Tue 23 Sep 2008
Style on the cheap: Shoe Customization
Category: Daily Outfit, How To, Me, Reviews, Shoes
Sandal to scandal: Nine West shoes, reworked by me
The easiest way to have a unique wardrobe on the cheap is to customize it yourself. You don’t have to be a skilled seamstress to do this either; as long as you know how to hold a needle in your hand, you can do it! Clothing customization is quite common - but what about shoes? I decided to try my hand at re-inventing a pair of sandals I got from Nine West, to see what comes out of it.
I am in love with the metallic purple accents and the overall shape of the shoe, but wasn’t feeling the wooden heel - it’s not very me. Mercifully, I had some bright blue paint left over from my Closet->Dollhouse apartment makeover!
Painted heel: much better! Bag from Geminola
I covered the parts I didn’t want any paint on with a masking tape and painted the heel with a small brush. The result: distinct look worthy of high-end designers, for next to nothing!
Want even more zing? Try adding a pair of socks that complement the shoe (I got these on sale for $3.99 at Payless).
Perfecto!
Nine West Platform Sandal Review
out of 5
Might as well do a shoe review. :) These are quite tall - 5″ heel can turn even a midget like me into a giantess! (Ok, an average-sized human.) Although these are pretty comfortable, I wouldn’t recommend walking long distances in them due to the narrowing platform (can be a tad unstable). I did make it to the city and back in them just fine, and didn’t even trip once! (But a few construction workers may have. ;))
The Outfit
Photography: Grenouille
The remarkable thing about this outfit is that most of it was thrifted. I am a firm believer that one doesn’t need to spend a fortune to look stylish. The opposite is true as well: no amount of money can buy you a good taste!
- Denim jacket: vintage (like you couldn’t tell by how faded it is, haha)
- Pins: authentic Soviet from Russia! In my opinion, they make the jacket.
- Tank top: Love Is… (my favorite comic. The ‘rejected’ ones are pure hilarity!)
- Skirt: no-name brand, made in Africa?!
- Persian cats & dogs tote: thrifted
- Shoes: Nine West
- Socks: Payless
Deerlings: how often do you frequent thrift stores/flea markets/garage sales? What sort of things do you look out for and is there anything you wouldn’t buy second-hand?
29 Responses to “ Style on the cheap: Shoe Customization ”
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September 23rd, 2008 at 1:45 pm
I really have to be in the right frame of mind to rummage through piles and rails of vintage but I do adore finding something with history behind it, I picked up a gorgeous embroided electric blue cashmere mix jumper from a charity shop which is in a size like XXXXXXXXXXXXXL or something so I wear it as a dresss with my mums leather vintage waist belt. Love the outfit bytheway, and the new lease of life with the shoes is amazing :D xx
September 23rd, 2008 at 1:45 pm
I love to do shoe customization! Talking about a pair that I did was one of my first blog posts -
http://shoedaydreams.blogspot.com/2007/07/shoe-customization.html
I also changed up a really cheap (in many senses of the word) pair of heels -
http://shoedaydreams.blogspot.com/2008/07/shoe-customization.html
I love the color scheme on yours… and the Russin pins!
Luv
Poochie
September 23rd, 2008 at 1:48 pm
beautiful!
September 23rd, 2008 at 1:50 pm
i just did something similar. i painted the under sole of all my shoes with beige underneath red. yet i didn’t get the quality you got. which kind of paint did you use and how many coats?
September 23rd, 2008 at 1:58 pm
I love fleamarkets! Every year there are three big fleamarkets and I drive about two hours with my car to go there.
I always look for old jewelry(like from old ladys, they have the best stuff!) and for some vintage tableware.
September 23rd, 2008 at 2:06 pm
I used to have a wardrobe that was mostly thrifted items but now, not so much. My partner in crime works at a thrift store and luckily for me he’ll usually pick me up anything he thinks I might be into - saves me rummaging around in those endless racks!
Now I mostly thrift for home decor!
I love how well the socks and shoes match! And those pins do indeed make the jacket! Very nice!
