From CosplayWiki

Contents 1 How to Make Shinigami Sandals 1.1 Materials 1.2 Tools 1.3 Procedure

How to Make Shinigami Sandals

Materials

• Tatami mat (goza or bamboo, your choice) Mine was the bamboo
• (x4 or 5) Epoxy glue, the syringe one
• A Roll of Landscaping rope

Tools

• A strong pair of durable scissors
• Rubber mallet
• Screw driver
• Razor blade
• Several small clamps

Procedure

First cut out a piece of the tatami mat that is bigger than your foot. If your a size 11 like me, then cut out at least 17inches. Make sure once you cut it out, that you can have one foot stand in there with plenty of space to spare so you can do an outline of your foot on it. I suggest sitting on something that elevates you off the ground so you can get a better look at what you're doing. You'll need to repeat this 5 more times after that for a total of 6 cutouts.

Each sandal is going to have 3 layers. After you cut out 6 rectangles out of the mat, start making an outline of each foot on the bamboo. Only do one outline for each foot. Then after the outline of your foot is done, you're going to have to figure out how wide your ankle is so you can get the back part of the sandal. Typically, it's going to be around 1.5 inches wide.

Next you bring the thing all the way back behind your ankle like this, so you know where to cut it. The end of the sandal should be right above the ankle (see image). Next you have to cut out the outline, but before you start, make sure that you are cutting on the outside of the line a tiny bit incase you made a mistake when doing the outline. You can make it about a 3mm out from the line, but it doesn't really matter. Once that's done, if need be, do some touch-ups on them incase something looks a bit odd or whatever. After you got the first layers done, do an outline with the layer you just cut out.

You should have 4 layers done, the only thing that is left are the last two, but these need to be done differently. With these last two you need to flip them over so you got the bottom, do the last two outlines on the bottom sides. The reason for this is so the sandals wont wear out and will last a long time.

All the sandals should line up perfectly, if some touch ups are needed on the other layers do so. The next step is to take the first layer or whichever layer you want on top and make you modifications to them. Where these modification go solely depends on how you foot is shaped. The first thing we need to do is to find out where we need to put a hole so we can get the loop between your big toe and second toe (or whatever that toe is called). For right now, just mark the spot where you want it, but make sure it's not right against your skin because it'll hurt to walk in these things. Next you want want to get some of the landscaping rope and cut a really long piece so you can mark where you want to put the "strap" parts. (The rope is going to be placed between the top and middle layer just to let you know) A way to figure this out is by putting all the layers down on the ground and putting the rope under your foot. The front part straps should be about an inch or too away from the "loop" mark, it depends on you foot. The back straps should start right before you ankle (when looking straight down at your foot). Then make a 45 degree angle so you can find out where you need to mark on the back part of the sandal. I suggest looking at the completed images that that are at the bottom of the page.

Once you mark where you need everything, get the screw driver, rubber mallet and razor blade ready (you only need the razor blade if you make it out of a bamboo mat). First, cut between the tiny parts in the bamboo planks. Next take the screw driver and mallet and hammer at the parts that you need to take out. You only need to do this for the top layer.

After that's done, it's time to glue these layers together with the Epoxy. When you glue bottom and middle layer together, you'll need to put your foot down onto it so it can form to how your foot is. Some glue might seep, don't worry, it can be washed off. Each time you glue a layer, it's going to take up the one entire epoxy syringe. When letting the epoxy set, you'll need to leave your foot there for about a minute, then carefully take you foot off, making sure that the layers stay stuck together (**NOTE You'll probably feel your foot getting warm, don't worry I felt the same thing). I let them sit for an entire day, but I think if you let them sit for few hours, it should be fine. Just check the packaging for how long it takes to harden.

While those are setting, it's time to get the string. Measure out how much you while need for the loop near the big toe. I think it should be about 6 - 8 inches, can't quite remember. Leave enough rope so once you pole it through the hole, you'll have rope to glue to the sandal. For the front straps, you'll have to measure that on your own. The end parts of that rope for the front straps should be tucked under the top layer. For the back straps, you'll need enough to it for the "45 degree strap" and make it come up another 45 degree angle up you leg and a wrap around to where you tie it up. I would cut about 2ft of rope and see if that's enough, shorten it if you have an excess of rope hanging too low after you tie it. Once you have all the right lenghts for the ropes, glue that parts under the top layer and let those sit for a half a hour.

With the ropes in place, glue it all together. Again, place your foot down on it for a minute. Then take your foot off and place the clamps where the ropes are under the top layer and let them sit.

You are now finished with sandals!

To make sure that these are comfortable, all you really need to do is put some cushioning between on the back of the loop part and it should take care of the problem easily. Also, if you want to (and I probably plan on doing so), you can put some lining on the edges of the sandals. Just hit up you local fabric store for that stuff.