The Big Reveal

Before we get started on the big reveal of our Dare to Design winner, let me just say WOW!

WOW! to all of the wonderful, creative, worthy designs!

And WOW! to all the thousands (quite literally, thousands) of votes we received!

And WOW (not to mention thanks a million!) to all our faithful Shabby Apple-seeds who helped me count them.

Really, you guys are the bestest.

And your wish is my command.

The winner of our Dare to Design competition is...



(Drum roll please...)



(Keep scrolling...)



(Is the suspense killing you yet?...)



(OK, fine, I'll tell...)



This adorable ditty, The Lawn Frock, from Grosgrain Fabulous!

Congratulations to the fabulous designer!

And congratulations to all of you, who can own this dress come Spring. (And who is ready for Spring? I am. Already. It is going to be a l000ng winter.)

Thanks again to all our designers, and all our voters. I am giving you a cyber hug right now. And stick around because, as always, there is lots more fabulousness where that came from.

You know?

The Countdown

Just a friendly reminder that time to vote in our Dare to Design competition is slipping away as you read this.

Seriously, there's another minute gone. And another one! Hurry up and vote already! Because once the clock strikes midnight EST, your chance to vote will be gone forever.

(And if you try to vote past the deadline, you just might be gone forever. Catch my drift?)

The response to the contest has been overwhelming (like, literally) but I am sure there are more voters out there, so let your voice be heard!

And be sure to come back on December 10 when the winner is crowned.

And before then, natch, as I'll have lots of great stuff for you in between.

(Are you still reading this? I mean it! Go vote!)

The Final 15

I hope none of you have yet died of anticipation. If you are on the verge, stay with us! Walk away from the light! The results of the Dare To Design contest are here!



Not to continue risking your lives, but before I reveal our finalists let me just say that we were overwhelmed (quite literally) by the hundreds of entries we received, and whittling it down to a mere 15 was a near-impossible task. In fact, our judges went through all the designs four times, it was that hard to decide.



But, decide they did. And your long wait is overe. Here are the finalists!



1. From Superhero.

2. Gondola from LeBraun.

3. The Aalto Dress.

4. From Sail To The Moon.

5. From Megan Begley.

6. From Image Envy.

7. From Grosgrain Fabulous.

8. From Warty's Wilsons.

9. From Dare To Dream.

10. Cruisin', from Art I. Sticky.

11. From Beauty and The Geek.

12. From Lady Danburry.






13. From the Martin Fam.

14. The Kate Dress.

15. From Smart Mama.

(Be sure to follow the links to read more about our fantastic finalists' inspirations for these wonderful designs.)

Whew! I think you can see why our tireless judges had such a hard time narrowing the field. And now you get to walk a mile in their (fabulous) shoes, because it is your turn to narrow the field even more.

That's right, it's your turn to decide on the winner! Just pop into the comment section and leave us a little note with the number of your favorite design. (If all you say is, "I love the yellow one!!!!" I am not counting it. You've been warned.)



Since we were a little slower than expected in getting this up, I am giving you a little extra time to vote. (Aren't I so benevolent?) So, voting now closes on November 30 at midnight, EST. And we'll do our darndest to get the winner posted here on December 10.



Now, not to kill the happy mood of this joyous moment, but just a little reminder that you get one vote and one vote only. I am going to keep my eyes peeled for repeaters, and you will earn my scorn if you try any funny business. (My scorn, by the way, is something you most definitely do not want.) But, there is no rule against telling all your friends, family, co-workers, grocery store clerks, nail technicians, personal trainers, inappropriate crushes and everyone in between to hop on over here and cast a vote for your design.



And now, back to our happy place!



A big congratulations to all our contestants and all our finalists!



Let the wild voting rumpus start!

You Dare Devils, You!

I don't know why I should be surprised since you guys are the best in the whole world, but the response to our Dare To Design contest was simply stupendous!

So much so that our diligent judges are still going through all of your stunning designs to choose our 15 finalists. Can you hang with us a little bit longer? The results will be up soon.

In the meantime, pat yourselves on the back for being so great.

