Thanks for the Memories :)

Well, it's been quite a week :)  I hope that by following along with us every day during Kickoff you're feeling a little more prepped for summer -- new makeup, new clothes, new gear and even new ways to relax!  I don't know about the rest of you, but I am PUMPED for these draws tomorrow!

But there's one more thing we think you need to be totally ready for a dance-filled summer -- a way to preserve your dancing memories!  For those of you in the ID world, here's the perfect solution:

Have you seen this amazing website? FeisFaces is:

A online solution for recording and tracking your feis marks and results.
You may never choose to share your marks with anyone, but you will still want to register for a FeisFaces account so that you can dump those piles of feis marks and results that accumulate in a drawer or box after years of competitions! Keep everything online in one place, making it easy to see how far you've come in the past year, 5 years, and throughout your Irish dance career. Along with your marks, you can also record all other information about each feis - you can even write a journal about the day. Also, you can also see an updated list of local feis syllabi, competitor lists, schedules, and results all in one place.

An easy way to share those feis results and experiences with Irish dance teachers, friends, and family.
With the click of a button, you can share your entire feis or major competition experience (marks, results, journal, and photos) with whomever you choose: your TCRG, your best friend, Grandma and Grandpa, and your dance classmates. Only those to whom you give access will be able to see your feis results, though. Your information is secure and private unless you choose to share it.

And the basic membership is FREE! Sign up here

Pretty cool right? Of course I totally signed up The Peanut and I -- here's a screenshot of our Family homepage (the pic is me, Nic and our resident Blogger Of The Year Colleen):

I haven't put any feis results in, I've had blog posts to write :)  I just love the idea of having ONE place where I can keep all my feis photos and results -- I used to do it on Facebook but nowadays my news feed seems to be all about people needing nails for their Farmville stables and I miss my dance friends updates ALL the time. Not that I'm judging Farmville players -- certain people who shall remain nameless (but are pictured above in green) had to have their mom check on their crops while they were at Oireachtas.  But lots of the time I just want to see updates about DANCE, y'know?

And check this out --  a couple of great new features are coming soon:

• Print out your Feis Journal for your photo album or memory book (FREE for Stepped-Up Members)
• Order a Feis Faces Memory Book to commemorate a great summer, for a special occasion, or when you or your dancer move up a level! The books are made up of archive-quality pages digitally printed pages bound together in book format.

The lovely Colleen,  inventor of FeisFaces.com has graciously agreed to donate TWO One Year Stepped-Up Memberships for our draw today! That's a $19.95 value for each of them -- awesome!

The Stepped-Up Membership provides the following additional benefits:

• Receive email notifications for new feis information and posted results
• Upload photos which are displayed with your Feis Journal and are included in your printed Feis Journal pages
• Become a Feis Faces Affiliate to earn money back for yourself, your dance school, or your business
• Print out your Feis Journals (in PDF format) for your memory book, scrapbook, or photo album!
• Enjoy a 10% discount on any Feis Faces Memory Book that you order within one year (in development)

Want the prize? Here's how to enter:

1. Comment here to tell us your favourite feis or Highland competition!
2. Sign up for FeisFaces.com (remember, it's free!) TODAY and get an extra entry!  Signing up takes under 5 minutes, and is totally worth it -- I can hardly wait to get started uploading my feis results and pictures!

Highland dancers! Wishing we had something like this for Games and comps? Well, I think I've got her pretty much convinced, but we'll see - let us know in the comments if you would be interested!

And that's all folks!  Don't forget:

TODAY is the LAST day for ALL entries to be in -- so if you've missed out on a post, or forgotten to like the post link on our Facebook page, or haven't put in your five tweets today, NOW is the time to do it!  EVERY entry into the daily draws gets you an entry into the Grand Prize draw!

And I'll see you tomorrow afternoon with the draw results AND the first Summer Shout Out post! Woohoo!! xo Ally and Nic

TheGirls@IHTD Say Relax

EDIT: Hi folks! This was supposed to auto-publish yesterday while I was at Georgetown but it didn't go, many apologies! So I am going to put the final prize post up tomorrow and I'll be doing the draws June 15th.

So you now have until midnight EDT June 14th to comment/like on Facebook/tweet for entries!

In other news, have I told you all it is Recital Week From Hell around here? It was group rehearsal for The Peanut's ballet recital on Tuesday, Highland recital Wednesday, my niece's recital Friday, Georgetown Highland Games yesterday and Irish recital today (which reminds me, I'd better make this snappy since I have to go in about 20 minutes).

