MaryJane Slipper Socks {tutorial}

Have you seen these cute little slippers at Old Navy?

Super cute, right?

I saw them there as I was standing in line a few weeks ago. But instead of being like a normal person and saying, "Those are cute and $5 and I should buy some," I said to myself, "Those are cute and $5 and I can make them myself." And, I think I did a pretty good job:

obviously my photography skills are not quite as good, however...

Yes, I created an Old Navy knock-off. I am THAT cheap. Call me frugal if you like, but even this quiz tells me I'm frugal-bordering-cheap. What can I say -- I live on the edge. ;)

Actually, I don't think it's the cheap side of my personality that spurred this creation. It's the "I can make that" side of my personality. The two often partner for their crimes, however. The many, many crimes they commit...

But, I digress... back to the slipper socks. So, yes, I am cheap. I thought I could make a pair from a single pair of the dollar store fuzzy chenille type socks, but I underestimated the finickity (also called finickyness, just in case you were confused) of chenille material, especially dollar store chenille material.

Apparently chenille is a social character because it is much more manageable (at least for me) when there are two of it of them layers. Thus, one pair of maryjane slipper socks requires two pairs of dollar store chenille socks. But, even though that doubles the cost of the slipper socks it also gives them added value... so you CAN'T buy these in a store anywhere!*

*including, possibly, the original single-layer ones at Old Navy. And good luck finding chenille socks at the dollar store this time of year, too. I bought mine before the Christmas rush and now I can't find any more, at any dollar store, anywhere. 

So, without further ado, I present to you the Yes I'm That Cheap BUT They Have Added Value MaryJane Slipper Socks Tutorial. (It's a working title...)

I'm trying out a new thing here, using a jump break so that my looong but detailed tutorials are a bit more manageable, especially for those of you using feed readers. Let me know what you think. :) (If you're coming straight to this post, you won't see anything special here. Except for my awesome maryjane slipper socks tutorial, of course.)

MaryJane Slipper Socks
for personal, non-commercial use only

What you'll need:

• 2 pairs of inexpensive fuzzy chenille socks
• 2 small buttons
• Sewing supplies: sewing machine, needle and thread, writing tool

What you'll do:
1. Remove the socks from their packaging and put one on your pretty little foot.

2. Using a writing tool of some sort (such as a marker), make a few marks like the blue line in these photos (not the pink socks... the blue line):

These marks will tell you where to butcher your cute little sock to turn it into an even cuter slipper sock. Your slipper sock will end up about 1/2 inch lower than your marks and subsequent cuts, so mark generously high on your foot. Very generously.

3.  Cut, remembering the generosity, along your marks so that your cut sock looks something like this:

Yes... the socks just changed color. The pink prototype failed miserably. :)

**Save the excess fabric!

4. Cut one of the other color socks to match and give you a nice little pair of socklets. You might want to cut the outside color a little bit more generously (meaning you cut away less), but either way is fine.

5. Notice that odd-shaped heel piece? Yeah, we're getting rid of that. Turn both socklets inside-out and draw a line, like so, from the bottom of the original heel up to mimic the actual shape of your heel more closely.

6. Sew along that line and trim the excess fabric.

7. Turn one of the socklets right-side-out. Slide it on your hand and slide your hand into the other socklet to nest them like this, with the back seams matched up:

8. Using a 1/4" (or greater) seam allowance, stitch around the ankle section of your socklet combo, leaving a small gap just shy of halfway between the front (toe-side) and the back (heel-side) of the socklets.

**When you come back and repeat this to create the other slipper, leave the gap on the opposite side of the socklet combo so that your strap buttons will both be on the outside edges of the slipper-foot combo.

9. Turn the socklets right side out...

10. And stuff one of the socklets inside the other one to form... ta-da! a slipper!

And now that your socklets have graduated to slippers, you can stop fantasizing about Cadburys and Hersheys since socklet sounds so much like chocolate. :)

11. Now take the excess fabric you cut off when you first formed the socklets (sorry, last socklet, I promise). Cut each cuff into a 1+ inch strip (as wide as you can get it, really) and cut each tube so that you have two 1x6 (or so) strips.

12. Sew the strips right sides together (if you can find the "right" side of chenille :) around 3 edges (long, short, long) and turn the strip right side out.

13. Tuck the unsewn end of the strip into the little gap you left in the slipper and stitch the gap closed, with the strip firmly attached as well.

14. Place the other end of the strap on the opposite side of the ankle gap and hand-stitch it and the decorative button into place.

15. One slipper sock down, one to go... simply rinse and repeat. :)

**If you're worried about traction on slick floors, just grab a bottle of fabric paint and give them this Homemade Gripper Sock treatment from Cheri at I Am Momma, Hear Me Roar.

I would love to model these more for you, but these little guys went to Amy, my partner for the Craftaholics Anonymous Handmade Gift Exchange. And now I can't find any more chenille socks at the dollar stores near me so I'll have to wait until they restock... after Christmas. :(

I'm imagining a cute pair of these made from regular socks, too... I'll let you know if they happen. :)

Have a wonderful day and keep those feet warm!



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