Have you ever seen baby shoes which have been bronzed? Aren’t they beautiful? Lots of people bronze baby shoes to preserve them and make them into keepsakes. After bronzing the shoes they actually become a décor item for many people.
There is more than one choice when it comes to bronzing baby shoes. Some people send off for a kit which comes with the bronzing solution to do a single pair of shoes. Others want to bronze additional things, so to save money, they purchase bronzing powder and mix it themselves. Although you save money over the bronzing kit this method can be a little messy and still costly.
If you’d like to have your child’s shoes bronzed, but you simply can’t afford it, consider a much cheaper, albeit imitation solution. Even though you won’t be coating the baby shoes with real bronzing solution you can achieve the exact same look for a couple of bucks! Now that’s quite a savings!
Purchase fabric paint in a tube, like Tulip paints or a similar type, and use the paint to make bronze baby shoes. Their bronze paint, which is applied as easily as bronze powder solution, gives the baby shoes the exact same appearance as if you applied the real bronzing formula.
Start with clean and very dry baby shoes. Tie the shoes to start or tie them later, after the paint has dried. To achieve the look of the real bronzed shoes glue the tongue to the inside of the shoe so it will stay in place.
Dispense some of the paint onto a paper plate and use a small paintbrush to apply the paint.
Start painting on the inside sole, work your way up to do the remainder of the inside, then go to the outside. Paint the tongue and shoe strings, as well as the rest of the shoe, until it’s completely covered. Set the shoes on a flat surface to dry. Apply another coat, if needed, to get full coverage. When the last coat is dry, paint the soles, if desired.
The great thing about doing the fake bronzing is that it’s just so easy. And, you have many other choices than just bronzing. Tulip and similar types of paints have a wide variety of colors and types, like other metallic colors, pastels, glitter paints and even a pearl look. The vast variety allows you to make anything from a baby shoe vase to a set of baby shoe book ends.
As with other bronzing techniques you can paint the bronze – or other color – on many other things to preserve or decorate. Make a bronze candle, a bronze golf ball or another choice. You’ll get addicted, though, so unless you want lots and lots of bronzed things, you’d better stop after the shoes!
Reference:
- Tulip paints here: www.michaels.com
