You bought a great pair of shoes, but you want to change the way they look, or you have feet that you’re rather disguise so that they don’t look so much the way that they do now. We get it, and we’re here to help.
Below, we will cover all the bases so make sure you read to the end as there are some amazing tips you’re seriously not going to want to miss out on.
How to Make Men’s Shoes Look Bigger?
There are several ways to make your shoes look bigger, which can enhance your image stylistically in certain instances. These strategies include wearing pants with skinny legs, tailoring your trousers to make the shoes look larger, or modifying the outside of the shoe itself. Now let’s take a closer look at each of these methods.
First, wearing skinny jeans or pants with skinny legs can make your shoes appear larger. This is because of the contrast between your legs and your feet. The skinnier your legs look compared to your feet, the larger your shoes will appear. You can easily accomplish this look by wearing a pair of skinny jeans or tight leggings.
Next, you can always get your dress trousers, chinos, khakis and even jeans tailored so that they are as fitted to your legs as possible. This might be a bit trickier and more time-consuming, as you’d either have to have the know-how to tailor them yourself or take them to a professional tailor and wait for the work to be done.
Finally, you can modify the outside of your shoes to make them look bigger than they really are. The way you modify them will depend on the type of shoe you want to make look bigger. If it’s a tennis shoe, scuffing up the outside can have this effect. But if the shoe is a dress shoe, scuffs won’t work. You’ll need to polish dress shoes to have the same effect.
How to Make Men’s Shoes Look Smaller?
If you want to make your shoes look smaller instead of bigger, there are also several methods of accomplishing this effect.
Wearing baggy pants can have the effect of making your shoes appear smaller, because like wearing skinny pants which we discussed above, the contrast between your thicker looking legs and shoes will diminish the shoes in comparison. Additionally, in many baggy pants, the hems may fall over the tops of your shoes, which will add to the effect.
Some additional tips include wearing shoes with wide straps, avoiding shoes with peep toes such as sandals, and wearing dark colored shoes. The dark color will help the shoe fade into the background, giving it the appearance of being smaller.
Men’s Shoes That Make Your Feet Look Bigger
Let’s examine which shoes can make your feet look bigger than they are. There are a few different types of shoes you should wear if you want them to appear big, including bulky shoes like boots, wider shoes like sneakers, English toed dress shoes, and shoes with lines across the width of your feet. Let’s examine each of these types of shoes more closely.
First up are bulky shoes like boots or dress boots. These are naturally large shoes with bulky soles and boxy toes, which may have a lot of extra space inside them. This will make your feet look larger than they are because people will only be looking at the boot, not your foot inside it.
Another shoe is the sneaker. With a softer canvas exterior, these shoes are typically less structures than others, often appearing wider than your foot within it. Along this same vein, English toed dress shoes have thick tips and thick soles, which will make your foot look longer and thicker. They’re also nice-looking as a bonus.
Finally, another thing you can try is to wear sandals or shoes with thick straps across the top of your feet. The added bulk with make your feet look bigger and the horizontal stripes of the straps will have a widening effect on them at the same time.
Men’s Shoes to Make Your Feet Look Smaller
Now if you want shoes that have the opposite effect on your feet, there are a few to choose from, including Italian small toe box shoes, shoes with lines running length ways, and shoes with thin straps.
If you want your feet to look smaller than they are, the Italian small toe box shoe will be the perfect fit. Its diminutive frame and toe with have a slimming effect on your foot, but it may be a tight fit.
We are not speaking of the long chiseled toe box that became popular in the 30’s and has gone in and out of fashion since the. These will of course elongate the foot and make it look bigger.
Additionally, a shoe with thin straps across your feet will help accentuate your foot to make it look smaller. You can try wearing sandals with thin straps to achieve this effect or thin strapped monk strap shoes.
Do Men’s Cap Toe Shoes Make Your Feet Look Smaller Or Larger?
Men’s cap toe dress shoes will generally make your feet look smaller, especially if they have a brogue pattern in the line that crosses the toe box at the top of the cap. The reason is that this distinct line breaks up the toe box into two sections making each appear shorter.
As you may know, gentlemen should not wear belts. The reason being that a distinct dividing line in the center of the body cuts it in two removing the elongation of a continuous view and replacing it with two shorter ones.
Do Men’s Brogue Wingtip Shoes Make Your Feet Look Smaller?
Yes, brogue shoes particularly in the wingtip styles can help make your feet appear to be smaller. The reason being that; the brogue patterning breaks up the silhouette of the foot into the many sections of the full pattern.
This helps rather dramatically focus the attention to the pieces instead of the whole, thereby allowing the overall size to kind of slip by unnoticed.
How to Make Men’s Shoes Look Vintage or Old?
Maybe you want to try a vintage look with your footwear, or you want a new pair of shoes to look a little less shiny for whatever reason. Well, if you really want your shoes to look old, you’re going to have to age them by scuffing them or in some cases, yellowing the exterior. This process will look different depending on the type of shoe.
