Homemade/Handmade and jury-rigged shoes and gear thread

[Norm Deplume]

Show me what you've made to put on your feet. I know there have been other threads about people's homemade contraptions, but I'd like to see them all again, here, on one thread. It could beocme a repository of information on what to do, what NOT to do, which materials really work, and which one are full of fail.

I haven't made any running shoes yet, but I'm pretty good at recycling old wool sweaters into slippers to keep my toes warm in the winter. Still need to figure out how to put a outdoor-proof sole on them. (I'll add a photo later, they're on the other computer)

 

[Barefoot TJ]

Mrs. Deplume, I'm so glad you

Mrs. Deplume, I'm so glad you brought this up. One of my to-dos, dreams, is that we could have a tab here on our site that would link to photos and descriptions of things people have made for the feet and toes, like toe rings, footlets, anklets, soleless shoes, etc. Then we would be able to purchase those items. On the stuff the BRS comes up with, I would like to see a little metal charm of our logo that could hang off say an anklet. Do you like this idea?

 

[Norm Deplume]

That would be really cool,

That would be really cool, TJ. I love being crafty, and having a place to look at others' handiwork is usually my first step before I tackle a new project.



also, you could call the for-purchase section "footsy".

 

[Barefoot TJ]

I wish we had more time

I wish we had more time before the Barefoot Runners Society World Record Run comes up. Jason has been working really hard on that event. We plan to have a booth/table there with our banner and pamphlets, etc., but I wish we could put some foot accessories on the table too. If you could make a bunch of what it is you like to make, we could sell them up there for you. Are you going the the Grand Rapids meetup?

 

[Norm Deplume]

 I can't make it to the GR

I can't make it to the GR meetup, unfortunately. As much as I want to, with small children and a husband with little vacation time, it just isn't in the cards this year.

 

[Barefoot TJ]

I understand.  It's a big

I understand. It's a big deal for me to leave home and attend this event. I have two little ones, but thankfully, my hubby is off work and can watch them.

If you or anyone would like to make some foot accessories to sell, maybe we could arrange shipping them to Jason's house just in time. Again, probably not enough time though.

 

[BFWendyBird]

Not so home made, but maybe

Not so home made, but maybe we can dig up a whole saler for some of these

http://www.amazon.com/Sterling-Silver-Baby-Charm-Anklet/dp/B00061FC3I





gold charm

There are several cheap foot charms here if you do a search for "Foot" or "feet" you get some good stuff

 

[Barefoot TJ]

Those would work, Wendy.  I

Those would work, Wendy. I was hoping to find someone who could make our logo into a charm, then we could add that to anklets and stuff. Are you going to GR?

 

[Matt]

As far as homemade

As far as homemade contraptions, when I was first starting off on my barefoot journey, but still afraid of actually going barefoot, I ductaped some old socks. They actually worked surprisingly well as minimalist shoes. So good, that landing on pebbles hurt -- the true test of minimalist footware.

I won't be able to make the May record-breaking race, but I do think I'll be in GR later in May for a short visit. Maybe if I'm lucky I can meetup with some Michigan barefooters then.

 

[BFWendyBird]

Sorry for the slow response. 

Sorry for the slow response. No, I won't be able to make it to GR, DD is getting married in FL on the 15th so I'm a bit tied up for the month. Wish I could be there! Maybe when I'm in Korea I could look into getting something made for the group there.

 

[Liz]

I took a pair of socks that

I took a pair of socks that look like mary-janes, some fabric glue, and a thin piece of trim leather and combined them into a pretty good home-made shoe of sorts. I cut a rectangle of the leather larger than my foot, coated both the sole of the sock and the leather with the glue, put them todether, and stood up on a pillow to distribute the glue. The only problem was the glue seeped through the sock and got all over my foot. I've run in the sock-shoe a few times, and they're great. Next time I'll use Shoe Goo instead of fabric glue. I hope this helps someone else out!

 

[Norm Deplume]

Liz, I'd love to see a

Liz, I'd love to see a picture someday if you have one.

 

[Barefoot TJ]

Maybe you could make some

Maybe you could make some money with your invention, Liz. Just a thought...

 

[Liz]

I can't insert photos, so go

I can't insert photos, so go to my facebook page to see my inventions.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=175845&id=330945196435&saved#!/album.php?aid=175845&id=330945196435



Money would be great, but I don't think anyone would pay for these.

 

[Norm Deplume]

Liz, I saw in that album the

Liz, I saw in that album the dance foot thongs. I'd considered trying that. Are those yours or someone else's? How are they working out?

 

[Barefoot TJ]

You never know, Liz.  Perfect

You never know, Liz. Perfect them and you could be rich! ;-)

Mrs. Deplume, there's a dance store on the net that sells Dance Paws. You could try them. One guy swore they worked well for running, but I don't know how they could posisbly last through the torture I would put them through.

 

[Liz]

I've worn them (the

I've worn them (the thongs) once. They've worked pretty well with one exception. Where I put the shoe goo along the outer edge on the stitching, the goo made the outer edge a little stiff, and it rubbed on the under side of my toes.

If you go to any dance store, they should have them. I bought a large, but I think a medium would work a little better. I plan on making a few modifcations to them.

1. They slid forward a little on my run, so I'm going to put a strap of elastic around the heel to keep them in place. I think if I had gotten the smaller size this wouldn't be as much of a problem.

2. Since it is made for indoor dancing, the bottom is smooth, and the straps attach on the inside. The points where the straps attached rubbed a bit. My solution is to cut a piece of trim leather and goo it to the inside to make the inside seamless.

I ran 3 miles in them the first time, and they seem like they'll last a while.

The thongs are only about $20 (at a retail store but probably are cheaper online) and the Shoe Goo was about $4. I tried running in something similar, and the stitching frayed off. If you try this, you definately need to coat the stitches with something.



Let me know if you try it.

 

[Freerunner]

 I made some huaraches.  Went

I made some huaraches. Went to the tractor store for the material, baler belt if I recall. Cost around 7 dollars a foot, I got two feet. Then got a leather hole puncher from hobby lobby. i used some leftover shoe laces and laced them up. They work pretty good and seem very durable. I get more strange looks wearing these then when I go barefoot. I used www.invisibleshoe.com to help me make them. The hardest part was stringing them up. But now its second nature to tie them up.

 

[Barefoot TJ]

I get more strange looks

I get more strange looks wearing these then when I go barefoot.

Hee

 

[Norm Deplume]

Freerunner wrote: I made some

I made some huaraches. Went to the tractor store for the material, baler belt if I recall. Cost around 7 dollars a foot, I got two feet. Then got a leather hole puncher from hobby lobby. i used some leftover shoe laces and laced them up. They work pretty good and seem very durable. I get more strange looks wearing these then when I go barefoot. I used www.invisibleshoe.com to help me make them. The hardest part was stringing them up. But now its second nature to tie them up.

How are these working for you? I'm volunteering at a trail run this weekend, and would love to make a new pair of huaraches and (if they work for me), show them off/try them out there.