Wedding Blog
About shoes, that is. After months of searching for the perfect blue shoe, I gave up on looking and bought a pair of dyeables from the new Lela Rose Unforgettable Moments collection. I chose the “Jackie” style.
Here they are, in Oasis, which perfectly matches our wedding colors!
I am mostly pleased with the shoes, but I do have some issues. I was the first person to order them at my local store, and when they came in, they were really small. As in, I couldn’t get my foot into them small. (!!!) The sample size that they had at the store fit perfectly, so something during the dying process made the satin fabric shrink. Since I was their “guinea pig”, the store manager ordered me a new pair that was a half a size larger and in the extra wide width. (Even though I have very narrow feet.) They fit, thank goodness, and I was really pleased with the customer service to resolve the problem. However, if you are interested in these shoes, I would discuss how they run small after the dying process with the manager before you order. Also, go to a store and look at the swatches in person, because their colors online are way off. The oasis swatch on the website looks nothing like my shoes, but it matched the fabric swatches in the store perfectly.
A few other things to consider:
Hopefully this doesn’t gross anyone out, but here are the after pictures:
I asked the store manager about spraying some kind of protective coating on them to help prevent these issues, but she said that doing so would alter the color and may mess up the fabric. Since I don’t need to wear the shower shoes again, I am going to do a test run with some waterproofing spray, and if it goes well I’ll spray the wedding shoes too.
So in many ways, these shoes may not be ideal. However, for me they have the following benefits:
And… I really love them with my dress!
Yes, I know I am taking a gamble here, but I am at my wits end. Please share your dyeable shoe success and horror stories! (Hopefully someone has had some success!)
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Share this post: I’ve Got the Blues
Those are really cute!! I love them with your dress too. I had my shoes dyed to match my gown and I hope there’s no running of the color. So far so good…
I was recently a BM for one of my friends and she had us get our dyeables from David’s Bridal. The shrinking explains why the shoes fit perfectly before the process and why they were killing me the day of!! David’s neglected to tell me that! Good to know for my wedding, though!!
PS: I LOVE your blue shoes! =)
I ordered the Lela Rose Jackie shoes for my girls too. We didn’t have a problem with the fit after it had been dyed, and the color came out perfect. I totally second looking at the color in the store and not online. And even still they will come out a little different.
Thanks for the tip about not getting them wet, I didn’t think about the color running. Hopefully my little flower girl won’t end up with blue feet the next day!
For anyone looking at comfortable, inexpensive dyeable shoes I would suggest Lela Rose, plus if you go to the Payless store they can be part of their BOGO sale!
I’m so glad I found cute purple shoes and didn’t need to get dyeables…they can be so cute but the color running factor scares me!
I have a question after seeing your dress - my dress also has lace detailing like that at the hem…if you’ve had your alterations done already, were they able to hem the dress shorter even with the lace there?
You probably didn’t get the shower shoes wet…. it was more likely caused by the natural perspiration of your feet.
The shoes are really pretty!! Ankle straps always get me! 
Those are so pretty! I love the color and they DO look awesome for the dress. I hope the waterproof spray helps out though… I have such nasty, sweaty feet, I probably wouldn’t make it an hour before the dye was melting off all over the place D-:
I’ve never had shoes dyed before, but I remember someone in high school using scotch guard spray on her prom shoes and the color didn’t run. Maybe check that out.
I love that shade of blue! I hope you can get the color to stay, because those shoes could definitely be worn again. They are so cute!
I had to get dyed shoes, too - I have wide feet and needed wide shoes for comfort’s sake on my wedding day, and couldn’t find anything that was the right color. I wanted them dyed a light gold - after the first try they were clearly a light pink. After the store re-did the dye job, they looked right indoors. But outdoors they still looked light pink! I have an indoor/outdoor wedding so I complained to the store again, and was told that there was no way to have the color look the same indoors and outdoors. I didn’t understand that - lots of things look the same inside and out, but whatever. I hope I don’t get weird spots all over mine!
Yes! No one warned me about shoe dye running. I had ordered a pair of chocolate brown ones for my senior formals. It had snowed and by the time I walked from the car to the hotel, they had turned bright orange around the bottom! Everyone thought I had bought them to look like flames . . . lol - no!!!
