Make Something Monday: DIY Ombre Glitter Shoes

Make Something Monday is back with today's step by step project.  I absolutely LOVE all things glitter.  I have two pairs of glittery shoes, and had been seeing some DIY's, including this one on one of my favorite hand made blogs, A Beautiful Mess.  It seemed like a fairly simple process so I thought I'd give it a try.  We attended Party Arty this past weekend, a fundraiser for The Nelson Atkins Museum of Art.  Everyone gets dressed up in their finest duds for the event, and I found a beautiful off-white grecian inspired gown at Hemline.  

Matt and I at Party Arty.

I wanted to give my dress a modern edge so I wore an architectural cuffs, statement earrings, and simple cocktail rings.  I did my hair in smooth waves, and added some bright plum lipstick and nail polish.  I knew I wanted to carry my grandmothers iridescent blue clutch (one of my most prized accessories), for a pop of color, so I thought I'd try out the glitter shoe DIY and make a custom pair to match.

Supplies:

• Old pair of shoes.


• Aleene's Tacky Glue


• Paintbrush


• Glitter: Since I was doing an ombre pattern I chose four different colors.  I like super fine glitter from Martha Stewart which I purchased at Michaels.


• Newspaper


• Mod Podge


• Optional: paint that is the same color as your glitter (this will depend on what color shoe you start with).

As you can see the shoes that I started with were not in very good shape.  They're satin covered so they had lots of marks and stains on them that I wasn't able to remove.  It was time for these babies to get a a face lift!

Cover your workspace in newspaper, because as we all know glitter is messy.  Since my shoes were a bright banana yellow I decided to paint them teal before I got started with the glitter.  I figured this would help disguise any spots that might get missed, or in case the glitter flaked off.  If your shoes are a close color to your glitter you can skip this step.

Next brush the Tacky Glue onto the shoe.  It's very thick, so try to keep it as smooth as possible so there won't be lumps and bumps all over.  I decided to do an ombre pattern on the shoes so I started with my darkest color of glitter at the tip of the toes.  Before you start put a piece of newspaper or magazine under your shoe so you can catch and save each color as you apply it.  Be super generous with your glitter, then shake it off.  Repeat for each color, or do all over if you are just using one color.

Once each color of glitter is applied you may notice that they look a bit separated rather than blended.  To get an ombre effect they need to blend into each other a bit more.  Take a little bit of glue and lightly spread it between each color change.  Sprinkle a little bit of the darker color first until it's about half covered, and then add the lighter color on top.  Let the shoes dry overnight to make sure that everything is really stuck on.

Take the shoes (outside is best) and hit the soles hard on the sidewalk, ground, etc. to get rid of all the little bits of loose glitter.  You won't be able to get all the loose pieces off, and you'll leave a Tinkerbellesque trail wherever you walk.  That's why the next step is optional but highly recommended, so you aren't shedding glitter all over you or your friends homes.

Adding the Mod Podge will help seal the shoes so that you aren't losing glitter.  However it will kill some of the sparkle, and fades the color even though it dries clear.  I used glitter Mod Podge to add a bit more dimensionality of multi color sparkles to my shoes.  Take your paint brush and add as thin a layer as possible to your shoes.  It's thinner than the glue so it brushes on much more easily. 

Mod Podge dries much more quickly than the Tacky Glue, I left mine for untouched for about 6 hours, but a few hours is probably sufficient.  Once they're dry it's time to wear them.  Mine were a bit stiff because of all the layers of glue, but it wasn't any different than breaking in a new pair of shoes.  They worked out great for the event, I didn't lose any of my glitter, and everyone loved my sparkly new footwear.

Hazel approves.

Thanks for checking out my ombre glitter shoe DIY.  I hope you'll try it out for your own special event.

xo ~ Em