How to Make Your Own Pair of Wizard of Oz Ruby Slippers

Fancy living a childhood dream? Like so many other children, I dreamed of wearing a beautiful pair of ruby slippers just like Dorothy’s from the Wizard of Oz. The very sight of them conjures feelings of magic and wonder. At age 22, I had a sudden yearning to finally bring this dream to fruition, and went searching for a pair to buy. Sadly, all I could find were cheap glittered shoes that lacked sparkle, or hand crafted shoes costing hundreds of dollars. So instead, I set out on a magical quest of my own, to create these amazing shoes myself. I was amazed at how easy and satisfying the process was, as well as how well they turned out! Every time I walk out of the house in them, they attract endless comments and stares. Live the dream for yourself with these easy steps!

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Step 1: Materials

One pair of comfortable pumps without embellishments
20m of red strung sequins (also called sequin chain)
Hot glue gun with plenty of spare glue
Ribbons and gems of your choice for extra decoration (I chose glittered ribbon and large red plastic gemstones)

Step 2: Method

Get yourself comfortable and find some movies to marathon, because this is going to take hours .

Step one – Starting from the back seam, draw a short line of hot glue along the base of your shoe (as shown in the picture by green arrows. Only draw a line about as long as one arrow)

Step 3: Method - Cont

Step two – Carefully press the end of the string of sequins onto the glue, minding your fingers because it’s hot! Leave it to set for a few seconds before continuing.

Step three – Continue gluing and pressing sequins in small segments, all around the shoe, until you reach the back seam again.

Step 4: Method - Cont

Step four – Without cutting the sequin chain, continue gluing and pressing another line of sequins above the one you just placed, ensuring that they overlap slightly so that none of the shoe leather shows through.

Step five – Continue with as many rounds as it takes to completely cover your shoe. Be prepared to spend many hours on this. You can also do the heels if you wish.

(Hint: once you’re done, the top edge of the shoe might have a rough and unfinished look. To fix this, I glued another strand of sequins over it to neatly line the shoe edge.)

Step 5: Method - Cont

Step six – Assemble embellishments with a hot glue gun. Here I’ve created bows with glitter ribbon and plastic gemstones.

Step 6: Method - Cont

Step seven – Glue the embellishments in place on your sequinned shoe.

Step eight – Do it all over again with the other shoe!

Step 7: Finished!

Step nine – Leave to completely dry before trying them on, then enjoy your wonderful creations!

The end result are very wearable. Hot glue is flexible, so you’ll never lose your sequins or embellishments when your shoe bends while walking. They’re also very comfortable, although you wouldn’t want to wear them without socks or stockings, as the sequins around the edge can rub against your skin. They should be treated as delicate and formal shoes. After prolonged wear, the colour begins to come off the sequins in areas where your shoes get scuffed, but they honestly hold up much better than I ever expected them to.