MAKING OLD SHOES SHINE : THE BLINGY VERSION

It's the official party season. (Which for me is more of a work season; no time for parties.) All display windows ad billboards fill up with black and gold and red and glittery sparkly things for the season. Well, it's Christmas all year round in many ways for me (not just the lights here and there) as the amount of sparkly stuff  I nowadays have to drape myself in is, well, a lot. For all the obvious reasons.

I was blinging up an old pair of shoes for a show, but, this is of course something you can do without having to strut with them on stage in. You may remember my tip from some years back about attaching jewellery to a pair of heels? Another quick and easy way to bling a pair of shoes up is to use some rhinestones and glue and TA-DA, instant party shoes!

I normally use a fabric glue that is still elastic when it hardens but as the shoes I decided to pimp up are made of (faux) patent leather I used hot glue and pre-glued rhinestones instead. Because theses are for a themed act I put the bling on to resemble daisies. (I also made a glitter surface on the sole but we'll get back to that in another post.)

Be sure to clean the shoes before you start. The smaller rhinestones were pre-glued and came in lines (from Tiger)  which made this an easy task. Otherwise I use a chrystal pen or a pair of tweezers to grab and place the pieces.  Remember to be quick if you work with hot glue as it dries instantly - for bigger stones it's easy but for smaller ones that you might want to add in a formation (a line like here) I'd suggest another kind of glue that takes a little longer to dry. Haberdashery stores also sell rhinestones on a string, which would work nicely for this - the price per meter is high but you will not need so much for a pair of heels so it's doable.

And then it's just on with the heels and off to shine and sparkle!

(and yes I know, my working space is a mess as I, in my usual manner, am working on too many things at once...)

SHOE RAINBOW

I had one of those la-la-la moments when I should have been doing lots of other more useful tings than be arranging some of my shoes by color.

Well, this was not totally useless however as it looked nice there on the floor - I learned I have no less than three pair of shoes in the same bright red shade. (One pair is a tad too big and will thus have to go *wink wink*.) And, furthermore, I noticed I have no bright green shoes!  In fact, I have very few green anything, just the green dress I made myself last year. Grönt är skönt. I need more green! Oh, what a perfect reason...


No but really. Even if  may be feeling the greens now, I am actually trying to get rid of things. Clean some out, tuck some away for later, make some space. I am back to that usual when-will-I-ever-get-to-wear-anything- limbo of mine with little free space and lots of clothes that are waiting to be worn (vintage skirts and silk dresses don't hang out int he park with toddlers, and whenever I go somewhere without Dag it's mostly to work which I do in totally different garments...) but with nothing actual to wear.

But my shoe rainbow was cute anyway.
(Hmm hmm green...)

THE RED BOOTS THAT ARE EVEN MORE RED NOW

You may recall me mentioning red suede lace up boots on several occasions trough the years? The kind of shoes I liked the idea of but didn't necessarily want to own, as I didn't really wear boots for many years. But due to practical reasons and shorter hems of mine I've been digging out my old boots from their hideabouts during the year and some time ago decided was it was time to start the search for the red ones, if such were available. Well of course, the internet delivered after some time and now I can tick that off my list!

But, the heels on the boots were beige and for me heels in a different color than the shoe only works in certain cases, and this was not one of those cases. So I did not really come around wearing the shoes -the whole point was that they had to be red all over.  The next step was then to try and paint them! I once coloured a pair or rubber heels (and soles) with a random textile paint I had at home and it stayed on super well for years so I was rather positive about perhaps getting something to stay on these too, although this was riskier as the heels are plastic which is not the same since it won't absorb the paint. Heels take a lot of hits and most likely any added color might rub off easily.  But worth a try still -

Went over to the hardware store and decided on red spray paint (and a brown-red primer), hoping the difference in shades would not turn too bad.

Put some masking tape to cover the actual shoe and gave the heels a couple of round with primer and then paint. I filled in uncoloured areas close to the seam with a red marker  - I coloured a pair of satin dance shoes like that once, with a marker, and it turned out super - but thats for another post.

And it did not turn out that bad! Well, quite good actually. After a few days in action the color is still on, so so far so good...

