Finding a pair of shoes that fit like a glove can be one of the best feelings when shopping. Occasionally, you may find that your leather shoes may feel tight and begin to cause discomfort after wearing them for an extended period of time. The shoes suddenly feel stiff and constricting and the only solutions are throwing them away. However, it is possible to stretch the leather with a homemade spray and make them revert back to their excellent fit once again.
There’s almost nothing more difficult to manage than an uncomfortable pair of beautiful shoes. It’s tough because it’s one of those few situations in which you will invariably choose hours of pain for beauty. But it doesn’t have to be that way.
You probably have a few of those uncomfortable beautiful shoes in the cupboard, or potentially you’re new platform shoes need just a little bit more width, so we thought we’d share a few shoe-stretching techniques with you.
- The first isn’t so much of a technique as a suggestion — you can have your shoes stretched overnight by your local cobbler. Here in the USA this will set you back about $15. If you don’t have a cobbler you usually use and you’re in the USA, try looking up your local Mister Minit.
The second tip comes from a YouTube video by Michelle Phan, based on the principle of water expanding when frozen. Basically you fill up watertight bags with water, put them inside the toes of the shoes and then put them in the freezer overnight. As the water expands, it will gently stretch your shoes.- Thirdly is a cute one Belinda shared with us. We her find the perfect wedding shoes for her wedding and in the lead up to the big day Belinda undertook some of her own shoe stretching at home to make sure these shoes were a perfect fit. She simply selected some bottles that are (kind of) foot shaped, wrapped them in something soft (face washers) and pushed them into the toes of the shoes. Belinda left them overnight and it worked a treat.
- When you go to the store and browse through the various shoe stretching solutions, you may see a large list of chemicals used. Although these shoe stretcher spray ingredients are typically effective, it can be much more affordable to use home products to create your own spray. A homemade shoe stretcher solution can be as simple as liquid that is already lying around your home.
- Many people swear that spraying the exterior and interior of the leather shoes with a cheap cologne can make the leather flexible once again.
- After spraying the shoes heavily, you can fill your shoes with something as simple as a couple balled-up pair of socks. This fills the shoe and allows it to begin reforming with a larger fit.
- Freezing the shoes can speed up the process as well.
- Repeating this process will make the shoes stretch substantially and make a drastic difference in the fit of your leather shoes.
Another home remedy for leather shoe stretching is even easier to perform. You can use a bottle of alcohol to create an effective homemade shoe stretched liquid. Pouring alcohol into your shoes until they are soaked will make the leather much more flexible. When they have dried, try putting them onto your feet and they will readjust to your foot. This makes their fit feel much more custom and can prevent a good pair of leather shoes from going to the trash.- Using a large clump of damp paper can even provide a quick solution to tight leather shoes. Instead of creating a homemade shoe stretcher spray, you can simple stuff the shoes with balled-up clumps of newspaper that is soaking wet. Make sure that the entire interior of the shoe is damp and let sit. Once the shoes have dried, remove the paper and you can wear them again. They should be flexible and fit with your feet once again.
- After performing any of the above methods, give your leathers shoes a generous amount of polish to protect them from damage and make them shine. A homemade shoe stretcher can be the perfect solution to making your shoes feel brand new again. Instead of throwing your tight leather shoes away, try using a homemade shoe stretcher spray and make them feel fitted to your feet once again.
The second tip comes from a YouTube video by Michelle Phan, based on the principle of water expanding when frozen. Basically you fill up watertight bags with water, put them inside the toes of the shoes and then put them in the freezer overnight. As the water expands, it will gently stretch your shoes.
Another home remedy for leather shoe stretching is even easier to perform. You can use a bottle of alcohol to create an effective homemade shoe stretched liquid. Pouring alcohol into your shoes until they are soaked will make the leather much more flexible. When they have dried, try putting them onto your feet and they will readjust to your foot. This makes their fit feel much more custom and can prevent a good pair of leather shoes from going to the trash.Any of your own tips to add? Share them below.
