My druid costume has taken a lot of work, burns, cuts, and blisters to make, but during the renaissance festival last fall, my boots I'd made took a good beating. They were full of mud and pieces had torn off because of that. This week, being a more hands-on art week, I decided to fix them. These were originally a pair of leather hand made sandals, but my dear dog got ahold of them and had her way one day when she was upset with me. Great! So there was nothing for me to wear on my feet other than a pair of running shoes. That wasn't going to work, obviously, so I took the scraps I had from when I made the cloak, and pieced together this. I made the skeleton of it out of a leather-esque material and leather scraps. The pieces were then both stitched as well as hot glued (gives it a bit more of a secure fit), but even all that wasn't a match for Mother Nature. So I had to pull the pieces off and match scraps to the boot. There are three straps that go around and then the shoe part, all lacing up with a leather cord. I added a charm on the bottom that is a sort of shield with chains hanging, giving it a more tribal appearance. In the winter, there are black warm socks that go under the boots, hidden for the most part except at the toes, as there are openings there. The idea was inspired, actually, by muck-lucks you see on the Inuit in like Canada and Alaska. Their art was pretty plentiful in Vancouver, BC. I think the mix of colors in this version is very effective. I have another pair of boots I want to attempt something like this with, but thicker and more winter-friendly! Anyway, the furs are fox, beaver, bear, rabbit, and skunk, recycled from scraps that would otherwise be thrown away. Just the first of many remake projects this week. Busy, busy! (...And I have the cuts on my hands to prove it! It looks like a feral cat got ahold of me!)
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