TIGRESS SHOES

These are my favourite dance shoes for the moment, which I use for performing and teaching. (Or, for one performance, as most number have their own shoes, at least in cases like this, with a strong pattern or color shame). They originally came as zebra patterned shoes but I needed tiger stripes so I added the orange stripes myself by painting on stripes of glue (Jewel-it glue, which works best for these kinds of things) and them pour heaps of glitter on, two rounds, and one final round with painting a thin layer of Jewel-it on with a brush. (That works on big surfaces too, like glittering a whole shoe,  and it lasts well, but we can look into that some other time.)

Also, a little hint; if you have a hard time making it the whole night in heels, try it with a pair of dancing shoes. They are softer and flexible which makes them easy to move in (well yes, as they are indeed dancing shoes) and thus also easier to wear for a long time. I can wear a pair of dancing heels trough a whole day of teaching without any particular feet ache! (But, this trick mostly works for indoor parties, daning at clubs etc, as the sole soft and won'tt take bad weather). Which leads us to another little tip at the end - remember to stretch your feet (and calves) afterwards if you have had your heels on a lot and moved around! It is kind of an awkward muscle workout for your feet and calves to be placed in heels for along time so stretching them out afterwards helps you avoid aching sad feet the day after.

These dance shoes are from Light in The Box, where you can choose the shape of heel yourself!
(When it comes to sizing I am between sizes and I went for the smaller, which was the right choice.)

HEART BREAKERS

With the dark and wet weather that's been going on for some time I have to confess I really start longing for colder days, frozen streets and snow.

But most of all I'm longing for dry streets and warm sunny days again so I can strut around outside in my Heartbreakers shoes I got from Frollein von Sofa!

THESE BOOTS WERE MADE FOR, WELL; WALKING I GUESS

...and keeping my feet warm and posing in and all such other necessities.

I have sort of re-found boots. After many autumns and winters of many boots I had a time when I somehow found it hard to wear and pair them, as boots in general do not go that well with the styles of forties and fifties fashion. So I got a bit stuck on that and didn't want to mess styles up. But there are of course no rules of what to wear and what to combine and, style goes back and forth and develops all the time; I have less long and wide hems for the moment, plus I have also notice I have become a bit more practical with time*. So I got over it and the boots are back so to say!

Last year I dug out my cognac colored heeled ones and they have been walking me around a lot since. This fall I got myself a pair of grey blue suede boots online that went back once and now finally arrived in a one size smaller version. Yey.

*(Yes yes, some people would think of sneakers or something else when saying they got practical shoes but we have to remember who we are dealing with her. And these are in fact rather comfy aand not that high, but naah yes I know, the playground and sand box on a rainy days will require something else. Good thing I still have my old workwear boots borrowed from the harbour around!)

The boots are Pier One / Zalando and the bag is from Accessorize, the latest one in my quest for that perfect day bag. But that quest is for another time to go on about.

BRING IT ON

Bring it on!-autumn, part one.

Well you know, the change of season is just around the doorstep and soon everyone will be blogging autumn this and autumn that. Well, except for those blogging from down under who will go on about spring. Feeling wise spring is bigger for me -the clod and dark finally being over- but when it comes to the material side it's all about autumn, preparing oneself for what is to come by stocking up; warm items, warm colors, a new range. 

Going trough my closet I noticed any practical mid season shoe I had was worn out or in a desperate need to see a cobbler. I sometimes have issues pairing certain clothing with suitable shoes during the colder season; the fuller the hem the less good they (in my opinion) look with anything else than heels (or ballerinas) -wearing boots with circle skirts for example most often just makes me feel like I'm on my way to sing at a rodeo or so (nothing wrong with that would that actually be the case). But other suitable options often gives me rather heavy granny-vibes. Which will have to do in this case.

We still have summer, sunshine and above twenty plus for now, but I stumbled across a pair of purple walking shoes at the supermarket and got them now already, deciding they'll help me and certain skirts trough autumn

...But a pair of rubber boots wouldn't of course hurt either...

LULUS IN AZUR BLUE

So, whatever was in the bag peeping in one picture from a few days back?

