Not everybody is lucky enough to walk into the store and pick from different colors, styles, brands, and designs of shoes. Countless people across the globe don’t even own a single pair. This is unfortunate since using shoes with the proper fit has several advantages, such as protection from infections, preventing foot issues, and helping relieve pain.
While the brand name may not always matter, the most vital thing is that your shoes look clean, new, and decent even after wearing them a lot of times. You don’t want your shoes to have creases that make you uneasy when people look at them. In fact, they can also lead to foot issues.
Whatever materials are used, shoe creases are unavoidable. The good news is you can minimize their occurrences, which involve contacting stores that sell crease protectors.
How to Prevent Your Shoes from Creasing
Buy the Right Size
Why would you even buy a pair of sneakers that don’t fit you in the first place? Though well-fitted shoes don’t mean zero-crease, it is less noticeable in properly sized footwear. If your shoe is too large for your size, it’s most likely to crease due to flexing.
No matter how much you like to take home a pair, it’s not just worth it to buy too large shoes that will have creases and wrinkles in a short time! When shopping for a new pair, make sure to get one that correctly fits your feet, or perhaps a little space in the toe box is not bad.
Use a Shoe Horn to Decrease Heel Creasing
Use a shoe horn when using shoes to avoid heel creasing. Furthermore, buying a shoe with a high-quality heel counter helps, especially those sneakers with a rigid plastic heel counter. Shoe horn works by allowing you to pull on snug shoes easily while sitting or standing. Also, the horn draws back the heels of your shoes for easier sliding.
Use Shoe Crease Protectors
Shoe crease protectors (inserts) are one way to reduce creasing. Designed to fit comfortably inside your shoe’s toebox, they provide a semi-rigid flat surface area to the upper materials to keep it flat and in shape. But be aware because not all inserts in the market do the job well. Also, while these tools will not keep your shoe crease-free, they certainly help lower it.
Do you love collecting AFs? Check out Sneaker Shield for high-quality and affordable Air Force crease protectors.
Avoid Getting Your New Shoes Wet
Have you observed when you first wore your new pair of shoes? They’re a bit tight, even if they’re your size. Well, this is normal, but as you use them, they will stretch a little and adapt to your foot shape because of the warming effect of your feet. Moreover, the moisture coming from your foot’s sweat will make the upper materials more flexible.
As your shoes get dry, they will dry into the shape from the lasting impression of your foot. In a few weeks, your shoes will “wear in,” so it’s a good idea to avoid getting them wet, especially leather shoes, during this “wearing-in period.” This avoids losing your shoes’ shape easily as they dry.
Consider Spraying Your Shoes with Water Repellent Spray
Spending a few bucks on a shoe spray will provide some advantages to your shoes, which benefit you, too. Though it doesn’t make your shoes totally waterproof, it helps keep off splashes for easier cleaning. Be cautious with suede shoes, though, as some brands trigger discoloration.
Spray your shoes every three to six months to help keep them new and give additional protection. If you’re looking for shoe protector spray UK suppliers, Sneakers Shield offers a wide range of anti-crease products. Visit their website for more info.
Give Your Shoes a Break
No matter how much you love to use your favorite sneakers at all times, they also deserve a break! It’s always a good idea to alternate wearing them day by day with other pairs to allow time for completely drying out before wearing them again.
Keep in Mind
If everything above fails, your last resort to reducing creases in your shoes would be to iron them, but with extreme care. While it may not work for all materials, it’s effective for leather. Follow these steps below:
- Before ironing, remove the laces and tightly stuff the shoes with newspapers or print-free papers to avoid staining.
- Heat the iron to a medium-low setting (hot enough for delicate materials).
- Place a clean, colorless damp cloth over the creased area.
- Iron on top of the cloth to allow the steam to penetrate the upper material. Gently iron for a minute or two until your shoes start to feel warm. Ensure that the cloth is still damp. Otherwise, dampen it further.
- Leave the damp cloth on the top of your shoes until dry.
- Remove the cloth and moisturize the shoes with Mink oil.
