Tips for getting your feet into heels?

[PatentHeel]

My new peep toe heels arrived today so this evening I quickly tried them on to check that they fitted me. Normally whenever I get new heels I always try them on first with a pair of thin socks as this avoids any barefoot friction and allows my feet to slide into the heels with ease. I can then tell immediately if they fit or not. Tonight, for some strange reason I tried on my new heels without my socks and I just couldn't seem to get my feet in without them hurting. I was almost about to resign myself to the fact that the heels were too small but then I remembered about my tip to overcome bare foot friction and went and grabbed a pair of socks. As soon as I tried on the heels with the socks they went straight on my feet without any bother and they fitted perfectly. It would be interesting to hear what methods other heel wearers use to help them get their barefeet into heels. I was thinking of perhaps rubbing a little baby lotion onto my feet first to reduce the fiction but I'm a little worried that the lotion may ruin my heels. Cheers PatentHeel

[Cl0setheels]

I usually don't have a lot of problems putting them on my bare feet. I do keep them very smooth and give myself a pedicure regularly. If they are a little tight at first i will wear them with pantyhose. When they break in more it gets easier to wear them barefoot. I wouldn't try the lotion since i would have the same fear as you mentioned. I'm really careful with my heels.

[Steve63130]

If the heels are real leather, wearing them with thin nylon - opaque tights or sheer pantyhose, or just trouser socks or sheer knee highs - can help you break them in until they fit you well. If you can't find women's pantyhose to fit, or don't want to wear women's, search the internet for men's pantyhose and you'll find sources. It will take quite a few hours of wear for the leather to stretch this way, so be patient. I often soak leather shoes thoroughly in warm water for a few minutes and wear them stretched until they dry and conform to the shape of my feet (typically 6 hours or so). Yeah, I know, you might think that will ruin them, but it's never happened. First of all, the leather got wet plenty of times when the cow or goat wore it. Secondly, the adhesives and other materials used in shoe construction are made to be water resistant. I'm not advocating that you do this a lot, just the first time you wear them. From the next day on, they should fit great! If the heels are from manmade (or womanmade, more likely) materials, the above treatment won't work, or at least not as well. Synthetics like polyurethane will stretch and give eventually, but not as fast as real leather, so you might have to wear them a bit more until you get them to conform to the shape of your feet. Nylons will help. Plan on several days' wearing until they conform. Finally, I have used skin lotion many times and it has no ill effect on the shoes at all, but it sure makes them easy to slide on if you're barefoot. An alternative is talcum powder. The disadvantage of both of those techniques is that your foot can slide forward into the toebox and squeeze your toes together uncomfortably. The skin lotion I use was recommended to me by my dermatologist cousin (she knows of my heel passion and has seen me in heels). It is called LacHydrin Five and is fantastic for making rough skin smooth. It's pricey but works really well. Put some on your feet, put your heels on for an hour or so, and your feet will have smooth skin for the whole day. Use a pumice stone as needed to get the really hard skin off first. Hope that helps. Steve

[benno]

Butter and ice cubes! Only joking. I have tried the thick socks and heat the shoes gently with a hairdryer trick. It worked a treat!

[onyourtoes]

On my 6 1/2 inch Ellie 8260 pumps, my toes have a hard time going 'around the corner,' into the toes. A bit of baby powder works wonders and isn't going to goop up the shoes like a lotion would.

[danielp6406]

Simple solution which works fine for me: The feet must be clean and dry.

Wash your feet and make sure they are perfectly dry before you put on your shoes.

[HappyinHeels]

Keeping your feet clean and dry cannot be overemphasized. I have been able to slip into my closed-pumps in bare feet when they are clean and dry. Since I normally wear pantyhose it is added help in ensuring a quick fit. One other thing that affects at least my fit: making sure you scrub any bunions or callouses that form on the side of your toes right at the widest part of the foot which would cause a shoe to fit more snugly. It is something I have to watch for since women's shoes tend to be narrower. HappyinHeels

[pussyinboots]

Firstly, clean, dry feet. Then I either slip on a pair of nylon 'pop sox', or I use a little application of moisturising cream.

[Dr. Shoe]

I have used just a dab of vaseline on the outer toes and the bottom of the heel.