For both kinds of shoes, you’re going to want to remove the laces so you can access every surface of the shoe’s exterior. This will give you better access to the tongue of the shoe for when you start the scuffing process.
If the shoe is a dress shoe, take a piece of sandpaper (fine grit will work best) and scrape it across the leather exterior, taking care to scuff it up without causing actual damage. Make sure to focus the sandpaper on the heel and toe of the shoe, as these are the areas that would normally see the most wear and tear after being worn for a long period of time.
Next, for either kind of shoe, use a hammer to break down the rigidity of the shoe’s frame. You may want to wrap the head of the hammer in cloth to avoid causing more damage than you want. This will also scuff the shoe where the hammer makes contact, simulating the appearance of scuff marks from knocking the shoe against doors and walls over years of use.
For white walled sneakers use dandelion flowers. Rub them on the white sidewalls and other areas then wipe them clean with a damp cloth. This little bit of yellowing will age the shoe with natural colors just the way it would have happened over time.
Now if they are dress shoes, re-color and re-polish them right up to a nice shine. They will have the appearance of looking older but very well cared for.
How to Make Ugly Men’s Shoes Look Good?
Dress Shoes
If you have an ugly pair of dress shoes that you want to look nicer, we’ve got a few tips and trick for you. First, try polishing them up. A nice coat of polish can often do wonders on an ugly pair of dress shoes. If that doesn’t work, you might want to use a colored polish to change the color of the exterior. This may be especially needed if the color is too dull or faded.
If you can’t quite get your desired look on your own then a good cobbler (not your grandma’s desert, a shoe repairman) might be in order.
Sneakers
Now to make a pair of sneakers look nicer, one possibility is to wear pants that have hems that obscure the tops of the shoes. Additionally, you can tuck in the laces, so they don’t pop out and give the shoe a messy look. If these don’t work, you can always try to paint or re-dye the shoe to give it the pop that it’s been missing.
There are sneaker refurbishing kits you can get where you can color match the dye and refurbish the rest.
How to Make Men’s Shoes Keep Their Shape?
If your shoes are losing their shape, there are a few things you can try to prevent this from happening. You can use a shoe tree to keep them from crumpling in on themselves and make sure to always keep them dry, which will prevent rot. Additionally, try alternating shoes so you’re not wearing them every day.
When your shoes get a chance to rest, they can firm back up to their original shape and retain it longer.
Why Are Men’s Shoes Tighter in the Morning?
This can sometimes happen as your feet swell while you’re sleeping. You may also have had a salty dinner or desert that is causing you to hold water.
If these are not the case then you should check with your physician because you may have circulation issues if these challenges persist.
Leather or Rubber Men’s Shoes, Which Are More Sustainable?
Leather shoes are more sustainable because leather lasts longer than rubber. Rubber will wear away sooner than leather will, so leather shoes will last longer.
When leather is thrown away it rots and goes back to nature. The rubber soles from shoes may not break down for hundreds of years.
Rubber comes from the coal and gas industries which pollute the earth quite a bit. Where as we have such a surplus of cow hides that we bulldoze over 2 million of them into the ground each year to artificially keep the price of leather higher. So, if you don’t use the leather it just get’s dumped anyway.
How Do Men’s Shoes Expire?
When a shoe expires, it means it has broken down to the point where it is no longer useable. Just as food expires after a long enough time, shoes will break down and “expire” also.
How Long Do Men’s Shoes Last If They’re Not Worn?
This depends largely on how the shoes are stored. If the shoes are not stored properly, water and moisture will cause them to break down rot or even dry rot much faster. To avoid this, store them in a safe, dry area with moisture absorbing packets nearby or better yet use good quality shoe trees, they will help quite a bit.
Do Men’s Dress Shoes Need Laces?
Many dress shoes do need laces if they are lace up shoes. However, there are many that don’t, including loafers, monk strap shoes and slip-ons.
Do Men’s Dress Shoes Add Height and Make You Look Taller?
Dress shoes with higher heels like Cuban heels will make you look taller. Additionally, some dress shoes have inserts that may add to your height.
How To Wear Men’s Black Dress Shoes Casually?
An easy way to wear black dress shoes casually is to pair them with dark colored chinos and a light jacket or sweatshirt. You can also wear black loafers or full brogue shoes, which look more casual than more formal dress shoes such as whole cuts or cap toes.
How Can I Make My Men’s Shoes Anti-static?
You can make your shoes anti-static by spraying them with anti-static clothing spray, putting them in the dryer with an anti-static sheet, or you may need to use shoe grounders if the case is especially bad and you’re actually in danger from the static build up.
Can I Make My Men’s Shoes Steel-Toed?
While you can use a slip-on steel toe for your shoe, we wouldn’t recommend it. Because they are meant to be detachable, they can often bend inward under large amounts of pressure. This can sever your toes, so it would be a much better idea to just buy steel toe shoes.
Why Do Men’s Dress Shoes Have Two Sets of Laces?
If your dress shoes came with an extra set of laces, this is probably a courtesy set sent to you by the seller. If the second set is a different color, you can use it change up your look.