Skating Sugar Skulls

Last week my new skates showed up, these are Sapphire from Moonlight Rollers. I hadn't seen a comparable blue in other skates and these spoke to me. I'm super happy I decided to give them a try. These are at a higher price-point than my Moxi Beach Bunnies but less than a pair of Moxi Lollies. Unlike my Beach Bunnies these didn't come with toe caps. That got my crafty mind churning.

I used the Moxi toe cap to create a template and cut out some marine vinyl I had on hand. There are loads of tutorials on how to make your own toe caps out there on. Look around and try to find a style you like. Some are sewn, some are put together with rivets, and others are crocheted. So many options!

Then I hooped some stabilizer and took the frame to the embroidery machine.

There is a risk when cutting before embroidery but it seemed the best way. The Sugar Skull key fob design is from Designs by Little Bee. 

Then I stitched up the sides and closed the loop for the laces at the top. Time for the moment of truth. 

And there you have it! I may play with the pattern a little more to fine tune it but they fit, look cool, and should keep from scuffing the toes of my skates. 

I may use a smaller embroidery design in the future. Overall this was a great holiday project. 

Machine embroidery design: Sugar Skull key fob from Designs by Little Bee

Tools and supplies (affiliate links):
Fiskars Self Healing Rotary Cutting Mat
Fiskars 8-inch scissors
Juki TL-2010Q
Magna-Glide bobbins (absolutely the best for my embroidery machine)
Pellon Stitch-N-Tear, 20" by 30 yd, White

Fiskars curved craft scissors