Welcome to this month’s Blogorail Yellow Loop. Today we are sharing ideas to celebrate Star Wars Day.
I started out with a pair of cheapy-cheap slip-ons from Walmart. Seriously, they were under $6. If you are new to painting shoes, or your kids feet grow fast, it is a lot easier to drop $6 on generic shoes than $50 on a pair of Vans. Then I hit up Hobby Lobby for paint. Now, my friend Cristin teaches art and her kids always enter the Vans Custom contest. She recommended that I purchase Golden Fluid Acrylics for my shoes, but they are fairly pricey. Since these are for Connor and I know he will grow out of them by the fall anyway I opted to get some acrylic fabric paint instead. The fabric paints were under $2.50 each so not too expensive, plus they will last me several more uses.
Once your shoes have dried completely sketch on your design lightly with an HB pencil, or a water-soluble marking pencil for sewing. Be careful with a regular pencil, as it won’t really erase off the paint, and will be difficult to cover over. I used a flexible straight-edge for straight lines, and this BB-8 markings picture for his designs. I also used an image from Etsy for reference. I had planned to create an original design, but Connor fell in love with these and begged me to just make them.
Paint using one color at a time, and allow to dry completely before moving on to another color or adding an additional coat of paint. Use a Sharpie Stain marker to do any outlines or detail work required.
Once you are satisfied with your paint job follow the instructions on the paint bottles to set the colors, and then allow to dry for the stated amount of time. Once dry apply a layer of sealer to your shoes. You can use Scotch-Guard, Acrylic sealer, or Modpodge Outdoor. Allow the sealer to cure for the amount of time specified by the package and then you’re done! I recommend reapplying the sealer every couple of months to keep the paint as fresh as possible!
I found the following blog post incredibly helpful in creating my shoes! Empress of Dirt: How to Paint Shoes
check out the other great posts from the Blogorail!
Here is the map of our Magical Blogorail Yellow | Celebrating Star Wars Day Loop:
- 1st Stop – My Pixie Dust Diary | Snack Ideas
- 2nd Stop – Home is Where the Mouse Is | The Force Awakens Movie Night
- 3rd Stop – Rolling with the Magic | 5 Ways to Celebrate Star Wars Day
- 4th Stop – Superheroes and Teacups | Fun Books to Help You Celebrate Star Wars Day
- 5th Stop – Disney Mamas | DIY BB-8 Shoes
More from my site
DIY Mickey Jack-O-Lantern Door Decoration Inspired by Disney Parks
Epcot International Flower and Garden Festival DIY Project Stations
Top Ten Themed Restaurants at Disney Parks
Exploring One Man’s Dream at Disney’s Hollywood Studios
Creating an Indiana Jones Costume
Dreaming of Dole Whip ~ Recipes and History
You did SUCH a fabulous job on these shoes. I love making shirts, but don’t know if I’d have the patience to paint such detailed shoes! I bet Conner is THRILLED with them! My son would love them!
Thank you! Ironically I found these waaaay easier to paint than shirts! The fabric doesn’t move on you as much and you don’t have to worry about the paint sticking to the cardboard shirt form thingy.
Those are ADORABLE! SO cute, and such a good idea without breaking the bank!
Thank you so much! They were fun to paint.
I love, love, love these! And I think my daughter especially would love them too. It would be a great summer project for her. The BB-8 ones are my favorite.
These shoes are adorable! I would be afraid to wear them anywhere because I wouldn’t want to mess them up.
These shoes are amazing! I may have to give this a try even though I’m not the craftiest person. 🙂 Too cute not too.
These are awesome!!!! Any tips for staying in the lines (I am terrible at that part)?
I had never worked with the Sharpie Stain markers, but I loved the way the black one worked for outlining. I’m going to try another pair using those exclusively, and they would be a great option for staying in the lines! They are located in the fabric paint section of your craft store.
These came out amazing!! Do you think it would be hard to make/trace a template?
Thanks! The hardest part would just be getting the template to bend around the shoe. Print the BB-8 Marking Picture that is linked in the post and use that as a template, just enlarge the individual circles you want to use so that they fit the size of shoe you are working with, then use a bit of masking tape rolled on the back to stick them in place. Trace lightly so you can adjust the areas that don’t trace quite as nicely as you wish. The R2-D2 is mostly straight lines, so I used a clear sewing ruler to draw that shoe.
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