DIY Sequin Ruby Slippers

One memorable Christmas, back when I was pregnant with my first child, I made a pair of ruby slippers for my mom. She has been a huge fan of The Wizard of Oz (and the ruby slippers specifically) for as long as I can remember, and my goal was to make her pair as realistic as possible. I was so proud of the way they turned out, and my mom cried when she first saw them on Christmas morning.

The original ruby slippers were made with sequin fabric, and I wouldn’t even know where to begin to cover a pair of shoes with any kind of fabric, so I improvised with a whole lot of sequins and some glue. This was the perfect example of a Katieish project—I had no idea what I was doing, but I jumped right in and figured it out as I went along! It was most definitely a labor of love, but it was so, so worth it.

At the time, I think I could have sold some pairs of slippers had I been willing to make more, but I was all sequined out. And then I had a newborn, and, well, I didn’t do a whole lot of crafting for a good long while. I’ve been thinking about it more recently, and I finally decided to just go for it! Because I had to order the sequins in bulk and would have enough, I decided to make TWO pairs. Actually, I decided to make another pair like the originals, and then also a pair of ruby sneakers. This time I’ll take a lot of pictures that I can share with all of you!

For purposes of this tutorial, I’ll talk about making the ruby slippers. I’ll discuss the ruby sneakers in a separate post. Whether you want to make a pair to wear or to display, I hope you’ll find as much value in the process as I have.

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I changed up a few of my craft materials this time, as I’ve since learned a few things. Interestingly enough, I couldn’t find much information about making ruby slippers specifically with sequins (glitter seems to be the material of choice), but I did find some info on decorating shoes with sequins that was very helpful.

I used a pair of Dyeables shoes again, the same sequins, and RIT dye. I don’t think the liquid version of the dye that I used this time existed back then, though. And while I used Tacky glue last time, I used E6000 this time. Apparently professional costumers are big fans of E6000, so I figured they probably know what they’re talking about. I used some spray or brush on acrylic sealant or something on the first pair I made, but with the E6000 I’m counting on that step not being necessary. I can’t imagine those sequins are going anywhere.

Note: E6000 does have a strong smell, so be careful when you’re using it! A well-ventilated area is a must.

The dye I used this time is definitely a different color from the dye I used last time. I’m not sure what I used last time, but this time I used Scarlet because that’s what I found at the store. I was hoping for a closer match to the sequins, but it’s fine. Only if you look very closely can you see the color on the main part of the shoe. I don’t think it matters as much for the sole anyway. The other color I considered was Cherry Red, but they didn’t have that one at the store the day I was there. I think either would work fine.

I shopped for DAYS and DAYS this time trying to find the perfect shoes, and I finally settled on Dyeables Grace. They have a bit more of a heel than the first pair I made, but I actually think these are closer to the movie originals. I kept ruling out shoes because I wasn’t sure if I could dye them, or there wasn’t enough shoe in the front for the bow. Since I ordered the shoes, I read that you can use craft acrylic paint on shoes, so you could always try that and buy shoes in whatever color you want. I just highly recommend that one way or another your shoes are red before you start gluing on the sequins. As much as I agonized over my decision, though, the truth of the matter is that no matter what you choose, once you’ve covered them in sequins and the bow, no one is going to have any doubt exactly what they’re supposed to be.

This seems like a good time to note that the original ruby slippers were around size 5 or 6. Judy Garland had tiny feet. I considered making this pair a true replica, so a size 5 also, but I thought someone might actually want to wear them. (I don’t know what I’m going to do with them, so I don’t even know who.) I decided on a size 8. A bigger shoe just meant I needed a few extra sequins. 🙂 If you don’t intend to ever wear the ruby slippers, you can buy whatever size you want!

I ordered sequins from the same place I ordered back in 2005, from ccartwright.com. They are super helpful and ship quickly, so I highly recommend them. Their selection of sequins is amazing. Of course I want allllllll the colors. I ordered the 5mm flat metallic red sequins, and they are gorgeous! Cartwright’s does actually have a color they call “ruby slipper,” but I haven’t seen them in person. As far as how many to order… I’m not sure! Cartwright’s offers them in packs of 1,000 and 15,000. I went with the 15,000, and after making a pair of ruby slippers AND sneakers, I still have a lot left over. 5,000 ought to be more than enough, but I didn’t count, so I can’t say for sure! If you could have another use for red sequins, I would err on the side of over-ordering (in the interest of not paying for shipping twice).

