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DIY Tie Dye Children’s Shoes

07/15/2013 By Charlene 34 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links, please see my disclosure policy.

Rainbow Tie Dye Shoes

 

So my little girl and I did this Dip Dye project a few weeks ago for a little pair of shorts.  They turned out really cute and while we were buying the dye she started getting really excited about the tie dye kits that are really popular right now.

DIY Tie Dye Children's Shoes

I totally remember how fun tie dye was when I was a kid but I think it can be a little hard to pull off for everyday.  So we went back and forth and back and forth and came up with an idea to tie dye some shoes.

Now these turned out SUPER cute in my opinion and if crafty stuff normally scares you, you might give this one a try.  I found it easy and fast and if you follow the steps below you should get great results.

My little girl loves these shoes and I think they would be really fun for Girl Scouts or a slumber party activity.  This project is really not that expensive to do and I promise it was really easy.

So here is the scoop:

  • Track down a pair of white canvas shoes (we got one pair for $5 at Walmart and a second pair for $3.88 on clearance at Target).
  • If you have old sneakers that are looking shabby this would be a great way to jazz them up.  Just wash them and dry in the sun so they are nice and clean.  You might be able to bleach colored sneakers to get them to white to try this as well.
  • And now grab a little tie dye kit from a craft store- I paid about $10 for a 5 color kit with a coupon.

And here are the steps to turn plain sneaks into rainbow tie dye fabulousless:

DIY Tie Dye Children's Shoes

Start with clean shoes- wash old ones and bleach if needed.

Next remove the laces and use painters tape around the sole to avoid any stains.  My painter’s tape is hiding from me at the moment so I used packing tape which wasn’t nearly as good but what do you do.

You don’t have to tape the soles but the shoes look nicer without any little drips.

DIY Tie Dye Children's Shoes

Next plot your course of action as far as the dye colors.  The colors will blend slightly so you want to think about how they will blend so you don’t wind up with ugly black shoes.  If you want crisper lines between colors you can use painters tape to get precise lines.  I liked the gentle blending of colors so we skipped that step.

You want to mix up all the colors you need according to the instructions on the package.  Use gloves to avoid purple fingers and make sure you are on an old tarp/towel or you are outside.  This stuff will stain whatever it comes in contact with.

DIY Tie Dye Children's Shoes

See what I mean about the colors blending?  This is a stripe of yellow followed by a stripe of fushia.  The two colors blended and made a pretty orange.

I just eyeballed this entire project.  I visually broke up the shoes into 5 sections in my mind and simply poured the paint on top.

how to rainbow dye old shoes

 

This is my “technique” just hold up the shoes and use the little bottles that are in the kit to pour the dye on.  You want to angle the shoes a little bit so that the dye stays where you want it.  In the photo above if I hold the shoe so it is balanced on the toe that purple dye is going to spread like crazy.  By angleing the shoe back toward the heel it keeps it from blending quite as much.

And here is what pair #1 looked like after all the paint was applied.  You can kind of see the packing tape here- it helped a little but on the cheapy Walmart shoes the tape didn’t stick at all and I tore it off.  Painters tape would be much better.

DIY Tie Dye Children's Shoes

So one thing is the free gloves inside the package are really cruddy.  I found I got a drop or two of a color on those gloves and if you don’t wipe it off, that drop can get on the shoes and discolor a section.  Personally I am a ‘giterdone kind of girl and not a perfectionist so that doesn’t bother me but above you can see a few drips of green in the blue section.

Once you are done, remove the packing tape and wrap your shoes in saran wrap or in a plastic bag and tie it closed.  This is a great way to keep the colors vibrant.  Leave it overnight or at least 6 hours.

DIY Tie Dye Children's Shoes

 

Remove them carefully from the bag and wash according to package directions.  I put mine in the wash with a tiny bit of soap on warm water in a large load setting.  You will want to wash these by themselves the first few times.

And here is what mine looked like out of the bag- we did two shoes.  My favorites:

DIY Tie Dye Sneakers

And then these are the cheap Walmart ones with a more traditional rainbow.  These look light in the picture because I am photography challenged but in real life they are nice and bright.

