Wearing In New Shoes
Photo from Clea De Velours, taken by Lila Azea
You've just received your new shoes, now you're ready for a day and night out in town, right? Slow down!
New shoes, in particular leather shoes, need time to break in and soften before reaching their true comfort level. Rushing into wearing them for long periods of time can cause blisters - ouch! So here are our tips for a comfortable break-in experience:
1) Wear them in short sessions + protect vulnerable spots
Slowly wearing them in is the best option to ensure longevity of your shoes, so wear them where you can when you don't need to be walking around. For example at home reading or sitting at your office desk, out for brunch.
Then make sure you protect vulnerable spots! Try:
- Moisturising your feet! Dry skin is more prone to chaffing
- Wearing stockings
- Using blister pads/bandaids on the edges of your toes and heels
2) Try the socks + hairdryer trick
A popular and handy trick to speed up the process is to wear the shoes with socks (very thick socks if the shoes are a bit tight) and run a warm hairdryer over them for a few short sessions to soften the leather, focusing on the tight spots if you need the stretch the leather out a little.
Read about the full process here.
