Guide to Removing Creases from Shoes

If you love your Nikes as much as we love ours, you’ll want to show them off as much as you can. But the harsh reality is that when you wear your new sneakers, they are inevitably going to get dirty, and worse… they’re going to crease.

Your Nike sneakers were meant to be seen and they belong only on your feet. So, what do you do? How do you combat the undeniable reality that they’re going to crease and wrinkle? Well, that’s where we step in with some life hacks on how you can make these creases disappear.

SUPPLIES

• Newspaper

• Shoe polish or conditioner

TOOLS

• Iron

• Cloth (flannel or tea towel)

• Brush

• Hairdryer

• Shoe tree

• A microwave-safe dish

Let’s begin with some heatless options. If you’re not careful, using heat to remove creases, especially on non-leather materials, can sometimes damage your shoes – and we don’t want that! Not every crease or wrinkle requires heat to remove it, so try these ways first.

Conditioning Your Shoes

Ditch the heat with your leather shoe and opt for a leather conditioner or oil to get out the creases. Before starting, always test the product on a small hidden section of the shoe first, in case there are any reactions, such as discoloration. Using a polish brush or cloth, apply the product all over the shoe and begin to massage the oil or conditioner in, focusing heavily over the creased areas. Once you have finished this process across the entire shoe, we suggest placing a shoe tree inside to maintain the shape of the shoe while the product dries.

The Shoe Tree

Using a shoe tree on its own is an effortless way to restore the shape of your shoe. While this may be the slower of all the ways to eliminate creases, it will keep your shoe in shape after wear and is the best way to keep the natural shape. If you’re able to get a hold of an untreated cedar shoe tree, the properties of the cedar help eliminate odour and moisture from your shoe, while helping to maintain the integrity of the materials and soles of your shoe.

Use a Hair Dryer

More common to have in the house than an iron, the hair dryer is especially handy on leather shoes. While you don’t necessarily need one, using a cedar shoe tree for this process, it won’t get hot while inside the shoe as your using the heat.

1. Keep the hairdryer on a low heat setting

2. Keep the hairdryer 20-25cms away from the shoe

3. Pass the hairdryer over the shoe a few times

4. Using your finger, massage the warm leather of the crease against the shoe tree

5. Repeat process until the crease has gone

Use an Iron

Of course, the most popular way of removing a crease from shoes is also the riskiest! If you’re opting for using an iron to remove creases from your sneakers, it’s important to remember a couple of things:

·       Avoid burns on your shoes by using a cloth buffer between the shoe and the iron – applying the iron directly onto your shoe can cause irreversible damage, and we don’t want anything to happen to your Dunks!

·        Make sure you stuff the shoe to keep the shape.

1. Dampen a cloth, for example a flannel

2. Either flat or folded, lay the cloth directly on top of the crease

3. Keep the iron on a low heat setting

4. Using 10 second increments and a light hand, iron over the cloth

5. After every interval, keep checking the crease before using the iron again. This way you can keep an eye on the show to avoid any damage

6. Once the crease has gone, you can stop ironing, but keep the shoe stuffed until it cools

The combination of the heat and moisture from the iron means the materials can soften, making it easier to stretch the crease out. By dampening the cloth and keeping it between the shoe and the iron, you are protecting the materials from being burned. While this technique works best for leather, if your shoe has a material such as suede, just make sure to wring out the cloth as much as possible as water compromises suede.

Using Steam

Recommended trying only on leather sneakers, all you need for this technique is a cloth and a microwave.

1. Dampen the cloth (flannel or tea towel) and wring it out

2. Place it in heat-resistant and microwave-safe dish

3. Heat on high for 30 seconds in the microwave

4. Rub the steamy towel over the crease/s and let the heat warm up the leather

5. Insert a shoe tree to keep the shape while the sneaker cools down

6. Repeat process until the crease has gone

Pro tip when applying heat to leather: As heat often dries out materials, we recommend following up any process where heat is involved with a shoe polish or conditioner, such as the Sneaker Lab Leather Care. This process ensures your favourite shoes last longer, as well as help keep your sneakers, looking fresh once the crease has gone.

Keep Your Shoes Looking Fresh from Day One

Extend the life of your Nike shoes by cleaning them regularly and addressing the creases as they begin to appear. Whether you’re cleaning a crisp white pair of Air Force 1 sneakers, or routinely cleaning your shoe collection, shoe care products like a Sneaker Cleaner, Sneaker Protector and Leather Wipes are some of the ways to keep your sneakers looking like they’re fresh from the box while keeping creases under control.

How Can You Prevent Creasing?

Movement in your feet will cause materials like leather, suede, and canvas to constrict in your footwear, which will cause creasing. Prevent creasing by making sure your shoes fit correctly – the bigger the shoe, the more space there is at the toes, increasing the chance of your shoes creasing.

Remember, it’s completely normal for your shoes to crease!

If you try these techniques for removing creases, show us your before and after pics and tag us on our Instagram!