Who doesn’t love buying a new pair of shoes? Once you have a new pair of heels or flats, you’re just dying to wear them. Unfortunately, new shoes can be uncomfortable, unless you know about these clever hacks!
Image: Alexandra Gorn on Unsplash
1. Prevent slipping with some sandpaper. Walking in heels isn’t easy for everyone, and the last thing you need is to worry about slipping on very smooth floors. Most new shoes don’t have traction, so rub some sandpaper against the bottom of the heels and soles. This will create a rough surface that will create friction between your shoes and the floor.
If you’ve got a hot glue gun on hand, you can also cut a piece of sandpaper and stick it to the bottom of the soles.
2. Protect your toes. Shoes like flip-flops or sandals that have a thong separating your big toe from the rest of your toes can cause friction to the skin between the toes. Add a silicone toe guard to stop the chafing and keep your toes pain-free.
SEE ALSO: 8 tips to help your shoes last longer and look better
3. Invest in a shoe stretcher. Although they may look weird, shoe stretchers are handy if you have wide feet and often buy shoes that are a bit too narrow. Simply insert them into your shoes and leave them for a couple days, and voila, your shoes are instantly just a little wider.
Another way to stretch your shoes that’s a bit faster (and doesn’t involve buying a shoe stretcher) is a simple bag of frozen water.
Just fill two small ziplock bags of water and place them in your shoes. Put your shoes in the freezer and leave for 8 hours so the water expands the shoes while freezing. Leave the shoes to thaw until room temperature before putting them on your feet.
4. Chunky socks and a hairdryer. If you’re not keen on freezing your shoes, an easy way to stretch out your shoes is to wear them with thick, chunky socks around the house. To speed up the process, you can warm up your shoes using a hairdryer which will heat up the fabric of your shoes, making it easier to expand.
SEE ALSO: 5 ways to look after your boots (so they last longer)
5. Tape your toes together. There is a nerve that splits between your third and fourth toes that can cause pain when pressure is put on it, especially if you wear pointy-toed high heels and boots. If it hurts when you wear pointy shoes, use some medical tape to tape those two toes together and relieve some pressure from your feet.
6. No more sinking heels. Nothing is more annoying and uncomfortable than when you’re wearing heels at an outdoor wedding or birthday party, and your heels keeping sinking into the lawn. Invest in a few heel stoppers so that you can wear your heels on any surface.
7. Baby powder. Suffering from sweaty feet is very common and can be uncomfortable when you can’t wear sandals or open-toed shoes. If you suffer from sweaty feet, sprinkle some baby powder in your shoes to absorb the moisture. Baking powder is a great alternative to this shoe hack, plus it will absorb any unwanted odours.
SEE ALSO: The hottest boots to have this season
8. Lip balm for blisters. This helpful shoe hack helps treat blisters if you don’t have another footwear option on hand. If you feel like a shoe is going to give you a blister on your heel, rub some lip balm on the area to help reduce the blister-causing friction. You can also prevent blisters from happening by applying roll-on deodorant before you wear your shoes.
9. Flip flops. Sometimes new flip-flops can be painful on your feet when the rubber chaffs against your foot. Take a simple piece of fabric of your choice (preferably something soft, like cotton) and wrap it around the straps of your flip-flops. This will make sure there’s zero friction and also (if you choose the right kind of fabric), it can glam-up your flip-flops
10. Emergency shoe saver. Ever had the strap of your flip-flops pull through the sole? It’s really annoying and it makes the shoe pretty useless. Use an old bread fastener to secure the flip-flop strap, preventing it from ever slipping through your sole. Easy and cheap!
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