DIY Circus Tent Flats

You may be noticing a strange pompom trend on my blog, it's not an illusion. After last week's pompom trimmed pencil case I decided I loved the trim too much not to give it another go in a totally different way with shoes. I had purchased these shoes for a friend's wedding and they got a little muddy and stained due to unforeseen rain showers, but I'm not one to throw something out because of a little stain. So, these pretty little grey flats sat in my closet for over a year until I finally came up with an idea of how to bring them back to life and make them wearable again. Join me for a shoe transformation diy, or circus tent flats as I've so lovingly named them.

What you'll need:
flat shoes (mine are grey, obviously)
liquid stitch
white acrylic paint
masking tape
pompom trim
scissors

NOTE: I first scrubbed as much of the dirt off as I could, and luckily the areas with the most stains concentrated around the toe, heel and rim of the shoe. If you're working with new shoes you won't need to worry about this step.

Step 1: Using the masking tape, tape off an area around the toe and heel. I angled my tape out slightly to create a more dramatic toe and heel on the shoes. A little drama never hurt anybody. Paint in the area around the toe and heel, and let dry completely. If there is still fabric showing through paint the area again, and again let it dry.

Step 2: Grab your scissors, liquid stitch and pom pom ribbon. Loosely drape the ribbon around the opening of the shoe, make sure you allow a little extra drape so it doesn't come up short. Cut. You're going to do two layers of trim around the top of each shoe so repeat this step three more times. You're now ready to attach the trim.

Step 3: About 1/4in away from the top of the shoes start drawing a line of glue with the liquid stitch from the heel. Don't circle the whole shoe because the glue dries fast. Start attaching the trim, making sure to hold each section for a couple of seconds to ensure it sticks. Continue gluing, and pressing until you attached the first layer of trim, cut off any excess trim at the heel.

Step 4: Repeat step 3 for the second layer, making sure not to get any glue on the first layer of trim, and that the layers slightly overlap so they look like they're all one piece. Repeat step 3&4 on the second shoe and you're done.

I finished both shoes in less than an hour, including drying time. A quick and easy way to update a pair of worn out flats for spring, summer, and fall. Try this project with different types of trim and paint colors to showcase your personal style. big kiss, bekuh