About Us

itoti Crafts was born from Aliya’s creative journey and her Instagram handle, @i_threw_out_the_instructions. This name reflects a pivotal moment in her life as a graphic designer.

After a rigorous education, Aliya found herself obsessed with making everything just right. She became so focused on comparisons and expectations to the point of exhaustion. The pressure to meet her own high standards stifled her creativity, leading her to almost abandon her passion altogether.

Ultimately, she decided to discard the rigid "instructions" of her education experience and @i_threw_out_the_instructions was born. This was summer of 2020 (yup.)

Like so many, the suddenness of covid was quite shocking to say the least, but it gave her the time to explore her newfound freedom. She had a vision of creating art that captured the meditative state she experienced within herself, but was strugglebussing hardcore on HOW. Glass seemed like the logical choice, but with asthma, a dislike for too much heat, clumsiness, fucking COVID everyfuckingwhere, and ADHD making it difficult to start a project that she couldn't dive into immediately, glass quickly felt impractical.

Then she discovered epoxy resin—clear, malleable, and doable. With ample time and the unwavering support of her boyfriend, Dan, who *constantly* encouraged her through the tough moments (and trust - there were a fuckton), Aliya learned how to work with resin, create homemade silicone molds, and craft pieces she loved. Through this journey, she realized she could turn her creations into a business.

(TLDR); I Threw Out The Instructions, however, was a really long business name. Condensed, it became itoti. 

The name and logo of itoti Crafts hold deep personal meaning. Within the 'O' of 'itoti,' you’ll find two shapes: an upward triangle for fire and a downward triangle for water. Fire represents warmth and passion, while water symbolizes movement and fluidity. When these elements harmonize, Aliya feels truly at peace. This balance of fire and water is at the heart of her art and her life [goals].