Last week I wrote about my shiny Dorothy shoes, and how I got the idea to make them. today I want to show you how I’ve created them, step by step.
The materials I’ve used:
Paper
Scissors
Masking-tape
Leftover Styrofoam to shape heels (cardboard can also work here)
Expendable knife to cut the Styrofoam with
Marker
Contact adhesive
White glue
Red acrylic paint
Some nice fabric to match the shoes
Red sequins
White Swarovski stones (white sequins can do the job)
The work stages:
1. I took a pair of lasts (אימומים) and wrapped them in paper. Using masking-tape, I kept wrapping until I got a smooth shape. I made sure to wrap at least 2-3 layers, to give the shoe some basic resilience.
(I have used my pair of lasts, but you can build yours on top of any pair of regular shoes you own).
2. I carefully extracted the paper wrap off the lasts. If you’re having trouble with it, you can cut a straight line in the back to help take it off, and later glue it back together.
3. Using a hot knife, I shaped the heels out of leftover Styrofoam (in this case it was the Styrofoam that padded my new iron’s box). The heels don’t need to be perfect – they are about to be wrapped just like the rest of the shoe.
4. When I was satisfied with the shape of the heels, I wrapped them in masking-tape to smooth them up.
5. I attached them to the soles. Since contact adhesive melts Styrofoam, I’ve used it only on wrapped parts of the heels, otherwise I should’ve used other types of glue.
6. I drew a small bow on paper, and copied it to have two.
7. I’ve used a pen to mark on my chosen fabric the sole shape of my lasts. I’ve cut the fabric according to the sole lines I’ve marked.
8. I’ve covered both of the shoes in red acrylics, inside and outside. I Waited until they were dry and painted again, so as not to miss any white spots.
9. I’ve glued the soles fabric inside the shoes, so they’ll be as pretty on the inside as well as the outside (remember – these are paper shoes which no one could ever wear – they will always be on display and their inside will be shown).
10. This step requires a bit more patience, but is crucial: applying the sequins on the shoes.
I didn’t cover the entire shoe with glue at one time, because by the time I’ve started to put the sequins it would already dry up. I worked on one area at a time, covering it systematically with sequins and then moving forward until both shoes were completely covered. I didn’t glue sequins on the inside of the shoe or under it.
11. For the finishing touch, I cut the bows I drew earlier, and painted over them in red acrylics (on both sides). I’ve glued the white Swarovski stones around the contour of the bows, then filled the inside with the red sequins. When they were dry, I placed each bow on the front of the shoe and glued it on.
When all was done, I placed the shoes in my living room, where its relatively safe from lions and tigers and bears.
Oh, my!
Flies in my eyes 