Mom Needs a New Pair of Shoes!

Well, just like the title reads, my mom was complaining about not having comfy shoes to go with her outfit. So, I said, "Why not make some!" Out of can tabs, of course! One day later, here one is:









Strange style for her outfit, I know, but they definitely fit her personality. :) She says they are comfortable, but we will have to field test that at TRF before a true judgement can be made. We need a louder bell, jewel, or charm for the toe.

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As requested, here is a pattern for making a shoe like the one above. This is a simplified version. The original has a left and right side, but I altered it so it would be easier.


To join the two pieces, I tied the ends of the top and bottom toe point together. Then pulled a separate strips of fabric/cord between the two layers on each side of the shoe starting at the top most point. Pull the ends out of the first holes on either side of the top point. Then, start weaving into the next hole of the top layer down thru the bottom layer and then move over a hole on the bottom layer and up thru the same top hole. Then move over to the next top hole going down to the next hole in the bottom layer. Keep repeating this until you reach the last hole of the top layer. Be sure to alway go to a new hole on bottom and the same hole on top to get the curled toe.

When the toe is finished, continue around the shoe to soften the edge and make the opeing smaller. Next, with a new strip start joining the side to the bottom 'til you reach the back. I ran a strip of vertical tabs up the back to hold the two sides together. The last tab should stick up in the back where you could add a lace to tie them around your ankle.

I highly recommend lining the inside with soft fabric for extra cushion.

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The illustration below shows how to create the staggered weave pattern needed to make the shoe.:

New Bodice

Inspiration struct me the other day, so I started one using the corset pattern maker at: http://www.elizabethancostume.net/custompat/index.html. Just wanted to see how accurate the measurements would be with the tabs. Wish I would have found this before I started the first bodice for mom. Much easier. I've also created my own can tab pattern in Adobe Illustrator where I superimposed the tabs over the image created by the online pattern maker. Still working on little tweaks like the spacing, but, now I don't need to guess on the shape. Yeah!! Here is the front so far:



I've removed the AI pattern I posted here. If you would like to acquire it, please pm or email me. Sorry for the inconvenience.

I've been told the style looks like something from the Nutcracker Ballet.

As you can tell in the pic, this horizontal tabs are spaced much to far apart in AI causing it too be to wide. This is actually as good thing because of the stretchiness of the bodice. Anyway, I wanted to try adding variety by making a subtle pattern in the weave by turning the tabs over in places (as you can barely see in the above pic). Didn't show up that well, at first. But, it gave me another idea to run a contrasting cord through the upside-down tabs. More color! Look closely in the far left corner of the bodice in the first pic in this post.

I'm running into some problems with the victorian-style experiment I mentioned because I used nonstretchy shoelaces and weaved them too tight, I think. The lacings under the arms will not line up straight. Argghh!

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Pic from TRF with flat cap hat

Pirate/Cavalier Hat

This hat has evolved a lot since I started it. Originally we wanted a tricorn hat. I used black shoelaces with skull/crossbone print, hence the spotty-look.

Sun hat-style before I pinned up the sides:





Hat at the present moment with Dr. Pepper can flower pinned to side and ostrich feathers:



Here's mom modeling her hat.