# Making narrow width shoes wider?



## digger21209 (Jul 15, 2009)

I am a huge fan of the magic a skilled shoemaker can perform on a pair of shoes to adjust fit.
However, I wear a regular/US D (UK F, if I have that right?) in my shoes.
Size of course may vary from one side of the Atlantic to the other, as well as variations between lasts and models.
But always a D.
Sometimes, I'll even bump up to an E, to accomodate my own preference for a heavier-knit sock with dress boots (which are made to be worn with thinner "dress socks."

As a matter of preference for solid construction and durability/repair, all of my shoes are Goodyear welted.
Not necessarily significant....but just giving a full picture since my opinion is limited by my own experience and what I think I know....just not sure if its correct.

A friend recently retired after a lifetime of professional sartorial elegance, and offered me several pairs of Allen Edmonds and Alden's he no longer expects to wear. All are calfskin, with a pair or two cordovan.
The rub?
Although we have the same size foot (US 11), he is a NARROW. All of his shoes are C, (A/C in Alden's) and even a few B's in wider fitting models.
From my experience, stretching is for adjusting a hot spot, or tweaking the fit in the toe. I've never heard of a narrow shoe being stretched A FULL WIDTH wider to basically up-size a shoe. Isn't that why shoes are made in a full range of SIZES in the first place? Seems like a good way to ruin a great pair of shoes. However, my friend insists that when being recrafted, a shoe can be WIDENED...which I suppose seems more likely/successful than stretching, but still not the way to get the best fit out in a shoe.

Basically - he's saying that I could take a Size 11C goodyear welted dress shoe (example - Allen Edmonds MacNeil) and have it "re-sized" into Size 11D when resoled.

I was looking for feedback and personal experiences as to not only if this is possible, but if the end result meets the high standards of gentlemen on this list. Concerns include the structural soundness of the shoe, as well as accounting for exposure of unworn leather or the effect of stretching when the shoe is made wider.

Thanks.


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## tokyogator (Oct 24, 2008)

I have had the opposite done--when I sent shoes back to the manufacturer for resoling, they relasted it from 11D to 11B.
They basically rebuilt the shoe on a narrower last. I wonder if there would be enough leather to make a shoe wider...


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## blue suede shoes (Mar 22, 2010)

I suggest stretching the shoes by buying a shoe stretcher and doing it yourself. It just may work, and it won't hurt the leather. My experience has been that when a shoemaker stretches a shoe, after a short period of time it goes back to its original shape. Maybe that is why my shoemaker offers to stretch them again for free for the life of the shoes once you have paid him once to stretch the pair.

I have never heard of making the shoe wider during recrafting, and would be very skeptical of such a process for the reason that the above poster stated, would there be enough leather. Several times I have seen shoes shrink to a narrower size during recrafting because the recrafter did not leave enough room for the foot when restitching.


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## Checkerboard 13 (Oct 6, 2009)

Contact AE about re-sizing during recrafting. Certainly a directly reply from the company itself is more valuable than speculation here.

As for stretching shoes a full width wider, it might be done, but if not done on the original last, nuances of the shoes' form will likely be lost.


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## cdavant (Aug 28, 2005)

Not a problem. You can easily do one width yourself--provided you get a real shoe stretcher. These are not the ones sold in pairs with plastic bunion buttons. Something like https://www.colonialmedical.com/men-s-shoe-stretchers-P-4265.html&ref=shopping.google.com.

I have taken 8.5E to EEE+ and beyond many times. Soak the shoe inside and out with stretching fluid, crank the stretcher out until you get nervous, let it dry overnight, wear it for a while and do again as necessary. Take it slow--there is no going back.

I think I have AEs and Aldens on every last and have beaten them into submission with the help of stretchers, toe box and vamp stretches and a couple of other tools https://www.emocs.com/detail.php?itemID=1027 https://www.emocs.com/detail.php?itemID=30328 you don't want to see up close.

I can assure you the leather (including 5 pairs shell) can take it. It looks fine. The shape, let it be said, conforms to the shape of my foot and the world's biggest bunion. But I'm comfortable. My feet feel fine.


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## Aussie (Aug 8, 2011)

No problem at all stretching 1 width! In fact all my boots (non lace) I get slightly narrow and stretch myself as part of the break in! 

Get a set of shoe stretchers, wet the shoe, stretch, wear - repeat.. Go slow and you will get the perfect fit! 

You can also put on two pairs of socks, then three etc.. But why bother when stretchers are cheap and easy to use.

You can go too far - and it's a one way ride; you can't unstretch a shoe.. So take your time!


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## TheBarbaron (Oct 8, 2010)

Well, if some resizing on width is an option during recrafting, how about on length?

I bought a pair of 11.5 D Augustas in Walnut when they were discontinued, and I couldn't get my normal 11. They're not an awful fit, considering, but a hair loose both width and length wise (that long 0 last gets you every time). I mainly have used an insole and a tongue pad to mitigate it, but if they can actually be shrunk slightly, that would be a worthwhile investment.


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## Thomas Martin (Aug 12, 2011)

Question: Does buying them too small and streching damage you shoes? I'm officially a 8D for AE shoes which provides me a comfortable but slightly loose fit, especially in cordovan models. For that reason I recently bought a Strand in Shell in 7.5 D, which, in the store, seemed to fit me better. I suffered hell the first few wearings during the break in period though. Interestingly, they were not too short but rater too tight around the forefoot. The same with a pair of Alden longwing bluchers which I bought in 7.5 B instead of 7.5 D. Now they fit me quite comfortably but some members of the AAAC community feared that my buying shoes too small, even if only slightly too small, would strech out the leather too much and ruin the shoes. After reading here about the possibility of streching shoes, I wonder, if that procedure would really actually harm the footwear and where the limits of streching would be.


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## damon54 (Dec 12, 2007)

Thomas,
It sounds to me as if you are having problems with fitment at the Throat Line located at the top portion of your shoe judging by the type of pain you are describing. Perhaps the easiest of fixes via stretching.


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## Thomas Martin (Aug 12, 2011)

Thank you. My concern was more that my buying these shoes too small would damage them. But after reading here about stretching, my fears may probably be unfounded.


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## damon54 (Dec 12, 2007)

I have had a Cobbler I quite like refuse to stretch a pair claiming the leather would end up compromised. Turned out not to be a problem.


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## Guest (Mar 26, 2020)

Thomas Martin said:


> Thank you. My concern was more that my buying these shoes too small would damage them. But after reading here about stretching, my fears may probably be unfounded.


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