Learn how to make your own DIY Avengers Superhero Shoes to celebrate the release of MARVEL’S The Avengers: Age of Ultron! This #AvengersUnite craft tutorial is shared as part of a shop that has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. #CollectiveBias
Disclosure: This post contains compensated affiliate links which help support the work on this blog.
Hello Comic Con Families!
MARVEL’S The Avengers: Age of Ultron is coming to theaters on May 1 (that’s 2015 for those of you reading this in the future), but I know I don’t have to tell you that. I also know that I don’t have to tell you how excited I am for May 1 to get here. I know I am not alone in counting down the days!
What you may not know yet, is how much the women in my life are also counting down the days just as much. My wife and my girls love The Avengers too. Just as much as any guy or boy or male. They are huge fans, right there along with me and my sons.
As we usual do, we had an movie night recently to gear up for the upcoming MARVEL’S The Avengers: Age of Ultron movie release. I grabbed our Avengers Blu-ray and my wife and kids pulled together all the snacks.
We picked up all of our Avengers snacks and drinks at Walmart. There was lots of options. We found: Cheez-It Baked Snack Crackers, Kellogg’s Fruit Snacks, Doritos, and Dr Pepper. I don’t know how long they will be in stock, so look for them on your next trip.
Rather than making this our usual movie night, we decided to add in a craft. Our girls are making lots of plans right now about what they will be wearing at San Diego Comic-Con this year, and one of the things on their list: DIY shoes! You might think that’s crazy, but it’s possible and we’re going to show you how you can make them.
How to Make DIY Avengers Superhero Shoes
To make your own DIY Avengers Superhero Shoes, you will only need a few things:
- 1 pair canvas shoes in your size, lace up or slip on
- A couple plastic grocery bags
- Painter’s Tape
- Avengers Party Napkins (I recommend buying 2 packs, even though you might not need the 2nd one)
- Very thin paint brush
- Two bowls or cups
- Plaid Mod Podge (Matte)
- Foam paint brushes
- Plastic wrap or plastic baggies
- Craft Knife (like X-Acto)
- Clear Matte Acrylic Spray (optional)
# 1 Cover the edges/sides of the soles of the shoes: Tear off small pieces of painter’s tape (no more than 1″ at a time) and apply each piece as close to the canvas of the shoes as possible while covering the edge and sides of the sole. Repeat piece by piece, with each piece slightly overlapping the piece before it. Painter’s tape isn’t as tacky as masking tape (which makes it easier to pull off at the end), so you’ll probably need to keep smoothing it down as you work.
TIP: Push a plastic grocery bag (or two) into the toe area of the shoe to help give it stability when apply your Mod Podge and napkins.
#2 Separate your party napkin layers: Take your party napkins and carefully pull apart the layers. The Avengers napkins I bought from Walmart were 2-ply, but if you use different ones, you might have 3-ply. You will only need the top layer with the design, so you can get rid of or re-purpose the plain layer. I would suggest separating about 6 napkins at the beginning. You may not need more than this, but you if you do, you can separate more later.
#3 Decide where you will place each character: Take a look at your shoes and think about where you want to place the characters. You might want to hold the napkin up to the shoes to get an idea of which characters will fit best in the different areas of the shoe. Of course, you might want to make decisions based on the characters you like best. Courtney likes Captain America and Black Widow the best, so we made sure that they were used right at the front of the shoes.
#4 Tear out your first character: Lay out your napkin on a flat surface in front of you. Fill a cup or bowl with a bit of water. Dip your thin paint brush into the water and tap off any excess. Then use the paint brush to “paint” a thin line of water around the first characters you want to apply to your shoes. Then, carefully tear out the character along the water line you just “painted”. The reason you do this with the paintbrush and water is because it makes it much easier to tear the napkin.
TIP: Don’t use scissors to cut out the characters because this will leave a straight edge which makes it harder to collage the characters seamlessly together. Always tear out the pieces.
