Who doesn’t want to convert a pair of vans or converse into slip-on shoes? As tying and untying shoelaces are way too time-consuming, turning them into slip-on is a great idea, indeed.
But the question is how to lace shoes so they slip on.
Honestly speaking, there are hundreds of ways. You just need to pick the most convenient lacing form that works best for you.

You can either follow the straight lacing technique or pick shortcut methods like using elastic laces. A few different lacing styles such as army lacing, heel locking, criss-cross lacing, etc. also work great in this regard. And the easiest one is to use lace anchors.
Let’s look forward to these methods in detail to free you from the hassle of lacing shoes every morning.
How to Lace Shoes So They Slip on- Six Quick Fixes
Whether it’s the basketball court or the boardroom, the fitting of your shoe matters the most. And the most effortless way of maintaining footwear fitting is to lace them up in a cool way.
Saying that we handpicked the following lacing styles that work both for kids and adults to make their shoes and boots slip on.

1. Criss-Cross Method
The most familiar way of lacing footwear slip-on is the crisscross method. Whether you are a school-going kid or the parent of a toddler, this hack is a lifesaver when it comes to putting on shoes rapidly.
The crisscross lacing keeps the shoes secured enough so that people from any age group can put on and take off shoes comfortably.

Follow the steps below to learn the entire process accurately.
- You should insert the two aglets of the shoelace into the two top eyelets of the toe end.
- Please make sure both sides of the lace are equal.
- Now grab the right end and pass it through the next left hole. Do the same for the left end. That means you need to insert the left end through the next right eyelet.
- Repeat the process until the eyelets are over.
- Finally, make a bow of the existing ends of the shoelace.
2. Straight Lacing
It’s a very convenient way of lacing your dress shoes with a clean outlook. Most importantly, you can do it within a couple of minutes. So, let’s check out how the straight lacing method makes your shoe slip on easily.

- First, place the shoe in such a way that the toe end is away from you.
- Now, insert one end of the lace through the top right hole of the toe end.
- Put the other end of the shoelace through the left hole of the bottom end. This time the lace should be shorter in length.
- Now, insert the right end into its opposite hole following a straight line.
- After that push it through the bottom of the top right hole.
- Insert it through the next straight hole.
- Repeat the process of moving the lace horizontally till you reach the end.
- Make a bow of the two remaining ends. You should tie the bow as tightly as you want your shoes to be.
- That’s it! Now you can slip them on easily in a hurried situation without tying the laces anymore.
3. Army Lacing
Another way of making your shoes slip on and off easily is the army lacing technique.
It’s a quite reliable way to make the footwear fitting comfortable as the lace crosses inside the shoes.
However, let’s get into the step-by-step guideline on how to do it right.

- First of all, you need to push both ends of the shoelace into the lowest eyelets that are closest to the toes.
- Then grab the lace on the left side and push the aglet through the left eyelet just above the previous one.
- Repeat the same process for the right one. Insert the right aglet into the right eyelet which is directly above the first one.
- Now, grab both ends of the shoelace and place them diagonally over each other.
- Push the left aglet through the right third eyelet and the right aglet through the left third eyelet.
- Again, push both the aglets into the eyelets right next to them.
- At this point, repeat the crisscross method and place the aglets into the opposite eyelets.
- Hopefully, you have reached the end of the eyelets. Now tie both ends of the remaining parts of the shoelace.
4. Heel Locking
Next comes the heel-locking method which is pretty popular among all ages of people. In most cases, we find that our heels are slipping into our shoes. So, the following steps will keep this issue away by turning your favorite footwear slip-on.
Heel locking is actually similar to the army lacing and criss-cross methods in certain ways. But there are some differences as well. Let’s break them down below.

- Just follow the criss-cross method above till you reach the second last holes on both sides.
- When there are only two eyelets left at the bottom end, push the left and the right ends of the shoelace through the left and the right eyelets right next to them, respectively.
- You will see two loops on each side now. Insert the left aglet through the right loop and the right aglet through the left loop.
- Like any other lacing method, tie the remaining ends as you like.
5. Using Lace Anchors
Tired of tying bows? Hold on! There are lace anchors for you. What these little plastic pieces could do is beyond your imagination. They are one of the most popular ways of keeping your shoelace in place.
So, let’s learn how you could make the best use of a lace anchor to enjoy slip-on shoes.

- You can simply slip the lace anchors over the laces and pull them up to the top eyelets of your shoes.
- Always try to install these anchors when you’re wearing the shoes. This will offer a snug fit overall.
- Once the lace anchors are installed, you can either trim the excess laces or tie them up in a bow to hide them behind the shoe tongue.
6. Elastic Shoelaces
Finally, we have elastic shoelaces to keep all the hassles of tying and untying bows at bay.
Once you know how to use these wonderful elastic laces, you are going to carry them forever. Yes, they can do wonders when it comes to making shoe slip-on.
Just follow the steps below and say goodbye to ill-fitted footwear.

- First, wear your shoe with the regular shoelace.
- Then place the elastic lace keeping the arrowheads over the eyelets. This is an absolute must to measure the perfect elastic lace for each eyelet.
- Now, insert the right side nub of the elastic lace into the top right eyelet closest to the toe.
- Please remember that the nub must be pointing to the inner side of the shoe.
- After that, grab the left-side nub and push it through the left eyelet.
- Insert the right size of elastic lace for each pair of eyelets and you will get your perfect slip-on shoes.
Final Words
So, what do you think of converting your favorite pair of dress shoes or sneakers into slip-on footwear? Does it actually work?
Well, once you know how to lace shoes so they slip on, you can do it. Any of the six ways above will work in this regard.
You can use elastic laces for kids. They are very much functional and pocket-friendly.
For a more professional outlook, army lacing or straight lacing techniques are better.
However, regardless of the lacing style you choose, you are going to save a lot of time for sure. After all, you don’t need to tie your shoes every single day.
Hope this shoe-lacing guide makes your life easier. Good luck!