You've got a new pair of amazing shoes—but you're worried that in a couple of months, they'll be super creased. When you wear your new sneakers, dress shoes, or heels, you want to look fresh. And luckily, we can help! There are so many simple ways to reduce creasing while you walk, store shoes so they crease less, and even remove creases that have already formed. To learn everything you need to know, read through our complete guide below!

Things You Should Know

  • Train yourself to walk heel-to-toe. This will be especially effective if you can maintain good posture while you walk.
  • Wear padding inserts and store your shoes with a shoe horn or shoe tree to protect the toe structure.
  • Remove existing creases using an iron, blowdryer, or steamer.
1

Walk heel-to-toe.

  1. Lead with your heels and your shoes will be less likely to crease. When you put stress on the front of your shoes (where creases are most likely to form), you make creases worse. Shift your weight to the back of your shoe (towards the heel), and you'll limit creases over time.[1]
    • Plus, leading with your heels can help strengthen your calf muscles and increase flexibility. It’s a win-win!
    • Avoid walking on your tip toes, especially if an activity or job requires you to do it regularly. In those cases, wear shoes that you won't mind creasing.
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3

Avoiding crouching and kneeling.

  1. Kneel down in your new shoes, and you could leave permanent creases. If you need to get low, take off your shoes first. Kneeling puts a ton of pressure on creases in your toe box, which can easily create wrinkles.
    • Once or twice might not make a huge difference, but crouching regularly definitely can. If you perform work or do activities that require regular crouching down, wear shoes that you don’t mind wrinkling.
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10

Remove creases with an iron, blowdryer, or steamer.

  1. Even after shoes start to wear, applying heat can reduce creases. Typically, removing creases will work best with leather shoes. If you're removing creases from suede shoes, be careful when you apply water, as water can cause damage to that material.
    • To iron: pack your shoes with newspaper, dampen a cloth, lay it over your shoes, iron for 10 seconds at a time, and keep checking to make sure your shoe isn't being damaged.
    • To blow-dry: pack your shoes with a shoe tree, blow dry on a low setting from 2 feet away, and push your shoe's hot leather over the tree to smooth out the material.
    • To steam: heat a damp cloth in the microwave for 30 seconds, rub it over the shoe's creases to smoothen them, and insert a shoe tree to give the shoe support while it cools down.

About This Article

Moe Draper
Co-authored by:
Shoe Care & Repair Specialist
This article was co-authored by Moe Draper and by wikiHow staff writer, Caroline Heiderscheit. Moe Draper is a Shoe Care and Repair Specialist and the Owner of Detroit Shoe Shine and Shoe Repair. With over 20 years of personal experience, Moe specializes in shoe shining, cosmetic restorations for quality leather goods, and minor/major shoe repair services. Moe and his staff at Detroit Shoe Shine and Repair have over 30 years of combined experience and knowledge. This article has been viewed 18,269 times.
13 votes - 93%
Co-authors: 7
Updated: October 25, 2022
Views: 18,269
Categories: Care of Shoes
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