Rest assured that the shoe will stretch to a more comfortable fit as it "breaks in". How long this takes depends on the various materials used in the upper, and how often you dance in them.
Never Twist or bend shoes by crushing them under the sofa or bed! This softens the sole but also reduces the much needed arch support. It is possible to ruin a shoe before you get to wear it. With toe dancing increasing in popularity, many shoes now have metal or plastic shanks that can become dislodged or borken if you bend the sole.
If you plan to do toe-stands you must carefully consider how you break in your shoe. To download a poster showing a poorly broken-in shoe verses a well broken shoe visit this link provided by The Brennan School of Irish Dance and download the free Perfect Pointe Poster.
Essentially, the best way to break-in a shoe is to wear it. Try wearing new shoes around the house as often as you can to stretch them without putting too much stress on your feet. When they begin to ache it is time to take them off for a day or so. Do this until thy feel more comfortable and then try dancing in them for a few minutes. Again, once they rub, take them off. This will prevent blisters.
Got blisters anyway? Don't try applying an adhesive bandage to a wound before putting on shoes. This just makes the shoe fit tighter and rub harder.
If the shoe has a particularly stubborn "tight spot" where it is squeezing or rubbing excessively, try spraying the area with shoe or leather stretching spray, available at shoe stores, and use a shoe stretcher to widen it out. Water will work just as well but takes longer to dry. Isopropyl alcohol will dry faster but should only be used once or twice because it can dry out the leather.
Lightly spray the outside of your new shoes with water before putting them on will not hurt them once. Spray only enough to turn the color of the leather to a darkened shade. Then wear the shoes casually until dry.
