How to (Correctly) Break in Heels!

What is the one problem that every female who wears heels has?  (No, it's not what the next pair she should buy is!)  It's how to make them wearable!

It is the most tragic of tales... girl sees shoe, falls in love with shoe, wears shoe once, gets horrible blisters, and the shoe sits in the closet never to be worn again.  

Annoyed by this cycle one too many times I determined that for my Christian Louboutin graduation heels this would NOT be the case.  I also decided that I would not be in pain the day of graduation and that I would correctly break in my heels so they would be ready for me to wear on my big day.  

When I began to break in my heels I did what anyone would do- I went to Google for help.  I found a couple of sites that gave me tips, but there did not seem to be a step-by-step process for breaking heels in.  I decided to make my own step-by-step process and hope you find it helpful... Let me know if you have any other secrets that should be here!   

Step 1:  Wear Your Heels With Socks Whenever Possible.   

I wore my heels with socks for 3 days and it was incredibly helpful.  The socks help break in the leather and get the shoes accustomed to your foot's shape while preventing painful blisters from forming.  Make sure you are wearing cotton socks that are not too thick or too thin.  (Too thick of socks will stretch out your heels too much, and too thin of socks will do nothing.)  

It is important to spend time walking around in your sock/heel ensamble, but it is ok to sit in them as well.  Sitting helps your foot get used to the arch and helps stretch the sides of the shoes out.

To make walking in your heels easier "rough up" the bottom of the toe box.  You can use sandpaper to do this, or you can buy non slip pads that stick to your heel.  I used stickies because I couldn't bear to hurt my red soles.  

Non-slip pads to make walking easier

I took this step a step further (haha) and decided to walk on an inside track with my heels.  I walked 1/2 mile in my heels and socks and attribute the readiness of my heels to this process.  The track was rubber and made walking easier which helped me get used to walking in the heels-meanwhile breaking them in hardcore.  I don't have a picture of me walking on the track because no one would come with me to take a picture, but I do have a picture of one of my feet after.  (OWIE)

My foot after walking 1/2 mile in my heels and socks. Owie. 

Walking in your heels this much WILL hurt but it DOES help!  Basically the more you wear your heels, the better they will be broken in. (I know we've heard it before but it is the best advice.) Wear your heels with socks as much as possible to make the experience less painful.    

Step 2: Stretch Your Shoes Out. 

I have this as Step 2 and not Step 1 because I think it is important for you to know where your shoes are painful before you stretch them out with a tool.  (It would be awful to do it first and overstretch your shoes!) 

For this step I purchased my own stretcher from +Zappos.com but you can always get your shoes stretched at the store you bought them from.  ( +Nordstrom, Inc is especially good at offering this free service.)  I HIGHLY recommend buying the following stretcher from Zappos, especially if you wear heels often.  

This specific stretcher is the Foot Petals Stiletto Stretcher sold for $29.95 (+ free shipping) from Zappos.  It comes with little plastic bumps to put where your toes are however I'm using it without them.  

I used the stretcher to stretch out the sides and toe box of my heels. I left the stretcher in each heel overnight and felt a significant difference the next day.  I am SO happy with this product.  

Make sure the stretcher is pushed all the way into the toe box!

Use the crank to widen the block to stretch your heels. 

If you dont want to buy the product, like I mentioned before, you can have your shoes stretched.  Make sure to tell the person to stretch them in increments  as you don't want overstretched shoes. When you go to someone else they do not usually keep your shoes overnight, they do it while you wait in the store.  

(It only takes 5 minutes.)   

Step 3: Wear Your Heels With Moleskin.

It is time to take off the socks!  After stretching your heels and walking in them with socks the heels should be pretty well stretched out.  Wearing the heels with moleskin helps get your bare foot used to the heel while preventing blisters in the spots that continue to rub.

