Content

• To step
• Method 1 of 4: Wear shoes indoors
• Method 2 of 4: Freeze shoes
• Method 3 of 4: Heat shoes
• Method 4 of 4: Other methods
• Tips
• Warnings

Have you ever bought a new pair of shoes just to find out they hurt your feet? Do not return them to the store. This problem can easily be solved by breaking in your shoes. This way your shoes adapt to your feet. In this article, you can read some tips to help you shape your new shoes to fit your feet.

To step

Method 1 of 4: Wear shoes indoors

1. Wear your new shoes indoors. Before wearing your shoes outside, try walking up the stairs with them, standing with them (for example, while preparing dinner or playing with the kids), sitting with them, and even running around with them.
   • Pay attention: this is the most reliable method of getting your shoes simple and careful to walk in. If you have nice leather or dress shoes - shoes that you'd rather not see damaged, altered, or even discolored - this is the safest method to try.
2. In the beginning, wear your shoes regularly for short periods. When you try out new shoes before you buy them, you rarely have sore feet. That's because you haven't had the shoes on long enough to cause pain to your feet (or to mold the shoes to fit you properly). So wear your shoes early and often when you walk into the house and don't think you have to wear your shoes for hours on end to notice a difference.
   • Actually, you should start wearing your shoes for 10 minutes at a time. Try this out for a few days. Then gradually wear your shoes for 10 minutes longer every few days, until you wear the shoes for an hour at a time. Your shoes should now fit properly!
3. Take your shoes to work. Wear old shoes when you go to work, but put on your new shoes when sitting at your desk and just get used to having them on. This is an easy way to break in your shoes and save time at the same time.
4. Wear your shoes with socks. This way you will find out if you need socks when you wear your shoes. You can also prevent blisters while you get used to your new shoes.
   • Wear your shoes with socks that are slightly larger than the socks you normally wear. Try thick cotton socks and squeeze your feet into the shoes. Don't take long walks or you will get blisters. Just keep your feet in the shoes. The shoes will stretch because of the thick socks.

Method 2 of 4: Freeze shoes

1. Half fill two sandwich bags with water. Make sure the bags are large enough so that they put pressure on the shoes when they swell in the freezer.
   • Make sure there is no air left in the bag when you close it. This makes it easier to "mold" the water in the bag to the shape of your shoe.
   • With this method you put your shoes in the freezer for a longer period of time. Your shoes can get wet during this. So don't treat shoes that are irreplaceable or prone to water damage with this method.
2. Put a bag in both shoes. Make sure you have closed the bags properly. Of course, you don't want your shoes to be covered with ice when you take them out of the freezer.
3. Put your shoes in a larger, sealed plastic bag and put it in the freezer. Both shoes should have a smaller plastic bag and the larger bag around both shoes should protect from moisture from the outside.
4. Wait 3 to 4 hours. When the water in the shoes freezes, it swells and in this way exerts pressure on the inside of the shoes causing them to stretch. The advantage of water over a shoe tree is that the water will adapt perfectly to the shape of the inside of your shoes.
5. Take your shoes out of the freezer. The water in the sandwich bags should now be solid ice.
6. Remove the sandwich bags from your shoes. You may have to wait a few minutes for them to slip out of your shoes more easily.
7. Try out your shoes. After your shoes have warmed up a bit, try to walk a bit with them. When it comes to sneakers, try jogging and running with them.
   • Your new shoes should now be broken in and even stretched a bit, making them a lot more comfortable!

Method 3 of 4: Heat shoes

1. Wear the shoes for 10 minutes. Put on your shoes, preferably with socks, and don't walk around in them for more than 10 minutes. You do this to prepare the shoes.
2. Take the shoes off and stretch them by hand. Bend the shoe up and down a few times, if the shoe allows.
3. Heat the shoe. Heating the shoe will stretch the material and make it smoother, especially if it is leather.
   • Use a hair dryer on a warm (maybe not the hottest) setting and heat the shoe for 2 to 3 minutes.
   • If you don't have a hair dryer, put your shoes next to the heater or just outside in the sun. A little heat is better than no heat at all.
4. Wear your shoes immediately after warming them up. Wear them for another 10 minutes. Walk, sit or even run with it.
5. At least repeat the process one more time. Your shoes will feel a lot more comfortable after you heat them a few times.

Method 4 of 4: Other methods

1. Buy a shoe tree if you can. With a shoe tree you can ensure that your shoes don't close tightly around your feet. If you don't want to buy a shoe tree (even though you can buy them cheaply online), grab the heel and the tip and bend the shoe back and forth. This also works fine.
   • Make sure to put on your shoes after this, otherwise your shoes will lose their shape.
2. Use a potato. Peel a large potato and wipe off some of the moisture with a paper towel. Place the potato in your shoe and leave it there overnight. Take the potato out of your shoe the next morning.
   • Make sure the potato is slightly larger than the opening of the shoe, but not so big that it warps the toes. You may need to carefully remove some of the potato so that it follows the shape of the shoe and still gives the material some stretch.
3. Buy a special spray to stretch your shoes. Spray your shoes with a stretch spray, following the directions on the package. It is often recommended to bend the shoes back and forth by hand between treatments with the spray.
4. Have a shoemaker stretch your shoes using a machine. A cobbler will treat your shoes with a stretch spray and then stretch them using a machine as they dry. This should not cost more than 15 euros.
5. Avoid the following tricks. Some techniques to stretch your shoes just don't work or are bad for your shoes, especially when it comes to beautiful leather ones. When breaking in your shoes, avoid the following methods:
   • Apply isopropyl alcohol to your shoes. Alcohol can leave unsightly stains on beautiful leather shoes and strip the leather of the natural oils it contains.
   • Hitting your shoes with a hammer or other hard object. It might work if you hammer the backs of your shoes, but what price do you pay for that? Is it worth having a pair of broken-in shoes that are in fact broken?
   • Having your shoes in by someone who has bigger feet than you. Having someone who has bigger feet than you wear your shoes in is not only immoral, but it also doesn't produce any results. Not only do you saddle someone else with sore feet (that poor person!), But you also let your shoes mold to the other person's feet instead of your own. Do not do that.

Tips

• If you plan on wearing your new shoes outdoors, bring a pair of old spare shoes in case you get blisters on your feet.
• Do your best to buy the right size shoes right away.
• Don't wear your new shoes outdoors. They can get dirty and then you can't wear them indoors anymore.

Warnings

• Water can damage some shoes. So first read the label in the shoe.
• You may not be able to return your shoes to the store by following these methods if necessary.