Here is a craft project from 1915 that creates an ornamental shoe that can be used as a small sewing box. Personally, I think that with a few alterations, this would make an interesting ornament.
Sewing Box Shoe
The small girl who would like to make mother or elder sister a gift, but whose pocket money is limited, should try her hand at this little Chinese shoe work box. She will surely succeed if she can sew at all, and if she will be very careful about the cutting and sewing.
One must cut two pieces of cardboard, each seven inches long, then shape it into a sole and take off one-quarter inch from the toe of one piece. The larger piece is covered on one side with white muslin and the smaller with a bit of bright silk or satin.
Next, a strip of muslin is sewed all around the white covered sole and then to the smaller sole, silk upward. When this is sewed together you have a sole half an inch in thickness turning up at the toe as the Chinaman’s shoe does. Fill this with cotton.
The upper of the shoe is made from scraps of leftover black satin embroidered in bright, crude Chinese colorings, simple or elaborate as one is skilled at such work. The satin should be about eight inches square, but the better plan is to measure carefully after the sole is ready. This may measure a little more or less than the dimensions given, depending upon the depth of the seam taken or similar trifles.
The decorated upper is lined with the bright silk, the edges buttonholed together and then joined at the heel. A to B.
Lastly, it is sewn to the sole. To furnish, make a little pincushion and push into the toe; put a strap across the heel to take a pocket of needles; place a spool each of black and white thread in the basket, together with a tiny pair of scissors, which can be bought for ten cents.
The one thing to remember is to take time in making this pretty box. It costs next to nothing, but it will not be a success if carelessly done.
Source: The Log cabin Democrat. (Conway, Ark.), 24 Jan. 1916.
