One, Two, Tie Your Shoe Model - Tutorial

Before I get down to this I will be honest with you.  I have a new camera and do not know how to use it.   I am definitely not a photographer.  So my photos are not always the best.  :(  I am also very new to writing tutorials.  But, if you can bear with me I will show you what I made for my daughter recently and how I made it.

 My little girl has hit that preschool age where she needs to learn to tie her shoes.  So instead of having a shoe sitting on my table that has been trudging through the garden, I decided to make her one.  

 

Materials:

- adult shoe
- 3 pieces of 12" x 12" cardstock
- hole Punch
- scissors
- Shoe Lace
- Gluestick
- Double Sided Fusible Webbing (I use Steam A Seam 2)
- About 1/8 of a Yard of Fabric (depends on shoe size)
- Knife
- Single fold bias tape
- Glue Gun
- Puffy Paint (optional)

 

Instructions:

1.  Trace your shoe on to the card stock.  Cut out shoe outline and use this first one as a template for the other 4.  Once you have your 5 shoes cut out, set one aside (this one is your backing).

2. Take one of your shoe cutouts and draw little circles evenly spaced down both sides of your shoe top (I pre-draw to make it a little easier to figure out spacing).  Next, use the hole punch to cut them out.  It is okay to bend or fold the cutout to make the holes (you can see in the photo I had to).  Use this first one as a template to repeat the process on the other 3 shoe outlines.  Now glue your outlines together.  Do not worry about them matching up perfectly, this will be hidden.

3. Place your fusible webbing on top of your shoe outlines and then your fabric on top of that.  Trim to fit the shoe outline and press with an iron.

Yours will look like this.

4. Flip over your shoe to the side without the fabric and use a sharp knife to cut an "X" through the holes into the fabric.  Thread your laces through the holes.  I like to make sure mine lay as flat as possible on the underside.

5. Now glue the shoe outline you set aside to the back of the shoe over the laces.  Turn over again so you can see the top of the shoe.

6.  Use a glue gun to add the single fold bias tape to the top of your shoe first and then the back.  If you go slow and do about an inch at a time you can get it to lay nicer.

7.  (Optional Step)  On the back of your shoe, use puffy paint to create fun designs or tread like you find on the bottom of real shoes. 

I hope you will be able to use this tutorial to create some cute practice shoes for your children!