Put some sparkle in your step…

Here’s the deal.

I have an obsession with altering shoes. It’s a sickness, really, but nevertheless, I can’t help myself. I have a couple pairs that turned out really well, which I love…

This was the first pair I altered way back in the day. I had a clearance pair of wedge heels (The heels were boooooring brown) so I slapped some scrapbooking paper on them with mod podge. I also neglected to take a before picture because I didn’t think I would ever have a blog like this 3 years in the future.

The next pair are my ”Flaming Chucks” which are simply generic converse with duct tape and some awesome leopard laces. (These were my favorite shoes ever. Until now)

And then, there were my pair of “Lil’ Red Kicks.” The VERY generic converse shoes I had that were all red (I found them on clearance for 3 bucks). And they were comfy. I wore them all the time.

See, I ALSO have this obsession for something we call “Sparkle Shoes.” Red ruby slipper shoes. And for the life of me I have really wanted a mommy sized pair for as long as I can remember. Well, they do sell them in my size, but they are a whopping $70. I am not of the belief that you purchase shoes that cost more than a tank of gas. (Which gas prices as of late have totally upped the amount I am willing to spend on shoes.) But still… with showchoir deposits to make for 2 kids, a summer play that’s going to cost us a Benji, plus planning a trip to Chicago to see the Mythbusters exhibit at the museum, I couldn’t justify spending that amount.

WHAT I COULD JUSTIFY…

buying glitter at the dollar store for 3 bucks and revamping my lil red kicks, making my own kind of sparkle shoes. And now you can too.

Here’s how it went down.

I started with my ugly shoes, my trusty bottle of Mod Podge, a brush, a couple paper plates, and my dollar store glitter.

Then I took my brush and painted the tip of the lil red kick with ‘da mod podge. Like so…

Then, it’s time for glitter.

***I WILL MAKE THE SAME DISCLAIMER I ALWAYS MAKE ABOUT GLITTER- Glitter is like the herpes of the craft world. Once you open it, you will always have it hanging around. You can’t avoid it, you can’t ever make it go away. There is no cure for glitter. So, use with caution. Normally I would promote glitter abstinence, but then this project would never have happened.  So at least use protection. If you are smart enough to do it outside, then that’s the ideal case. I however was NOT smart enough to think of that until afterwords and the damage had already been done.***

Add a crap-ton of glitter to the mod podged area.

Here’s where Charlie started sinking down the rabbit hole. I decided since the toe looked so awesome, and I had “oh so much glitter left,” perhaps I could do a little more embellishment! So I did the seam line with some pretty silver glitter.

You will also notice I did this over a paper plate. I actually had 2 paper plates for each color glitter I used. I would transfer the excess glitter from plate A onto the project while it was being held over plate B, then visa-versa. Because even though I detest the usage of glitter in my home, there’s no reason to be wasteful. lol

Then, digging deeper in the rabbit hole, I opted to go ahead and glitter up the back of the shoe. Since I was already knee deep in glitter anyway…

Then, after losing every rational thought in my brain, I made the move to just cover the whole dang shoe. (Seriously, it was an impulse decision.) But this time, I was going to get my own ruby red slippers. Kind of. So I slapped the mod podge on…

And glittered my little heart out. It went from a small shoe re-do to an OBSCENELY RIDICULIOUS re-do. (That happens a lot when I craft.)

After letting the shoes cure for an hour, it was time for the sealing coat. I put on a THICK LAYER of mod podge, covering every where I had glitter.

And then, I had the agonizing wait of the shoe drying. I could see that the mod podge was drying clear like always, but still, the anticipation was awful!

And this morning when I woke up, my shoes were ready to premiere!!!

I LOVE THEM!!!!!

So there you have it! It’s a messy project, but well worth the end result.

And that’s how I put some sparkle in my step and made my world even more off color!