Mod Podge Shoes

I've had the same pair of black flats for the past five years.  I wear them a lot.  They are incredibly comfortable but as you can imagine, after five years, they aren't looking so great.  The toes were scuffed and sadly I started wearing them less frequently.  They eventually made it to the back of my closet and didn't come out until last week when I decided they should be thrown away.  Luckily I decided to keep them in my "find something to do with this later" box.  This series was the perfect opportunity for me to pull out my most comfortable flats and make them pretty.

I've seen so many great shoe makeovers using Mod Podge and fabric lately.  I purposely did not look up anything I've seen previously because I didn't want to simply copy someone else or follow a tutorial.  Speaking of following tutorials, I rarely ever bookmark something I've seen and intend to make for myself.  I have a massive list of things I want to make for others but crafting for myself is always last on my list.  I'm sure most of you can relate.  This series has given me a reason to actually take the time to make something for myself.  It has reminded me that just because I have countless things on my 'to do' list, it's important to stop and do something for myself sometimes.  I consider the time I spend making things and blogging my "me time."  But if I'm always just making something for someone else, it defeats the purpose of time for myself.  Please don't misinterpret my message.  I LOVE making things for other people.  I just think it's important for us to stop and set aside some time to make one of the pretty things you've been putting off because crafting for yourself is not high on your list of priorities.  Trust me, making something that you really like for yourself is like a breath of fresh air.  Remember when you have time to yourself it doesn't always have to be spent catching up on your list of things to do!

Back to my shoes...

Supplies:
-shoes
-fabric to cover each shoe
-Mod Podge
-foam brush

Optional supplies:
-additional fabric or embellishments
-hot glue gun

While pulling my shoes out of the box in my closet I came across an old shirt with perfect fabric for my shoes.

I started the shoe transformation by removing the bows and sole inserts.

I cut four strips of fabric from the shirt.  Each strip was long enough to cover the shoe from toe to heel and wide enough to cover the inner and outer leather.  I worked on one side of each shoe with the fabric and Mod Podge.  A foam brush worked well to apply the Mod Podge directly to the shoe.  I was careful not to stretch the fabric because I didn't want the print to look strange.  I applied the fabric to the outside of the shoe first.  I trimmed and folded the fabric where the ends met.  Then I applied Mod Podge to the inside of the shoe and glued in the fabric.  I didn't worry about where the fabric met the sole because I planned to trim it later.  I also didn't worry about the fabric overlapping on the inside because the sole insert would end up covering any uneven edges.

I let each shoe dry about 20 minutes and then applied another layer of Mod Podge.

Next I used hot glue to put the sole insert back in the shoe.

I could have stopped here but I really wanted to use the ruffles that were on the shirt sleeves to embellish the shoes.

I cut strips of ruffles and attached them to the shoe with hot glue.  I didn't want to worry about the shoes getting dirty and not being able to wipe them clean so I coated the ruffles with two layers of Mod Podge.

It has been so hot in Arizona and I have been wearing flip flops for the past six months.  I'm really excited for cooler temperatures  to arrive so I can start wearing shoes again.  These are a perfect addition to my fall and winter options!

I'm linking this post here.