Tight and stiff shoes are troublesome, but we can hardly avoid such issues, especially with a new pair. That’s when we frantically search for an effective method to stretch the shoes, so they do not irritate and hurt us so much. Stretch products are plentiful, and among them, wooden shoe stretchers get quite a reputation, even on Reddit.
But, do shoe stretchers really work? The good news is that these tools can definitely enlarge your shoes a bit, maybe not to the point of being one size bigger than before. However, a quality stretcher can widen the shoe length, height, and width, so we feel more comfortable.
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Does Shoe Stretching Work?
So, we established that shoe stretchers do work in widening our footwear. In fact, they are highly applicable for various shoe materials, types, and designs.
If you check out the functional and quality stretchers in the market, you will easily find pieces that work on:
- Tennis shoes
- Ankle boots
- Oxford shoes
- Loafers
- Wedge heels shoes
- Bike shoes
- Flats
- Sandals and slippers
And more.
Please note that stretchers work on sneakers, on boots, and other types of shoes without heels pretty well. But for pairs with high heels, most of them are applicable for shoes with heels under about 2.35 inches.
Furthermore, a shoes expander will work on pairs constructed from canvas and different types of leather materials.
If you have footwear made of synthetic fabrics, a shoe stretcher might be able to expand it a little bit. However, the effect will not be as good as malleable materials like canvas and leather. Also, the result will not last very long.
How Do Shoe Stretchers Work?
Shoe stretchers are made with heavy-duty materials, mostly metal, wood, or robust plastic. Most of them come with a shaft, a handle, screws to hold the parts together, and the main parts that are curved like footwear.
These tools often resemble the shape of our feet as we need to insert them into the shoe to stretch its dimensions, including its width and length. Furthermore, the stretcher can expand calluses or bunion areas to reduce the tightness, depending on its design and functions.
What Are the Different Types of Shoe Stretchers?
Indeed, not all shoe stretchers are created equal; especially for professional shoe stretching, it is important to choose the right type of tool for the task.
You should pay attention to the following designs to be sure that they work for your current requirements.
- One-way design: A strong one-way stretcher will be used to widen one dimension of your shoes, either for width, toe box space, or the instep.
There are many quality pieces that come with extra plugs for you to stretch the bunion or corn areas with ease. So, this product is quite versatile.
Indeed, it will work mostly for sneakers, flats, or hiking shoes. However, most of them do not work well as a ladies shoe stretcher for high heels.
- Two-way design: These tools must be the most popular in the market as they offer just what most wearers need for their tight shoes. As its name suggests, the two-way shoe stretcher is applicable for length and width of a pair.
Like a one-way design, this one is not often applicable for high heels. Some of them might not work well for cowboy boots or boots in general. However, we can rely on the piece to widen our dress shoes with utmost ease.
Indeed, in most quality products, we can also get some bunion plugs to enlarge a particular area of the shoes.
- For-way design: These pieces might just be the most functional and versatile stretchers in the current market. With such an expander, we can simultaneously widen the footwear width for some space and its length for a bigger size.
Furthermore, this design allows stretching corns, calluses, and bunions parts that are so tight that they hurt our feet. Therefore, it is the best piece that expands footwear in every way possible.
Needless to say, the four-way stretcher works wonders on high heels (mostly shorter than 2.4 inches), providing a wider range of functions than the two designs above.
- High-heel stretcher: You can definitely use the four-way design for this purpose. Or, even better, purchase one constructed with a steep angle and narrow form to fit into a high-heeled shoe.
- Boot stretcher: If you scroll through various shoe expanders and see one with a very long handle, that’s probably a boot stretcher. It will come with a handle joint, a widening handle, a toe block, and maybe some toe stretching plugs.
Tips to Make Shoe Stretchers Work Effectively
If you want to use shoe stretcher and really make the best out of it, there are some things you should follow:
1. Always prepare a suitable shoe stretching spray
You cannot go wrong with a quality solution that helps soften the materials of your shoes before you expand them with a stretcher. Just make sure to pick one that’s compatible with the footwear material and safe for its colors.
2. Repeat several times
Shoe stretchers work, but they are not working miracles. Therefore, you should be patient in the process. Do the stretching once, wear the shoes along with a pair of thick socks, and walk around for several hours. Come back and stretch them again if the pair is still tight.
3. Stretch at the right place
If you feel pain in a specific area of your feet where the shoes put too much pressure on, focus on fixing that area. Spray the solution there, inside and outside, then use the plugs provided in the stretcher to make it right.
4. Do not leave the stretchers in the shoes for too long
Of course, there will be notes on the time limit you should not exceed. It is much harder to shrink a pair than to widen it.
Conclusion
Do shoe stretchers really work? The answer is yes, they can. But the extent of their effectiveness has limits, depending on various factors. Make sure you choose the right type of stretcher with good quality, design, and accessories.
Furthermore, make sure you use it with other stretching methods, including the stretching spray. It will help you achieve the desired effect more easily.
This is Edward Manning, the editor in chief of Construction Informer. Quite a bit of my time is spent researching the market and interviewing experts in the field so that I can give you reliable information.