#5 Glue your first character onto your shoe: Pour some Mod Podge into a bowl or cup. I recommend covering it with a piece of plastic wrap while you are working to keep it from drying out. Lay your character onto the shoe to take one final look at where you will want it placed. Remove the character from the shoe. Dip your foam brush into the Mod Podge. Remove excess from brush by tapping or rubbing brush again edge of bowl (you don’t want too much Mod Podge on your brush). Brush a thin layer of Mod Podge directly onto the shoes where you will be adding your character.
TIP: Avoid thick layers of Mod Podge, you want an even, thin layer. Thick spots will create areas where you napkin can tear when you are smoothing out wrinkles.
#6 Add your character to the shoe: Lay your character on top of the Mod Podge. Take your plastic wrap and tear off a piece and wad it up a bit. Use this to slowly and gently tap on the napkin and remove wrinkles. If you notice your plastic wrap sticking to the napkin at all, re-position the plastic wrap (stretch it out again and re-wad it) so you can use a clean spot with no Mod Podge on it (discard your plastic and get a new piece, if necessary).
#7 Continue adding characters: Repeat steps #3 – #6 with additional characters until shoes are completely covered. As you are adding new characters, do your best to overlap the napkin slightly with other characters that have been added, matching up sections as best as possible. Cover tongue of shoe last, in the same way. When shoes is completely covered with napkins, give the entire shoe a final thin coat of Mod Podge to seal it.
TIP: If you accidentally tear the napkin, don’t worry. While it’s ideal to have no tears/holes, it’s very easy to cover up small tears or holes at the end with a piece of matching napkin.
#8 Uncover the eyelets: As you can see in our photos, we didn’t worry about leaving the eyelets (shoelace holes) uncovered. After you’ve applied your coat of Mod Podge sealer and it has dried completely, use the tip of a craft knife to carefully cut and scrape away the napkin and glue covering the holes. If you don’t care about having the eyelets exposed, you can always push through the napkin covering the hole.
#9 Finish up: If you wish, you can spray your shoes with an even, thin coating of clear acrylic spray for extra durability (24 hours after you applied your seal coat of Mod Podge). We chose to not spray our shoes. We DO NOT recommend spraying with clear acrylic spray if these shoes are made for young children (Mod Podge is non-toxic, but the spray isn’t).
To remove painters tape from the soles, turn each shoe upside down and work your way around the shoe pulling the tape mostly off, but not completely removing it. Then, using a craft knife, carefully cut away the napkin/tape where the canvas meets the sole. Take great care to only cut the napkin/tape and not the shoe.
About 72 hours after the final layer of Mod Podge (or acrylic spray, if using) has been applied, and if shoes are completely dry, add the shoelaces. Shoes may be worn now, if you wish, however letting these cure even longer is highly recommended.
One last note, Mod Podge does make an Outdoor variety, which we didn’t use. You can use that if you wish your shoes to be water resistant and it might be helpful if you are creating shoes for a young child.. However, even with the use of Mod Podge Outdoor, we still recommend not wearing these on rainy days to preserve the life of them.
I hope you enjoyed this craft tutorial on how to make your own Avengers Mod Podge shoes. If you use this tutorial to make your own shoes, we’d love to see them. Leave a comment below with a link to your shoes.
MARVEL’S AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON will hit theaters everywhere on May 1st!
Visit the official website: http://marvel.com/avengers
Like THE AVENGERS on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/avengers
Follow THE AVENGERS on Twitter: https://twitter.com/avengers
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I know someone who would love t hese Thanks for sharing at #HomeMattersParty
Wow, they are amazing. This is a great project to do with the kids or make as a gift for the Super Hero fan. Thanks for sharing on Sunday’s Best.
Sooo much fun. I hope your children know you are the best Mom.
That is such a great idea! I have three boys so this tip will come in handy! Pinned.
Love these and I think they look fantastic! I didn’t read if someone suggested but I wonder if dishwasher safe mod podge would work for this as far as waterproofing them? Maybe I’ll try with that. Thanks for the tutorial.