I don't know what the rest of you do after a week of crazy, but I'm looking forward to some serious me-time.  And I just LOVE indulging in a book & my bathtub -- nothing like a hot bath for all those tired muscles.  And then I put on my comfy clothes -- oh yeah! It's going to be especially delightful this time around since I'm going to be using our bath & body line in our three TOTALLY NEW signature scents!

You're So Pretty!

Sweet & fruity, this will make you a WMD (weapon of mass deliciousness) for sure!

Get Going

Fresh, clean and light, this energizing blend is guaranteed to get you jumping!

Blissful

Time to take it easy, rockstar! A calming blend to leave you relaxed and happy all over.

Sound good? Then you'll definitely want to enter for today's prize:

A Spa Package including:

Deluxe Sample Size containers of EACH of our fabulous bath & body products (scrub, whipped lotion, shampoo and conditioner) in one of our NEW scents -- doesn't have to be the same one for all products!

OCM cleanser (1.25 oz) & FAB moisturizer (4 oz) -- the perfect skin solution!

A full size bar of our scrubby Pumice Soap in your choice of scent

AND

One pair of PJ Pants in your choice of colour and applique!

One pair of our FAMOUS ghillie slippers custom made for you!

Woohoo!  And that's not all for today -- remember I promised you a double prize day? Well here it is -- the lovely Kathi from Triskelt (one of our favourite shops ever!) has donated a gorgeous sterling silver ghillie pendant!! Check this thing out it is soooooo pretty!

Here's how you enter for each of these prizes:


1) For the Spa Package: Comment here and tell us which of our new scents you think you'd like best!

2) For the super pendant from Triskelt: Go check out their website and then write on the wall of the

Triskelt Facebook Page

telling them which of their products you like the best! Don't tell us here, or on our Facebook -- it must be on the Triskelt FB page to count! Include "for the IHTD contest" or similar so we know you want an entry into the contest!

Good luck! xo Ally and Nic

Stuff To Put Stuff In

So, those of you who've been with us awhile know that I Heart That! Dance was born when Nic and I -- avid perusers of vendor tables at competitions -- just could NOT find the gear we wanted.  Don't get me wrong -- there's a lot of REALLY good stuff out there on the market (and we both spent a lot of money at those tables -- and still do!), but it wasn't exactly what we were looking for.  Too young-looking, not enough pockets, not sturdy enough (I in particular am pretty abusive to my possessions LOL), not big enough (or sometimes too big).  Yeah, we're picky.

Plus, we LOVED the idea of having something personalized just for you -- your tartan or favourite colours, your choice of design, your name or initials.  And so this became the "heart" of I Heart That! Dance -- that you could have stylish, handmade-quality items the way YOU want them.

Having said that, I, Ally, still have yet to make anything for myself. Pfft.  But that's OK -- you first! Today's prize is:

Your choice of ONE of our signature bags:

Messenger Bag

Open-Top Tote

Garment Bag

Irish Dance Solo Dress Bag

Sword Case

Practice Mat Bag

or the new Champion Duffle! (see the pic below -- so new it's not on the website yet!)

The new roomy Champion Duffle (retail price $60 CDN) is fully lined with lined exterior and interior zip pockets. Your choice of design on the front pocket. Zip top. Top quality zippers and hardware throughout as usual :)  The one shown here has our newest design "Float" appliqued on the front pocket -- a gorgeous Celtic knotwork butterfly, pick this one if you like a more intricate design or lots of colours!  I think this is going to be one of our most popular items -- I only have this crummy picture of the one sample I made because the darn thing sold before I could get a better picture!

PLUS today's winner will ALSO get a reusable goodie bag from McAleer Highland Gear chock full of some great stuff:

Notebook and pen

A pair of mini shoes (cute!)

A tartan keychain change purse

Scottie dog Post-It notes

Pink child's watch with white Westie dogs on it (aww!)

A pair of spare black laces (total necessity for Games season!)

 

To get your entry into the draw for today's prize tell us:

What are the 3 most important things in your dance bag?

Want an extra entry?

Visit our wonderful sponsor McAleer Highland Gear and tell us your favourite product from their shop! 

Good luck! xo Ally and Nic

Lucky Charms!

Day 3 of Kickoff! And have we ever got something SWEET for you today! Do you know somebody who finds a 4-leaf clover EVERY time she goes to look for one? We do! Read on to find out all about June, fabulous proprietress of Etsy shops As Luck Would Have It and I Sew Cute!

