Maybe Matilda: Slip-Proof Your Baby’s Socks and Slippers

Friday, January 13, 2012

Slip-Proof Your Baby’s Socks and Slippers

We have a bit of a sock/slipper obsession in my family. For Christmas, birthdays, and any holiday that produces ridiculous holiday-themed socks, everyone gets a pair; the first gift to new babies  in the family tends to be a pair of adorable little teeny-tiny socks or booties. One of my favorite gifts for Forrest was a pair of argyle BYU socks my sister bought for him. The nurses at the hospital loved them: “Where did you find baby knee socks?!” (They were really just 6+ month socks, but we weren’t going to waste 6 precious months before beginning to brainwash him to embed a deep love for cozy footwear and BYU.)

byu socksMoral of the long intro: we have a deep appreciation for warm feet around here. My dad gave Forrest a cute, goofy little pair of reindeer slippers for Christmas, and as soon as they were opened, he was tearing around the house with warm reindeer feet. But his new slippers didn’t have the little slip-proof grippies on the bottom, so he was face-planting on the hardwood floor every few steps. Which, unfortunately, failed to teach him the important life lesson that just walking at a normal pace is a better idea, especially when you’re only 1 and your complete lack of balance results in a flying head-first dive into the refrigerator door (that may have happened just this morning).

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(Just in case anyone is wondering, the answer is no, I do not allow my child to play with prescription drugs [very often]. That bottle is filled with bobby pins. Nice little storage solution, by the way, and he loves carrying it around and shaking it!)

So I Macguyver-ed a DIY slipper gripper solution:

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Hot glue dots across the bottom of the slippers turn them into safe little grippy soles! It’s not the prettiest, especially if you don’t care at all what the bottom of a slipper looks like so you put zero effort into glue-saliva-string prevention, but it gets the job done. Now he can race around like a ninny without tipping over more than the usual amount (which, granted, is still quite a bit).

DSC_0527 You can also use puff paints or tacky glue to place little dots or lines along the bottom of socks and slippers—they stay stickier after they’ve dried, so you get a little more gripping power than you do with hot glue, but I didn’t have any, and the hot glue seems to be doing a pretty nice job! We’ve lost a few glue dots in the weeks since Christmas, but they’re still so much grippier than the slippers alone were.

Viva baby socks!

14 comments :

  1. I'am always scared of my one year old tripping coz of her socks.. will definitely try this :)

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  2. Great idea! I have done the hot glue thing on the inside of headbands so my hair doesn't slip out and it works pretty good. p.s. I don't even recognize you with long hair! I hate you for looking amazing with long or short hair. Ok... I don't hate you.

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  3. Oh my gosh--AWESOME tip! I was thinking a while back of how I could add grippies to the bottom of Emma's sicks and slippers. This is PERFECT. Also, Emma has that same Leap Frog doggie as Forrest, only the girl version (Violet). Her favorite toy ever! :)

    Kim @ Little Rays of Sunshine

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  4. No way! That is a fantastic idea! I think you've given MacGyver a run for his money :)

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  5. What a wonderful idea! My eleven month old face planted at my in-laws on Christmas day because someone took off her shoes and her tights of course were too slippery for the hardwoods. She busted her little lip, so I will probably now be running around like a maniac with a hot glue gun. :)

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  6. That's a great idea! Crue is always falling due to this problem.

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  7. Neat, I did that just last week!
    http://onedogwoof.blogspot.com/2012/01/no-slip-toddler-socks.html

    Great (and desparate) minds think alike!

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  8. Love your quick improvisation!

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  9. Great idea! Hardwood floors can be lethal for clumsy toddlers. :)

    I haven't done the hot glue but I've used tacky paint before. My husband and his brother are big Auburn fans, so I made blue and orange slippers for our son and our little nephew, with orange tiger paws on the bottom. They look cute and the paws are great grippers!

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  10. I don't generally let Forrest play with drugs but it's his Ritalin...so it's okay.

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  11. I love this tip! Not just good for babies, though. =) I have been knitting some slippers for family and friends and this will be perfect for the bottoms of the slippers! And if you lose one or two, they are an easy replacement to hot glue more dots. =) Win Win!

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  12. I need to do this for my socks. I totally slipped down the stairs a few months ago. Cursed slippery socks!

    ps. Forrest is so stinkin' cute!

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  13. YAY! I see his Christmas doggie in the background!! Great blog!

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  14. Just found your blog and I love it! Love the whole, entire thing! I even love your awesome hair! LOL You are now on my fave list! Thank-you for the time it takes to do this.

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Thanks for commenting!

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