Altered shoes

In 2011, I used Shiva Paintstiks to color my boring beige Birkenstocks a fabulous iridescent blue. I loved those sandals, but they were already four years old when I painted them the first time. Last summer I realized that I might need to eventually replace them. During the winter, I found a pair of deeply discounted Birkenstocks and I snatched them, even though they were sort of a dingy color which they had the nerve to call “denim.”

The paint is still drying, but I know I like them better already! Although, in the back of my mind I wonder what they might look like if I punch a row of polka dots down the middle of each strap…

And since I’m showing my altered Birkenstocks, I thought I would also take a moment to brag on DD#1. She took some Crocs that she has been wearing this past year, and refashioned them into terrific sandals, with just a pair of scissors and a little sandpaper.

For the white pair, she forgot to take “before” and “after” pictures, so she replaced the part she had cut away to give you an idea of what they originally looked like. (Or, to be more precise, I didn’t think of blogging about it until after she was done!) I love how she echoed the original arc-shaped cut outs and created lacy scallops. She wore the pink pair to church yesterday and, if I had not seen the shoes before, I would have thought they had been sandals from the start. What a great job!