DIY Tie Dye Children's Shoes

 

I have to tell you that I did these yesterday evening with my girls and I told them they had to wait for them to dry to wear them.  They were up at 5:40 am this morning asking if the shoes were ready.  My 5 year old is THRILLED with these shoes so if you have little ones you might consider this project!

DIY Tie Dye Children's Shoes

 

And you might check my children’s crafts Pinterest board for lots more fun things to do with your kids this summer!

How to dye tennis shoes

 

Filed Under: Children's Activities

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Comments

  1. Samantha says

    07/15/2013 at 8:06 PM

    Our 99€ only stores have tie dye kits sometimes!!! Makes projects very affordable!!!

  2. Kelly @ Kansas City Mamas says

    07/16/2013 at 5:48 AM

    I’ve been eyeing those tye-dye kits at our local Michael’s. You may have pushed me over the edge and into actually doing something crafty. 🙂

  3. Kimberly Childs says

    03/24/2014 at 11:47 AM

    I’m new to your site-just wanted to tell you that you have some excellent ideas. Fun, creative, not expensive etc. Wish you would’ve been around when my 2 grown sons were young but my grandson is 5 so I get a 2nd chance-yea!! Thank you very much&keep on please.

  4. Charlene says

    03/24/2014 at 12:06 PM

    Kimberly what a sweet comment. Thank you so much! You made my day 🙂

  5. Erin says

    03/28/2014 at 12:07 PM

    I want these shoes for myself! I guess my 2 girls would like them too. 😉

  6. Pete Rambo says

    05/23/2014 at 4:01 PM

    Why should the girls have all the fun! These look awesome!! I have GOT to have a pair… Looks like a fun project for the weekend!

  7. Liz says

    05/24/2014 at 12:22 PM

    Sorry if I missed it somewhere….but how did you keep the dye off the eyelets?? Thanks

  8. Charlene says

    05/24/2014 at 12:49 PM

    Liz- I didn’t have that issue. It was stainless steel eyelets so the dye just came right off. You could try nail polish remover on a q tip maybe or the painters tape in tiny pieces.

  9. Michelle says

    05/25/2014 at 12:29 PM

    Do the socks get the paint on them after they are worn a little while?

  10. Charlene says

    05/25/2014 at 4:48 PM

    Michelle- we have not had any bleeding at all.

  11. Court says

    06/17/2014 at 7:23 PM

    I’m thinking I might do this to a plain pair of Toms. I adore this project!

  12. Charlene says

    06/17/2014 at 8:05 PM

    Court- thanks so much! I just wanted to say though that ours faded quite a bit after washing. You might try it on an old t-shirt first before you commit to a better piece of clothing. It would look awesome on Tom’s though. I really loved this shirt and I think she would have worn it all year if it would have held up better 🙂

  13. Tommarra says

    07/11/2014 at 10:50 AM

    If I do a bunch of these can they all be washed together, or will doing so mix the colors of the shoes?

  14. Charlene says

    07/11/2014 at 2:25 PM

    Tommarra- I wouldn’t wash them together.

  15. maia says

    07/25/2014 at 11:53 AM

    I saw this idea on instagram, so I looked up websites that had this idea.t
    This was the best idea so far!Thanks for sharing! I’m going to do that, I have the materials!!

  16. maia says

    07/25/2014 at 7:00 PM

    -Charlene put them in vinegar that worked for me!

  17. maria munro says

    11/26/2014 at 4:16 AM

    cant get these tie dye kits in Australia love the idea aging hippy myself lol

  18. Haley Ethridge says

    02/18/2015 at 8:52 PM

    OMG I love this!!!!!! I have to make it!!! This is an awesome idea!

  19. Kim says

    04/02/2015 at 12:31 AM

    I agree with Maia if you have ANY kind of garment, shoe, etc. We always soak things in vinegar for 24 hours then wash and dry and the color will be set for its life! I have tie dye shirts that I’ve had for over 5 years that still haven’t lost their vibrancy….and I wear it quite alot! Lol We learned about this trick years ago when I was a synchronized swimmer, keeps the colors for a long time even against the chlorine, chemicals, and sun in a pool!