Tell us a little about yourself!
Born in the great woods of the North East a week before Christmas, nurtured by a crafty mom & Nana who knit, sewed, & baked all kinds of wonderful things. I learned a lot by watching them, but also enjoyed spending a lot of time drawing. My folks say I was born with a pencil in my hand! I was destined to become an artist or designer of sorts & now I freelance as a toydesigner/illustrator while being a stay at home mom to nurture my kids' blossoming creativity & mold them into decent loving people.

So, the first question on our minds is HOW do you find so many 4-leaf clovers?
Here's a blog post on my helpful tips: http://isewcute.blogspot.com/2009/07/im-looking-over-some-4-leaf-clovers-how.html  My best advice is don't look on a very sunny day...it casts hard shadows & makes them more difficult to find. They're easier to find on a day or two after the lawn is mowed...and if it has rained...even better! They just stand out more when you don't have to dig around the tall grass for them. I swear I just look down & there they are... wherever I go...if it's grassy I'm sure to find at least one eventually.

Why did you decide to get into making resin jewellery?
I was hooked almost instantly after trying it years ago & have since put a tutorial on Craftster & my blog so other crafty folks can discover the fun of crafting with it for themselves.

Do you have any other crafty passions? What's your favourite project ever?

My favourite project ever is probably my 'kid table' which has hand carved legs made to look like different characters from familiar childrens' books & holds all my childhood treasures in the top (see the pic below!) I won a Craftster challenge with it about 2 years ago. I'm passionate about most every craft I do. If I'm going to take the time to make something, I throw myself into it completely.

What inspires you to craft in general?
It's a compulsion I was born with. I just can't not be making something...anything. If I'm leaving the house for any reason, I plan a project I can take on the road with me. There is always a sketchbook in my car & crochet hook in my purse! I am inspired by life...and watching my kids grow. I love doing craft swaps when I have time because I really get into working on something that another person can cherish. I get such a thrill out of making someone happy with the things I make & it's doubly fun to receive 'fun mail'.  Currently I'm wrapping up the 'Hoop Up' embroidery swap on flickr & hear they're going to have a round 2. I'm sure I'll join up!

What's next for As Luck Would Have It and I Sew Cute?
For AsLuckWouldHaveIt: I'm working on some more items for men. Keyrings, tietacks, pins & cufflinks. The clover pieces I make are always going to all be listed at AsLuckWouldHaveIt from now on. For ISewCute: I have a bunch of my original cute embroidery patterns that I have to get listed...as well as new desings in sweet looking glittery resin jewelry. I'm open to requests at any time for either shop! Custom orders are my favorite thing to work on.

Thanks June! Isn't her stuff AWESOME?  Especially if you are a glitter addict like we are :) And since we KNOW some of you are, for today's prize we've got

A gorgeous heart-shaped resin pendant from As Luck Would Have It with a real 4-leaf clover inside!

Guaranteed to be your next favourite good luck charm! Get your entry for today by visiting either of June's sweet shops and tell us what your favourite item is -- want an extra entry? Visit both! Post your choices in the blog comments below.

Don't forget! 

Every entry you get into the daily prizes gets you an entry into the Grand Prize draw as well!

Happy shopping! (P.S. If you are inspired to buy from June, Etsy accounts are free and easy to sign up for -- kinda like EBay! And get something for us too, will you? ;) )

xo Ally and Nic

On Your Marks ... Get Set ... DANCE!

Happy, happy Wednesday! Many thanks to all of you for your patience with yesterday's technical difficulties -- I live in the country and we can only get the satellite internet here.  Most of the time it works but every so often there's too many rain droplets in the air, or an especially large cow gets in our line of sight or something, and the whole thing just clicks off :P 

Anyway, after a look at the schedule for this week I've decided I'm going to have the double-prize day later in the week rather than today -- works out a bit better for our sponsors that way! Besides, today's prize is soooooooo phenomenal it deserves 100% of your attention :) So read on to find out.....

So, look. We aren't often quoting military themed cartoons from the 80's around here, but Ol' Joe had it right when he said "Knowing is half the battle".  The consequences of not arming yourself with the  right knowledge when you get out on the studio floor are at best that you don't train as efficiently as you could, and at worst an injury that could stop you dancing for life.  Not cool -- we here at IHTD fully intend to be busting out our steps at our grandkids' weddings, and we want the same for you!

But we need your help, lovely readers, to do it!