And keep checking back here. If our judges are to be believed (and they are, of course), there is a whole lot of awesomeness headed this way.

The Midnight Hour Is Close At Hand

Hey, what are you guys up to tonight?

Because you should be taking advantage of the last few hours of the Dare to Design contest! The contest closes at 11:59 p.m. EST, so put your creative hats on and send us your designs!

We will have our 15 favorite designs posted on the blog by November 10 and all I can say is, one of them could be YOURS!

(Need a reminder about all the contest rules, regulations and rewards? Click here.)

To say this is the chance of a lifetime is an understatement. And to say I can't wait to see what you come up with would be an understatement, too.

So, show us what you've got!

(Dare you.)

Winner's Circle (Present and Future!)

There is a lot of winning going on around here today.

For one thing, the winner of our 90 Words Per Minute secretary dress give-away was announced over at Cardigan Empire on Friday. Congratulations to Miss Ashley Elizabeth!

For a second thing, you can still get 10 percent off your Shabby Apple purchase when you enter the magical code: cardiganfriends10off.

And for a third thing, there is still a chance to win-- and I mean W-I-N-- with our Dare to Design contest. There are just a few weeks left to get in on this dreamy chance of a lifetime. And let's not forget how amazing the winning haul is.

For one thing, the winning design will become part of the Shabby Apple Spring line of dresses.

For a second thing, the winner also receives a 3 percent royalty of every dress sold of his or her design.

For a third thing, think about the bragging rights. I mean, just think about it!

To answer a few questions that have cropped up, there is no limit on the number of designs you can submit, so if you have more than one genius idea just aching to get out, go wild!

As for where to put your design, blogs are the preference, but I'll look into the option of linking on Facebook and get back to you.

And here is a refresher on the rest of the rules.

The dare still stands!

Dare to Dream? Dare to Design!

Boy, do I have some good news for you!

It's just a little contest whereby you could have a dress of your very own genius design featured as part of the Shabby Apple Spring line. And then earn a 3 percent royalty on all of your dress that sell. (Which, because you are all so genius, would be many.)

Do you dare learn more!

Then I give you...

To accept this fabulous dare, follow these simple steps.

1. Design a dress. And there is no need to worry if you are not a "designer." Whatever idea pops into your head is an idea we want to see.

2. Post a sketch, picture or computer drawing of your creation on your personal blog and tell us a little about it. Your post should include the tag "dress design for Shabby Apple dresses" and the words "Shabby Apple dresses" should link your readers right back here, to www.shabbyapple.com.

3. Also in your post, tell us about what inspired your design, and what colors and fabrics you think would be best for your dress.

4. Once your post is up and running, e-mail us as daretodesign@shabbyapple.com and let us know where to find you. (Be sure to include the direct link to your post, not just a link to your whole blog. Not that I don't love scrolling through pictures of family vacations, but...)

5. Be sure your dress adheres to Shabby Apple design standards. That's sleeves, at least a knee-length hemline and no cleavage, please! Also make sure your design is appropriate for the Spring season.

6. If your dress is chosen, you'll be responsible for getting a sample and pattern made. But, no need to panic. We'll help you out with that part.

Here is the schedule.

The Dare to Design contest starts today! Right now!

Entries must be submitted by November 3, 2009 at 11:59p.m., Eastern Standard Time. And I just might stay up late to watch the entries come in, so no funny business. Deal?

Our 15 favorite designs will be posted on this here blog by November 10, 2009.

Then it will your turn, dear readers, to vote for your favorite design. (And in the interest of my continuing good will, let's keep it to one vote each. Deal?)

Voting will close November 24, 2009 and the winning design will be announced back here on December 10, 2009.

And now for the answer to your most burning question: What's in it for me?

Well, in two words, A LOT.

For one, your design will become part of the Shabby Apple Spring line of fabulous dresses. Hello, instant fame!

And on the fortune side of things, the winner will receive a 3 percent royalty on every dress sold of his or her design.

I quadruple-dog-dare you to do it. I know you want to. And I know you can.

Happy designing!