DIY VS DDIY

to do it yourself, or dont do it yourself.
that is the question.

DIY projects have so much appeal, so much pizazz!
i've always considered myself to be a little crafty. i feel such a great sense of satisfaction when putting my energy towards something creative.

also, of course, i long for one of these types of convos:
"oh my god! i love your ___!"
"oh gee thanks, i totally made _____ myself!"
"no way! you are a goddess of handi-crafts and creativity."

now thanks to the internet and sites like http://www.etsy.com/, the DIYers of the world are having their hay day. if you like to spend your time and energy into building a craft this is YOUR time! its the day, the era of the DIYers.

while i was away in california, i stumbled across some excellent DIY colour block moccasins thanks to the fabulous ladies at http://www.honestlywtf.com/ and since then have had not only an obsession with the site, but also with the idea of creating my own said mocs.
as i have said once upon a time i am the proud owner of 4 pairs of these delightful, comfortable shoes (ps  just found out the boyfriend is not a fan... go figure.) and was totally ok with sacrificing one pair to the arts gods.

as a recap from an earlier blog:
my inspiration: http://honestlywtf.com/diy/diy-color-block-moccasins/

arent they excellent?!
THIS is how you do a DIY project. these ladies have it down. i would highly recommend checking out their site for other brill ideas.

so, being rightly inspired i decided to take the plunge. i grabbed ye olde mocs, headed out to michaels for some fabric paint and started the process of revamping... out with the old in with the new!

i decided to use my oldest and most faithful pair of mocs, the classic browns. and while i was perusing the section of fabric paints i had originally thought that i would want to use the adorable pastel green as the wtf gals had... but then i wanted to do gold. but then... i decided on hot pink.
hot pink?
what was i thinking?!
definitely not a regular colour for me, but i decided to follow my gut and try it out.

so here is the process:

so step 1: remove laces from clean mocs.

mine are especially ghetto so yes, they are clean, but sadly will always have that *ahem* vintagely chic dirt look about them.

then choose the foxy colour of your choice. as we know, i went with the foxiest of them all... hot pink.

here are the results:

voila!



im a little torn.

do i like these? i think so... right?

they actually photograph lovely. i love the contrast between the brown and the pink, especially while the leaves are still down and that rich brown all over the ground.

but up close to me they just look like a diy project... and im not sure im down with that.

i can see brush strokes and after coats and coats of paint i can see brown.

but on the other hand they just look so neat!

i love colour block! i love a pop of colour!

so this is what i propose. i am going to wear them out a few times and see what the public has to say.

will i get some side eye glances? will people ask what i was thinking?

OR will they be met with mad applause and acceptance?!

only time will tell. i am going to wear them a few more times over the course of the month of november and report back in december.

and i will answer the question, at least as far as mocs go: DIY vs DDIY

until then, i have a few more DIY projects up my sleeve. next up: chalk board wine glasses!

inspired from here: http://www.alwaysorderdessert.com/2011/10/inspired-entertaining-diy-chalkboard.html

let the poll begin!

shoes out and about day one: today.