Goldie Toes

Oh my goodness gracious am I excited about this project!  One because I’ve finally broken out the spray paint after a five month hiatus and because it was 100% free!  Here’s the scoop.  I’ve been going through my closet little by little, slowly beefing up my Goodwill pile.  Whilst in one of my purging sprees my eyes sank down to a pair of old white ballet flats I’ve had since college (I think I got them for $10 new).  Not in the best of shape after beating my college paths and not having touched my feet in at least a year, their future in my wardrobe was looking pretty bleak and the pile pretty welcoming.  But, before I give anything away I always travel to the crazy creative area in my mind just to make sure they can’t be refashioned or reused.  And lucky for these little gems, I had an idea.  They were going to be the perfect medium for an experiment I’ve always wanted to try but never have.  Here they are in all their worn in glory:    nov12012 001 

And here’s the inspiration behind the madness that was about to ensue:jcrewshoes The Cece cap toe ballet flats from J. Crew chiming in at a whopping $168!  So pretty but not in my budget, no way, no how.  (Shoes images retrieved from J. Crew.)

However, a half hour of fun craftiness and I had my own cap toes:nov22012 003 

Here’s how I got ‘em.  First, I scrubbed my old shoes with some bleach and dish soap to perk them up.  Can you tell the difference?nov12012 002 I know, it’s not a slap-you-in-the-face difference but they’re a little cleaner.  The toes have endured the worst wear but that’s why this upgrade is perfect for this sad pair. nov12012 003

So next I snatched up a few things I had laying around: nov12012 005

Then I got to taping.  First I taped off the area I wanted to paint: nov12012 007 Because these shoes had pleats in front, I made sure to press down the tape really hard to ensure that paint wouldn’t leak down the pleats and spoil my plan.

Then I taped off the front sole of the shoe: nov12012 008

And then I taped some scrap paper over the rest of the shoe to protect it from any stray paint: nov12012 009

Outside I went and a few thin coats of liquid gold I sprayed… nov12012 010…until I went back inside, took all of the tape off, and decided I wanted a little more gold so I repeated the whole taping process again.  :)  But, that’s obviously an optional step.

Side note:  I made sure to remove the tape when the paint was still a little wet.  Otherwise, the paint may have peeled off with the tape putting a rather large dent in the whole project.

Now for the back of the shoe. nov12012 011

First I taped off the sole: nov12012 013

Then I taped off a thin strip.  The back seam of these particular shoes was a little crooked and I didn’t want a crooked line, so I just disregarded it and made my own straight line.  nov12012 014

For protection of the rest of the shoe, I taped on some more scrap paper and stuck a wad in the heel of the shoe:nov12012 015

Out to spray, let ‘em dry, and tape off and I’ve got some new favorite shoes.  nov12012 020

Oh, and if you’re wondering about the durability of spray paint plus shoes, it’s actually really great.  These shoes are faux leather and just to see, I actually tried scratching some of the paint off of the front.  The only way any paint was coming off was if I scratched the pleather off the shoe.  Happy day!  :)

I’m so excited this worked because I’ve always wondered if I could ever change the color of a pair of shoes with spray paint and now I know!  Anyone else tried pairing the two with good results?  I’d be lying if I said I’ll never do it again!  Patterns, shapes, stripes…it’s all fair game now!

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Happy weekend everyone!

18 comments

  1. Those are so cute! You've got me wondering what shoes I can make over now... :)

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  2. thanks francine! let me know if you do! i'd love to see!

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  3. I adore. Such a great make-over, Sheena!

    They look so similar to the J Crew pair.

    Cheers.

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    1. thanks camille! i've gotten much of my knock-off fashion inspiration from you!

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  4. Awesome, Sheena! Great idea- quite inspiring! :)

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    1. do i smell a shoe refashion party in our future? :)

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  5. Hmm. That looks great! I'll have to try it with some old army boots I have lying around.
    Sheena I heart your blog. I'm addicted to anything DIY.
    Steve Szabo

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    1. steve! thank you! so glad i'm not the only addict! wish we lived closer to you guys so we could all diy together!

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  6. I love the gold toe flats I've been seeing, so I really love your great idea with the spray paint! They turned out so cute! Hmm... I wonder if I have any I could do it to...

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    1. thanks bridget! i hope you find some to makeover!!

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  7. Like you, I'm also constantly longing for J. Crew, if only my budget would allow it. These are adorable! And thanks for sharing the tidbit about paint peelage--I've wanted to try doing a pair of my old flats with a glitter cap toe for a while, but I was nervous about putting in all that effort, only to have everything flake off. So this is all such good news to me. I'm a relatively new follower, and I love your blog!

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  8. love love love spray paint! my neighbors probably think i'm an addict. thanks for the inspiration! going to try out the opposite...saw some cute gold pumps with black tips in a mag and have the perfect shoes for them :)

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    1. haha! i know! my neighbors probably hear that little ball shaking while i'm shaking my paint and think "there she goes again"... send me pics of your finished shoes! i want to see!!! :)

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  9. Wow, never would have guessed! Awesome..and they look fabulous.

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  10. Cute! I'm getting ready to do the same to a pair of tan heels that I have.

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  11. This tutorial inspired me to spiff up a pair of hand-me-down shoes for my daughter. I used glitter instead of spray paint...anyways I am blogging about it and I would like to include a link back to your tutorial. Is that alright with you?

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