Before getting a pair of leather shoes two years ago, I came across a few interesting posts about shoe trees.
If you don’t know what shoe trees are, let me explain.
Whenever we use our leather shoes, our feet sweat throughout the day. When that happens, the leather of our shoes absorbs all that moisture.
Without a shoe tree, our leather shoe won’t be able to hold it’s shape when drying. Hense, the wrinkles. holds the shoes in its proper shape so it dries out correctly, it keeps the leather from cracking or wrinkling from the moisture of using it.
A shoe stree holds the shoes in its proper shape so it dries out correctly, it keeps the leather from cracking or wrinkling from the moisture of using it.
Some mentioned the importance of having one. Some shared that they’ve not used it at all.
Are shoe trees crucial for every wardrobe? I didn’t know. I was an amateur, and I didn’t know a single thing about leather shoes. I’m still an amateur by the way. A smarter amateur.
So, as a result, I felt it wasn’t needed. After all, why spend $30 for a shoe tree when I don’t even know if it’s needed and people can’t seem to agree.
Recently, I stumbled across the argument about shoe trees while searching for shoes.
It got me thinking, and I went and looked at my shoes.
Sure enough, there were plenty of wrinkles… especially my favorite pair.
I was amateurish in the way I store my shoes. I solely took it out after wearing them and left them in shoes cabinet. I thought that since I wasn’t going to wear them so regularly, it was okay.
Needless to say, I was wrong.
Do you need a pair of shoe trees in EVERY shoe?
Here’s the quickest answer: For sneakers, you don’t.
However for leather shoes: YES & NO.
Here’s the thing. It depends on the number of shoes, your budget, and the price of those shoes.
For higher priced shoes, GO GET ONE.
While they may not prevent or eliminate shoes, it will still lessen the appearance of wrinkles. It’s like aging and wrinkles on our face. There’s no way to avoid them, unless they have botox for leather shoes that I don’t know about.
Back to the post. Otherwise, why pay a premium of $600 on a pair of shoes if you’re not willing to forge out an extra 30 bucks for a pair of shoe trees to protect your investment?
If the shoes cost you only $49, and you wear them for fun whenever you’re out, then you may not need one. You can simply buy a new pair when they wore out. That’s what I think and do.
The second is your budget and the amount of shoes you have.
If you have only three pairs of leather shoes, then buy a shoe three for all THREE pair.
If you own a lot of leather shoes but don’t have the budget to get one for each. Then a good alternative would be to use the shoe tree right after using and keep it there for a few days. The first few hours would be crucial.
Later on you can remove it and replace it with newspapers or paper like some mentioned doing. I’m doing that as well. So far it works better without using one at all.
You could say that I am a convert after learning a big mistake. Especially for my favorite and expensive shoe that has plenty of wrinkles, it was also the time cried deep inside me for not having one shoe tree in one of my shoes.
How much do shoe trees cost?
Shoe trees usually cost around $19.99 to $39.99
Where to buy shoe trees?
In short:
Expensive shoes: Get shoe trees
Budget: Get the important and expensive shoe tree and switch and rotate the rest often
By doing this, your shoes will look good for the years to come.