These are AMAZING. I can’t believe you made them out of napkins! Thanks so much for bringing these to #SaucySaturdays.
Thanks so much for sharing this incredible shoe tutorial at The Pretty Pintastic Party! I wouldn’t have believed you made them if I hand’t seen the tutorial!
We love them so much we are planning to feature them at the party coming up this weekend. We hope you’re stop by, grab a featured badge, and share some more great posts!
This is so flipping cool! My mind is just reeling with other possibilities! Thanks for linking up with us on Throwback Thursday!
Mollie
This is a great idea. I know we’re too late for Avengers, but I’ll share this with my boys for another cool movie. Thanks for sharing at Turn It Up Tuesdsay.
Wow, these turned out soooo amazing!!! I love them 🙂
Thank you for such detailed instructions
I’m going to be making these today. Only hello kitty instead of avengers. I’m a girly girl. Can’t help it. I love marvel too but sanrio more. ? thanks for the amazing idea. I will post my finished work when I am done too. ?
Super Cool shoes!!! I will be making a pair for my daughter. what a super great Idea. Cheers
I was on maternity leave when you posted this and just came across it months later. AWESOME. What a great project! #client
I only have gloss Modge Podge. Will it be ok?
Yes, Gloss Mod Podge will work. It will be more shiny/glossy.
Would glossy mod podge work?
Hi Jenna! Yes, glossy mod podge will work too.
I’m really impressed even though I have been using mod podge for more than 10 years. but there even is one just for fabrics which stays soft. I’ve got some here but haven’t used it yet. Tomorrow I’ll get me a pair and try this….thanks for sharing
Thank you, Maggie!
These are soooo cool! Really impressive results!
This is an awesome project. Thanks for sharing at the Inspiration Spotlight Party. Pinned & shared. Hope to see you again soon. Come share anytime. I can’t wait to try your project. We are comic book fans!
Thanks Theresa!
Ummm….these are AWESOME!! Genius, and my kids would flip! Pinned!
Thanks Mindi!
Forget making these for the kids – I want them for myself! I did cover a glasses case in a similar way once but the napkin idea is fab – I can cover anything with this idea – oooo, exciting projects are now buzzing in my head!
Thanks Julie! My wife is making a pair too. And you’re right, this same technique can be used on lots of things.
Hello gorgeous! I’m just stopping by to let you know that your superhero shoes were Kimberly’s favorite at our last party! Happy dance time! We will be featuring it our at our party tonight at 7. I hope to see you there! Lou Lou Girls
That’s great! Thank you!
I love these so much I can’t think straight right now. I showed my husband and he was skeptical that it was even legit. The power of mod podge. Using a napkin never even remotely occurred to me. haha Definitely pinning that for later! The possibilities are endless!
Love the coloring pages too! My girls will be thrilled to get their hands on those.
Thanks Sam! Mod Podge is pretty magical. Glad you like them, love to see yours when you make them.
Party napkins and Mod Podge! Genius! And so cute. The possibilities are endless.
Thanks HeatherAnne!
These shoes are so amazing. I love them and I know some grandkids that would go wild over them. I am thinking of so many different ways to do this. Thank you so much for sharing at Share It One More Time. Pinning. Cathy
Thanks Cathy!
Pls can anyone can show me the video
If u have
I really love the idea my boys loved it soooooo much when I show them this shoe
Thanks
Wow! These are amazing! I’ll be sharing with my friend Amy who loves all things Marvel! Thank you so much for linking up to #AllAboutYou
Thanks Lisa!
Love this idea I’m going to try some for myself but a different pattern. Perhaps some Marimekko ones.
Thanks
Thanks Claire! I didn’t know what Marimekko was, so i looked it up. I agree it would be a great choice for these shoes.
Hi! I just wanted to let you know that I chose your post as one of my top 5 for the week at #ShareTheWealthSunday! I’ll feature it on my page (FunMoneyMom) for this week’s party as well as on my FB page!
