My new shoes smell

December 8, 2015 12:17 PM

I just received some new mail-order shoes. They are for a cheap costume party gag. However, they stink so unbelievably badly of newness, chemicals and shitty-grade plastic that I literally can't unbox them. How can I un-stink them before Friday?!

I can't believe I'm wasting a question on this.

The shoes are definitely new, and it's definitely not my feet, I've never worn them.

Please, Metafilter, they are integral to my costume and literally the only green glittery shoes I can find on the internet, so burying this pair in the dead of night in the company of a priest and replacing them with unstinky ones (which was my kneejerk reaction) is not an issue.

HOW can I unstink them?!

posted by citands to Grab Bag (15 answers total)

Are you in a weather situation such that they could be placed out in the sun for a few days? That can help a lot.
posted by brainmouse at 12:18 PM on December 8, 2015 [7 favorites]

Anecdotally, complete submersion in ground coffee has shown good results for smelly things for me. You may end up smelling like coffee, but I would consider that a bonus.

Something like rice might also work.
posted by kythuen at 12:22 PM on December 8, 2015

This happened to me. I took them to my garage, put them on unfolded newspaper, wiped them down with a rag soaked with apple cider vinegar, let them sit for half an hour, repeated many times. I also let them sit out in the air overnight so they could degas instead of staying enclosed in the same box from the manufacturer. It didn't make them perfect, but it made them less pungent to others.
posted by bluecore at 12:24 PM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]

You could stick an open box of baking soda in the shoebox. I've used baking soda to successfully get cigarette smell out of furniture and upholstery.
posted by mchorn at 12:30 PM on December 8, 2015

That "new shoe smell" is usually from volatile compounds in the glues and rubber (hexane and toluene mostly). Being volatile your best bet would be like what brainmouse suggested above and put them out in the sun for a few days...in a pinch you COULD put them somewhere warmer too to drive off the volatile stuff...a cycle through the drier...though depending how much is present that could alternately make it worse and/or make you drier smell like them for a while.
posted by Captain_Science at 12:34 PM on December 8, 2015 [2 favorites]

Assuming putting them outside isn't an option, I'd try odor absorbent materials, like baking soda, or odor-absorbing kitty litter. I might try kitty litter first, actually, since it should be a large enough particle that you could put it in old panty hose or tights and maximize the amount you can expose to air in the box with minimal risk of mess.
posted by EvaDestruction at 12:34 PM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]

you have to get them out of that box and into more open air. if you can't let them sit outside or in a garage, in a bathroom with the exhaust fan might work. then coffee, baking soda, apple cider vinegar, charcoal, kitty litter - any of those type of neutralize smells advice should have you good to go by friday.
posted by nadawi at 12:44 PM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]

They are offgassing. You won't find a better solution than putting them outside in fresh air. When it comes time to put them on they should be fine (unless you put them right up to your nose), a bit of foot powder or gold bond will help then.
posted by furtive at 12:54 PM on December 8, 2015 [4 favorites]

Febreze, maybe. It does a good job neutralizing other odors. I don't know if it'll work on those VOCs or not.
posted by adamrice at 12:58 PM on December 8, 2015

To increase the outgassing, you could put them in the airstream from a fan.
posted by H21 at 1:00 PM on December 8, 2015

This literally just happened to me yesterday, when I unboxed the Chinese thin-souled sneakers my kid wears for parkour. I put them outside last night and they're already a quadrillion times less stinky, 18 hours later.
posted by BlahLaLa at 1:20 PM on December 8, 2015 [1 favorite]

Agreed on the baking soda, kitty litter, or charcoal, and definitely put them outside if possible.

(On a related note, you'd be amazed what you can do with spray paint to things like shoes, especially if they don't need to last. You could go to Payless or Target etc, get a pair of cheap PVC or fabric shoes that have already done all their offgassing in the store, and coat them in glitter pretty easily. I just found this green glitter spray paint for under 10bux if you have a Michaels near you, but I've seen it done pretty easily with spray glue and pouring glitter on inside a box or something to catch the excess for re-pouring. I only mention it because I realized a few years back that you could spraypaint PVC shoes and it opened up all kinds of cool shoe craft ideas)
posted by dust.wind.dude at 1:38 PM on December 8, 2015

Response by poster: It hasn't been hot or sunny enough in England to be noticeable since 1972 so the Shoes of Death are going on the roof at work tomorrow for a thorough airing, and if that fails, I'll bury them in cat litter and cross my fingers.

Thanks so much for the ideas / reassurance everyone!
posted by citands at 2:01 PM on December 8, 2015 [3 favorites]

me too--> put them under the carport for 2 days. on close nose inspection=still some smell. took them inside, placed in a paper sack+those 'de-hy packs' you get in drugstore drugs+some rice. no smell on day 3. If you can't put them under a carport, hang them out your window (on the sun side) even on a shade side for 3 days should do it. If it rains where you are, place them suspended and hung from the rungs beneath a partially opened umbrella (the weight of the shoes will hold the umbrella part way open.) the smell will go. best luck.
posted by Twist at 4:13 PM on December 8, 2015

Yeah leave them outside or by a window or whatever for as long as possible. I had a backpack that's synthetic that stunk for a few days but now it's fine. Should be good by Friday for sure.
posted by Crystalinne at 4:19 PM on December 8, 2015