I like ribbons. I use them often in jewelry making, I've hung pictures with them, and I even bought a pair of shoes that was otherwise unsuited to me because of them. It was many years ago, and I was young and foolish... willing to overlook the wedge heel and peep toe for the sake of the frilly bands of satin with which they were tied. I don't like wedges, and I HATE peep toes (my second toe is longer than the others and kinda pokes out all by it's lonesome... so it looks somewhat as if I'm flipping everyone off with my feet) plus I somehow managed to get one size too big, so they don't even fit me properly. So in an effort to correct this shopping mistake, I searched far and wide for a pair of shoes to transfer the design element I liked to. Finally, after a number of years, I found them: neutral colored, open sided, T-strap, spool heel, and most importantly a closed toe.
I also liked the contrast in textures on the original shoes, but I was willing to give that up for the sake of eliminating the things I didn't like. The new ones are a little narrow, so they're still not a perfect fit, but I'll deal with that... at least for now. On to the modifications!
I cut a bit off the center tab for the T-strap, and tucked it inside, holding it in place with glue and a line of stitching. (Stitching not shown in picture, but that's what the spool of matching thread is for.) I removed the existing ankle straps completely and replaced them with antiqued brass grommets (C) which blend in nicely with the tan leather of the shoe. I made some staples out of antiqued brass jewelry-making pins (A) and poked them through the sides of the shoe, right by the sole. I used a large pin to punch holes for them. To keep them from pulling out, I used some spacer bars, (B) another jewelry thing, on the inside of the shoe. The super long tipped pliers were absolutely necessary for putting in these staples and bending the ends over, and even with them it was tricky. The grommets were simple though! I just used a hole punch (Silent Setter by Provo Craft- the funny looking thing at the bottom of the picture) and a pair of grommet setting pliers. (The Silent Setter comes with grommet setting tips too, but the pliers seemed easier.) It was a snap.
The result was a pair of VERY customizable shoes. The antique brass blends in well enough that the ribbons can be left off entirely, and since it's just a series of places to loop ribbon through, I can experiment with different ribbons and lacing patterns. They can be altered to match just about any outfit (assuming the tan shoes themselves go with it) just by switching up the ribbons.
And as a final... thing. I'm including the shoes I posted to The Hutch. The one and only project to be posted there before it was locked up forever. My altered-logo Doctor Who Cons.
This mod requires nothing more than the shoes themselves, some printable transfer paper (available at Walmart) and of course a computer and printer with which to design and print the new logo. Easy to do, but be careful ironing the new logo on. The original logo is very thick and rubbery and it can ooze and burn if you have too much heat and pressure on it.
