Of Pinterest Inspiration, Decoupaged High Heels, and Harry Potter

Sometimes I like to play it a little fast and loose with the Mod Podge. I like crafting. What I lack in skill I make up for in blind enthusiasm and crafty naïveté. Because of this, Pinterest is a dark, dangerous place for me to lurk. Life can be going along at a merry pace when suddenly Pinterest pulls up in a van marked "free candy" or "DIY crafts" and I'm suckered in for the long haul.

Let's be honest, a Pinterest van would look WAY better than this

[photo credit: Randy Stewart via photopin cc; Alterations by Gretchen Stull]

Have you seen the trend of upcyling old high heels by decoupaging them to fit your interests? Pinterest has dozens of examples. We're talking Deadpool, Disney, Doctor Who, and romance novels, to name just a few. As always, my thoughts quickly went from "That's so cool!" to "I can totally do that." And I had just the heels to start with:

Sure, they don't look like much, but these are the heels that taught me to love high heels. The perfect height and as comfortable as a pair of sneakers. I *love* these heels, and it shows--they're beaten to complete hell. So scuffed, I can't wear them anymore. And yet, I couldn't find it within me to part with them. Now, I'm glad I didn't.

Now the next step, what to decoupage them with? I had Mod Podge (I always have Mod Podge), but in terms of subject matter, the options were endless. I have a lot of fandoms. A ridiculous number of beloved nerdy fandoms.What to choose? When in doubt, go with the obvious. Because I had a very batter copy of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone lying around, and because the Harry Potter series will always be a great love of mine, I decided to turn my favorite heels into Harry Potter heels.

After a bit of snipping, a bunch of Mod Podge, and more time than I'd like to admit, here's the end result (excuse the awful lighting):

The uppers I covered with my favorite quotes from the book, overlapping them and securing each layer with a coat of Mod Podge (I could be a spokesperson for this product, I swear. "Change your life, buy Mod Podge!").

For the backs, I used the title and author name from the title page. 

I used an x-acto knife to cut "Harry Potter" from the gold foil embossing on the cover, and attached the name to the toes of the shoes.  

The soles may be my favorite part. I lacquered the bottoms purple, then used images cut from the cover to lay over the lacquering. It may be difficult to see with the glare (we have mainly natural light in my house, which is great for humans, bad for pictures), but it's Harry reaching for the snitch on the left sole, and the snitch zooming in over the words "The Sorcerer's Stone" on the right sole. 

I need to hit them with one last coat of finishing spray, and they'll be ready to wear. I have to say, I'm quite pleased with the results. 

What do you think? Up for decoupaging a pair of your own heels? What subject/fandom should be covered next? How would you improve upon the basic decoupaging scheme (does it include glitter? I bet it includes glitter...)? Let me know in the comments. Happy crafting!