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How to Stretch Canvas Shoes

Canvas shoes are low maintenance, easy to clean, and stretch more readily than comparably priced shoe materials. If you find that your canvas shoes are slightly too tight, you have several options you can attempt to stretch them for better comfort.

Stretch with Everyday Items

Virtually any item that is slightly wider than your shoe can help to stretch it out. Heloise suggests inserting a small jar into the area of the shoe that you wish to stretch and leave overnight. She also suggests stuffing the shoe with a dry, clean mop-head that has been placed inside a food storage bag.

Stretch with Ice

You can stretch canvas shoes by filling a food storage bag with water, stuffing it into your shoe, and placing the shoe in the freezer. Be sure to place the shoe in an additional food storage bag to avoid staining. Allow to freeze overnight. In the morning remove the shoes from the freezer and allow to de-thaw. The bag can be safely removed when the ice returns to a liquid form.

Stretch with a Shoe Stretcher

An easy solution to stretching shoes is to purchase an inexpensive shoe stretcher. It may work better than any of the aforementioned at-home-remedies because the stretchers are designed for particular sizes and types of shoes for a more even stretch.