![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyrunway01.jpg)
Here they are on the Givenchy FW2012 RTW runway. Photos from style.com
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots01.jpg)
I started with:
- a pair of wedge pumps. You can use any shoes or booties that you want to cover
- some large leather pieces (mine were from a deconstructed pair of vintage leather pants)
- buckles
- some measuring tape
- fabric scissors
- goop glue (not shown)
- a sewing machine (not shown)
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots02.jpg)
Start with taking some measurements of your legs. I measured the circumference at the top of my calf (12.5"), the circumference at the bend of the foot (16" not including the toe) and then the total length (18").
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots03.jpg)
Then I cut a large quadrilateral shape with a height of 18", base of 16", top 12.5".
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots04.jpg)
Then I sewed the piece (face to face) lengthwise to make the shaft of the boot.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots05.jpg)
Next I made the large tongue that covers the knee. I cut four equal rectangles with rounded corners. I sewed them together in pairs and then sewed each one to the top of the shafts.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots06.jpg)
After that, I had completed the basic shafts for the boots and just needed to add details.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots07.jpg)
The actual boots don't seem to have buckles at the top, but I copied the strip of leather on the original boot and added the buckle as a practical feature; since my leather was a bit softer than the boot leather, I needed the buckles to actually keep the boots up! I cut two equal strips of leather and attached each to the metal buckles. The strips were just a few inches longer than the top of the boot shaft.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots08.jpg)
Then, I carefully pinned each strap to the boot shaft making sure they were an even distance from the top of the boot all the way around.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots09.jpg)
Then using two straight stitches all the way around, I attached the buckle straps to the boot shafts.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots10.jpg)
Using a leather punch, I punched even holes on both the straps.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots11.jpg)
I also added little belt loops to hold onto the flappy straps.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots12.jpg)
Next, I decided to cover the toe cap with a suede finish (I spotted a couple of pairs on the runway with ponyhair toe caps and some that had suede vs leather combos). I just took a square of leather and started just trimming until the shape was about right.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots13.jpg)
To make sure the leather would sit tight, I flipped the leather piece over and pinned it along the toe.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots14.jpg)
I sewed right along the pinned line and then trimmed off the excess
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots15.jpg)
Then I sewed a top stitch along the top edge so that the boot would have a sewn look even though I would eventually be gluing these parts together.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots16.jpg)
I stretched the leather over the shoe again and trimmed the bottom edge
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots17.jpg)
Starting with just the tip of the toe, I spread on some goop glue and then quickly pressed on the top cap cover.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots18.jpg)
Then lifting the edges of the cover, I slowly applied a little more glue and pressed down the rest.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots19.jpg)
There! That's what the toe caps looked like covered with suede :)
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots20.jpg)
So then we've got a completed boot shaft and a covered toe cap!
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots21.jpg)
I tested by pulling the shaft over the shoe... and then trimmed the part of the shaft that the toe needed to poke out of.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots22.jpg)
Then taking the boot shaft, I started by gluing it on a part of the back of the heel and then also at the side of the shoe.
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots23.jpg)
Finally, I grabbed the flappy tongue on the toe cap and glued it to the boot shaft (see why I top stitched it? :) )
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchyboots24.jpg)
And there it is! My version of the Givenchy fw2012 boot!
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchydiy01.jpg)
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/Syl/givenchydiy00.jpg)
In the end, I'm glad that I got to rework a pair of shoes that I never wear-- but I'm still not 100% sure about how I feel about the look of them. They're a bit softer than the leather on the actual boots so I'm looking into how to harden leather with some waxing techniques. Other than that I think it might take a few outfit tries before I think they actually look "couture" on me & not like I stepped out of the game "Space Channel 5". So what do you guys think? Anyone crazy enough to try this themselves? Anyone saving up the $1600 for the real thing? And should I show my face at the Lincoln Center wearing my knockoffs?!
![](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v472/lipgloss-and-black/Blogspot/xoxosylandsam.jpg)