| It's been over 20 years since I first
started making replicas of the ruby slippers. When I first saw the
original pairs, I realized that they looked different than the ones I make...
They are. But with Shannon's sequins and a lot of patience I was
able to create a more authentic pair for myself.
I took the blood-red translucent sequins
and hand strung them together in a line like we see them today. I
then had to double-sew them with another color thread before I glued them
to the shoe. I did not use and overlay. I was trying to find
the quickest way to do these besides the overlay... (You know how impatient
we can be.)
I used vintage shoes from dead stock (never
worn) from the 1940's and applied the sequins to them after spraying them
a soft burgundy color.
This was a very tedious process but with
a little time, well, I had a vision of what was to be...
There is no felt on the bottoms of these,
as they resemble the witches pair.
I personally like that pair the best, higher
heel, sleeker toe. Then the bows were cut down to size and darker
stones had to be ordered. I hand set these swarovski crystals into
sew-in holders and sewed the bows onto the high vamp.
Inside is the label and Judy's name.
The look was complete.
Note: It takes a lot of light to
photograph these shoes correctly. Here it took 5 light sources.
This is because of all the light it took on the set of the movie's early
technicolor process.
I have loved these slippers for years and
the magic they bring to all. Now I can enjoy their magic up close.
- Jack |