September 23rd, 2008 at 2:17 pm
There is this store down the street from me that you would love. It is called the Garment District, and is broken up into two halves. On the upper story is a hipster/ rockibilly style clothing store with medium priced clothing from band t-shirts to 80s prom dresses.
However, on the first story is a huge dump of clothes that you can wade through and take home by the bag! They cost a uniform $1.50 per pound of material (only 1 dollar on Fridays) and though most of the stuff is dreadful, there are always some gems hidden in.
I love consignment shops! I would buy nearly anything second-hand, with the exception of under garments and dirty normal clothes.
September 23rd, 2008 at 2:38 pm
♣ Princess Poochie
Ahh so cute! Especially loved the ‘glitter’ idea!
♣ Bianca
I used regular paint they use for walls, although not the shiny kind - flat. Got it at Lowe’s. I would love to see a picture of your red-soled heels! You seem to be really into red. It suits you :)
September 23rd, 2008 at 2:47 pm
OH MY GOD! LOVE IS…
!!!!!! Then gum was delicious with the “vkladyshi,” where’d you get the shirt?!
September 23rd, 2008 at 3:00 pm
I *love* customizing shoes! My favourite way to do this is to go to Salvation Army or Goodwill and find a NEW pair of heels - you’d be surprised how many BRAND NEW things you can find at thrift stores! I walk around the store in them to make sure they’re comfortable, then I buy them for usually around $8 (can’t get better than that!) and change them to fit my style =] Fabric paint and grommet-holes are my favourite decorations.
September 23rd, 2008 at 3:33 pm
LOVE THEM!!!!!!!!!!
Oh man I customized a pair of pink Neon shoes a while back, I couldn’t find paint to cover the wooden heel and platform, so I used Nail polish, they look so ghetto now but It lasted for a while :3
Girl, I love your use of color let me know when you launch your makeup line.
September 23rd, 2008 at 3:59 pm
Hey Doe Deere! Can you write a tutorial on your hair? I love the starlet look mixed in with the colorful outfit :)
September 23rd, 2008 at 4:06 pm
Those shoes look amazing now, very Patricia Field or Betsey Johnson. I really dig your style, it’s hyphy with a little bit of indie incorporated. I normally don’t like hyphy, but you show that wearing hyphy doesn’t have to be sleazy. Kudos to you!
September 23rd, 2008 at 4:08 pm
You look stunning. Love the shoes. I mostly go to thrift store for nostalgic items, like knick knacks and old movies and toys, but I do look at the clothes as well of course. My favorite thing to do is get “ugly” or off the wall stuff.. haha.. just a couple weeks ago I got a purple leopard shirt and a red and black zebra fur skirt! The shirt is really cute, the skirt is a little trashy looking but if you’re classy you can make trashy look classy. :-D
September 23rd, 2008 at 4:17 pm
Xenia, this is the best i’ve ever seen you. Your hair looks fantastic styled like this (wayyyy better than the pigtails!) These pictures reminds me of oldoldold school Britney Spears or Christina Aguilera photos. Very bubblegum pop princess.
http://www.mpfree.com/otherimg/8_5_05Spears.jpg
http://www.boreme.com/media/yr2007/young-aguilera-1-1.jpg
September 23rd, 2008 at 5:02 pm
you made those shoes 5000% more outstanding. BRAVO!
September 23rd, 2008 at 5:26 pm
♣ Ivannananana
Omg, yes! I can’t believe someone else knows about the bubblegum!!! I loooved that bubble gum so much, when I went back to visit in 2002 I looked ALL OVER for it - and found a whole lot of nothing. My friend shrugged, “Since when do we not have Love Is…?” - she didn’t even notice the gum disappeared from the newsstands (lar’ki).
