Art Gallery Fabrics - The Creative Blog

Hey everyone! Hope everyone is have an amazing day. If you’ve been checking out AGF’s social media lately, you’ve probably noticed we’ve been sharing tons of exciting news. From the launch of Pat Bravo’s recent collection, Artisan, to the release of our new substrate Canvas, and last but not least the full reveal of our fall 2015 Fabric Collections. Feel free to take a deep breath and soak in all the inspiration!

As if things couldn’t get better, it happens to be National Sewing Month (even though it’s always sewing month for us ◠‿◠). Hence, we’ve been happy to feature many talented sewists that have made beautiful projects with AGF (Check out our Facebook for all the projects). It’s like we’re living in a sewing paradise!

To keep your inspiration buds tingling, here is a tutorial that uses one of my favorite prints from the Artisan Collection in CANVAS. If you have some old shoes that you would like to update or simply want to customize a new pair, this simple tutorial is perfect for you.

Here is what you will need:

• A pair of plain ballerina flats (Heels or sneakers can work but take in consideration the difficulty level.)
• Your favorite AGF Canvas (I used Collar Ends Bronze from the Artisan Collection.)
• Outdoor/Exterior Modge Podge
• Paint sponges
• Pencil
• X-acto knife
• Scissors

*Measure the length of your shoes to determine the amount of fabric you will need. I wear 5.5 sized shoes, therefore a fat quarter was enough to cover both of my tiny shoes.

Step 1:

Fold your large piece of fabric and cut it in half. You should have two separate pieces of fabric for each shoe. Lay the fabric on a flat surface, wrong side up and place the shoe on the fabric. Roughly measure 3 to 4 inches from each side of the shoe and mark the fabric. Draw an oval to connect the marks and cut out the oval. Repeat steps for the second shoe.

Step 2:

Thoroughly cover the top half of your shoe with Modge Podge.

Step 3:

Carefully place the fabric over the top half of the shoe and press down so that the fabric sticks to the shoe in the area with the Modge Podge. I recommend slightly stretching the fabric over the shoe as you place it to avoid wrinkles or air bubbles.

Step 4:

Once the top half of the shoe has been covered, cut the fabric down the middle to the area of shoe where the inside begins. This will allow you to evenly cover the sides of the shoe.

Step 5:

Cover the remaining half of the shoe with Modge Podge and continue smoothing out the fabric over the shoe. Once the fabric is firmly placed, carefully cut the remaining fabric to the edge of the shoe with the X-Acto knife or scissors.

Step 6:

Now that the whole shoe is covered in fabric, measure about ½ in from the inner edge of the shoe and cut the excess inner fabric.

Steps 7 & 8:

Lightly add Modge Podge to the inner edge of the shoe and cut small slits into the excess fabric. Fold down the little slits into the shoe and firmly press down.

Step 9:

Finally, coat the shoe with Modge Podge to seal it. Let it dry for 24hrs and add a second layer of Modge Podge. Repeat steps 1-9 for the second shoe.

Voila! Here is the final product of the flats covered in canvas. I wanted to add a girly detail, so I made little bows from the left over fabric scraps. 

Hope you all enjoyed this tutorial! Feel free to show us your version of canvas covered shoes and any other projects you’ve made with AGF. As always, stay creative and thanks for inspiring.

Happy crafting!

XoXo,

Stephanie