I ordered the t-strap peep toe style of this shoe in french vanilla. I initially bought the $25 pair, just to make sure they were the right height and that I liked the style. I got and 8.5, my normal size. When I went in to order the dyeable ones, I ordered an 8.5 too. A friend who is WAY more wedding experience than I mentioned that shoes often shrink when dyed, but mine turned out ok. It might be the style of my shoe though. The style of the Jackie is one that dyeable or not, I bet a lot of women would have to go up a size in them.
Please please do a follow-up post on the water-proofing! I’m very interested to see how it turns out!
i purchased white shoes and dyed them pink, i didn’t have any fadding issues when i wore them during my outside (lawn) ceremony and beach side (indoor) reception. They are still a pretty pink sitting in my closet.
I like the style of the shoes, and the color itself, but that is some of the worst dying I’ve ever seen, not as much on the blue ones as on the lavender ones. I used to dye shoes when I worked at a bridal shop and they shouldn’t look that splotchy… and I’m not just talking about the spots where it ran. Do they give you the option to buy the dyable shoe and have them dyed elsewhere?
On a different note, they are absolutely GORGEOUS with your dress. Like a dream… just beautiful. I LOVE the lace at the bottom of your dress.
This is a really helpful post. My feet would make dye puddles on everything if I were wearing them! I think your wedding day shoes are so beautiful in the color you dyed them, seriously lovely! I also hope the spray works out too, your wedding shoes are too pretty!
Those are some very pretty shoes!
I have a semi-bad story to share though: I went to a wedding a few weeks ago where the bride had her shoes dyed a vibrant cobalt blue to match her bridesmaids. Being a wedding shoe (and coloured-shoe bride-to-be), I noticed the blue accent on her walk down the aisle and I caught up to her to compliment her on them. She said she loved them, but then showed me the blue staining all over her feet as well as on the bottom of her dress where it had rubbed off… Not sure whether it was from her feet sweating or if she had stepped into something?
Really though, it’s not like anyone will see your feet that you don’t want to anyways, you know?
I am so glad you made this post! I was seriously considering ordering the Lela Rose shoes as well, but was nervous about the dyes running. I am afraid to risk getting hot pink dye everywhere … so maybe its not the best idea. I will be anxious to hear how the waterproofing goes!
I bought shoes in a similar color from J. Crew - they are teal leather with silver bows. Sounds like the dyeable shoes are a huge risk… Good luck!
Thank you for posting about this! I looked at the payless shoes, but none of the styles worked for my feet. I ordered a bunch from endless.com. One of the contenders in a dyeable shoe. But I am getting married outside on grass and my dress is short!
I think I’ll stay away from the dyeables!
Ms. Deviled Egg–Scotch Guard used to work wonders but it was terrible for the environment and my dry cleaner said that the EPA has banned it. He said nothing else is as good, but there are a couple of alternatives.
I’m curious to hear how the spray works out. I have a dyable horror story: I bought a pair of off white mootsie tootsie shoes that I loved….but would LOVE more in blue. My plan was to dye them. I had a hard time finding a place that would attempt to dye them since they weren’t white to start with which typically means they have been sealed in some way at the factory. As luck would have it I ran across a simliar pair that were fairly beat up at Goodwill which I bought and had dyed as a test. It was B.A.D. Because of the sealing process they are really streaked and never really dried. My feet and hands were blue after trying them on (a week later). I can’t imagine what they would do to my dress….so now at least my original shoes still match my dress but I’m less than 2 months away with no blue shoes 
I had a similar experience with dyed shoes. It rained and the navy blue shoes turned my feet blue… FOR DAYS. I wish I had a solution for you.
They’re so pretty with the lacy details on your dress!!!
Those shoes look really pretty with your dress. YAY for finding shoes in the perfect color I hope you are able to use that waterproofing spray… keep us posted.
@erinmarguerite - they banned Scotch Guard?? I love that stuff! I was about to recommend that Miss Taffy test the older pair with Scotch Guard to see if it would ruin the color/fabric, but I guess that might be out. You can get other waterproofing spray at outdoor stores like REI (made for hiking boots), but make sure you test them first.
Yours look BEEuteeful with your dress, Taffy! I love them.
I’ve had 2 pairs of dyeables in the past (for each of my sisters weddings) and the same thing happened back then as what happened to you - you’d think they’d have refined the dying technology by now, right?!
Gamble Shmamble! They are SO dainty and feminine and look absolutely gorgeous with your dress (the trim of your dress in this photo, hehe)! Please do comment on how they worked out for you on the day of? Cant wait to read your post on the coating experiment!
