
Headed back to school soon? You need the right shoes for the job. Put some pep in a teacher or students step with these DIY Back to School Shoes. I’ve got 3.5 crafty footwear options to choose from: lace-up canvas crayon shoes, notebook paper themed slip-on shoes and pencil flats in plain or glitter! Oh and don’t forget these 10 DIY Ideas for Back to School and my Art Class Wreath.
DIY Back To School Shoes
If you prefer a video tutorial, I’ve got you covered. Check out this episode of DIY This With Jennifer Perkins for HGTV called Back to School Shoes. The name says it all! Check out my DIY back to school shoes inspired by notebook paper, pencils and crayons. I also share a craft fail of a pair that seemed like a great idea – but didn’t quite work out. Which pair is your favorite?

Notebook Paper Slip-On Shoes Supplies
- White slip on shoes
- Pencil
- Blue paint pen
- Red paint pen

The hardest part about these DIY Notebook paper shoes is deciding whether you want wide ruled or college ruled paper. Well ok, as you can see painting straight lines is also tricky but we just won’t talk about that. Draw the pattern with a pencil. Use the blue paint marker to color-in the horizontal lines. After you have completed all the blue lines use the red pen to make a vertical line.

Canvas Crayon Tennis Shoes Supplies
- Colored canvas tennis shoes
- Pencil
- Fabric paint (shade slightly darker than shoe)
- Black paint marker or permanent marker
Dig through the kids art supplies and find a crayon to use as your guide. Start with a pair of shoes that are the same as the color crayon you want. Using a pencil mark off the toe, squiggles at the top and the bottom of the show and the toe. Using fabric paint paint the toe and heel of the shoe. This is the tip and end of your crayon. Use a black marker or paint pen to fill in squiggle pattern. Encourage the kids to help!

DIY Number 2 Pencil Inspired Flats Supplies
- Plain shoes with pointy toe
- Pencil
- Paint brush
- Fabric paint
- Optional: glitter and decoupage medium

Use your pencil to draw the basic design of a pencil. Tip for lead (pointier shoes the better), raw wood sharpened section, green stripes and pink eraser. One section at a time fill in each section with fabric paint. These shoes were already tan so that I could skip painting the raw wood section. Outline in a black marker or paint pen.
Really feeling the pencil vibes now, check out this yellow pencil tree!

Prefer a glittered pencil (and really who wouldn’t) check out DIY Glittered Pencil Flats for Back to School over on the HGTV site. Same as regular, but with sparkles! You could easily make those glitter crayons too!
Which pair is your favorite? I’m really smitten on those glitter pencils, but that probably comes as no big surprise to you.
Need more DIY Shoe Inspiration? Read On.

Whale Slip On Boat Shoes – Where were these striped shoes when I was making the notebook paper option? All they need is a red stripe on the side. Either way these whale themed sneakers look pretty cute and beach ready as is.

Cute DIY Creepers for Kids – When your kid needs a pair of creepers, whats a mom to do but DIY him a pair. All you need are some black shoes and fabric paint!

Quilt Scrap Mary Jane Shoes – After hoarding vintage quilting scraps I finally found something to do with them. I love the way these decoupaged shoes look – so colorful they match everything.
These are all so cute! The pencils are my favorite. Thanks for sharing at Merry Monday!
OMG this are super cute. The last pair made with quilt pieces is my favorite. Thanks for sharing this post on the link party. Happy Summer, Kippi
Such fun bts shoe ideas! I love the canvas notebook paper shoe and the pencil shoes. So fun! Will be including this in a bts roundup on MM. Pinned.