Shoes have long been an accessory to help honor one’s fashion style. As a result, there are various shoe types on the market today with different designs, giving users more suitable choices.
However, no matter how expensive the shoes are, it is difficult to avoid unexpected incidents over a long period of use. And the ugly creases are one of the most common problems every shoe lover has to deal with once.
Wrinkles or broken toes will make the shoe less luxurious, which might make you sadly remove your expensive sneakers. Wait, don’t give up like that because you can completely turn wrinkled shoes like new in a second.
If you are in this situation, do not worry too much. Let’s try the tips on how to uncrease shoes that we presents in the following article!
What Causes Creases in Shoes?
The creases in shoes are probably not unfamiliar, still, they always make sneakerheads headaches. Many people still mistakenly think that those wrinkles are a sign of poor quality.
However, basically, every shoe must have wrinkles. Each shoe will crease in a different pattern.
This is considered an unavoidable condition after a period of use, even if you have a good quality pair. There are many causes of the issue, which are:
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- Loose shoes: Poor-fitting shoes are also more likely to crease, especially the larger-than-necessary ones. Wearing shoes that are wider than foot size will create more space. Therefore, when we are moving, the gaps shrink, forming a crease. Furthermore, each person has a different bone and muscle structure. So, two people wearing the same shoes with the same size but creating different types of wrinkles are also completely normal.
- Shoe materials: Shoe skin quality greatly affects whether the skin is wrinkled more or less. Usually, leather or PU shoes will easily have more creases when used. In contrast, canvas pairs are less likely to reach this problem. The more small pieces of leather that are grafted together, the less pressure the leather shoe will be affected by. Therefore, if you have a crush on the plain toe or wholecut styles, you have to accept that they will wrinkle more than a cap toe or a brogue pair.
- Long-time of use: As mentioned above, shoes with a long use period will leave wrinkles than new ones. You may notice that over time the soles of your shoes start to develop a more curved profile than when they were new. As soles break in and are repeatedly flexed during walking, they eventually start to adopt the curved profile.
- The way you move: When you walk, your feet bend, and the shoes also bend with your feet. In this case, the materials are compressed, which causes creasing. So, it is really important that you need flexible shoes to prevent pain while walking as well as ugly wrinkles on your lovely pairs.
How to Uncrease Shoes at Home
1.Use an Iron to Remove Wrinkles
This is the most effective method that many people try and succeed. What you need to do is set the iron to a moderate temperature, place a piece of linen or cotton or some other appropriate cloth over the crease of the shoe. After that, place the iron on it for a few seconds.
To smooth creases with iron, you will need shoe cores, cotton towels, and shoe polish. The main core makes the shoe stretch and smooth. You can easily buy them at any footwear store. After you have enough tools, proceed to the following steps one by one:
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- Step 1. Remove all laces and insert shoe core to stretch shoes from inside.
- Step 2. Adjust the temperature to be below 27 degrees. High temperatures can damage the leather material.
- Step 3. Cover the wrinkled skin with a thick cotton cloth. Place your iron on top to let the heat work. It will gradually soften the wrinkles.
- Step 4. After the creases disappear, keep the towel until it cools. Set the sole for at least 24 hours to shape the shoe.
- Step 5. Re-polish the shoes with wax or balm.
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2. Use Lard
Lard is a popular method of renewing wrinkled shoes because it is so popular and easily affordable. The process of using lard to renew shoes is as follows:
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- Step 1. Apply lard on the other surface of the footwear.
- Step 2. Heat on low heat to allow fat to penetrate the skin.
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Attention: be careful to avoid burning the shoe skin. You can use the high-temperature dryer for this step.
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- Step 3. If you have the sole, you should insert the sole to fix the shape of the shoe.
- Step 4. After 3 days, use alcohol to wipe off excess lard and polish shoes with polish.
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3. Use Egg Whites
When wrinkles or cracks appear on your shoe, immediately apply a little egg white to the skin’s surface. After that, polish the shoes, and it will be shiny like when you first bought them.
In the case that the stains are quite large and deep, put a little paraffin (or plastids) in these places, then use the iron to flatten them. The above method also answers the question of how to soften and renew the leather shoes.
4. Use Fresh Milk
Shoes made of leather are just like human skin. Through long-term use, the skin will be dry and wrinkled, you can use a soft cloth to soak a little fresh milk and gently wipe the leather surface.
This way will help the shoe skin to be moist and smooth back to the original. It also helps keep the pair shiny.
5. Use Oil or Shoe Conditioner
Specialized conditioners and oils can also be used to remove creases on shoes. But to make sure it works for your shoes, you should initially apply a small spot on the shoe.
After that, condition the entire shoe to maintain a consistent color. Bear in mind that you should spread the oil into the leather with your hands.
You can use a shoe tree to maintain the shoe’s shape while applying the product. After conditioning, keep the shoe trees to help the shoe hold its shape.
Ways to Avoid Creases on Shoes
Even though wrinkles on shoes, especially on leather ones, are inevitable, we can still limit them with a few notes:
1. Let the Shoes Rest
You cannot wear a pair of shoes continuously from day to day for many hours. Footwear skin also needs to rest, if not, it will degrade very quickly. One of the consequences is losing its original shape.
2. Take Regular Footwear Care
Your shoes also need good care in order not to lose the soft moisture caused by the effects of weather or detergents. Without proper care, the skin becomes dry, causing wrinkles to appear more and deeper on the surface of the shoe as we move.
Therefore, regular shoe skincare is a necessity, not only for durable use but also for the reduction of wrinkles. With leather shoes, don’t forget to polish your shoes regularly to keep them shiny.
On the market, there are many specialized shoe lotions for you to choose from, or you can also use regular moisturizers for human skin, such as coconut oil, olive oil or vaseline.
3. Use a Shoe Tree to Keep the Shoe Shape
Putting the shoe tree in the shoe right after using it will help stretch the newly appeared wrinkles, avoiding the formation of deep ones.
This is also a way to help you preserve the beautiful form of leather shoes over time. Additionally, the tool helps remove moisture and keep your shoes smelling fresh.
If you have not equipped with a shoe tree yet, you can also stuff the shoes with paper or cloth, as long as the shoes are upright.
4. Buy the Exact Size of Shoes
Always choose to use foot-sized shoes to avoid creating too much space on your shoes, which leads to creases. You should buy shoes in the afternoon since at that time your feet are in the most correct form and size.
Moreover, while using shoes, avoid kneeling, squeezing, or putting much pressure on the heels or toes of your shoes. This can leave unwanted wrinkles.
5. Use Alcohol
This is only suitable for shoes with good leather quality because alcohol easily discolors. This method is not recommended for low-quality shoes.
First of all, rub alcohol on hard-to-see areas to test whether the skin has discolored. If the leather does not change, then use a white cloth to gently wipe the alcohol on the surface of the skin. Finally, polish the shoes.
In a Nutshell
After all, we need to know that the best way to prevent your shoes from wrinkles and cracks is by investing in quality shoes as well as good care of them.
But if a few ugly wrinkles suddenly appear on your shoes, no worry, as you can see, there are a lot of different methods on how to uncrease shoes at home effortlessly.
The issue is no longer a big deal if you apply one of those approaches we mentioned above. Good luck! In case you have another great idea, feel free to share with us by leaving a comment down below. Thank you for reading!