There are a bunch of ways like water spray, heating, boot stretcher, wearing them while doing activities to break in your cowboy boots. You can also submerge them into the water, but it’s not a good idea for leather boots.
How to Break in Cowboy Boots?
Maybe you got your favorite pair of cowboy boots that look great on your feet but it feels tight and pinches your toes. The sole feels not flexible at all and your feet are too numb for a comfortable activity. Well, there’s no need to return the boots, you can fix them!
There are a bunch of ways to break in your cowboy shoes easily. Follow the instructions to break in your cowboy boots.
Step 1: Heating
First of all, you need a heating source for this procedure. Some of the most common heating sources could be a hairdryer or steam.
Almost any heating source will work. But in this scenario, we will discuss using the hairdryer as it is the most common tool you can find hanging there in your house.
Find the areas of the boots you need to heat, use the dryer 8 inches away from the boot. Focus on the areas that have been causing you problems while heating. After heating put on your shoes and walk around them for a while until it cools down.
This method or the heating method helps the leather material to expand so that your feet fit in.
Step 2: Submerging into the water
This one is a risky way. Your feet might get smelly because of using it. It also has a chance of damaging your boots.
Submerge your poor boots in a bucket of water. Leave them for some time. After you take out the shoes, wear them wrapping plastic bags around your feet. Conduct your daily activities wearing them around. Let them dry and you will get the results.
Step 3: Water spray
If you are worried about submerging your shoes in the water, there is another alternative way for that. You just need these things:
- Spray bottle filled with water
- Leather conditioner
Spray both inside and outside of your shoes with a water bottle. Focus on the areas that are causing you a lot of problems. To provide your boots waterproof quality while washing them, make sure to use a good leather conditioner. This will be effective from future damage.
Step 4: Use a boot stretcher
A boot stretcher is a tool that could go into your boot and when you place it inside the boot you can manually adjust it so that your boot can expand. Leaving it overnight results in the expected expansion of your boots. This is a very effective way to break in your cowboy boots.
Step 5: Conducting daily activities while wearing the boots
This is a very natural way to expand your boots. Wear the boots for a week before you go out with them. This is not the fastest but the safest way to expand your shoes. With this method, you can also save yourself some money. Try to be more flexible with walking around your shoes as much as possible.
How Long Does It Take for Cowboy Boots to Break In?
It depends on how much you use them in a week or so. If you use the methods to accelerate to break in your shoes or use them like 5 days per week, you can break them in just 1 week.
Wearing them 2-3 days a week might take 2-3 weeks to break them down. Either you have to wear them down a lot or use the methods to accelerate the breaking process.
New boots usually take around 80-100 hours to break. So keeping a spare pair is helpful most of the time.
Resizing Cowboy Boots
When it comes to resizing cowboy boots you can stretch them in a couple of ways, but the hardest thing is to shrink them. The shrinking method includes water submerging and heating which is very harmful to your shoes and you might not wanna do this to your expensive boots.
When you want to stretch your shoes are lots more ways than just heating and submerging. We suggest stretching or breaking in your cowboy boots but shrinking them.
Loosening Up Cowboy Boots
Most of the cowboy boots are made of leather which can stretch over time. You can stretch them naturally and slowly by wearing them regularly. But if you are expecting a faster process and result, you need to follow the methods like heating, water submerging, wearing them daily, boot stretcher, water spray, etc.
Are cowboy boots good or bad for your feet?
It depends on the structure of your feet. If you have bunions or hammertoes, I would suggest you not go for cowboy shoes. People who have narrow toes can experience forefoot pain wearing cowboy boots.
People who have flat feet and wear cowboy boots without arch support can worsen their feet pain. Patients with plantar fasciitis or Achilles tendonitis gets benefited from the higher heels of cowboy boots.
Cowboy boot buying size
If you find the right size cowboy boot for your feet that is great. But each foot is different. If you are confused between two sizes, get yourself ½ size larger shoes. To fit better you can wear them using thicker boot socks or putting insoles in them. But getting a bit larger one for yourself instead of getting a tighter one is better.
FAQ
Q: Can Cowboy Boots Be Resoled?
Ans: Yes, cowboy boots can be resoled. Resoling can help and benefit you in a lot of ways. You don’t need to go and buy another pair of expensive shoes, resoling saves you money. Resoling cowboy boots are quite recommended often when needed.
Note that, cowboy boots are expensive because of the leather and the brand you buy, so on the good side, you can re-sole them.
Q: Should new boots be tight?
Ans: When buying new boots, they shouldn’t be tight but can feel snug. They need to be broken in later though. New boots can be a little snug at first, but wearing a couple of weeks will make them comfortable.
But tighter shoes are not recommended at all, it might hurt your feet and make you uncomfortable. If you can feel a bit snug while wearing socks, that size is quite okay.
To Conclude
If you use water methods to break in cowboy boots, make sure to do it when you’re awake since you can dry your boots at that time. Also, avoid submerging your boots into the water. It will affect the quality of your boots, especially for a pair of leather boots. And if you’re insecure about doing this by yourself, you always can ask for professional help.
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