What is moleskin?  Moleskin is very similar to a bandaid, however it comes in large sheets and you can cut it in whatever shape you like.  There is a sticky side that you stick to your skin and it stays incredibly well.  (Do NOT stick it to your shoe as a "permanent" solution... it WILL rub off and leave a sticky mess on your shoe.  Trust me, I've done it.) Here is a picture of what moleskin looks like in the store- I shopped at +Walgreens but you should be able to find it anywhere. 

 Below are pictures of the moleskin on my feet and then how they look in the heels. If you are not concerned about how it looks, you can continue to wear the moleskin to protect your feet when you are wearing your heels normally. This prevents blisters and makes heels so much more comfortable. (Secret- I do this ALL the time. Shhhh!)

Step 4: Wear Your Heels! 

Your heels should now be good-to-go for day-to-day wear!  If you are still feeling them pinch repeat the steps focusing on whichever step seemed to work the best for you.  

I will continue to research and try new ways to break in heels and I promise to share any secrets I find.  In the meantime please post any secrets you have and give me feedback on any of mine!  

Follow me on Twitter at @amandamclernon for more pictures, information, and random tweets about shoes, stilettos, and heels! 

Tags: How to break in heels, comfortable heels, breaking in, sore feet, moleskin, tricks to break shoes in, shoes, stilettos , heels, stretching shoes, breaking in Louboutins, socks, tips

Brian Atwood Death Heels

Ok, so they aren't really called "Death Heels" however after walking in them for one evening I have christened them with this new name.  These Brian Atwood heels are a beautiful rose gold and are truly fabulous heels.  They easily complimented my outfit and if I had not needed to walk, they would have been the best going out shoes in my closet.  Unfortunately, this was not the case.

Before I go any further, here are some pictures of the beautiful disasters and my outfit I wore them with.  Photo credit to Saks Fifth Ave for the first picture. The second picture is a friend and I out in Miami.  (Excuse the truck and poor quality pic- picture taking opportunities were limited and I was using my iPhone.)

Aren't they fabulous!  They are truly jewelry for the foot.  When I first got them I knew I needed to have them for two reasons.  

1) They were on sale.  2) They would look amazing in a club. 

I quickly purchased them and decided I didn't care if they were comfortable or not.  Looking back I wish I had taken comfort into consideration more, however, I know I still would have purchased them even if I had known their discomfort level at the point of purchase.  

Immediately after purchasing the shoes I got them stretched.  The strap going over the toebox was WAY too tight and I knew no amount of breaking in was going to fix that.  The people who stretched my shoes said they stretched the shoes about 5 times focusing most of the stretching on the seams of the strap.  Stretching shoes is not something you should be afraid of, especially if you take your shoes to someone you trust.  Nordstrom stretched mine but it's because I have a great relationship with my personal shopper.  (If you buy your shoes there they will always do this for free.)  Stretching your shoes will also not ruin your shoes, especially if they are made well.  Lesson: Stretch your shoes!  It will help break them in.  

Unfortunately even after stretched the shoes were still very difficult to wear.  The strap over the toebox was still too tight and gave me blisters.  Also, although I classify myself as a "pro" at walking in heels I felt a little like Bambi in these.  The shoe was great for standing, sitting, and looking pretty, but when it came to walking I knew these would not be my "go to" going out heels.  Tragic!  

I think these heels could be improved a couple of ways.  First, the strap over the toebox could have been more loose.  Although I know it was tight to keep the foot in the shoe it was too tight and resulted in blisters.  Second, the shoe could have had a higher platform.  A higher platform would have made the arch a bit smaller and I wouldn't have felt so much like Bambi.  

Lessons Learned: 1) Always get shoes stretched.  2)Take cabs everywhere when wearing adorable shoes. 3) Carry a clutch that can fit flats in them.  

Next post I'll talk about my Christian Louboutins I'm wearing for graduation.  (Oh, that's right.... I GRADUATE on Saturday!)  It will be a fun post because I've been trying multiple interesting ways to break them in and have pictures of me doing it.  We'll see how successful I am and if I can last the entire ceremony in them!