To get an entry into the draw for today's prize, comment here and tell us your favourite dance or dance fitness resource (other than your teacher, who is obviously number 1!).  It can be about Highland, or Irish, or dance in general, sports nutrition, cross training, mental preparation, ANYTHING that helps you prepare.  Both online (websites, blogs, etc) and offline (books, magazines) resources are OK -- if its online please post the link!

Helping us out gets you an entry to win one of the BEST Highland dancing resources available:

A COMPLETE Set of Advanced Highland Training DVDs from FerlieFeet.com

10 times World Champions Deryck and Gareth Mitchelson present an invaluable resource for every dancer, competitive or not,working to improve their dancing. The dances are broken down step-by- step and then movement-by-movement with the dancers demonstrating ‘good technique’ accompanied by a technical commentary.  The complete DVD set includes:

Vol. 1 & 2: Highland: Fling, Sword Dance, Seann Truibhas and Reel

Vol. 3: Jig & Hornpipe

Vol. 4: Nationals: Includes all 8 competition dances

Don't have a dance resource for us? Just want an extra entry into the contest? Visit our sponsor's website at

http://www.FerlieFeet.com

and tell us your favourite product from their shop in the blog comments for this post or on Facebook to get an ADDITIONAL entry into the draw (Warning!  It's going to be hard to choose -- not only is this the home of the famous ToeandHeel GOLD ghillies but the teddy bears in Highland costume are sooooo cute :) I totally bought one for the Peanut -- shhh, don't tell her!)


And don't forget!  EVERY ENTRY into the draws for the daily prizes gets you an additional entry into the Grand Prize draw.  So lets say you're super keen and post with both a dance resource and your fave product from FerlieFeet TODAY -- this gets you FOUR entries into daily prize draw (two for each answer) and FOUR entries into the Grand Prize.  Awesome!!


I also want to remind people that are entering through Twitter please please please make sure that if you have a private account that we are following you, otherwise we can't see your tweets!


xo Ally and Nic

Kickoff Prize #1: Get Your Game Face On!

 Did you know we have a real-life honest-to-goodness makeup artist writing web features for us?  Her name is Kelly Babcock and she is AMAZING -- check out her portfolio on her website to see some examples of her work.  PLUS I just saw her last week on the day before her due date and she looked fabulous -- if that's not talent I don't know what is (am I right, moms?)  Her first web feature for us is a great step-by-step how-to on how to use our mineral makeup to get a natural, age-appropriate look for stage:

Application 101

With competition season in full swing we're guessing that some of you are thinking it's time to rework your look -- maybe you've got a new costume, maybe you're sick of never looking quite "right" on stage or maybe you're just tired of the same old stuff.  Well, Kelly and TheGirls@IHTD want to help you out! For the summer we’re offering sample-size “face kits” for the special promotional price of $20 -- that’s 20% off the regular price!  Check it out here:

Get The Look Sample Size Face Kit!

And today's kickoff week prize is:

*A Deluxe Makeup Bag appliqued in your choice of design or text and your fave colours!*

AND

*One of our Get The Look kits in your chosen shades!*

Want to win the prize? Tell us what YOUR biggest makeup problem is here in the blog comments (do it today to get TWO entries) -- and don't forget to "Like" this post link on Facebook and tweet about the contest on Twitter to get even more!

SUMMER!!!!!!!!! The Contest

OMG summer is coming!  

Feiseanna and Highland Games and DANCING oh my! And a new competition season means YOU need some awesome new stuff to get you through in style. What's that you say? No cash dollars in your pocket? Well, don't you worry 'cause TheGirls @ IHTD have got you covered!

ALL SUMMER LONG we're running Summer Shout-Outs, a great new contest that lets you earn money to spend in the shop just by wishing your dancing friends good luck at their comps or congratulating them on a job well done! PLUS we are getting it all started TODAY with a huge week long prize extravaganza with super prizes EVERY DAY from us and our very generous sponsors.  You can win 

IHTD Signature Bags and Costume Carriers
Hoodies, Yoga Pants & Jackets, Shorts, T's and Tanks
Advanced Highland Technique DVDs from ToeandHeel.com
Gorgeous Jewellery from Triskelt and As Luck Would Have It
DELUXE FeisFaces.com Memberships
Dance-Proof Mineral Makeup
Yummy Bath & Body Stuff PLUS our famous Ghillie Slippers & PJ Pants!

All the details on how to enter are up on the website here:

http://www.iheartthatdance.com/contests/contests.html

Now lets get ready for summer!