Well this has been a long time coming!

I completed my SneakerKit shoes about 18months ago and passed them into my sister to paint. With everything going on the world, I wasn’t able to get them back until a few months ago and from there I just never got around to photographing them!

Now to see how much I remember of the making process!

I got a SneakerKit kit on their 2019 Kickstarter campaign. It included the soles, insoles, needle and thread and instructions. I also chose to purchase the eyelets and leather to complete the kit. The patterns and instructions are all downloadable from their website.

You can make one of several styles of sneaker using their templates (or just go off piste and do your own thing if you know what you’re doing!), which include standard low and high top upper and a sports sandal style cut out. There’s a separate pattern for each size in each style to make sure it fits the sneaker base. It’s essentially an unlined leather Converse style shoe!

Once you’ve decided on your design, you cut out the leather pieces and punch the holes to sew. The holes line up with the holes in the rubber sole so it’s just a case of matching everything up and using the extra strong thread to sew it up.

I’d picked a neutral beige for the leather upper and chose a low top style. I used my scalloped edge scissors for the top edge of the tongue as I wanted to make them a bit interesting!

I had planned on doing something a bit more exciting but after puzzling through the design options I felt I’d be better off just picking something standard for my first pair!

It’s actually really easy to sew up once you’ve figured out which way the thread needs to go. I found their video instructions on how to sew them up very useful to follow! Because all the holes in the leather and rubber are pre punched you’re not worrying about having to force the needle through any thick unforgiving materials.

The only thing I wasn’t happy with after putting it together was how many shoelace holes the design sheet had recommended. It looks like they’re a little too close together for my liking and something to take into consideration if I make another pair!

After I finished them (which didn’t take much time at all!), I felt they were a bit too boring so I gave them to my sister to jazz up! She’s the artist of the family and she painted them for me!

Annoyingly the soles are a tad narrow for my feet and there’s nothing you can do to adjust this so they aren’t particularly comfortable to wear for me. Reminds me why I don’t wear Converses anymore! Its definitely something to take into consideration if you’re planning to get your own kit!