I am brimming with delightful excitement to introduce something I’ve been working on behind the scenes. I can’t wait to bring it to you and TODAY is the day! From the moment I made my first pair of espadrilles I have been dreaming about all the possibilities for different types of shoes. Gladiator sandals, slippers, felted, embroidered…so many ways to use the espadrille shoe sole. It’s endless! Essentially, if you love to manipulate textile, you can turn that artistry into shoes. It still manages to blow my mind.
Yet, I never seemed to find the time to make all of the shoes in my mind. I did, however, always come across artists and I’d think about how their work would make amazing shoes. Additionally, since I started creating The Espadrilles Kits I’ve tried to keep an eye open to how what I do could also support other makers. Spread the happiness, right? It makes me bubbly with enthusiasm just to think about it.
I see my I GOT IT kits as tools to help that creativity, since they don’t come with fabric, they can be an open door for creating something totally different. Well, I figured out how to combine the open creativity of the I GOT IT kits with amazing artists who work with textiles.
I am so pleased to introduce THE ARTIST SERIES! Every month for the rest of the year I will highlight an artist and their inventive pair of espadrilles. For that month only I will have an I GOT IT kit for sale along with a PDF the artist has created. I have some really incredible creative minds lined up to showcase how artistry can become shoes. I know this will be an incredible year-long adventure. (Ok, it’s March, so nearly a year long.) Kicking off this fabulous journey of creativity is the queen of color herself, Katie Kortman! I’m so thrilled to have Katie as the inaugural maker launching the Artist Series with painted espadrille shoes. They are positively amazing. Katie brings her background as an in-house artist at Anthropologie to pull together a how-to for anyone else interested in painting espadrilles!
She hardly needs much introduction for anyone in the garment sewing world, Katie is the incredibly creative force behind the #TheHandmadeHustle and #SewHappyColor. In fact, this week is pink and red week of Sew Happy Color and Katie is rocking her shoes! What a burst of happy color!
I just launched a special listing in my Etsy shop where you can buy the basic I GOT IT kit and her special PDF. Not only that, Katie created short videos about her painting technique that I will also send along to anyone who buys the kit. It illustrates how she paints fabric for her espadrilles including the type of paintbrush and her technique. It’s intended to inspire and elevate your espadrille making. So, grab your kit and scraps of canvas and get ready to paint yourself some awesome shoes! Also, if you are loving these pom-poms as much as I am DO NOT miss Katie’s tutorial on how to make the pom-poms.
Meet Katie: I am Katie Kortman. I love painting, sewing and dancing (particularly in the things I’ve painted or sewn)! I’m an artist, teacher, and a mother to 4 kids. We’re a Military family and lucky enough to have lived and travelled all over the world! Wherever I go, I seek out bright, joyful color to paint and sew all the beautiful things. I blog at Katiekortman.com and do lots of crazy dancing at @katiekortman, come say hi!
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