DIY Espadrilles – I Made My Own Shoes!
I’m so excited to share these DIY espadrilles I finally finished! This post is not a DIY tutorial like my usual posts, but a walk (pun intended!) through the process and what I learned along the way. I hope you enjoy my silly story-telling and inspire you to make something you can wear!
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Products Featured
DIY Espadrilles Kit – This awesome kit includes everything you need to make your own espadrilles minus the fabric. You can find other kits with fabric in Melissa’s shop!
Boba print fabric – Charlotte Winter’s Mini Boba Tea fabric in Navy. Spoonflower has a bunch of other fun boba prints here! Remember to pay attention to the scale of the fabric to ensure it is visible on your shoe.
Rainbow stripe fabric – Hello!Lucky for Robert Kaufman Fabrics. I was unable to find the exact fabric online, so here are some other rainbow striped options: pastel rainbow stripe and mini rainbow stripe.
Fiskars 24″x36″ Fashion Cutting MatSave this pin!
The Back Story
In April I took a DIY espadrilles class at Craftcation, a craft conference in Ventura, California. Melissa Quaal was the instructor and is the owner of A Happy Stitch, where she sews a mindful wardrobe and sells a variety of DIY shoe kits called The Espadrilles Kit. I was so excited I got into her class and was thrilled to find out I could pick my OWN fabric! After consulting with Melissa online, I found that I could use linen cotton canvas from Spoonflower for the shoe outsole.
Finding the Boba Print Fabric on Spoonflower
I scoured the Spoonflower website for the perfect fabric and when I found it, I knew it was THE ONE! In case you were wondering, I love boba and rainbows! I ordered a fat quarter and when it arrived I was so impressed by the quality. The fabric was thick and the colorful boba print was as vibrant as the photos online. Life got busy so I didn’t plan for the lining of my soon-to-be shoes. I figured I would just show up to the class and cross my fingers that something might match. If not, it was only the inside of the shoe and not the end of the world right?
Finding the Rainbow Stripe Lining Fabric
A few weeks later I was headed to Craftcation with my square of fabric packed and ready for the workshop. When the class began, Melissa gave us some instructions and told us to find our fabric on the cart provided by Fabric.com. Well it just so happens when I went to the cart to look for my lining fabric (with my boba print fabric in hand), I immediately locked my eyes on this bright rainbow-striped cotton print. I had to do a double take because not only were the colors MY colors and reminded me of my rainbow striped wall, they also happened to PERFECTLY MATCH the boba print fabric I had! What are the chances?! I’m convinced the universe had my back that day!
DIY Espadrilles Workshop
We spent the first half of the workshop prepping and sewing the upper part of the shoes. I felt like I was back in summer sewing class, except we had baller Husqvarna sewing machines and almost everyone seemed to already know how to sew! The second half of the workshop was spent sewing the upper part of the shoes onto the jute soles with a blanket stitch. This was probably the hardest part about making the espadrilles for me. Poking a needle through the sides of the jute soles required a lot of force (I’m no muscle woman!) and if I’m honest, a few needle stabs. I proudly left the workshop with a completed left shoe in hand and vowed I would finish the right shoe once I got home. Spoiler alert: I didn’t!
Finishing The Right Shoe
When I got home I spent a few weeks recovering from the conference. Apparently all the socializing and presentations (I taught a few workshops myself) drained my battery! Soon enough I was back to working on other projects and my left shoe and remaining supplies got tossed in my unfinished projects pile only to be forgotten.
Then in July I remembered them and decided I needed find the courage and motivation to tackle the right shoe. Well, guess what? I DID IT!! And it was so much easier and faster the second time around with a few modifications. Even sewing the fabric upper to the jute sole was somehow less painful than I had remembered!
Lessons I Learned
1. Modifications Are Okay!
For the right shoe I completed at home, I used some modifications for sewing the upper part to the sole. I found that using shorter pins to hold the upper fabric in place was easier for me. I also used multiple finger grips to help me better grip the needle and figured out a technique where I used the top of my table to push the needle into the sole. I love that I was able to find these simple solutions right in my craft room. Sometimes all we need is a little creative problem-solving to find out what works best for us!
2. We Can Do Hard Things if We Change Our Mindset
Sometimes things feel hard because we make them up to be harder than they actually are! By constantly putting off what we believe will be hard, we risk losing the momentum needed to complete a task or reach a goal. In fact, Elizabeth Gilbert talks about something similar in her book Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear. She encourages readers to ride that wave of inspiration the first time it hits, because that specific idea or spark of inspiration might never come again. I’m so glad I mustered up the courage to finally complete my second shoe! In fact, now I want to make another pair…maybe in pink next time? 😉
3. Making and Wearing Things I’ve Made Bring Me Joy
It’s been a while since I have actually sewn something I can wear. I’ve only taken these DIY espadrilles on a spin in my craft room so far, and it still felt so special! It reminded me of the pride I used to feel when I was kid modeling the dresses I sewed myself at 4-H fashion shows. Now I’m curious how sewing more things in my wardrobe would make me feel. Would I feel more confident? Joyful? I love the idea of owning one-of-a-kind pieces I can say I made myself. I also wonder what it would be like to design my own fabric. Wouldn’t that be cool? If you’re someone who sews their own clothes or designs fabrics I would love to hear from you! Where do you find the best sewing patterns? How did you learn to design?
In the meantime I’ll be planning my next boba run outfit around these shoes!
I love my new espadrilles!
If you want to make your own espadrilles, check out A Happy Stitch!
If you love boba too, try my boba tea plant pot tutorial.
