The bad news about wearing your shoes: They’ll crease them. The good news: You don’t have to settle for creasing your shoe. You can make them disappear.
There’s something special about a pair of spotless shoes. But maintaining the original look – clean, without scratches, without creases – is a dirty job.
Shoes belong on the feet. And when you wear shoes, they eventually crease or you crease. The good news is that you don’t have to settle for creasing your shoe. Follow these steps to make creases in your shoes disappear.
How to remove wrinkles from shoes with heat
Use an iron
By far the most popular way to remove wrinkles from shoes, using an iron is also the riskiest.
Fill the shoe so it holds its shape from heel to toe. Wrapping your shoes as tightly as possible will smooth out the wrinkles. Scrap paper like newspaper works best, but cardboard or even a pair of socks are good backups as well.
Always use a pad between the iron and the shoe. Placing a hot iron directly on the shoe can damage it beyond repair. Don’t burn your shoes!
Use the iron as follows:
- Dampen a cloth, such as a washcloth.
- Place it directly over the crease (it may crease).
- Turn the iron on at 60-80 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Iron the towel every 10 seconds.
- Check the fold regularly to avoid damage to the shoe.
- When the creases are gone, stop ironing, but leave the shoe filled until it cools.
Ironing the crease out works through a combination of heat and humidity, softening the shoe material and stretching the crease. The towel absorbs the heat from the iron so the shoe materials don’t accidentally cause burns.
This tactic works best in leather shoes. You can use it with suede shoes, but wring out the towel as tightly as possible first. Water and suede are not an ideal combination.
Steam your shoes
This strategy works best in leather shoes and only requires a cloth like washcloth or towel and a microwave.
- Wet the towel and wring it out so it’s barely damp.
- Place the towel in a heat resistant container such as Pyrex.
- Microwave on high for 30 seconds.
- Rub a hot, steamy towel into the creases to warm the skin.
- Place a shoe tree to keep your shoes in shape as they cool.
Try drying
If you don’t have an iron, drying can work too, especially on leather shoes. Use cedar wood shoe trees to hold the shape of your shoe as you work. They don’t get hot in the shoe.
Use the hair dryer:
- Turn it on low heat.
- Hold it 8-10 inches away from the shoe.
- Run the dryer over the shoe a few times, then turn it down.
- Rub the warm leather with your finger against the wood of the shoe.
With this method, you want to keep the shoe tree in place while the sneakers cool down.
Since you’re applying direct heat to the leather of your shoes, it’s a good idea to follow this process with shoe polish or conditioner. Heat can dry out the leather, and a conditioning treatment will keep your sneakers looking their best now that the creases or creases are gone.
