Weekend Making: Fabric Shoelaces

I wanted to pop in and share this fun craft that Jane and I worked on over the weekend. She had a birthday party for two friends to attend and I suggested that we make shoelaces for the girls to go along with the gift cards we bought them. I used this tutorial by Liesl Gibson found on the Lisette blog (she also shows how to make them on Creativebug). They were super straight forward to make, easy and fast. Win, win, win! The aglets (that's the word for the little ends on shoelaces) were made with washi tape and nail polish. In Liesl's tutorial, she used clear polish, but Jane wanted to add a little bling, so we went metallic. Jane asked me to make a pair for her, too. That girl has some good taste...she specifically asked if I had any Liberty florals she could choose from. Uh, yes, I do.

A couple of notes if you make these:

- 48" is a good length for adult sized Converse low tops, and 54" is what you need for most high tops. For kid sized shoes, it's probably best to measure the lace that comes with the shoe.

- You need to use a lightweight fabric. Quilting cotton is a good option, but so is voile and lawn. Small prints look the best.

- You will have to piece your fabric if you are using traditional quilting cotton (40" to 44" in width). For the pairs we gave as gifts (not shown), I pieced 3 widths of fabric together, did the sewing, and then cut the laces to 48" from the one longer strip. With Jane's Liberty laces, one 54" width trimmed to 48" was sufficient for each lace.

- I found cutting the fabric with my rotary cutter and ruler left me fewer strings to deal with than tearing the fabric did.

- I found it easiest to sew the laces shut when I moved the sewing machine needle all the way to the left and sewed along the right edge of the lace. This placed the shoelace right over the feed dogs and kept it under the presser foot.

- We put 3 coats of nail polish on each tip to make sure that the tape would stay put and to ensure a nice hard finish.

I bet I will be making a lot more shoelaces soon...I'm thinking birthday party favors, stocking stuffers, etc. I think they would also make super cute "ribbon" to tie on a present.

Comments

[Mama Urchin]

These are really cute and a great way to customize a pair of shoes. We may have to try this soon. I bet even boys would like them with a stripe.

[Kelly]

WOW! How did I never even think of this possibility? Thanks for the inspiration as always!

[Molly]

alright those are BEYOND AWESOME!!! please pass my excellent taste award on to ms. jane. liberty laces? um, yes, please!!

[Allyson]

Love, love, love these! I just bought some boring white laces for my Converse sneakers. I'm going to have to make a few sets of these instead. What fun!

[sue turner]

Know what I will be doing with the granddaughters ....Thanks.

[melissa]

Hi!
I'm so glad that you said "hello" on my blog! I never realized you were in Louisville also! I saw on your sidebar that you wrote a book with Stash books... congrats!! I just finished a sewing book with Stash to come out next year... we should try to get together sometime to promote them... might be fun!

[Brigit Dermott]

Thanks for sharing your hints on this pattern! I saw it on the oliver and s blog but was a little daunted--making shoe laces?!? Seeing how pretty yours are is inspiring.

[Dawn Suzette]

Thanks for sharing these. They are too cool! My hiker laces are about to fall apart; I think some new floral laces for the trail is just what they need!

[Amy]

My girls will love this!!!