Prairie Boots and toasty toes

These spunky pair of Prairie Boots come from a pattern designed by Coco Knits, here, and were a must have when I saw them being made by my friend, Mary, in December as a Christmas gift. We both ended up making a pair for our sisters, who, coincidentally, were born on the same day and prone to having specific demands where their slippers were concerned. Needless to say, the Prairie Boots were a huge success.

But I found myself envying their toasty toes, and decided to make a pair for myself. I used Lion Brand Yarn's Thick and Quick. I also improvised a suede leather sole, which I made from a thrift store skirt purchase, which I then cut to the size of my feet. With a little stretching and pinning, I then used a sharp darning needle and sock yarn to hand stitch the sole into place. A little work, but much cheaper than purchasing a pair online for twenty odd bucks - and I have made two pairs of slipper soles and have suede left for next snow season.

The only improvisation I did make on the pattern was that when it came time to decrease the stitches prior to working in garter stitch for the cuff of the slipper, I kept in the rib stitch for those additional 4 rows. I liked the feel and fit better.

I love the fact that the entire slipper was crafted by myself - so don't be put off by the additional effort. Scavenge some suede - repurposing has such an invigorating charm to it - and definitely leads to other ideas (wink!).