Shoes Too Small? Five Tips To Help

If your feet have suddenly swollen and you cannot get your favorite pair of shoes on, there are things that you can do. Take a look at these tips. They can also help if you've found a stellar pair of shoes on sale that are just a shade too small.

1. Stretch the leather with heat.

If your shoes are leather, try stretching them out with a bit of heat. Put on several pairs of heavy socks and then jam your feet into the shoes. Now, plug in your blow dryer, turn it on and direct it at the shoes. The heat will warm up the leather, making it pliable. When the shoes start to feel comfortable, stop heating them but don't remove them. When they are cool, take them off, and they should be a bit bigger.

2. Enlarge the shoe with ice.

Water expands when it turns to ice, and the expansion is so strong that it can burst a metal container. As a result, it can also stretch a shoe. To enlarge your shoes with ice, fill a plastic bag with water and seal it tightly. Make sure to leave a bit of room for expansion in the bag so that it doesn't burst.

Place the bag of water into your shoe and pop it in the freezer. The next morning, take the shoes out of the freezer, remove the bags and try the shoes on.

3. Boost width with a potato.

If the shoe is too narrow, try a potato. Peel the potato and place it in the shoe. Don't do this trick with fabric as the moisture from the potato may not be good for it. Instead, save this trick for leather or synthetic leather shoes. Wedge the potato in near the bridge of the shoe and leave it overnight while it stretches.

4. Use baby powder or stockings.

If you don't have time to stretch out your shoes, you may want to make your foot glide into the shoe more easily. Sweat can make your foot resistant to going into the shoe, and to alleviate that effect, you just need a bit of baby powder. In lieu of that, wear stockings or nylons -- they essentially pull in your foot, making it easier to slip into too-small shoes compared to wearing socks or going barefoot.

5. Contact a professional.

Some shoe stores offering fitting services, ensuring that you buy the right size shoe for your foot, and they also offer sizing services. If your shoe is too small, they can help elongate or widen it for you (within reason).  

For women's footwear, contact a company such as Style Enhanced.

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