  20. Judi says

    04/03/2015 at 1:44 PM

    they look awesome! We will try them with our granddaughters!

  21. Charlene says

    04/03/2015 at 2:50 PM

    yeah! have fun making them Judi 🙂 Ours lasted for just about a year which is miraculous considering how hard my kids are on shoes.

  22. Lisa says

    04/28/2015 at 5:16 PM

    Let us know if the shoes bleed onto the socks? Are all their socks going to become tie dyed as the pattern of the shoes? Waiting to see how it goes…they look great though!

  23. Charlene says

    04/28/2015 at 5:59 PM

    Hi Lisa- no we made those shoes in July of 2013 and they lasted over a year. I did not have any issues with color bleeding in all that time.

  24. Debbie says

    11/28/2015 at 7:17 PM

    Hi Charlene – I LOVE this idea!! I am a 60’s kid (so you know tie-dye is my middle name!0 and now I have a granddaughter who would LOVE to not only have these sneaks but do the art project….thanks for a brilliant Nana and Papa craft!! P.S. Once I finish, I’m showing MY parents cause theywill love that i finally did something with my art degree!! You are sweet and creative and you have a new fan : )

  25. Charlene says

    11/28/2015 at 10:45 PM

    Oh what a lovely person you are Debbie 🙂

    You might like this craft too. The sharpie faded in the wash for me so it wasn’t a keepsake thing but it is really, really cute for 4th of July nonetheless.

    http://myfrugaladventures.com/2013/06/diy-4th-of-july-t-shirts-sharpie-tie-dye/

  26. Angie Deering says

    08/26/2017 at 10:27 AM

    Thank you so much for this post!! I am having a rock n’ roll inspired wedding on Sept. 9th, 2017 –our colors are black with pops of rainbow colors (think the old Capitol Record label–it’s black with a rainbow band). I was on the hunt for the perfect pair of shoes to wear with my dress that were both comfortable and ‘me’ (I am NOT a huge girly girl, so heels were out of the question). I came across your post when looking for bright shoes and realized this is what I was going to do!! I bought myself a pair of really cute (and cheap) canvas flats and just dyed them this morning. They are currently in the ‘set it and forget it’ stage of the project. So far they look AWESOME!! They are going to look great under my dress and with my tie dyed roses bouquet! I can’t wait to surprise my fiance with them. Thanks again for your inspiration!!!

  27. Charlene says

    08/26/2017 at 10:14 PM

    How fun! Congratulations on your cute shoes Angie and congratulations on the wedding! Sounds like it is going to be amazing- so glad those worked out for you!

  28. #hashtag says

    10/02/2017 at 5:15 AM

    I think i might do this. It looks really cute and fun!

  29. Cheryl says

    11/01/2020 at 4:34 AM

    Just curious if you have to wash them after tye dying them? I did the tye die part and they have been in the bag overnight. What happens if you don’t wash them?

  30. Charlene says

    11/01/2020 at 4:34 PM

    Cheryl, I can’t say for sure but if you don’t wash I’d think they will likely bleed onto feet and socks etc…

  31. Sherry says

    05/07/2021 at 12:38 PM

    I’m 68 and I love anything tie dyed!! I’m going out and buy a kit and find some cheap white sneakers!! I can hardly wait to try this. Thanks so much!

  32. Charlene says

    05/10/2021 at 9:43 AM

    I do too Sherry :).

Trackbacks

  1. Totally Awesome Summer Tie-Dye Tutorials - Fantastic Fun & Learning says:
    05/22/2015 at 4:02 AM

    […] make your own rainbow tie-dye sneakers with this […]

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I'm Charlene- thank you for stopping by MY FRUGAL ADVENTURES! I am a Mom to two little girls living in gorgeous Northern California. This is a fun place to find simple & affordable inspiration for everything from gifts to home improvement to travel to children's crafts to what's for dinner tonight! READ MORE >>>

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