How to repair flaking pleather shoes with fabric

Today I'm waving my thrifty-gal flag loud and proud. This is the sort of project my husband would look at in disbelief when we first started dating. Why on earth, would he say, would you try and repair a pair of 5€ thrifted shoes? The answer is very simple. Because I can!

I was actually stoked when I found these gorgeous Oxford style heels for just 5€ in a reuse center. They looked in a good condition at that point. I walked out smiling thinking I'd just gotten a pretty good deal. You know the feeling, right? I even had the heeltaps changed. So, you can probably understand my disappointment when I noticed how the faux leather just peeled off after only a couple of wears. Well, at this point I was a little pissed that I'd just spend around 12€ on a pair I could only wear 2 times. So, I decided I would just have to fix it.

Fabric seemed like the perfect solution for these, as I'd seen others use fabric to cover shoes before. A layer of fabric would be just thin enough to cover the leather without adding bulk or being all that noticeable. And, it would also be flexible enough to bend with the shoe. It's a great way to repair this type of flaking problem on pleather shoes.

Here's what I used:

• Paper and pencil
• Scissors
• Fabric
• Embroidery thread
• Mod Podge + brush
• E6000 glue

1) I started by peeling off all the loose flakes of pleather.

2) Then, I used a piece of paper and pencil to trace a pattern of the middle pleather piece I was about to cover. It was a bit tricky to follow the curve of the shoe, but cutting a few slashes into the paper made it much easier.

3) Once I was pretty sure I had a good draft ready, I cut it out and placed it on on half of the pleather piece to check the fit and make necessary changes.

4) When the final pattern piece was ready, I could cut out the fabric pieces (on the fold). I cut the fabric about 0.5cm bigger than the pattern piece to account for possible mistakes that I could still have made during drafting.

5) Then, I cover the pleather with Mod Podge, applying it generously.

6) I applied the fabric to the shoe and used  the Mod Podge and brush to flatten it into place and make sure it was adhered to the pleather. Then, I cut the fabric edges to match the pleather piece underneath it, and let the glue dry.

7) To cover up the edge of the fabric for a neater overall look, I braided two long ribbons from black embroidery thread. One slightly thicker than the other. I just did double strands of thread for the thicker one. I used super glue (like E6000) to glue the braid to the shoe, covering the fabric edge. In case you're wondering, I always use a toothpick to apply glue with precision. I knotted both the start and the end of the braid ribbon. The end is easy to knot once you're about 4cm away from the finish-line.

I'm so proud to have rescued these shoes, and happy I can keep wearing them. I'll let you know how this treatment holds up, but so far so good. It's fun to think of how my own thriftiness has evolved. I used to apply it to only clothes, but by now it's taken over almost all aspects of my life. And of course, my husband has more than gotten used to it. Just yesterday he asked me if I'd like to keep the empty ice cream containers for a project. I love you, hun! And, yes, of course I would.

Have you ever tried to repair shoes at home? If not, do you think you would ever? Let me know in the comments!

xo. Hanna