As much as i hate to admit, there are occasions that require sneaker type shoes… and in the past, i’ve been rather ill prepared. So i’ve been slowly trying to add some more practical shoes to my collection.
And as things often go, I had a specific idea of what i wanted in my head, and couldn’t find it. So I DIYed it!
Here’s how:
I started with a very plain pair of canvas shoes from H&M ($7). I dyed them from brand new, because I didn’t want there to be any dirt on them when i dyed them (if you try dying something with a stain or dirt on it, the stained/dirty part won’t dye).
Then I experimented with some scraps of white canvas till i found the perfect colour combo i wanted. I used the RIT formula guide quite a bit to figure out my starting point. Finally I decided on a mix of 1/8 cup of petal pink liquid dye plus 1/16 cup taupe liquid dye, and 2 gallons of boiling water. I soaked the shoes for a good 1/2 hour, then rinsed them well (by hand, then in my washing machine), and air dried. Once dried I replaced the laces with ribbon and I was good to go!
Now, you’re probably wondering about the soles. How are they still white? Well here’s the thing. Some plastics and rubber will take dye and others won’t. I got lucky that this particular sole didn’t hold dye, so stayed white. If you have a shoe thats sole holds dye, you can either let it dye, or you can cover it up in some why to stop the dye seeping in. I would try masking tape, or cover the exposed edge of the sole with kids liquid glue (like Elmars, you know the kind that if you paint it on your hand you can peel it off?), then you should be able to peel it off later.
