“I might be a slow starter but I’m easy on shoes.” ~Two-bit Guru

It’s true that shoes don’t wear out very fast when they’re lucky enough to meet up with my feet, and it’s not because I don’t walk around much, either. The flip side of being a trash picker is that when something I own does wear out I am reluctant to throw it away. In this case, shoes.

After years of service, the heel uppers on a pair of casual slip-ons broke down. I wore them for quite a long while after that, even to the point where they chafed on my own heels. A more normal person would have likely thrown them out, but not being normal in the most stifling sense of the word, I tossed them in the closet with a collection of other worn-out shoes.

Then I got an idea. If the heels are worn out, remove the heels. I never tried upcycling shoes before.

Here’s how:

Using a piece of chalk draw a line on the sides of the shoes where you are going to cut.

Two-bit Guru | Upcycling Shoes | Show with chalk line being drawin on it

Cut along the chalk line with a straight sheet metal cutter.

Two-bit Guru | Upcycling Shoes | Shoe being cut with aviation cutters.

My cutter is known as an aviation cutter, or airplane cutter. It cuts easier than an ordinary tin snips or shears, although I think those would work, too. A sharp utility knife might do the trick as well.

Two-bit Guru | Upcycling Shoes | Photo of Aviation cutter.

That’s it. What could have been trash has been upcycled in about 5 minutes to the most comfortable pair of clogs I’ve ever had. They’re already broken in!

Two-bit Guru | Upcycling Shoes | Shoe being worn after it's been cut.