How To Keep Shoes From Creasing When Walking

What if you find quite a few creases on your favorite pair of shoes just before heading out somewhere? 

Of course, it’s the last thing that you would want. But creases never come with a warning bell, do they? And believe it or not, I have faced such not-so-pleasant surprises several times. 

Initially, I struggled to deal with such creased shoes, just as you might be thinking. But after conducting some thorough research on what could be done, I’m now much better at tackling creases. 

And to date, I've been able to keep all my shoes in great shape. That’s why I’m here to help you out based on my experience. 

Hi! I’m Stacy, and today I’ll be telling you how to keep shoes from creasing when walking. And without further ado, let’s dive right in!

Reasons For Creasing Of Shoes

Shoes are always designed to provide you with the desired comfort while you walk. As such, they always let your feet flex by bending in the process. And it’s this bend that makes the topmost material of any shoe compressed and thus gives rise to creases. 

As for the extent of the crease, that somewhat depends on the stiffness of the material. Generally, stiffer materials such as synthetic and leather are more prone to creasing than flexible ones such as mesh and fabric. 

But having used many types of shoes in all these years, I’ve understood that creasing is very much inevitable. This is why it’s always better to try and minimize the issue rather than striving to stop creases altogether. So, let’s move on to the next section to learn how you can achieve the same.

How To Reduce Creasing Of Shoes While Walking

There are quite a few simple yet efficient ways to reduce the creasing speed in shoes and thereby control creasing. 

1. Picking The Right Size

In case the size of the shoe you buy is smaller than your feet, both its outer material and the sole will receive more pressure while walking. Likewise, bigger shoes will have some spare space at the front portion that’ll prompt further creasing while you walk. 

Speaking of my own experience, I once bought a smaller pair of ballerina shoes made of cotton from a nearby store since they didn't have the ideal-sized model. I really liked them and thought the smaller size wouldn’t matter too much. But that was soon proved wrong as the shoes started creasing just after a few days of use!

So, while choosing a product, make sure you try it for at least a couple of minutes and push your feet forward. Then walk a little for a final check of the fittings. 

2. Using Shoehorns

Shoes which come with good-quality, rigid heel counters are likely to undergo less creasing. Nonetheless, even if a pair doesn’t have a very rigid heel, you can use a shoehorn while wearing it to reduce creasing. 

This budget-friendly accessory can even enhance the longevity of your shoes. It works by pulling back the heel of the shoe so as to provide your foot with easy sliding access. 

3. Using Shoe Trees

A shoe tree is actually an unfinished and shoe-shaped wood piece that sellers in shoe stores generally use to measure your feet. But apart from that, it can also be very useful in reducing creases in shoes. That’s because it helps in absorbing the excess moisture from shoes, thereby extending their service life considerably. 

I personally found this method really effective in minimizing creasing in shoes that had more delicate outer layers. And all I had to do was store the shoes on the shoe trees immediately after taking them off.

However, if you’re not able to find a shoe tree, you can put old newspapers within the shoe that’ll soak in the moisture. 

4. Ironing Your Shoes

At first thought, this might seem puzzling to you. But this method actually works quite well in reducing creases in shoes. 

For this method, you’ll first have to fill the shoe with a newspaper and then cover the creased part with a small dampened cloth or a double-layered towel. Follow this by setting the iron at 60-80°F and ironing the shoe slowly. Be careful not to exert much force on the shoe as that might affect its shape.  

And after this is done, the crease will be gone for good. In fact, I couldn’t believe those were the same shoes after I had tried this method out on a heavily creased pair for the first time!

5. Using Shoe Padding

Shoe padding or force field is another great accessory you can use to control the creasing of shoes. It enables perfect fitting by reducing the gap between the toe end and feet. As a result, you can get rid of most of the creases on the shoes. Shoe pads made of softer materials also provide a comfortable feel to the feet while walking.

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