**The Official Shoe Care Thread: Tutorials, Photos, etc.** - Page 279

Almost Done : ) More pics here.

Where did you buy that plastic box please?

Crat. You are quite mad, I like that!!

ballsy :)

its clearly not finished, but thanks for sharing. It will be interesting to see the final result

Some pictures after a round of Venetian shoe cream (first time I've done this) and Allen Edmonds natural edge dressing:

 

Allen Edmonds Elgins - I've had these for maybe a year and a half, and they've been through a lot.  I've used saddle soap in the past, had them polished once (with natural) when I brought them in to have the rubber part on the heel replaced.  This is just the "rough" Allen Edmonds leather.

 

My Oak Street Bootmakers boat shoes, which I wore last summer maybe 3 times a week.  I sent them back to OSB to have the insole replaced for free when it started moving (it was originally glued in, now a full insole was sewn).  This is navy Chromexcel leather, and the first time I've treated them with anything.  I didn't edge dress these (obviously), but I did take the eraser from my AE "suede cleaner" set to the sides of the white soles to get big scuffs off.

 

Alden Brixton boots by Epaulet in natural Chromexcel.  I think I got them in early December, and I've probably worn them 2-3 times a week since then.  First treatment with Venetian and natural edge dressing.  The leather on the sides is very wrinkly, much more so than I would have expected compared to the boat shoes.

 

Tarped the dining room table.  I wiped each of these with Alden Leather Defender after these pictures were taken.  I got brushes, daubers, and cloths from AE (super cheap and free shipping).

 

Swabs to wipe the Venetian out of the larger punches on the AE and Aldens.  Also I liked this picture.

 

If anyone has tips or ideas to improve my method for next time, I'd appreciate it.  Probably the biggest thing I learned is how important is to work the cream into the wrinklier parts of the leather, since I ended up going back and adding some more after my initial run.

 

It may not be the best for the brush, but if you have a (spare) clean brush with very soft bristles, you can tap it directly against the shoe (motion of brush = direction of bristle) to remove minor residue from clusters of brogue ("punches") with a lot less effort than using q-tips. 

Does anyone send out their shoes to be shined in a hotel? I do if they are black but never brown or tan. They never get the color right and often use too much wax.

This is why I could never be satisfied with a beautifully made shoe care box. It ain't like storing a collapsible sniper rifle, where the suitcase even has a cut-out for the telescopic sight... er... apparently.

Very nice Crat. You have the skill. I'm still wary of changing the colour, but might experiment on an old pair. I consider myself to be many stages behind where you're at now. However, my explorations with edge dressing are taking me ever deeper into cobbler territory. I'll only start to worry once I possess a thick leather apron, small wooden stool and a thin hammer for driving home sole tacks. There's a painting in the National Gallery (can't remember name), that perfectly describes this setup.

Edge Dressing:
All I can add to my earlier post: most cobblers do a poor job in this area. One appears to have smeared the stuff on with a rag, then quickly wiped away any deposited on leather with rag+alcohol.

The only way I was able to accurately apply was by dumping the cotton ear-buds and using a #2 small/flat artist brush. The flatness is perfect for getting into the welt without touching the shoe leather itself. I would recommend not experimenting on a light coloured shoe. Start on black with black soles. Any slippage will be much less noticeable. I've done everything with the shoes standing upright. Wear gloves on both hands, and use the left one only for moving and lifting the shoe. You do not want to touch the shoe leather with your right brush hand.

I haven't taken pics, but just assume the job came out beautifully. Doesn't take long and well worth doing in my opinion. Should've done it ages ago.


Lear

Hahaaaa, takes big step back and dons body armour!

I have had a bit of a Renomat disaster. I probably definitely should have posted a pic of the boot before arming myself with Renomat but I am hoping it is possible to be rescued from the mess I am now it.

 

The Grenson boot below had a very bad black mark on it - quite a big mark, not sure what the origin of the mark was, but it was certainly not coming off with simple cleaning.

 

I armed my self with some Renomat and was quite enthusiastic with my application. As a result I think all the wax was removed. Unfortunately when I then used some light brown Saphir pommadier cream the whole area appeared as though it was soaked and hasn't improved despite being left to dry for 48 hours.

 

Can someone please explain why this happened and I am desperately hoping there is a way back!

 

 

 

Those are amazing man. Well done.

 

 

 

 

I just picked up some Ron Rider's in Mohawk reverse-calf. Any idea at all how to care for these things? Anyone?

Yes, and depending on which Taj you're at I may have done so where you're at. My best overnight shoe shine was the Adlon Kempinsky in Berlin; in-lobby is the Cragan Palace Kempinskt in Istanbul (something about Kempinsky I guess).

Oh dear! Looks to me like like the Renomat has dried the leather so all the pigment from the cream has been absorbed. I think you've gone with too dark a colour too. I'd try drowning it with renovator and brushing like crazy. Failing that, treat the whole pair the same way as the heel. I'm sure the gurus can offer better advice tho. Good luck!

Picked up a pair of these on Yoox.

2 questions:

1. Can the rubber badge under the tongue be cut, removed etc. without diminishing shoes comfort? My sock gets stuck under it and there is a sock fabric build up under the rubber badge.

2. Is there anything special about the sole? It is pinky-browny, unusual for me.

Thanks!

Are you talking about the elastic? I think it keeps the two leather ends together so if you cut it there would not be anything to keep the leather pieces together.