These ones! Azur blue Lulu-heels from Minna Parikka.

Some may recall me saying that I'd get a pair of Parikkas after giving birth. And I got a little gift card to the Parikka shop from my sister last Christmas. So now almost one year later I kept the promise to myself and settled for these true blue ones. 

And, more on the shoe front still: the Reina Muerte wedges that Freestyle Xtreme was giving away has found an owner!
Dum di dum...

In the drawing luck was on Dita von Grué's side! So off we send a pair to France then :)

SUPER HIGH AND ADORABLY TINY REINA MUERTE WEDGES (FOR ME AND FOR YOU)

I have a new pair of yummy summer wedges that are a bit over the top (they way some things should be sometimes), super high and makes my feet seem oh so tiny.

As they are rather light they are pretty easy to walk in regardless of their height which also makes them surprisingly comfy. At least for a while, if you intend to wear them a whole evening out after a very warm day filled with dancing and workshops your feet might get a little, well, painfully tired (of course...).

The wedges are by Iron Fist and I got the from FreestyleXtreme, with whom I am doing a little collaboration.

So, how would you like to win yourself a pair  for yourself?



Yup that's right, it's give away time!

Freestyle Xtreme is a family run business with a huge selection of clothing from action sports through to lifestyle (and as you can see even with something for me too :) - you can read more here- and they are now giving away one pair of Black Reina Muerte wedges to one of you!

(Fashion blogger posing photo totally being owned by sudden cats and babies.)

To enter the giveaway (hands up if you've read this before...) :
Leave me a comment on this post. Easy.
But, make sure I can reach you via that comment either by a (visible, available; as in non-private. Seriously.) profile of some sort or, link or an email. (Apparently not always so easy, but please try :)
I will draw the winner randomly so leave one comment per person only, as that equals one entry!
And per usual you get another comment for each share+link that you make out there.

The give away is open to anyone, anywhere and will run for ten days, until June 8!
Good luck :)

THE TRUSTWORTHY REDS

I have a pair of red shoes I bought from H&M without much though  some six-seven years ago for 19,90 which, after a rather painful blister-full debut during a weekend in Budapest surprisingly turned into the comfiest and most wearable shoes in the world™. After which they have, apart from walked around in numerous cities here and there, been chewed upon by both cats and dogs and had their share of sudden rains and unexpected escapades trough muddy fields. And so on.

I bought them to the cobbler's once to try and have them saved and he went "Ah, red shoes", in a familiar voice. "They always seem to be the most precious ones". These were perhaps not my most precious ones per se, but definitely the most trustworthy. And now they are falling apart to the point I believe it's time to give them up. Luckily I happened to come over another pair of reds that could possibly turn into the new most comfiest and most wearable shoes in the world. Not as nice a model as the previous ones and in a less dirt-friendly material (canvas compared to pleather) but a pair I propably should buy an extra set of for future all-the-time use and where-ever walks...

The new ones are plain DinSko shoes (for 24,90).

SCENES FROM A BELATED SPRING

Mint green left heel: (tiny voice) Ummm... hello?


 (small, desperate, squeeky voices) Let us out!

And hey! Don't forget us over here! We're trapped in here!

Wear me! Wear us!

Weather (determined): NO!


Winter boots (fatigued tone): We are so done and tired! We're supposed to be off-season already!


Winter (mad scientist voice): MUAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

NOT YOUR EVERYDAY PAIR OF BUNNY SLIPPERS

Pfeiffer and Angora heels by Minna Parikka.

The Charlotte Olympia kitty wedges and heels.

Louis Vuitton zebra and giraffe sandals.

Loubotin lion paw heels. Crazy much. And a bit ugly actually.
(But fun too. Although I wouldn't pay shitloads of money for a pair of fun shoes. Not even though they have a heel covered in glitter).

Ducks. Kobi Levi's animal shoes again are quite fun too, and interesting, but I wouldn't pay shitloads for just interesting either. 

Last but not least, high heeled bunny slippers by Streetzie.  Luv.

(The image sources that are not from the designer/supplier are linked.)