I found the shirt at Salvation Army in brand new condition. Such wonderful memories it brings…
♣ Annie
Very true - I’ve found dozens of brand new items at thriftshops as well. Excellent idea to thrift shoes for customization! :)
♣ Kittie
Sure, I can try. :)
♣ Champagneetnovacaine
Just looked up the word ‘hyphy’. Learn something new every day. :)
♣ SammyDoll
Thank you darling! You sure know your audience! ;)
September 23rd, 2008 at 6:05 pm
I swear you are too cute for words. I would love to bump into you in the city one day. I heart you so much :)
September 23rd, 2008 at 6:10 pm
Ooo nicely done! And the second to last photo is a gorgeous shot.
I don’t generally bother with second hand shops here. The UK just doesn’t seem to get that idea but at least round here there is no point looking apart for finding good books. And then in London there are the vintage shops that cash in on the whole Sienna Miller/Kate Moss “Oh look they’re wearing vintage how in!” (sorry did that sound bitter? I can’t stand those two!) and they charge prices way over the top for really beat up clothes.
September 23rd, 2008 at 8:09 pm
I thrift at least once a week. Theres definitely a routine to it now. Checking out the bags and shoes first. The case where they keep what they think are valuables. Dresses. And as of late furniture and knick knacks. I love thrifting.
September 23rd, 2008 at 8:29 pm
Those shoes are just.. wow. The blue and purple together are amazing.
I’m always in resale/thrift/secondhand stores. My grandma owns an awesome little resale store, so I always get clothes from there and find things to sale in it.
I tend to venture away from them more, though, when it comes to shoes and, especially, panties/bras. I’m a little (ok, reallyREALLY) weird when it comes to wearing shoes that someone else has worn and someone trying to wear mine. hehe
September 23rd, 2008 at 8:55 pm
Wow the blue heel is fantastic, looks much better then the old wooden one that’s for sure!
And I love your denim jacket here, I can never find the perfect one :(
September 23rd, 2008 at 11:02 pm
Wow, they look beautiful. I love the effect of the socks, too - it makes them look as though they have a super-thick band across the top.
Craftster (a truly awesome site) has an entire board dedicated to shoe modification:
http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?board=241.0 there’s some great, inspiring stuff on there.
I love thrifted (or op-shop, as we call it in australia) clothes, and actually find it’s the only way to find well made clothing for under $200. Op-shops in country towns are the best - I just got a swag of gorgeous old clothes (about 6 shirts - one pure silk - two dresses, a belt, a gorgeous 30’s style cardigan and a mohair scarf) for a grand total of $24! *sigh* I wish they were still that cheap in the city!
September 23rd, 2008 at 11:12 pm
I love your style so much! And I remember the ‘Love is…’ bubblegum as well. I still have a couple of pictures that came with it :)
Thrift shopping is awesome, but a bit time-consuming because you usually have to go through 3894803482 bad things to find one good piece of cloth. But it’s usually worth it!
September 23rd, 2008 at 11:43 pm
My favorite kind of shopping is at thrift stores/garage sales. You can find the most unique items, and that’s precisely what I look for. I’m always on the look out for things that are strange or new to me that I can really make a statement with. I think resourceful fashion is more fun, and it definitely takes a creative eye. :D
September 24th, 2008 at 3:10 am
I just saw the “Love is…” shirt. I love those comics, they are in the tvguide my grandmother has. They are so cute^___^
September 24th, 2008 at 2:33 pm
Dear Doe,
How are you styling your hair? It’s so gorgeous in these photos! Are you blow drying? What kind of styling products are you using? Do you use a curler or anything?
Thanks,
A.
September 24th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
I hit thrift stores if I’m in the mood to rummage…I usually look for tops and pants and sometimes bags. I love looking through antique stores for 1960’s-80’s jewelry (my FAVORITE!)
also yard sales for vintage home decor and jewelry. I draw the line at used undies and socks, though.
check out these AWESOME boots I found at a yard sale for $0.50!!!
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3212/2775500682_96a222d488.jpg
December 22nd, 2008 at 2:41 am
Hm,this is kind of an old story, but I must comment anyway!
I remember one of my old 6th grade teachers, and his wife had the greatest names: Mr. White, and she kept her name, becoming Mrs. Black. It was great!