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Hello! I'm Suzannah, a serious DIYer and mom of two little ones. Follow along with my DIY fixer upper house renovations, sewing and crafty projects, real food recipes, and de-stressing goals.
I believe you can love your home just the way it is, AND have the power to design and make big changes to make it better.
I'm also the author of DIY Wardrobe Makeovers!

Update on the spray paint shoes

Last week, before we took our (first round of) engagement photos (yay!! Can't wait to share them with you (here!)), I spray-painted a cheap pair of heels out of desperation and longing for colorful pumps.  You can read the story here, since they did go through several colors and revisions.

Some of you had tips and questions for me, thanks!!  About the success of the spray-paint job... well, it was partial.  No, they did not stain my feet!  Once the paint is dry it is about as dry as it comes, and does not scrape off at all--one of spray paint's best and worst qualities.  I just used regular ol' spray paint, Valspar brand for one of them, store brand in the red.  Then, I decided I wanted another color, so I bought some coral spray paint and painted them again.  They then had four coats of paint/primer on them, which may have contributed to the only problem that I encountered...

A little chipping.  They were great for the pictures, and I would totally do it again.  But now that I've worn them, they do show a few little signs of cracking and chipping.  See?

Just a few places where the white of the original shows through.  My first thought?  That primer did squat. If you try this at home, you can skip the primer.  I don't think it helped at all.

Also, I'm pretty sure this would have gone better on a shoe of a different material.  These things are cheap-o vinyl, and I think just about any other shoe type would work better.  Leather, even, if you got them cheaply and didn't mind painting them, or fabric.  Cheap fabric faux suede or anything with a nap might look weird, but canvas or twill would probably look fine.  And, you'll remember I have spray-painted leather shoes before, but then I covered the painted part in Mod Podge and glitter (see here).

More on the engagement pictures when I get them back from my photographer! (Update: see them here!)

8 comments

  1. maybe you could try the special plastic spray paint? it's not supposed to chip on flexible plastic, so i think it would probably work the same on vinyl.

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  2. how cute, I love the coral and can't wait to see your pics!

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  3. LOVE that coral color! Great choice.

    skinnyorbustin52.blogspot.com

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  4. Reminds me of my parents wedding. My mother told me that she took an old pair of shoes that were comfortable and painted them white for the wedding day. No sore feets!

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  5. Very interesting! The color is adorable, would definitely consider doing this for a special event.

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  6. If you're looking for a spray-on fabric paint check out: http://www.fabricspraypaint.com

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  7. Claire2/07/2011

    I love this idea! I work with theatre costumes and we paint shoes all the time, but I've never applied the idea to my own shoes! - have you ever used the spray paints that are made for leather shoes? They sell them at shoe repair shops and come in a variety of colors. You can also use flexible paints meant for leather, like the ones from Tandy and Angelus. They have a wide variety at Manhattan Wardrobe (www.wardrobesupplies.com/store/angelus_paint.html)

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  8. Good call! Vinyl paint for vinyl shoes or leather paint for leather shoes would work best...

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