@Miss Crab Cake: Thanks! I was surprised how when the light pink shoes ran, it was really dark! You would think that if they can’t dye them to last one wearing, they wouldn’t dye them at all!
@purpleHaze79: It was crazy how tight they were. The store manager couldn’t believe when I had one foot wearing the pre dyed sample, and one wearing the dyed one.
@krgk84: The lace is an applique at the hem, so they had to remove the whole thing and lift it up, then attach it again.
@Miss Popcorn: You are right! I didn’t even feel like my feet were sweaty!
@Miss Deviled Egg: @runnergiirl: @Vic004: @missjulierae: @ErinMarguerite: @ggsb: @AliCherri1: @aliangel64: I will let you know how it goes, no matter what kind of water proofing method I end up using. Keep your fingers crossed for me!
@ES123: You came to the right person for this answer- I am a color designer, and different lighting can greatly affect how we see colors. Some indoor lighting often has a yellow cast to it, where outdoor lighting can be more clear, or pinkish close to sunrise and sunset. As for things that look like a drastically different color in different types of lighting, there is a term to describe it called Metamerism. That is most likely what is going on with your shoes. For example, I bought a green jacket once, and when I went outside, it was clearly brown! Inside, it looks army green. That jacket still drives me nuts. Here is an article I found that describes things that are metameric:
http://www.extremetech.com/article2/0,3973,13764,00.asp
For this reason, when I was shopping for my bridesmaid dresses, I asked to take the swatch card outside to see the “true” colors of the fabrics.
@Nikki: Lucky girl!!! I wish mine wouldn’t run.
Ok think of it this way… even if they run a smidge like they did at your shower… NOBODY will see them. You only see that type of thing when you are up close. I think you will be fine!
Scotchguard hasn’t been banned, you can still purchase it! Try Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=scotchgard&tag=googhydr-20&index=aps&hvadid=1152323201&ref=pd_sl_80uzpdkeyk_b
Tons of fabric protection available!!
@Soon2BeeMrsLewis: That’s true. I just hope the blue won’t get on my dress!
They look great with your gown! I’m sending some good shoe karma your way with the hopes that they work out well and don’t run or get spotty.
what an awesome post, so helpful!
And they look simply perfect with your dress!! LOVE them!
thanks for this post! i’m bringing my shoes in to get dyed this weekend and i’ll be sure to ask them about potential color running!
your shoes are adorable! i love the color and they go perfectly with your dress!!!
WOW — totally rethinking dying my shoes blue now after this one. Pros: I want blue shoes. Cons: I’m getting married outside in Cleveland in May, when it may have rained recently; I’m going to Aruba two days after and would not want blue feet; also was just at a wedding this weekend and thought my shoes (formerly super comfortable!) were so killing me that i changed into shiny leather Bernardo flip flops for the rest of the night — wouldn’t want to deal with blue feet and silver flip flops then, either. Urgh.
The shoes are a great color! I have had two pairs of shoes dyed and got the same story as you did from the store about not using waterproofing because the color would change. The first ones were cherry red and by the end of the evening, my feet were the same color as the shoe. I never got them wet, but I imagine my love of dancing & resulting foot perspiration were to blame. The second shoes were plum colored and I didn’t bother waterproofing b/c I thought the issue with the red shoes was a fluke. Bad idea. I had purple feet by the end of that evening. My vote is for waterproofing: save your feet & your beautiful dress.
I have purchased dyable shoes at davids bridal(overpriced of course). they told me i should buy waterproof spray and coat them with it. we will find out if this works. why on earth would they be using a dye that is not waterproof for shoes that are used for special occasions…. no one wants their shoes to look bad during a special occasion. go figure…..
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Mrs. Taffy, Ann Arbor
Age and Occupation: 28, Color and Materials Designer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Automotive Designer
Engagement Date: May 9, 2008
Wedding Date: May 2009
Blogging Since: September 14, 2008
Venue: University of Michigan Union
About Me: I’m a girl who is crazy about Mr. Taffy, sewing, dancing, almost all types of sweets, and our cute pet canaries. I dislike touching fuzzy fabric of any kind, eating somewhat squishy food, and Michigan winters. Mr. Taffy and I are having a blast planning our Ann Arbor wedding, and cannot wait to share our day with friends and family.
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