Question (First posted by @Munky ): Does shoe leather expand and contract with differences in temperature? I have a pair of shoes that pinch very slightly. When the weather is warm or when I have been wearing them for some time, they seem much more comfortable. When the weather is cold (and presumably making it impossible for my feet to worm up) they feel just as they did before I put them on that day. Comfortable in the warm and pinching in the cold.
If this is the case, are some leathers affected in this way than others?
Munky,

Answer (first posted by @DWFII ): Warm weather creates moisture in the form of perspiration within the shoes. This allows the leather to stretch. Warm weather also has a tendency to make your feet swell a little as capillaries expand and more blood flows and pools in the foot.
Cold weather hardens the oils/fats in the leather and prevents the fiber slippage that might allow the leather to stretch.
The fact that this is a recurring cycle...as your post seems to imply...only indicates that this leather has a high degree of memory--it remembers the size and shape it had when it came off the last. I would make a wild guess and ask "Are these shoes shell?"

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