Redo Your Sandals & Flip Flops: Cool Ideas

Some of you probably have leftover sandals from over the years that you should throw away, but never have because you just love them so much! We hear you. That's why today, we will go over how to recycle, redo and redesign your favorites ready for the summer season 2019!

Flip flops and sandals are not the “one - use” plastic waste the people are worried about. Yes, the focus is on plastic bags, straws, q-tips and anything else that is thrown away after using it one time. Yet summer shoes are a pressing matter for beaches around our world.

In every country you find this carefree open footwear that is really low-cost, easy to manufacture and easy to throw away. The concept of repairing seems to have evaded our society, but it is time for us to be more resourceful and tend to what we already own.

“The cheaper they are, however, the faster they break, which means that every year, millions upon millions of them wind up either discarded in landfills or worse — adding to the mountainous tide of plastic waste clogging our oceans and threatening marine wildlife. (Flip-flops, you might be interested to know, are a frequent sight in the Texas-sized floating landfill known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.)”

Flip flops, in particular, pose a huge problem. Not only are they made from non-recyclable products such as PVC, that is not biodegradable, the materials used to make them release dangerous chemicals into our environment, both land and water.The overall conclusion is troubling: phthalates seeping from sandals are a "significant" source of toxins from consumers. Not to mention that most of the people wear them barefoot with sunscreen that is also a pollutant. It just seems to get worse and worse as we dive deep into the darker side of our friendly, easy footwear.

But fortunately, there are creative people posting recycling and repairing options that anyone can do at home as long as they dedicate a little bit of their time from their busy schedules.

Cool Flip Flops with Fabric Straps

You can give your flip flops a new look by wrapping different types of fabric across the old straps of your shoes. Using a ribbon is a great way to start.

1. Rest the flip flop on the floor.
2. Take a piece of ribbon and glue it to the base of the strap, where your foot goes, that is tied to the shoe.
3. Once glued, start to wrap the ribbon around the strap and work your way to the top of the strap - at the toe junction.
4. Continue all the way around until you reach the bottom of the strap on the other side.
5. Go back to the junction and create a thick “V” wrap so that you can protect your toes from that tricky, uncomfortable spot!

You can use ribbon, denim or any other piece of fabric that you have lying around the house that you think will be comfortable enough and easy-to-use for this purpose.

When the wrap is thick enough, it is possible to attach some decorative pieces such as beads and tassels!

Cool Sandals You Can Make Yourself!

If you prefer sandals to flip flops - for some people, the toe separator is just not comfortable at all - then make your own using an old pair of flip flops and t-shirt! By the end, you will have a sandal that has two bands of fabric crisscrossed at the front and two longer pieces at the back to tie around and wrap your ankle with.

1. Take an old pair of flip flops and cut the bottom of the straps at the three points, the top (toe separator) and the two at the bottom end.
2. Take a long strip of the t-shirt. This strip will be used to make sure that the bottom end of the flip flop wraps around your ankle. You will know the length once you try. Bring the strip through one of the bottom holes, tie a knot and glue it to the underside of the flip flop.
3. Do this again with the other hole on the opposite side. Now you have two strips of fabric to securely wrap your ankle.
4. For the top part of the shoe, cut horizontal slits on the left and right side of the foam sole.
5. Take two, thick equal-lengths of the t-shirt (the length will depend on you) and put the tops of the material in the horizontal slit.
6. Criss-cross them and put the bottom ends of the t-shirt fabric in the horizontal slit.
7. Glue the slits together with waterproof super glue, clamp the edges together and wait.

So have a go and let us know what you have made!