She also showed footage on a huge projector playing behind her, from her wedding to Russell Grand with the British comedian kissing on their big day.

After the mellow performance, Katy was back to her cheering route by singing "Teenage Dream". "This one goes out to all the Valentine lovers!" she shouted to the audience. 
She joined dancers in red outfits on the stage fitted with crystal heart-shaped appliques.

The Grammys gave me a fabulous fashion fix tonight :-)

Friday, February 11, 2011

Betty White Crafting!


Betty White is a crafter! 
Who knew? 

She is totally one of my favorite celebrities,
but I didn't know that she was a crafter until I saw her
heat setting Tulip Crystals on the collar of a shirt
on "Hot in Cleveland" on the TVLAND network.

I love Betty White!
And now I love her even more.....



Blue Shuede Shoe Revamp

pattie blog footer

blue suede sprayed shoes




These aren't the blue suede shoes you're used to! I wanted to splatter them up and make them totally unique and fun in this fun DIY project...and I did it in just a few minutes! Totally fun and easy! Here's how you do it:



DIY Painted Blue Suede Shoe Revamp



What you need:

Tulip® 3D Fashion Paint in colors of your choice (I used pink, black, purple, and silver)

– paper towels

– painters tape

– pair of velvet or fabric pumps (ours were from Charlotte Russe)



What you do:



splattered shoes



1. Lay down paper towels or newspaper to protect your work surface.

2. Cover sole of shoe and heel with painters tape. Stuff toe and inside heel with paper towels.

3. Shake your paints well before starting and squeeze some paint out on work area ti remove any air to remove air bubbles.

4. Holding the paint about a foot above the shoe, squeeze the paint in an even motion quickly back and forth. This creates a steadier stream and a more splattered random look. Do this with all the colors and layer to get your desired look.

5. Let dry and remove tape and paper towels.



Now they are ready to wear, so go out and rock them!!!



blue suede sprayed shoes 2







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Sunday, February 6, 2011

CHA Highlights

 
DRIVERS OF CREATIVITY

CHA Winter 2011 was amazing as usual, and as I sit here watching the Super Bowl, I decided it was a good time to share my photos of this year's tradeshow.  Our team from iLoveToCreate was our fabulous new manager Tar'Lese, our muscle-man Sam, and then Me, Kathy and Alexa.  


 
Our first stop was the hotel, which was an art deco style that was built in the 40's the Wilshire Grand.  I have never seen so much mauve in my life!
 
Breakfast was good at the hotel every morning, but was sky high!  My little continental breakfast as 10.95 and the hot breakfast was even higher.  That was when our team met to map out our plan of attack each day.
The first day was a huge frustration as you can see on my face that night.  Our crates arrived super late, and after the carpet was laid, the cherry picker came to install the overhead sign, which meant the carpet had to pulled up and laid down again!!  (There's always something... right?)
 
The thirteen mannequins were a bear to unload in all their pieces.  They each had to be unpacked from mountains of boxes and bubble, and then assembled, and then dressed.  Those girls are heavy, too! 
 
Months of planning go into the layout of the booth, and our team not only had to unpack everything, but also place every item in just the right place in order for it all to fit and be presented in the best way possible to serve the buyers who would come rushing in in just 2 days.
 
Alexa was sick while we were setting up, so it was good that the couches came early!  She is our social media guru and we set her up in a cute little car with her computer.  Since our booth theme was "DRIVERS OF CREATIVITY" it was just perfect to tie in with our team.  Cute, huh?
Our mannequins finally came together with their outfits and their heads which turned.  Oops, is that Sam in the second photo??  teehee!  Perfect, since he's the graphic designer who created all the talking heads on the mannequins, from actually making the mechanism for them to spin to printing out the paper and assembling the blocks and building the brackets that attach to the mannequins.  Cool!
 
It finally came together!  After the fiasco with the late start on the first day with late crates and having to pull up the carpet to hand the sign, three of our marketing team came to the rescue and installed most of the product displays.  Whew!  It looked incredible.
Finally we were done and hungry.  Some of us ended up at one of the hotel restaurants to relax.  
CHA Winter 2011 Trade Show at the LA Convention Center was ready for the first day kick-off.
And we were ready at the iLoveToCreate booth as the DRIVERS OF CREATIVITY!  
Our make-it-take-it tables were standing at attention and ready for the swarms of crafty buyers to come and try out our fabulous new products and spend a little time being creative with a team of designers.
 
Yes, that's Lauren painting directly on Kathy's shirt with the new glitter paint.  Her pit crew shirt was the most sparkly shirt there.  Soooo fun!  And it dried fast, too.
 
Another new product was our beads in a bottle.  Here you see the mannequin I decked out.  I made the black jersey halter top and then painted bead flames around the hem, with beaded gloves, boots, necklace and clutch purse.  People were coming up to touch it because they really thought it was beaded.  But, it was paint!
 
My make-it-take-it was a big hit with the beads in a bottle.  Of course it was wet when the painted the beads, so they went ahead and put the headbands and bows in the hair and walked away with it wet!
   
I got used to the tuna salad sandwiches at the convention center during the day (with lots of mustard) only because I knew that every night I could treat myself with gooood food at one of the fabulous places at LA Live which is just a block away.  Wolfgang Puck's was amazing and my fave.

One of my favorite mannequins was the one I designed with crystals.  I covered a helmet with leather that I glued in patches after ironing crystal appliques to it.  The rest is loose crystals ironed in designs that say 'LIVE TO RIDE'

Tiffany and Heidi were super stars in the booth with the rest of us designers.  It was so nice to catch up with them find out what crafty fun things they are up to.

 
Finally it was time to tear it all down and load it up for next time.
I was ready to get back home and see the dude that left this cute little card in my room... awwww.