Thanks again for linking up!
xoxo
Lisa
Thanks Lisa!
Not sure who would love these more, my 3 sons or my husband! They enjoy comic cons and happy you’ve linked up with us at Small Victories Sunday linkup. Pinned to our linkup board and I will be featuring your post this weekend!
Thanks Tanya! And thank you for featuring us this weekend. You guys should make them, let us know if you do!
This is a damn neat idea!! Does the print stay intact even after a few washes?
Thanks Swapna! We do not recommend washing them in a washing machine. Wiping them with a damp cloth will work fine.
Those are extremely awesome! My family is pretty geeky as well. We just did family photos and decided to go with superheroes – Hulk, Captain America, Batman, and Superman. How long do you think these took you to make them?
Thanks Stacey! Very cool about your family photos, I would love to see them. The shoes would take roughly 4 to 5 hours, not including drying time. I’m sure some people could do it faster, but we took our time to get it just the way we wanted it.
These are AWEsome!!
Thanks for sharing with us at Mommy Monday!
I’m quite sure I know a few Avenger lovers who would enjoy trying out this DIY.
Thanks Mrs. AOK!
My kid is going to flip over these! Thanks for sharing on Found & Foraged. Hope to see you again next Saturday!
Thanks Kyla! Let us know if you make them!
Wow! How fun! Have to try this. We are huge MCU fans at our house.
Thanks! MCU fans too.
Wow…I’m in awe! Those are amazing!!! Thanks so much for linking up with #ShareTheWealthSunday!
xoxo
Lisa
Thanks Lisa!
Oh wow, these are amazing! I am so going to try this- any napkins would work great! My son loves the Hulk at the moment so he would be the character I feature the most.
Thanks Lauren! I like the Hulk too. We would love to see them if you make them.
Oh my gosh these are so cool! My son totally wants a pair now. Thanks for linking up to Snickerdoodle Sunday!
Thanks Kristina!
Thank you for the great tutorial! So many ideas and possibilities! Where ARE the Loki party napkins?!?!? 🙂
Here’s a link to my shoes. Not bad for a first attempt! I don’t think I’ll cover the tongue on future projects.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/iamheather/16753673453/in/set-72157651934053530
Those look awesome, Heather! Thank you for sharing them with us. Oh, and I want Loki napkins too!!
I LOVE this tutorial! Made two pair, one for my stepdad and one for myself. This is my pair:
http://i60.tinypic.com/2mcbs0h.jpg
I didn’t use the foam brush very much, I just used a small flat paintbrush to put everything on. Then ran it down the edges of each piece to make it stick better.
Each pair ended up taking me about 5 hrs since I wanted each one in a specific spot, then had to go back through and fill in the holes with the blue.
My stepdads pair didn’t turn out as well as mine since I could only find shoes his size in black. So for anyone wanting to try, make sure the shoes are white or it won’t look as good!
Those turned out great!
Thank you, Camille!
Thanks for sharing yours Tiara! They look great.
Gee, I wonder if I can find some Doctor Who napkins! Actually, with all the trouble I have with my feet, I suspect that I won’t be making shoes… Still, these are AWESOME! My favorite Marvel hero was always Daredevil, funny, now I have a roommate who once beat up a much bigger black guy with her blind stick… You should’ve heard a friend, the roomie and me at the Daredevil movie when that line came up.
Bees wax is good for water proofing
Thanks for the tip! Do you think Bees Wax works well over Mod Podge?
I wonder if that ‘never wet’ stuff would work?
OK, these? These are AMAZING! Holy heck! My sons are going to FLIP OUT because I’m for certain making some of these shoes. Amazing job! #client
Thanks Summer! It was a great campaign. We had a lot of fun making them.
This are so stinkin’ cool! I can’t even get over it!! This IS AWESOME!
Thanks Sara!
I tried this project and it turned out great but I wore them today for the first time and I’m getting some tears where the creases are. Is there anything I can do about this? Or did I do something wrong? Please let me know. Thanks
Kate