Jibbitz are small decorative charms that are used to decorate shoes, especially crocs. Jibbitz come in all shapes and colors and can be anything from flowers to little footballs, star and moon shapes, tech gear, party symbols, holiday decorations and so much more.
The list of things that could make decorative jibbitz is endless and keeps growing and expanding to fit a public that loves variety. Jibbitz are a popular craze today and just about every child has a pair of shoes spotting the decorative little charms.
The most interesting thing about jibbitz is how they came to be. A happy accident brought forth these amazing little decorations and the phenomenon has been growing ever since.
The Making of Jibbitz
In 2005, housewife and mother of three Sheri Schmelzer embarked on a simple crafts project to decorate her family’s many pairs of crocs using clay and rhinestones. In her home in Boulder Colorado, she accessorized all the crocs in her home using rhinestones and small stick-on charms that could be glued on to shoes ensuring they fit snugly and did not come off easily.
Her children had just begun wearing crocs everywhere and were obsessed with the new footwear. The decoration would only make them more attractive to her kids. When her husband Rich Schmelzer saw the shoes, he had a lightbulb moment and decided to explore the idea of turning the decorations into a business.
Other kids in school and within their neighborhood fell in love with the cute shoes and began making orders. Sheri and Rich set up a website to sell the little charms that they named jibbitz. Jibbitz is a playful name meaning someone who never stops talking, and was Sheri’s nickname.
Soon Sheri was overwhelmed by the demand and the basement, where the business operation was located could no longer hold the bludgeoning enterprise. The Schmelzers made the decision to move the business to a warehouse where the business continued to grow exponentially, eventually attracting the attention of Crocs who eventually bought the entire business from the Schmelzers for several million.
Today Crocs makes jibbitz and markets them alongside their shoes making the company and more so the Schmelzers immensely wealthy.
How to put Jibbitz on Crocs
Crocs are a form of simple footwear that can be worn almost anywhere. The shoe comes with holes or perforations on the top part of the foot for aeration. These holes are also used to attach decorations mostly for kids and youth. Jibbitz are made with a rubber knob on the bottom that attaches to the croc securely.
- Jibbitz come in pairs, one for each croc. Usually, every croc is made with thirteen holes so it is possible to attach up to twenty-six pieces of jibbitz on each pair of crocs.
- Match each perforation to its corresponding one on each croc.
- Squeeze the rubber knob at the bottom of the jibbitz and insert it into the perforation on the croc.
- It is easier to hold the jibbitz at a 45-degree angle when inserting it rather than pressing the jibbitz whole which may be more difficult.
- If the perforation will not fit, use a metallic or wooden item such as a stick to softly stretch the perforation.
- Be careful not to tear the croc. The croc is made of foam which means it has some bit of room to stretch slightly. However, if you make a tear, you will not be able to repair it so make the stretch using only slight force.
- Insert the jibbitz which should fit perfectly if there is no tear.
- Put in as many jibbitz as you would like to. Jibbitz are designed to fit both kids and adult crocs.
- If you would like to be whimsical, then mix them up disregarding the corresponding perforations that would create a matching pair or set. The choice is really yours.
Jibbitz are a fun way to make crocs interesting and unique. If the rubber knob at the bottom comes off or if you cannot find jibbitz with the specific charms that you want, you are free to improvise.
Assuming you wish to sprinkle glitter or a handful of rhinestones on your crocs, you will not find jibbitz that will allow you to do this but this could be the perfect opportunity for a fun DIY project decorating your crocs.
- Clean and wipe crocs so that the surface has no dust, mud, or other substances that may hinder adhesives from taking hold.
- If you want a permanent hold, you may use superglue.
- Draw the desired design on your croc and the corresponding double on the matching croc.
- Superglues work best when allowed about a minute or two to set so give the glue some time, though not much, to settle.
- Sprinkle glitter or whichever decorative material you would like. This method would work better with anything that can be sprinkled including powdered pigment, very small-sized or ground rhinestones.
- Allow the glitter or rhinestones to settle into the glue before moving the shoe. Superglue cures rather quickly.
- This process should take just a few minutes. Once the superglue has cured and permanently settled the decor to your crocs, wiggle the crocs to dispose of any glitter that may not have adhered into the superglue.
- Your design should now be clearly evident and permanent.
- Superglue can also be used to stick back charms from jibbitz that have lost the rubber knob beneath it or stick charms that may not have the characteristic jibbitz rubber knob under them.
- If you do not wish to make your charms permanent, you can use glue that will not adhere permanently to your crocs such as E6000. This will allow you to stick jibbitz and other decorations for a time and replace them at your pleasure.
Non-permanent charms however may not stay in place especially since children are so active and pay little regard to how they handle their shoes. That said, it should present a fun-filled activity for the kids themselves to replace missing charms and create entirely new motifs on their shoes.