Introduction: Old Man Shoes Made From Cardboard

About: I love to reuse things in a way they weren't intended for use. I call my reused items INFUSEDgoods.

here's how I made some shoes from cardboard, I like the look of old man shoes so that's the look I tried to achieve

Step 1: Supplies and Tools

I used:
cereal and cracker box cardboard (I needed a little more than once pictured in my supplies pic)  4 boxes should be enough
pencil
white glue
scissors 
small hole punch
paper cutter (used at the end of the project)


Step 2: Trace Feet and Cut Out Soles

trace each foot, I did with socks on since I want to wear them with socks  :)

don't trace them too small you want a little extra space around your foot if you plan to put them on and wear them

cut them out and place them back to back to insure they are about the same size and shape if you need to trim them a little do that now

Step 3: Making the Heel & Some of the Top

for the heel I used the two flaps from the top of a cereal box, the tabs on them work well for the heel

for the middle part of the shoe I drew a 3 lines on vertical and 2 at a slight diagonal lines (see the photo, it looks like an upside down Y)

Cut out the square around those lines and them cut on those lines, then trace those pieces for the other shoe

When making the pieces for the shoes, I worked in 3rds and I wanted them all to overlap a little.  


Step 4: More Parts of the Shoe

to pattern out the toe/top part of the shoe, lay out the middle part to see how far you need the toe part to come down.  You want the toe area and middle parts to overlap.  Trace the toe part from the sole piece on a separate piece of cardboard.  When cutting them out leave about 1/2 an inch around the tracing. (see photos)

for the rest of the toe part I used to side pieces from a cracker box.

next rip all the labels/printed parts of the cardboard, except the sole piece you want that one to be thicker and ridged.  Start to separate it with a finger nail and peel it all off.  This makes the cardboard a little more pliable.



Step 5: Putting It Together - First the Heel

trim the two heal pieces to be the same size and shape, they should be at least 2 tabs fold those and then glue them to the sole.  Curve them with the curve of the sole.

Step 6: Putting It Together - the Middle

lay out the middle pieces angling them out just a bit and
making sure they slide under the heel piece a little so they can be glued together later

glue them and let dry

Step 7: Putting It Together - the Toe

Cut slots in the pieces used from the sides of a box see in the photo how the slots are cut different lengths.  They are cut in a curve.

Now cut slots in the pieces traced from the soles (see the photo) (cut them pretty small it will glue together better) Fold those tabs as show in the photo and erase the pencil lines so they don't show up on your shoes

Glue those 2 pieces together they should fit together if there are enough slots cut.  As they dry it's best to hold them face down on a hard surface (see photo)

Let dry



Step 8: Punching Holes and Attaching the Toe

Punch small holes for shoe laces or just for the look (see 1st 2 photos)

tie a thin strip of cardboard (or something else) to hold the middle together while you and the toe piece

Glue the toe on to the sole piece.  Once glued lay it on a flat surface and put a hand inside to hold it down till it dries a little.

Step 9: Touching Up

crease the sides of the middle of the shoes to fit well into the toe part.  

Trim any parts that are sticking out.

Glue the toe part to the middle part and glue the middle part to the heel.

Let dry

Step 10: Adding Some Sole :)

use a piece of cardboard without creases and cut it into 1/2inch strips that are about 7-12 inches long (this is best with a paper cutter)
I used 22 of these but it depends on your weight how many you'd need to hold you 

after they are cut roll them up tight and the let go, they will unroll some and that's ok

glue them to the bottom of the shoes putting most of them under the heel area and toe area (see photos)

Let dry OVERNIGHT

one last optional step, so after they dry overnight you can wear them the next day!  



Step 11: Optional Step

if you want tongues for your shoes cut out a shapes like in the photo and glue or tape them in

Step 12: Enjoy and Wear

put them on or take fun photos