First off, I have to say what a delight it's been to see all of the entries. Such variety & creativity! Now, here's mine...SHOES!!!!
I have been wanting to make rope-soled shoes for a couple of years now, so this hardware store challenge was a good opportunity to give it a try. I'm especially happy with the way the soles turned out, after a few false starts. Once I got the right thread, laying out and stitching up the soles was that meditative kind of fun that knitting usually is for me. Then there were the tops
....using Screen mesh was really interesting, but my next pair will have woven or knitted tops.
Lots of work-in-progress pics for your viewing pleasure:
The screen and rope cost about $8 US total, because I had to buy a huge package of the screen mesh.
This is actually the 2nd sole - I had the first sole T-pinned onto a bench. Once I knew where the first bends were for the toe and heel areas, I was able to remove the rope from the bench, then stitching the soles together was quite a bit easier.
Here's the first sole, pinned down, and me struggling to find a thread-like substance that would work with the rope. I first tried stripping off thinner pieces of the rope, then I tried fishing line, and at one point even dental floss. I finally settled on some green stuff i found in my beading supplies. Having a contrasting color really helped me see what I was doing.
A finished sole!
Sides and toecap have been pinned in place and just need to be sewed on.
I usually wear my espadrilles sock-less...these look weird (can't decide if it's in a good or bad way) because of their see-thru-ness, I think.
Right foot
Left foot.
Enough left over rope-wise for a few more pair... I think I will do other things with the screen mesh, though.
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