I'm a step away from buying these: From some craft store (it's still Converse though) nearby and attacking them with some multicolored sharpies :) Anyone ever do this before? I'm trying to decide between paint or sharpies, though I'm leaning more towards sharpies. How long will they last? And how much should I cover in patterns/doodles? I might also just buy a pair of black instead, and put a bit of the white acrylic on and sharpie over that, so it's black with a 'lil patch of doodles/patterns on the heels. OR SHOULD I DO BOTH ;o;

For examples and perhaps inspiration I would suggest taking a look at Bobsmade's gallery on Deviantart (Link). Bob's shoes are absolutely stunning and I myself have considered doing the same when I get some extra cash after seeing some of their shoes and headphones.

ASDFGH that was what I was looking for too. The acrylic ones... agh, sharpies or acrylic e.o Decisions, decisions. I edited my OP to include that option XD

I have a pair of white converse that my entire Freshman class signed in a bag of neon sharpies. They are my favorite shoes in the world and I just keep them around to look at them lol. I would definitely suggest going for it - it's like wearing a piece of art almost.

It really is, I'm itching to do a pair or two of these shoes XD I'm debating on what material I should use though D: And how exactly I should go about this, whether to just attack with doodles or have a scene of some sort that I prepped ready to go.

I've never tried it on converses before but generally speaking if you wanna make designs and stuff on fabric you should probably go for a plastic based paint like acrylics or some other fabric paint. Sharpies tend to bleed a little when you draw on fabric so any lines you draw on it will probably not be as crisp as you intended, might even get a little smudgy. Plus sharpies are usually not very waterproof so if you wear them out and accidentally step in a puddle or something you'll might end up with a big runny mess : <

So if you want to have 'em for any length of time... I would go for acrylics or make sure you find a brand of marker or pen that is waterproof (Micron pens for example are).

Sharpies are supposed to last though, I looked up a ton of this stuff before posting here, and lots of people said they've had their sharpie-covered-converse for ages and nothing happened. Then again I've been finding bits of mixed advice here and there gulp

Acrylics are much better than sharpies on shoes, sharpie fades and bleeds whereas you can even put acrylic through the wash! I'd advise sealing whatever you use with some kind of waterproof spray (like scotch guard or similar) The only downside with acrylic is that after 2 or 3 years or wear and washing (constant daily wear) the acrylic does start to show hairline cracks.

I wrote this tutorial on painting canvas shoes a while back, although since I've decided sharpie outlines aren't the best and I'm back to using black acrylic and a fine brush like on these

Hope I helped in some way :)

(edited for typos and to add info on acrylic, sorry if you get double-pinged!)

I love that octopus XD That's exactly what I'd be doing if I chose acrylic, though I'm not as skilled at paint as I am with basic sharpies, hehe. What was wrong with the sharpie outline that made you switch?

Well like I said, I've never tried them on converses, but I have used them on other things, like jeans and some cheap canvas sneakers. It looks okay to begin with but unless you're only going to wear then a couple times (like for cosplay purposes) or just have them as art on display... they won't stay as nice as long as acrylics will. Acrylics might cost more/take longer to paint on, but in the long run especially since you're getting some nice converses and not just a cheap pair of canvas sneaks, they just last longer.

Also with acrylics if you mess something up it's super easy to just repaint over it! With sharpies you don't have that fall back : <

I'm starting to lean towards acrylics now XD I'm so easily swayed, it's not even funny.

I actually did the paint outline first, I chose to do Sharpies second time round because I figured it would be easier, but oh I was wrong. It looked great to start with, but it bled straight into everything I'd painted. Then when I protective-sprayed it, it bled even more! No good.

You can get a finer line initially, but it really doesn't last, and ends up ruining what you've already done, so I'm sticking with my beloved acrylics n__n

I've painted with acylics before, but not that often. How is it on canvas shoes compared with regular canvas (are the contours that hard to get around)? I'm not the best with paint ;~;

I'd definitely go with acrylics. For the sharpie look you might be going for, you can try Faber Castell artist pens. They also work good with acrylic--and they're water proof. (: Some people are selling them on ebay for $9.99-- you have to bid but I doubt anyone will outbid you. xD

I'm starting to get into sneaker painting myself, it's actually pretty fun. (: Sharpies bleed and you can't wash them without messing it up. I haven't exactly tried them on converse, but I have on fabric and it really ruins them after awhile. x. X (Plus, since your shoes are white...you'd probably want to wash them anyway.)

I'm pretty sure I'm doing acrylics now, or at least as a base on black shoes for sharpies or something like that. You've done sneaker painting? Any tips you can share? ;)

@ dot Sounds good. (: Well, make sure to plan out what you're doing first. and not just wing it. Otherwise it can turn out terrible. xD I think you've gotten the whole, paint white first for vibrancy thing from others so, you should be set. (: Oh, have you painted with acrylic before..? You might want to test out a bit before you actually put it on the shoe and all~ for straight lines, thin brushes aren't always best. I find the flat edge straight brushes work nicely. click {I would use around FB 5-12 on that picture for a lot of the lines. the thin ones can just look sloppy if you're not careful.}

@ Now

I'll soon be staring at a blank converse template in agony, unable to gather inspiration XD Of course I'll be planning it out :) I've painted with acrylic, but not on shoes XD Do you think that if I wanted, I could take a black shoe, paint white in the shape of the design, then instead of putting more acrylic over it, put sharpie instead? Or would that turn out craptastic? ;~; I wouldn't be coating it, just do that for small details if I'm doing it like that. If I come up with a design with lots of big areas, I'll definitely do 100% acrylic.

-cough I didn't plan out my first one- yikes that was a terrible experience. xD ahem anyway. :P

Hmm, you can try. if the sharpie messes up, you could paint over it again with white. And if it doesn't cover it the first time, just paint it over again to fix the blends with the marker. Only thing is that it might just rub off-- the sharpie. Maybe like, test out a bit of the sharpie on the painted part and rub it, splash water on it, ect to see what happens. o3o But you could also try the water resistant spray. They have it at most hardware stores.

Mmkay then :D Eeee I'm all excited now. I need to get those shoes, and a design ASAP D: Thanks!

Make sure to show me what it looks like! xD Good luck (: