diy: tribal print flats

I've been in need of a healthy outlet for my tribal-print obsession, so I went crazy on a pair of old flats.  These shoes had served me very well, and I like having neutral flats at my disposal, but the leather finish was on its last legs.  Here's what I came up with:

Notes on this DIY after the jump!


These Lucky Brand wedges served as my inspiration:

I chose to use a similar pattern, alternating two basic patterns: stripes and checkerboard.  Although I generally fear drawing, sticking to these patterns made this project really easy.

Materials:

- A pair of old flats
- Rubbing alcohol
- Tape
- A permanent black marker (I ended up needing another to finish the second shoe)

I diluted some alcohol with water and cleaned the surfaces of both shoes well.

To be safe, I used tape to mark one width and then started drawing the first pattern.  After taping off a couple sections like this, I was comfortable enough with the patterns to go freehand.

Tips:

- Start on the inside surface of the shoes.  If you eff up in the initial stages, it'll be in a less noticeable area.
- If you don't want to freehand all the way, you can sketch out each pattern section with light dotted lines and draw over them later.
- Try using short, distinct strokes, rather than long, continuous lines.  With patterns like these, imperfect lines should end up looking good, so don't worry too much about unevenness.  You can always go back and fill in sparse or really wonky lines/shapes.
- Experiment as you go.  Use the fine point and flat sides of your marker for different effects, and vary the width and angle of each pattern section.
- Don't wig out if you mess up part of the pattern.  As simple as a checkerboard pattern is, I managed to draw two black squares next to each other (check it out towards my heel below).  Dah.  No worries, though - I just decided that would be part of the new pattern.
- Don't be sniffing marker fumes!  Get some air.

This is a very easy project, but it takes some time and is a little repetitive, so have your favorite jams/podcasts/audiobooks ready to go!  (Working on these while listening to my favorite Spanish learning podcast = productivity central.)

Enjoy!  More marker-related DIYs to come.