DIY Shoe Covers

This winter has been a pain in the butt and has caused all kinds of issues. Most winters our temps fluctuate so that the snow melts, but the white stuff has stuck around. This means our floors are a mess. We do have tile in our entry area (which we cover with a outdoor carpet in the winter) and often remove shoes, but when you are carrying in groceries or going in and out a lot it's difficult to keep removing your shoes. I wear a lace up low rise hiking boot which provide a lot of traction and keep my feet dry and warm. I don't want to remove them several times a day.

So I picked up some of those blue shoe covers at our local home improvement store to wear over my hikers. They ripped quickly and didn't keep the floors dry. Annoying!

I realized that the design of these covers is good but the material is all wrong, so I made my own. I used the covers I bought as a size guide. I got a plastic table cover that has a fleece backing and cut out 2 rectangles~ approximately 14"x17" for my size 10 hikers.

 I folded them in half (14" side) with the plastic on the inside and serged the sides.

Then I turned down about a half inch and stitched the casing to run the elastic through. I used red thread so you can see where I stitched.

Then I used my most favorite sewing tool of all time, the Easy Threader, to pull the elastic through. If you struggle to pull strings, ribbons, or elastic through a casing you must get one of these! If the elastic I am pulling through is too wide for the hole then I use a safety pin to attach to the loop of the tool. I used some really thin elastic for this project.

I pulled the elastic tight enough to stay on the shoe, but not too tight that you can't stretch it over teh shoe. I just tied off the ends since the elastic is so thin.

Then I stitched the casing closed. Done! Not the prettiest, but VERY functional!

I am so happy that I don't have to take off my shoes and that I am not dragging a lot of melted snow and salt on my hardwood floors. The flannel inner lining dries quickly! I take these along with me when I go to a friend's house so I don't have to remove my shoes.

Would you wear them?