Ankara shoes and bags designs appear on the catwalks around the world for several seasons in a row. The reason is obvious: Ankara bags and shoes designs are bright, stylish, and eye-catching. They are able to add some spice to an ordinary outfit. Besides, they are easy to make on your own.
How to make Ankara accessories? It is much easier than it may sound. Below you will find short guidelines on how to make Ankara bags and shoes, necklaces, earrings, discover some DIY ideas, and draw inspiration for creating your own uniquely designed accessories.
How to make Ankara bags
Ankara bag making can become a profitable business. Believe it or not, but an Ankara bags are a perfect detail for any image, especially in sunny countries like Nigeria. Global trends are favorable, too: you may sell the best models to people from all over the world. But first things first – let’s start with the steps on how to make Ankara bags.
Materials
- a bag (it may be an old one);
- Ankara fabric;
- glue;
- knife;
- scissors.
Directions
- Take a bag you want to upgrade. An old or worn out bag suits for this perfectly. Remove zippers and clamps, put them aside.
- Remove shabby details and torn parts. Replace them with patches of other fabric is needed. Cut the lining.
- Measure the bag and cut the necessary details. Leave a couple of extra centimeters (3 to 5) on each side. Pay attention to the pattern – match the details before cutting out if needed.
- Attach the fabric to the bag on one side, then pull it to the other side. Pull and flatten the fabric to avoid wrinkles and make it look neat. Then glue the cloth. Leave it for a while to dry up.
- Cut of or tug in the excess material. Trim the fabric.
- Sew on zippers and other details you have previously removed if needed.
How to make Ankara slippers
The process of making Ankara slippers doesn’t differ much from making a bag. You will use the same materials – Ankara, scissors, glue – and follow the same steps.
Materials
- Ankara fabric;
- adhesive;
- a pair of your old shoes;
- razor;
- scissors.
Directions
- Take a pair of slippers and clean them well. If you decide to wash the footwear, leave them to dry out for a while.
- Measure and cut enough fabric to cover the slippers. You can use Ankara just for upper part or cover the sole too.
- Grease the slippers with glue and spread it evenly. Cover the slipper with fabric and flatten it well.
- Neatly cut off the fabric. Trim it with razor if needed. Smoothen the surface to get rid of lumps.
Ankara shoes and bags ideas
Pairing bags with footwear is not an obligatory rule. Some prefer to do the opposite – to pick up a bag contrasting with shoes, or just pair them with other colors in the outfit. Nevertheless, Ankara shoes and bags made of the same fabric look different.
Ankara is known for its bright patterns. Very often you can use one piece of fabric and end up with completely different patterns on every shoe. You can easily prevent this by matching the patterns, but it works well for footwear and bags.
How to make Ankara necklace
Now, let’s move to more creative DIY ideas. When it comes to necklaces, you can use the same method that is applied for bags and footwear. In this case, you should find a proper base and neatly attach chosen fabric with the help of glue.
However, there is much more room for creativity. Sometimes twists and knots become the alternative to glue. Sometimes you can combine both methods. Here are several examples of how you can experiment with simple directions. Just study an image attentively, and you’ll be able to create what you’ve seen.
#1. Take several long narrow pieces of Ankara fabric. Twist each. Use them to braid a necklace.
#2. Make twists of different colors and lengths. Arrange them from the shortest to the longest and fasten at the back.
#3. Find buttons of different size. Wrap each in different piece of Ankara fabric, tie or glue to fix it. Take a piece of closely woven fabric and cut the base for your necklace. Sew on or glue the buttons to it. Attach ribbons to tie the necklace.
#4. Take a long narrow piece of Ankara fabric and twist it. Attach a clasp at the back. Take another piece of Ankara fabric and kilt it. Then sew on it to the twist, attaching firmly.
#5. Take a thick piece of cardboard cut 6-8 circles. Take Ankara fabric and cut the circles of the same size. Glue the parts together. Take a thin metal chain and attach the circles.
#6. Take several plastic or metal rings 5 to 10 cm in diameter. Wrap each in Ankara fabric. You can use the same or different pattern for each ring. Tie the rings together. Tie a ribbon to each last ring in the row.
#7. Wrap big beads in Ankara fabric and connect them. You can also sew the edge of a long narrow piece of fabric, fill it with big beads, and tie a thread to divide the beads.
#8. Take a rectangular piece of Ankara fabric. Arrange it into a circle. Attach a bead or a button in the middle to make it look like a flower. Link all details together (or attach to a base). Attach ribbons to the edges.
#9. Take three long narrow pieces of Ankara fabric. Sew the edges to create the rounded stripes. Hold them together and tie three knots one after another. Sew on the edges.
#10. Take a piece of Ankara fabric and make a choker. Attach thin flat stripes of Ankara fabric of different lengths. Make it symmetric by placing the longest one on the middle and gradually moving to the shorter at the edges.
How to make Ankara earrings
Take a look at self-made Ankara earrings, and you will notice that the designing technique is much similar to the methods of creating necklaces. The main difference is their size. The rest is exactly the same – twists, knots, wrapping, cutting, gluing. Here are some ideas for inspiration.
