Dying shoes?

[musincy]

I''m having a hard time finding shoes the shade of blue I want, so I''m thinking about getting dyable shoes. This may be a dumb question, but how/where do you get the shoes dyed? I know there are certain brands that can be dyed, but basically I know nothing about it.

Can someone please walk me through the process of finding dyable shoes and having them dyed?

 

[NewEnglandLady]

I went to a shoe repair place...this is how it went:

1. Order shoes in white satin (I think mine was synthetic). Nearly all bridal shoes that you buy in white satin can be dyed. Make sure to get white, not ivory. Your shoes will come with these strips of white satin so you can test the dye.

2. Take shoes to any shoe repair shop--they will have these HUGE books of colors. I think I had a selection of about 250 shades of blue.

3. Select 3 or 4 shades that you like and have them test that shade. This took my shoe repair place about 3 hours. I dropped them off in the morning and stopped back in at lunch to make a decision.

4. Decide which shade you like and that''s it...they dye them from there.

The dying process took about 2 days and $20--MUCH less time than I spent trying to find the perfect shade of blue. In the end, I chose a peacock shade and loved them on my wedding day.

 

[HaloAngel]

Thanks for taking the time to write that out NEL! I was curious about this too....but i plan on doing it after the wedding to get more life out of my shoes....I know white satin shoes are not practical, so I am thinking of dyeing them one of my wedding colors then they will still remind me of my wedding & tie it in....plus be wearable!

 

[musincy]

Date: 8/6/2008 1:54:49 PM
Author: NewEnglandLady
I went to a shoe repair place...this is how it went:

1. Order shoes in white satin (I think mine was synthetic). Nearly all bridal shoes that you buy in white satin can be dyed. Make sure to get white, not ivory. Your shoes will come with these strips of white satin so you can test the dye.

2. Take shoes to any shoe repair shop--they will have these HUGE books of colors. I think I had a selection of about 250 shades of blue.

3. Select 3 or 4 shades that you like and have them test that shade. This took my shoe repair place about 3 hours. I dropped them off in the morning and stopped back in at lunch to make a decision.

4. Decide which shade you like and that''s it...they dye them from there.

The dying process took about 2 days and $20--MUCH less time than I spent trying to find the perfect shade of blue. In the end, I chose a peacock shade and loved them on my wedding day.

Thanks so much! I like this idea much better than ordering online... I''d like to make sure I''m getting the right shade. I want my shoes to be somewhat close to my bridesmaid dress color.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

I think that matching the shade of blue to something would actually be EASIER--just take a swatch of the material and find a match. I found really overwhelmed when trying to decide and wished I''d had a swatch of a shade I wanted.

 

[musincy]

Are Coloriffics shoes comfortable? Do they come with the test strips that you can use to try out the dyes?

 

[neatfreak]

I bought my shoes from David''s bridal and they dyed them for free for me. They had a lot of cute shoes and will dye them to an array of colors for you. Their color swatches are usually the same satin as the shoes so you can see what the color will look like IRL.

I also recommend putting some kind of sealant on them so the dye doesn''t rub off on your dress.

 

[Italiahaircolor]

Be careful, Be careful, Be careful

Last summer I had a bride who wanted her girls in cranberry shoes that matched their dresses. After searching high and low, alas she could find no shoes that met her needs...so she had all the girls get dye-able shoes...

It was nothing short of a nightmare!

The dye bled all over the soles, and insteps...the girls fingers...and their feet, ruining their pretty little french pedicures....and stained the rhinestones on the shoes.

I think there are shoes that come out great when dyed. My MOH died her a light color, and they looked wonderful. But there is also the flip side, and that is a nightmare--worse yet, once it''s done, its done.

I would strongly suggest ordering the shoes well before you need them...and seeing if they truthfully meet your needs. If they don''t, have a good back up plan!

Good luck!

 

[musincy]

Date: 8/6/2008 10:44:14 PM
Author: Italiahaircolor
Be careful, Be careful, Be careful

Last summer I had a bride who wanted her girls in cranberry shoes that matched their dresses. After searching high and low, alas she could find no shoes that met her needs...so she had all the girls get dye-able shoes...

It was nothing short of a nightmare!

The dye bled all over the soles, and insteps...the girls fingers...and their feet, ruining their pretty little french pedicures....and stained the rhinestones on the shoes.

I think there are shoes that come out great when dyed. My MOH died her a light color, and they looked wonderful. But there is also the flip side, and that is a nightmare--worse yet, once it''s done, its done.

I would strongly suggest ordering the shoes well before you need them...and seeing if they truthfully meet your needs. If they don''t, have a good back up plan!

Good luck!

Yikes. I was wondering about that... that makes me not want to get my shoes dyed. Maybe I just need to continue searching for blue shoes...

 

[neatfreak]

Date: 8/6/2008 11:09:00 PM
Author: musincy

Date: 8/6/2008 10:44:14 PM

Author: Italiahaircolor

Be careful, Be careful, Be careful


Last summer I had a bride who wanted her girls in cranberry shoes that matched their dresses. After searching high and low, alas she could find no shoes that met her needs...so she had all the girls get dye-able shoes...


It was nothing short of a nightmare!


The dye bled all over the soles, and insteps...the girls fingers...and their feet, ruining their pretty little french pedicures....and stained the rhinestones on the shoes.


I think there are shoes that come out great when dyed. My MOH died her a light color, and they looked wonderful. But there is also the flip side, and that is a nightmare--worse yet, once it''s done, its done.


I would strongly suggest ordering the shoes well before you need them...and seeing if they truthfully meet your needs. If they don''t, have a good back up plan!


Good luck!

Yikes. I was wondering about that... that makes me not want to get my shoes dyed. Maybe I just need to continue searching for blue shoes...

Just be careful, get true dyeable shoes (not all satins are), get them done at a reputable place, and then WATERPROOF. I had mine dyed hot pink and they were fab. Didn''t bleed at all on my feet or my dress.

 

[musincy]

Date: 8/6/2008 11:16:59 PM
Author: neatfreak

Date: 8/6/2008 11:09:00 PM
Author: musincy

Date: 8/6/2008 10:44:14 PM

Author: Italiahaircolor

Be careful, Be careful, Be careful


Last summer I had a bride who wanted her girls in cranberry shoes that matched their dresses. After searching high and low, alas she could find no shoes that met her needs...so she had all the girls get dye-able shoes...


It was nothing short of a nightmare!


The dye bled all over the soles, and insteps...the girls fingers...and their feet, ruining their pretty little french pedicures....and stained the rhinestones on the shoes.


I think there are shoes that come out great when dyed. My MOH died her a light color, and they looked wonderful. But there is also the flip side, and that is a nightmare--worse yet, once it''s done, its done.


I would strongly suggest ordering the shoes well before you need them...and seeing if they truthfully meet your needs. If they don''t, have a good back up plan!


Good luck!

Yikes. I was wondering about that... that makes me not want to get my shoes dyed. Maybe I just need to continue searching for blue shoes...

Just be careful, get true dyeable shoes (not all satins are), get them done at a reputable place, and then WATERPROOF. I had mine dyed hot pink and they were fab. Didn''t bleed at all on my feet or my dress.

Did you have yours done at a shoe repair store as well? Did they do the waterproofing?