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Making shoes less slippery

blabla89blabla89 member
First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its Name Dropper
in Attire & Accessories Forum
I found a pair of low-heel shoes that I really like, but when I tried them on the hardwood floor today they felt super slippery, like I was going to slide across the floor. I'm terribly clumsy so this is a recipe for disaster, especially on my wedding day. So does anyone have tips for making the soles of shoes less slippery/adding some traction?
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Re: Making shoes less slippery

  • esstee33esstee33 member
    First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its First Answer
    edited November 2014
    I had this exact problem with my wedding shoes. They're gorgeous and have ZERO traction. I got the shoes at DSW, and on one of the little racks by the register they had these "sure step" things. There's two pairs in the package and it was like $4. I put them on as soon as I got home and they're fantastic. No slipping! 

    ETA: A little more expensive on Amazon, but this is them: http://www.amazon.com/Sof-Sole-Sure-Steps-Pack/dp/B003IJ7RJM
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  • doeydodoeydo member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    There are a few tips here, though I have never tried any of these myself: http://www.ehow.com/how_12146288_give-shoe-grip.html
    Also, I would have posted a gif of Chandler slipping and sliding in his shoes at his wedding, but I can't find one.
    image
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  • Maggie0829Maggie0829 member
    First Anniversary First Answer First Comment 5 Love Its
    Typically when I find a pair of shoes that I know I will not return and they happen to be slippery on the bottom, I put them on and scuff the bottoms up on the sidewalk or the street.  The bottoms just need to be worn in a bit.  But only do this if you are sure you are going to keep them.

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  • atlastmrsgatlastmrsg member
    5 Love Its First Comment First Anniversary Name Dropper
    You can buy little strips to put on bottom, some look like sandpaper.

    Or, go out to a concrete side walk or driveway and rub them on the ground to scuff the sole so it looks like it's been walked in.  I did that to all my pageant heels when they were new.

    Just be sure you want to keep them.  Once the bottoms are scuffed, you can't take them back.

    Like this--but you probably won't need them this scuffed:
    image
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  • ElcaBElcaB member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    If you're looking for cheap tricks, you can cross hatch the bottoms with a cheese grater, knife, or scissors. The other easy solution is to put duct tape on the bottom. The rubberish side adds lots of traction!
    image
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  • novella1186novella1186 member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    I've used an exacto knife to score the bottoms of shoes in a diamond pattern (cut diagonally one way, then cut diagonally the opposite way so the lines criss-cross).  

    You could also take them to a shoe repair shop (yes these actually still exist) and ask to have little discrete treads put on the bottom. 

    Or you could try ordering some stick-on things from Amazon. I love Amazon. They have everything! 
    image
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  • weddingcactusweddingcactus member
    First Anniversary Name Dropper 5 Love Its First Answer
    Sometimes I do the scuff on the sidewalk trick and that helps. But if I really want to make sure I won't slip, I've had a shoe repair place put a thin rubber sole on the bottom. I did that with a pair of high heel boots and they're perfect now. 
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  • nicole4793nicole4793 member
    First Comment 5 Love Its Name Dropper First Anniversary
    This was a problem that I always ran into with my tap shoes when I was a dancer. Wear them outside and scuff up the bottom of them. Then apply a layer of hairspray to the bottom, but be careful not to get the whole shoe because they might become a sticky mess. The day of your wedding, spray some hairspray on the bottom of them as well. This has been my trick for the past 15 years, so I hope it works for you! :)

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  • climbingsingleclimbingsingle member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    esstee33 said:
    I had this exact problem with my wedding shoes. They're gorgeous and have ZERO traction. I got the shoes at DSW, and on one of the little racks by the register they had these "sure step" things. There's two pairs in the package and it was like $4. I put them on as soon as I got home and they're fantastic. No slipping! 

    ETA: A little more expensive on Amazon, but this is them: http://www.amazon.com/Sof-Sole-Sure-Steps-Pack/dp/B003IJ7RJM
    These are awesome. Iv'e used them many times and they always work. 
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  • Knottie30291358Knottie30291358 member
    5 Love Its First Comment
    If you want a massively bad idea, cleats used to be screws or nails you would force through the soles of your shoes or boots. I'm sure you can find some of that type online.
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  • Sugargirl1019Sugargirl1019 member
    Combo Breaker First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its
    Oh Goodness. Back in dance, we put strips of masking tape in an X on the soles of our tap shoes so we wouldnt slip. I suggest masking tape. Cheap and won't damage your shoes!

    image   image   image

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  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] member
    First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its Name Dropper
    edited June 2015

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  • cowgirl8238cowgirl8238 member
    First Anniversary First Comment 5 Love Its First Answer
    I usually just scuff mine up outside on the concrete.
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