Baby Shoes

I finally got around to making a little pair of shoes for Elise! I look at the tiny shoes for sale at Babies R'Us and have been tempted to buy some but, adorable as they are, I just can't do it. Almost $20 for shoes that will fit for maybe a couple months? No thanks!

But I do have several baby shoe patterns and piles of fabric so I'm going to make her a few pairs instead. And let's face it...homemade ones seem a lot more comfy for her little feet than the stiff shoes in the store. That's what I tell myself, anyway...   :)

I found a small chunk of black corduroy and used black flannel for the inside lining. I wanted to make Elise a pair of Mary Jane-type shoes to start with. The only problem was I didn't have a pattern for those in her size. A different pattern looked like it would work, so I found the 3-6 month size and tweaked it a little to make the top a different shape. Etsy is my new favorite place to look at patterns. I've found some really cute baby patterns that are inexpensive and super easy to make. And baby shoes are great--they're so small they only take a few minutes to sew!

So my new 'design' worked out okay. I couldn't decide how I wanted the straps to look so I ended up leaving them off and tried something different. Mom gave me a huge bag of buttons last summer and there were a few black flowered ones that were the perfect size. I sewed a button on both sides of each shoe, then used black elastic to stretch across as the strap.

Done! And they actually fit Elise's feet really well. Although when I tried to get a picture of her wearing them she started curling her toes so they look a little awkward here...





I want to make her a few more pairs--different styles and colors for this summer. Will post more pics later!