We’ve all had it happen, We try on a new pair of shoes – just the ones we’ve been looking for. The style is perfect. They seem to fit OK, than we take them home. A week later, it’s the day of the party. We grab those pretty new shoes and slip them on and go. Three hours later and ouch! They are just too tight. Too bad most of us don’t carry shoe stretchers in our purse or glove box. When you feet hurt, it is difficult to enjoy anything, no matter how much fun it may be normally.

Hey maybe it is not your fault. There are a lot of reasons that this can happen, and leave you wondering if there isn’t a way to stretch shoes. If you get your shoes wet, especially leather shoes – they can actually shrink. Maybe you have been doing a lot of running and your feet are swollen. And there are always maladies of the feet that can make us wish our shoes were a little roomier: bunions, corns and such.

Let’s take a look at some of the things you should know about shoes stretchers before you run out and get one:

• You can use shoe stretcher not only to expand the length and give you toes some wiggle room, you can also get some width.

• Shoe stretchers are primarily meant for natural materials such as leather. Artificial materials such as plastic normally won’t do as well, because they don’t stretch as much (duh).

• You’ll need different ones for different shoes. For boots, you need a boot stretcher. For ladies shoes, you’ll need one that corresponds to the kind of shoe, flats, for example. High heels will require a high heel shoe stretcher. If you have hooves, you’ll need a veterinarian, or perhaps a foot transplant. Such things are, of course beyond the scope of our present discussion.

• Remember that these are just tools, not tiny wooden magicians – they are meant to adjust shoes that basically fit, not to jump sizes. If your vanity has led you to buy size 6 because your boyfriend was watching, and you needed size 8, the solution is to sneak back to the shoe store and get some size 8 shoes.

They can be set up to only take care of specific problems or areas of the shoe: There are special units like the Footfitter pro two way shoe stretcher, which stretch both length and width.

The vamp or instep stretcher lifts the top of your shoe, which gives relief to those of us with tall feet, and variations exist especially to take care of the toes.

As mentioned before, you can get shoe stretcher with insert areas to push out a spot that is over a sore or other problem area. This is great if you have a corn or bunion on your toe, and don’t really need to stretch the entire shoe.

You new shoe stretchers will come with instructions, and most likely a shoe stretching liquid or spray bottle. What this will do is moisten the leather, and make it easier to stretch.

Basically, all you do is put the stretchers into your shoe or boot, and make sure that they are enlongated as much as they can be before you start the adjustment. There will be a knob that you turn to start the process. It is better not to go too far, just take them out to where you think you can live with them, then let them sit overnight.

Try them on the next morning – ok? If not, do another round. It is always better to take them out bit by bit, as shoes that are too loose are no fun either. The process can be a bit of a pain, but not as much of a pain as tight shoes.

Take a look at what’s out there and give it a shot. You’ll save a ton of money by not buying new shoes, and give yourself some much needed relief.

I remember that an old blues singer once said that the three things he needed for happiness were “cold beer, warm women and loose shoes”.

Good advice.

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