Is newspaper as good as lasted shoe trees?

[Kasper]

Originally Posted by Soph

Newspapers are not as good as shoe trees nor are they shoe trees and never will be.

What exactly are your reasons for saying this?

 

[j]

I think you and the guy with the ugly martial arts hoodie should hang out.

 

[scnupe7]

Originally Posted by Kasper

I understand your point but I pack the shoes pretty tightly with newspaper. I will post a pic of my method if anyone is interested.


I would love to see a pic.

 

[grimslade]

Think of it this way: which is harder: leather or newspaper?

Over time, the newspaper will coform to the leather. Leather however will lose the tug-of-war with the wooden tree.

 

[Nashville]

Originally Posted by Jsoftz

I'm not an expert by any means, but i'd say the fragrant qualities of aromatic cedar help promote a fresher-smelling shoe. Newspaper smells, well, like newspaper and would not absorb any odors that may be present. Also, after any moisture is absorbed the newspaper would shrink, possibly stain the inside of the shoes, and worsen the smell. In addition, the shrinking would negate the shape-conforming benefits.

...Not to mention, shoe trees just look pretty.


You should always have enough shoes for proper rotation in the first place , I have used paper for years, and its been great imho, if your shoes smell that bad i would thinks its a problem that will take more than shoe trees to fix, call a doctor and treat the source!

 

[Isaac Mickle]

Newsprint is dirty - the ink comes off - if you stuffed your shoes with newsprint for very long, I expect you'd find the ink on your socks.

 

[teddieriley]

That's fine if you think stuffing your shoes with newspaper works. Keep on doing it. You've heard from very experienced people on this board that newspapers do not function as well as cedar shoe trees in the long term to keep the shoe shape, wick away moisture and odor, and provide the proper support. Can we say quantitatively that your shoes will last X amount longer if you use the shoes trees v. newspapers? Most likely not, but if you are going to spend good money on good shoes, spend the extra $10-$15. And despite your argument that soy based ink is being used nowadays so it won't be toxic, the ink still comes off the paper and the ink is still going to get into the lining. Who the hell wants newspaper ink inside a nice pair of shoes? And the odor we're concerned about isn't from the newspaper (although that certainly can be a factor), it's from the sweat, moisture, oils, bacteria that come from your feet/socks being in your shoes for 8-12 hours a day. I feel more comfortable having wood trees that fit rather than not putting enough paper to do the job appropriately or overstuffing the shoe so that it distorts the natural shape.

 

[Kasper]

I did this test with a pair of Joseph Abboud summer shoes which for some reason have been stuck in the bottom of my carry on bag for the last 6 months (as you can see in the first photo I have not treated them very well). I actually think it looks as if the newspaper is doing a better job than the shoes trees in the second photo as far as bringing back their original shape especially around the tongue area.

For those that are worried about their shoes smelling wouldn't the trees actually pick up the odor over time? If so that would mean you would have to replace the trees before the shoes to keep everything fresh. With the newspaper you can replace it weekly if you like and for free. I have not had a problem with the ink rubbing off yet.

 

[Kasper]

This pic might give you a better view of the project.

 

[Leaveitothexperts]

Originally Posted by Kasper

This pic might give you a better view of the project.

Well, it also depends on what shoe trees you are using. There is also the property of shoe trees that help to lessen the effect of shoes "curling up" as someone mentioned . . .

 

[scnupe7]

I am sold!!!!

 

[j]

Tell you what, you use newspaper for 20 years, and I'll use trees, and then we'll compare. Bookmark this thread.

 

[Gladhatter]

Originally Posted by j

Tell you what, you use newspaper for 20 years, and I'll use trees, and then we'll compare. Bookmark this thread.

J you are being mighty affable here.

I am not sure where you can come up with the idea that any amount of anytype of news print or other paper can substitute or work as well as a shoe tree. I am a person that has had to historically build mighty fancy and mighty high dollar super fine true besoke hats sometimes with out the proper blocks and at times with out much of anything besides a life time of doing it.

I know folks in prison can make spears that kill guards out of paper and spit and you can do lots of things when you have to but seems to me like you probably do not hat to here and are just choosing to use paper.

Shoe trees are made for a reason and newspaper for another.

Now if you insist on this lunacy then I also have some pest control products I wish to sell. They consist of two ( what some would call bricks) and you just lay brick A down and place the pest on brick A and smash it with Brick B.

Works great and I sell them cheap. Course there are alternatives to some thihngs but newpapers are not an alternative to shoe trees unless you are a tight wad or in prison.

Scuff them cedar plugs up with a light grit sand paper and they will be aromatic for life til sanded all away. Do not was of seal the cedar.

 

[MrRogers]

I like to stuff my shoes with toilet paper.

Because I want to preserve my footwear as heirlooms for my yet to be born children, I use two-ply.

MrR

-Anyone interested in pics, please email me.

 

[Nashville]

Originally Posted by MrRogers

I like to stuff my shoes with toilet paper.

Because I want to preserve my footwear as heirlooms for my yet to be born children, I use two-ply.

MrR

-Anyone interested in pics, please email me.