New Shoes

Hotter pride themselves on comfort and quality so if shoes rub/catch/nip etc I'd simply return them and tell them the problem. they'll never know if we don't tell them and life's far too precious to put up within comfy feet! Sometimes you just have to search a bit more or change style to be comfortable , I used to get my 14 year old son to wear my court shoes to size them! But always used the sports-socks-around-the-house method, since the 70s !!!

I have recently bought a pair of Hotter canvas pumps in the sale. They felt fine in the shop but when I got them home they felt tight. Maybe my feet were hot.

Anyway, a friend said wet the shoes whilst you are wearing them and let them dry on your feet. This is supposed to soften them and help them mould to your feet. I haven't tried it yet.

Not sure whether it would be suitable for anything other than canvas shoes though.

Also, I have always struggled with shoes rubbing my heels. When I was young my dad used to rub my shoes with a knife handle to smooth/flatten them. It seemed to work.

When a seam on one of a pair of shoes rubbed my delicate foot, I flattened it and softened it with the coarse side of an emery board. I couldn't find any sandpaper in my tool box, so the emery board had to suffice. It worked.

I believe Victoria Beckham is said to “break “ her shoes in by wearing them around the house with socks to stretch them.

Victoria must have picked up that tip from me! I used to do that years ago but alas, have to wear wide clumpy shoes now.

Thank you everyone for your comments and observations.

I still have about 2.5 weeks left before I have to return the shoes.

I can’t wear them round the house as I won’t be able to send them back if I get the soles grubby.

I am going to buy some toe protectors and see how the shoes feel whilst wearing them. The emery board tip re the raised seam also sounds worth a try.

Those of you who said return the shoes if they don’t fit properly are probably right!

I am going to try the alternatives first though.

Will let you know the eventual outcome.

?????

Liz46

I used to buy Hotter shoes but no longer find them comfortable. There's nothing wrong with my feet (unlike the rest of me!) so I'm pretty sure that Hotter have changed.

I think so too.
The sandals I bought two years ago, expensive and not in a sale, rub one toe mercilessly when worn for more than ten minutes! Their after care for customers is rubbish, I gave them to a charity shop in the end.
You could try a corn plaster, but if your feet get hot it may just come off.I would return them....if you can!

You may be better to get padding, not on the exact place that is catching, but around it, so that it doesn't have yet another layer to press on it. Perhaps a piece of sticking plaster on the toe with a hole cut in it?

Either Hotter's sizing has changed or my feet have shrunk. I used to take size 5, wide fitting; then I found I could wear their standard fitting. Now I can wear their 4.5 size but choose to order wide fitting to accommodate my growing bunion. I have always found it easy to return shoes or boots, for exchange or refund, though they have changed from using Hermes to the Post Office, Hermes here is so convenient, as it's in a dry cleaning shop.

Bite the bullet, and stop trying with shoes that you know don't work. I've had some made for me, about £120 a pop, money well spent. I'm thinking about trying Cosifeet in the future. Flat shoes rock, and so does being able to walk properly. I've had shoes made in pink, blue etc as well as plain old brown. My shoemaker was Chuckle in Exeter, they might know of others near you. Good luck.

Reading this with interest as I am picking up a pair of Hotters tomorrow. They are in the size I always have, but my current pair has lasted 10 years so I do hope they will fit OK. Hotters are the most comfortable as I take a size
9 wide fit!

I wouldn’t keep any shoes that were uncomfortable, the damage to your feet isn’t worth it.

I picked up my Hotters yesterday (two pairs for the price of one) and they slipped on comfortably straight away. So no apparent change in size there. I also bought the same pair in red, which was marked at £15. I have never in my life before bought three pairs of shoes at the same time. The red pair looks lovely but is a regular width, so will see how it goes. They should see me through another ten years.

Just an update on this old thread which I started over 3 years ago.

Well, I kept the shoes.

Should have listened to those of you who said ‘return them’.

I used moleskin, toe protectors, shoe trees, DH tried to file off the offending seam with emery paper, but they still hurt my toe!

After struggling to wear them a time or two, I gave up and they sat in state in their box in the bottom of my wardrobe.

Until yesterday, when I did a car boot sale and sold them for the princely sum of £5.

The lady who bought them didn’t even try them on, no idea if she intended to wear them or sell them on.

Lesson learned, never again will I buy (or keep) uncomfortable shoes.

🥿👠👡👟🥾

I can't stand uncomfortable feet.
Life's too short to have to hobble around trying to break them in.

Ah.
I did wonder why a thread from 2021 had been resurrected.

I’m glad you didn’t develop a corn from wearing them! Years ago I had some lovely soft leather shoes: because of their softness they were quite tight fitting. Because of this I developed a corn on my little toe which still hurts me 35 years later! I’ve got cupboards full of very expensive shoes that I’ve bought over the years and, because of my mutant feet, haven’t worn. Maybe I should sell them, especially as I now live in Crocs and trainers.

Liz46

I used to buy Hotter shoes but no longer find them comfortable. There's nothing wrong with my feet (unlike the rest of me!) so I'm pretty sure that Hotter have changed.

That’s what I think too.
I used to have quite a few pairs but successive ones pinch, rub or are just uncomfortable.Their boots still seem fine.

Why not get some of those shoe trees that can gently be twisted to widen their width to widen shoes. If the shoes are canvas, spray them with water first. Ebay and Amazon have pleny on sale.

My daughter has a really bad bunion , she really struggles with shoes. She wears a trainer sock. It's barely visible under her shoes

Beechnut

Are your other sandals from Hotter? I have a pair of shoes and a pair of sandals both from Hotter and they rub one of my heels so much that I know I can’t wear them for long.

Since you mentioned that you don't have a corn yet but are concerned about developing one, these pads could help prevent that from happening. You must consider using moleskin or adhesive felt pads, which can be applied directly over the seam to create a smoother surface and enhance comfort.

Thanks for latest comments, but have sold the shoes at a car boot sale (see my earlier post).

Never again will I hang in to uncomfortable shoes.

‘On to’ not ‘in to’.

That's odd. A few years ago, I bought a pair of Hotter deck shoes, they were the most uncomfortable shoes I have ever bought! The seam rubbed my toes. A waste of money.

M0nica

Why not get some of those shoe trees that can gently be twisted to widen their width to widen shoes. If the shoes are canvas, spray them with water first. Ebay and Amazon have pleny on sale.

For leather shoes, you can buy a leather stretcher spray to use along with the shoe trees.
I think it's by Deichmann

To alleviate heel pain, Dd suggests wearing a thick sock and then using a hair dryer on the back of the heel for as long as you can bear the heat. This method is believed to provide relief by applying heat to the affected area. I usually wear leather shoes that are more comfortable.