If you're making a Peter Pan costume for Halloween, cosplay or the kids' dress-up collection, a pair of matching felt shoes is a must. Even the best Halloween costumes can be ruined if you wear regular old sneakers with them, and Peter Pan just wouldn't look right without his signature footwear. Fortunately, the style of felt booties that fits with a DIY Peter Pan costume is fairly simple to create. You need to make a custom paper pattern, but the project only calls for basic sewing skills and supplies. If you're experienced with costume projects, it's possible to make these Peter Pan shoes at the last minute before a Halloween party.
Things You'll Need
Slipper or shoe
Paper
Pencil
Ruler
Flexible measuring tape
Scissors
1/4 to 1/2 yard of green felt or brown felt
Straight pins
Sewing machine
Matching thread
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Select a slipper or shoe
Choose a slipper or shoe belonging to the child or adult who will wear the Peter Pan costume. A bootie-style slipper is ideal, but any shoe will do. You will use it to trace a rough outline of the sole and upper section as the basis for your Peter Pan shoe pattern.
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Tip
In Disney’s Peter Pan, the character wears light brown booties. However, green felt would also look great with a Peter Pan costume, so choose whichever color you prefer.
Trace around the sole
Place one of your chosen shoes or slippers with the sole down flat on a piece of paper. Trace around the sole of the shoe with a pencil and then remove the shoe. Draw a second line all the way around the sole, 1/2 inch outside the first traced line. This is the pattern piece for the sole.
Trace around the upper section
On a second piece of paper, lie the same shoe or slipper flat on its side and trace all the way around it. Remove the shoe. Draw a second line 1/2 inch outside the traced line as you did for the sole pattern piece. This is the basic outline of the upper shoe, which you will refine to create the upper pattern piece.
Refine the upper pattern
With a flexible measuring tape, measure the circumference of the sole pattern (measure the outer set of lines). Divide the circumference by 2. The result is the length needed for the bottom edge of the upper pattern.
Measure the bottom edge of the upper shoe outline you traced on the second piece of paper. If it is shorter than the length required (as determined above), add extra length to the bottom edge of the upper shoe outline. Add half the extra length to the toe end and half to the heel end.
Add an ankle to the pattern
With a ruler, draw a straight line directly upward from the heel end of the bottom edge of the shoe outline. Extend it above the traced shoe outline's ankle section by 5 to 10 inches, which will allow for a fold-down ankle section on the finished Peter Pan booties. Choose a shorter measurement for kids' sizes and longer for adults' sizes.
Mark the pattern with a pencil dot at the point where the top of the foot meets the ankle section. With a regular shoe, this is the spot where the laces are tied. Draw a vertical line upward from this dot to match the height of the back ankle line you just drew. Connect the top points of both lines with a straight, horizontal line. This completes the ankle section of the pattern.
Create a pointed toe
Draw a line from the pencil dot you previously marked, following the shape you traced along the top of the foot part of the shoe toward the toe end. Extend this line 2 to 3 inches beyond the length of the bottom edge of the shoe pattern (at the toe end). Draw a diagonal line connecting the toe ends of the bottom edge and upper foot edge. This shape will create a pointed toe shape on the finished Peter Pan shoes.
Cut out the patterns
With scissors, cut out the sole pattern and the upper shoe pattern.
Tip
It's a good idea to test your paper pattern's fit before cutting out the fabric. Do so by wrapping the upper pattern paper around your foot, which will give you a rough idea of the shape and fit. If needed, make adjustments to the paper pattern before proceeding.
Cut out the felt fabric
Use your paper patterns to cut out two sole shapes and four upper shoe shapes from the brown or green felt fabric. You can either pin the paper patterns to the felt and cut around them or trace around the paper pattern onto the fabric before cutting it out.
Sew the upper shoes
Place two of the upper shapes of felt together with all the edges aligned and the right sides facing. Place pins along the back ankle edge and along the upper part of the foot from the bottom of the pointed toe to the point where the foot meets the ankle. Leave the front of the ankle section open, as this is where "Peter Pan" will insert his foot.
With matching thread, use a sewing machine to sew both pinned seams using a straight or narrow zigzag stitch, leaving a 1/2-inch seam allowance.
Repeat this with the second two upper shapes.
Sew the soles
Pin the lower edges of one upper shoe around the circumference of one of the soles with the right sides facing. Take your time and use plenty of pins to ease the shapes together. Slowly sew the upper shoe to the sole, leaving a 1/2-inch seam allowance. Repeat this with the second shoe and sole.
Fold down the ankles
Turn the Peter Pan shoes right sides out. Fold the ankles downward to create a simple cuff. Optionally, tack the cuff in place with a few stitches.
Complete your Peter Pan costume
Wear the DIY Peter Pan shoes as a finishing touch to a complete Peter Pan costume. Other essential elements include:
- Green leggings or tights
- A green tunic with a zigzag hem (which you can make from an oversize T-shirt)
- A brown belt
- A signature Peter Pan hat with a red feather tucked into the band.
Tip
Peter Pan is a great choice when you are considering DIY Halloween costumes for a group. Tinkerbell, Captain Hook, Wendy and the other Darling children are all fun costume ideas to match with Peter Pan.
Ready for Neverland?
Making Peter Pan shoes is probably the most complicated part of this timeless classic costume, but it's still an achievable one. It's also well worth the effort because these felt shoes really complete an authentic Peter Pan look. One warning: When you put on your homemade Peter Pan shoes, you might never want to grow up!