https://www.cutoutandkeep.net/projects/varma-house-shoes • Posted by GMC Group
It is usual in northern Europe and Scandinavia to take your street shoes off when entering someone’s house. Well, when you think about what is on the streets, it is only reasonable! In return, many thoughtful homeowners have a basket of house shoes by the front door for guests to wear. It is an extra nice welcoming touch. These slippers are easy to make from wool felt and they will be appreciated all year round. N.B. The template for this pattern has included women’s UK sizes 4–5, 5–6, 6–7 and 7–8 (EU sizes 37–38, 38–39, 39–40 and 40–41 / US sizes 6–7, 7–8, 8–9 and 9–10 ) for you to use as a guide. For an absolute fit, it is recommended that you measure your foot before cutting out and adjust accordingly. Tip You don’t need to include the seam allowance when cutting out the two interfacing pieces – they should be 0.5cm (¼in) smaller than the felt so that they will not be visible when you sew together the sole sections. Tip You can use a zipper foot to make the sandwich easier to sew, and lengthen your stitch to about 3.5mm (1⁄8in) to manage the layers. Tip These house shoes do not actually have a left and right but if you want to create this, place the elastic on opposite sides.
It is usual in northern Europe and Scandinavia to take your street shoes off when entering someone’s house. Well, when you think about what is on the streets, it is only reasonable! In return, many thoughtful homeowners have a basket of house shoes by the front door for guests to wear. It is an extra nice welcoming touch. These slippers are easy to make from wool felt and they will be appreciated all year round. N.B. The template for this pattern has included women’s UK sizes 4–5, 5–6, 6–7 and 7–8 (EU sizes 37–38, 38–39, 39–40 and 40–41 / US sizes 6–7, 7–8, 8–9 and 9–10 ) for you to use as a guide. For an absolute fit, it is recommended that you measure your foot before cutting out and adjust accordingly. Tip You don’t need to include the seam allowance when cutting out the two interfacing pieces – they should be 0.5cm (¼in) smaller than the felt so that they will not be visible when you sew together the sole sections. Tip You can use a zipper foot to make the sandwich easier to sew, and lengthen your stitch to about 3.5mm (1⁄8in) to manage the layers. Tip These house shoes do not actually have a left and right but if you want to create this, place the elastic on opposite sides.
Using the template, cut eight upper sections from the green felt. Also cut six sole pieces from the felt, including two from the interfacing.
Begin with the uppers: take two pieces (these will be the insides of your shoes) and sew the top seam between the dots and the heel seam entirely. Now take two more upper pieces and do the same thing to create the outsides of the shoes.
Turn the outers inside out so that the seam is on the inside for both the lining and the outer (it is more comfortable this way too). Pull the outer on over the lining and nest the seams so that they are quite flat.
Cut a piece of elastic, about 12cm (4¾in) long, and fold it in half to make a loop. Put this inside the two layers on one front side, about 2cm (¾in) down from the top – you can pin or tack/baste them together if necessary.
Thread your machine with red thread and sew the two layers of felt together around the top and the front centre opening, trapping the elastic as you sew. Since the elastic will undergo a fair bit of strain, reverse carefully over the trapped-loop section a couple of times with your sewing machine to secure it well. Sew a button to the upper on the corner opposite to the elastic. The upper is now finished. Repeat this for the other one.
Make the soles by laying the outer piece down and hot gluing the foam shape to it, taking care to centre it well. Lay the inner sole piece (lining) on top and tack/baste together to hold them. Place the upper piece over the sole ‘sandwich’ and pin or tack/baste – I prefer to tack/baste to keep pins out of the way. Sew around the four layers twice with red thread.