Do It Yourself Flip Flop Straps

My kids have never had flip flops. I just didn't think they would be able to walk in them. This year something happened though. I bought THESE awesome flip flops. For the record, I bought these here in my little town. Aussie Soles has no idea who I am, I just really love my new flip flops and think you would love them too.

I actually bought them from a friend who sells them and she told me how much her kids love them. I was skeptical but tried them on my two littlest, and to my surprise they loved them too. The nice thing about them was that they had elastic straps on the back to keep them nice and secure. These are the ones I bought the littles of the family...

The sad thing was that I could not find a pair like this in my big girl's size, only the ones without the elastic back. I told her she wasn't getting any. Then she whined.
"It's not fair!"
"But I love them!"
"I promise I'll wear them!"

I gave in. I bought them. She wore them immediately and said she loved them. Then 20 mins later, after trudging through the dirt in them, she said she didn't like them because it felt like they were falling off.

I have a solution!

What you will need:
- Needle and thread
- 4 buttons
- 1/2 inch elastic

Start by sewing a button on each side of your flip flop. These flip flops are made out of a light weight plastic type stuff (think Crocs), so it was easy to get a needle through them. If yours are made out of something a little more heavy duty you might need a heavy duty needle.

Cut a length of elastic and sew one end in 1/8 inch or so. You can skip this step but I didn't want my elastic to fray. You want to know where I got this pretty purple elastic don't you? I dyed it to match the flip flops. I'm that crazy.

Cut a little hole in the elastic to fit your button. At this point try em on your child to decide how long to cut the elastic. Cut, and do the same with the other side.

If your child isn't handy just make sure you are cutting your elastic smaller than the heel of the shoe. If you make it the same length it will definitely be too loose and not be snug against their foot.

Easy! And later, if they decide they want the elastic off, you will never be able to tell it was ever there.

I actually think my big girl's flip flops are cuter than her sister and brother's. I like the buttons!
What do you think?