DIY Rain Boot Liners!

JM got me a pair of Wellies for Christmas, and I love them! They are fabulous and much more waterproof than my old, broken pair of rain boots. The only problem is that they aren’t warm at all. The rubber works great to keep out water, but it’s no use against the cold. So I made myself a pair of DIY rain boot liners!

DIY Rain Boot Liners

Now the boots are incredibly warm AND incredibly waterproof. Plus the cow fabric is adorable…score!

These rain boot lines are very simple to make; even beginning sewers can put together a pair. And you can customize them with any fabric you’d like!

DIY Rain Boot Liners

Here’s what you need:

  • ½ yard of fleece
  • a small strip of fun fabric for the cuff
  • a sewing machine, pins, thread, etc.

I didn’t use a pattern to make these because boot liners are basically giant, roomy socks. I figured between measuring against my rain boots and measuring against my feet I could get them to fit perfectly. 🙂 But I will walk you through the steps I took and measurements I made so that you can make sure to get a good fit when you make yourself a pair!

Cutting the pieces

This is the most important part of the entire tutorial, so pay attention! Cutting the pieces correctly makes sure the liners will fit you and your boots perfectly!

DIY Rain Boot Liners - Pieces

The three pieces of fabric in this picture will make up your liner, plus you’ll want a strip of fun fabric for the cuff. The sole of the liner is in the middle, the leg of the liner is on the left, and the piece that covers the top and sides of your foot is that weird Star Trek looking thing on the right.

To get the sole pieces to be the proper size for you, put your foot flat on the fabric and trace around it, leaving full extra inch of space around all edges. Cut out two of those sole shapes.

To make sure the leg pieces are the right size to fit in your boot, you need to trace the leg of your boot. Fold a piece of fabric in half and set up the boot and fabric as shown in the picture below; put your boot on the fabric and line up the front edge along the fold, leaving the foot hanging off the edge of the fabric. Press down on the boot so it lays as flat as possible and trace up the back of the boot from the ankle, then across the top. Cut out the leg piece along your traced line, making sure not to cut the fold. Then cut a second leg piece the same way.

DIY Rain Boot Liners - Cutting Leg Piece

The pieces that cover the top and sides of your foot are the weirdest to cut. To get that weird Star Trek shape you’re going to cut two half-parabolas out of a folded rectangle of fabric. Look at the picture below to get the general idea. 🙂 The height of your folded rectangle (the “Bigger Height” along the fold) is equal to the length of a sole piece, and the width is equal to the distance from your ankle bone to the floor plus a ½ inch. Once you have your rectangle cut out, orient it so that the fold is on the right, like in the picture, and cut a half-parabola shape from the top right corner down to the bottom left corner.

DIY Rain Boot Liners - Cutting Top And Sides Piece

Now grab one leg piece you cut out previously, making sure it’s still folded in half. Measure the distance across the ankle end of the leg piece. That measurement is the “Smaller Height” in the picture above. Approximate another half-parabola starting about an inch in from the fold on the “Width” edge and going up to that “Smaller Height” mark on the fold. Cut that half-parabola out, unfold the middle piece, and you should have your Star Trek symbol! Cut a second shape exactly the same size (just trace it, it’s easier!)

DIY Rain Boot Liners - Pieces

Cut a strip of fabric for each cuff of your liner that is the same length as the upper end of your leg piece and about 4″-6″ wide (twice as wide as you want your finished cuff to be). And now you have cut out all of your pieces!

Assembling the liner

To assemble the liner, start by pinning a top-and-sides piece to a sole piece. You’ll have to curve it around the sole a bit, but that’s what pins are for!

DIY Rain Boot Liners - Pinning The Foot Part

DIY Rain Boot Liners - Pinning The Foot Part

Sew all the way around with a ¼ inch seam allowance, making a little bootie. Make sure to leave the back edges of the top-and-sides piece open.

DIY Rain Boot Liners - Sewn Foot, leaving the back open

Then pin the ankle edge of a leg piece onto the top edge of the bootie and sew around the ankle, again leaving the back edge open.

DIY Rain Boot Liners - Pinning The Leg

Now fold your cuff in half longways. The folded edge will stick up past your boot and you’ll fold it over so that the fold is the finished edge. Lay the cuff on top of the liner, folded edge down towards the foot. Pin the two raw edges of the cuff to the raw edge at the top of the leg piece. Sew the cuff onto the liner, leaving the back edge open.

Now put the bootie on your leg to measure how tightly to sew up the back edge. Put a few pins in the fabric to approximate how tight you’d like the liner to be. Make sure to leave room for pants and socks!

DIY Rain Boot Liners - Pinning The Back Closure

Take it off your leg, sew up the back, and you’re done! Or, you’re done with one. 🙂 Sew another one just like the first and then you’re done for reals.

You’ll notice in the picture below that I left my seams on the outside. I figure it will be more comfortable for my feet inside the liner to not have those seam edges in there, and (except for the photo below) it’s not like anyone is going to see the seams ever cuz your liners will be inside your boots!

DIY Rain Boot Liners - Inside Out Seams

Now your feet will stay warm, even inside your cold rubber rain boots!

DIY Rain Boot Liners

DIY Rain Boot Liners

DIY Rain Boot Liners

Could your rain boots use a bit of warming up? If so, give this a try! I know the tutorial seems long and complicated, but I swear that if you have a pair of boots and a pair of feet to measure against, it’s really very easy!

I have enough dark grey fabric to make another pair of these guys. What fun fabric pattern or color should I use for the cuff of my second pair?

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I link up at these awesome parties!

Jessi Wohlwend

I believe that anyone can do crafts and DIY projects, regardless of skill or experience. I love sharing simple craft ideas, step by step DIY project tutorials, cleaning hacks, and other tips and tricks all with one goal in mind: giving you the tools you need to “do it yourself”, complete fun projects, and make awesome things!

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Reader Interactions

  1. Judith Graves says

    11 years ago

    Yes, cute and clever; but why not just wear socks???

    • Jessi says

      11 years ago

      Cuz these are so cute!!!

      But also because the ankle socks I have aren’t warm enough, the warm mid-calf socks I have slip down and bunch up and are uncomfortable, and the knee socks I have that go up high enough are also not warm enough. But if you have super warm socks that would work for you in a rain boot, go for it! I didn’t, so I basically made my own pair of “socks” out of fleece so they’d be sure to be warm and to fit in the boot properly. 🙂

  2. Ginger says

    11 years ago

    You did a fantastic job! I just told my husband the other day that I wanted a pair of Wellies to work in the garden. If I get them, I’ll definitely have to do this.

    I’d love if you shared this project at my Show & Tell party this week! http://www.gingerlymade.com/2013/01/show-tell-9.html

  3. Carrie @ My Favorite Finds says

    11 years ago

    So, so very cute! I love them! Thanks for sharing at Pinworthy Projects 🙂 . How’s that Disney trip planning coming along?

    • Jessi says

      11 years ago

      It’s coming along! We’ve got our dates and hotel figured out, so now we just need to figure out what we’re going to do each day!

  4. Katie says

    11 years ago

    Those are too cute! It sounds complicated to make, but the pictures help and I think you’re right that it will make sense when you have the boot and foot to work with.

    I don’t have any rubber boots at all, how sad. But I’m thinking of making just cuffs for my leather boots so I can spice them up a bit. Hmm.

  5. Angi@schneiderpeeps says

    11 years ago

    Those are the cutest things I’ve ever seen. We don’t get that cold here, but I think we need some anyway.

  6. Diana Rambles says

    11 years ago

    AWESOME job! I saw these for sale in the stores, but yours are so much cuter!

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