I lost track of how many hours I spent searching for the perfect rhinestones. I thought I’d found them, but when I started laying out the bow, I realized it was going to be way too big. I needed smaller rhinestones. That led me to spend more hours searching. I finally found some 4mm flat-backed rhinestones and some 8x10mm rectangular (really octagonal) rhinestones at the same online store. I was hoping for true rectangular rhinestones, but these work just fine. The red works perfectly with the color of the sequins.

I used a piece of red leather I found in my craft closet, but my vegetarian daughter would prefer that I use faux leather for sure!! With the popularity of leather/faux leather earrings these days, it’s easy to find both.

So here’s my list of supplies…

For the shoes:

• dyeable shoes
• red dye
• foam brush
• gloves
• 5mm flat sequins
• E6000

Optional:

• tweezers
• toothpick

For the bow:

• small piece of red leather/faux leather
• red rectangular rhinestones (8x10mm)
• small round rhinestones (4mm)
• red bugle beads

Let’s make some ruby slippers!

Step 1—Dye the shoes!

The very first step is to dye the shoes. (You could paint them with acrylic paint if you’d prefer.) To be honest, I when I first did this I didn’t actually know how you’re supposed to dye shoes. The way I did it was mix the dye in water and use a rag to dab on the color. This time I found the official Rit instructions, which actually involve much the same process, only using a foam brush instead of a rag. That’s what I opted for this time. It doesn’t have to be a perfect dye job, because hopefully you will see very little of it once it’s covered in sequins. Because there may be spots where you see a bit peeking through, a red base is important. 

One change I made this time was to dye the bottom of the shoes. There’s a little velvety part under my pair of shoes that I accidentally spilled a little bit of dye on. I probably could have prevented that by taping them off, but I didn’t. After studying pictures of the originals again, though, I realized that the bottoms are red/orange. So I decided to go back and dye mine. And THEN, I ended up painting the non fabric parts that wouldn’t actually touch the ground. I ended up not doing this until the very end, but in the future I will definitely do it before I add the sequins.

Step 2—Sequins!

Get comfy and start gluing! This is going to take a while. I cleared a lot of shows I had saved on the DVR while I was working. The first time around, I used my fingers to put on the sequins. This time I decided to buy some tweezers with a slanted edge. I found a set for $5 (pre-coupon) at Michaels, so not a big investment. I wasn’t afraid of getting Tacky glue on my fingers, but I was more concerned this time about getting E6000 on my fingers. I ended up abandoning the tweezers in favor of a toothpick after a while, because I found that I could work a lot faster that way.

I started at the bottom of the heel and worked my way around and up, placing each sequin and then tapping them into place once I’d placed a bunch. One nice thing about E6000 is that you have at least a few minutes before it dries, so you can move the sequins around a bit as needed. My sequins are in neat rows, but that does take extra time. You could also be a little less orderly about it and just spread some glue with a toothpick and start covering it with sequins. 

If you do take the time to do neat rows, going around and around, eventually you might end up with a few awkward places that you have to fill in with sequins because the shoes are not perfectly symmetrical. Once the shoes are covered in sequins, you won’t even notice.

Something else I’ll note is that if you study the original shoes, the sequins actually line up vertically. So that’s another way you could lay them out. This is something you’d only notice if you were studying them closely, of course.

Step 3—Make the bow. 

Start by cutting a bow shape out of the red [faux] leather. To do this I first laid out the rhinestones and beads on a piece of paper to get a rough idea of the shape. Then I traced the whole thing with a pencil and cut it out. I used that as my template to cut the bow shape out of the leather. Originally I had hoped to sew on the beads and rhinestones, but I quickly realized that there was no way I was going to be able to sew through the leather. Once again, E6000 to the rescue! I started with the round rhinestones around the edges and the rectangular ones in the middle, and then once those were in place I filled in the rest of the space with the bugle beads. I used a toothpick to press them all into place to make sure they weren’t going anywhere. Once it was dry, I trimmed up a couple of spots along the edge where I felt like there was too much leather showing.

Step 4—Attach the bow

Glue the bow on. Use a generous amount of E6000 and carefully position the bow. On the original shoes, the bows sit right at the top of the toe of the shoes, so that’s where I placed them. Once the glue dries, you’re all done!

Now you have your very own pair of ruby slippers! Even if they don’t look exactly like the originals, they are going to be pretty convincing. Enjoy!!