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

[glenjay]



two questions
1. glenjay do you simply heat the carnuba and blend it with wax polish or is it more involved than that id like to make some of my own if you would rather keep it private no prob i understand
2. I have read in a number of posts that during recrafting the insoles cannot be replaced if this is indeed the case can anyone explain why not

For #2 MoneyWellSpent can, and has, given you a better answer than I could.

As far as the high carnauba blend: It is part of my all natural, non-toxic, shoe polish line. I refer to it as a High Shine paste. Because of the ingredients, when I use the high ratio of carnauba wax in the mixture it makes the paste very hard (almost like dried out paste polish). This allows me to easily control the amount of polish I put on the applicator (cotton cloth or cotton round), and the harder paste comes to a shine faster than a normal paste polish.

 

[Winston S.]



No.  This may be theoretically possible if carefully done with a hand-made shoe by a bespoke shoemaker.  However, what that would essentially amount to is completely remaking the shoe using the same leather upper.  Consider it for a second...  Since the entire shoe construction process is begun with the insole, you would have to remove every component of the shoe piece by piece in order to get the insole separated.   

EDIT: I would just add that even though this is theoretically possible for a bespoke shoe maker to do, I've never heard of it being done.  They would certainly charge you for a new pair of shoes since they would be essentially starting from scratch on building it. 

Thanks for clearing that up.

 

[kentyman]

I just wanted to say that I really enjoy your "microscopic" approach to shoe care. You have a very thorough understanding of what is happening to shoe leather that can't be seen by the naked eye.

Thank you very much, that means a lot to me coming from someone with your depth of knowledge.

My knowledge of all things shoe care as they relate to this thread are quite elementary compared to yours. Shoe construction and the mechanics of it are my passion, and my knowledge starts to drop off after that.

For the record, the most insightful posts I've read regarding shoe care and shoe construction have come from you two, respectively.

Regarding shoe construction in particular, I really wish I could see it first hand. MoneyWellSpent, I've read your posts thrice over sometimes, but still have a hard time grasping all of the construction spatially without seeing it done in person.

 

[Numbernine]

glenjay and moneywellspent thank you for your answers

 

[ddgdl]

So I just received a pair of AE's bourbon strands, and decided to apply some Reno...only to remove a large chunk of the bourbon coloring. oops. I didn't think Reno would do that, but apparently I was mistaken. Now my left is somewhere between walnut and bourbon- I'm attempting to fix it by using dark brown AE polish. Any other suggestions?

 

[TheSizzle]

So I just received a pair of AE's bourbon strands, and decided to apply some Reno...only to remove a large chunk of the bourbon coloring. oops. I didn't think Reno would do that, but apparently I was mistaken. Now my left is somewhere between walnut and bourbon- I'm attempting to fix it by using dark brown AE polish. Any other suggestions?

Right when I got mine, I applied lotion, and there was definitely a bit of grey residue that came up. If that's what you're talking about, I don't think you need to worry. I just let that happen because it was a very light amount of residue, and I treated them normally. As you saw, they turned out just fine. Maybe you should post a picture.

 

[ddgdl]

Right when I got mine, I applied lotion, and there was definitely a bit of grey residue that came up. If that's what you're talking about, I don't think you need to worry. I just let that happen because it was a very light amount of residue, and I treated them normally. As you saw, they turned out just fine. Maybe you should post a picture.

This was more than a little bit of grey residue- this was brown/black on the cloth. I'll take some photos. And to clarify- I meant Renovateur, not Renomat.

 

[ddgdl]

Photos- the difference is most obvious in the middle photo, and by the laces in the first photo.
.

 

[MoneyWellSpent]

For the record, the most insightful posts I've read regarding shoe care and shoe construction have come from you two, respectively.

Regarding shoe construction in particular, I really wish I could see it first hand. MoneyWellSpent, I've read your posts thrice over sometimes, but still have a hard time grasping all of the construction spatially without seeing it done in person.

Thanks for the generous complements.

 

[ddgdl]

Any expert advice? Or should I just bite the bullet and do the same to the right shoe to try and match them up again?

 

[Gdot]



Any expert advice?  Or should I just bite the bullet and do the same to the right shoe to try and match them up again?

My advice would be exactly that. What is done to one should should generally speaking be done to the other. No harm done. They are going to change color over time anyway.

I'd start with a cream polish as close to the current shoe color as reasonably possible. Err on the light side rather than the dark side. Dark may absorb a bit unevenly if the shoes are still dry in spots.

 

[nickwjd]

I've noticed recently on a pair of my shoes that they start to get a buildup of mold on the soles after they get wet. If I get caught in the rain with leather soled shoes, I usually set them on their side on the floor and point a small fan at the soles to aid in the drying process. I leave them like this overnight, then put them back into my shoe rack the next day. But sometimes, a few days later, I'll notice mold on the sole. It brushes off easily and is a non issue once I start walking, but it is quite annoying. Anyway I can stop this from happening?

 

[sjmin209]



So I just received a pair of AE's bourbon strands, and decided to apply some Reno...only to remove a large chunk of the bourbon coloring.  oops.  I didn't think Reno would do that, but apparently I was mistaken.  Now my left is somewhere between walnut and bourbon- I'm attempting to fix it by using dark brown AE polish.  Any other suggestions?

Did you by chance buy these on eBay? I ask because I had a similar problem a few years back with shoes that were listed as brand new. It turned out that the seller was buying seconds with (in my case) inconsistent coloring, and covering up the inconsistencies with a ton of polish.

If there's excess polish on the leather, Renovateur will remove it. I've never seen Renovateur do that to a shoe's normal finish.

 

[glenjay]



For the record, the most insightful posts I've read regarding shoe care and shoe construction have come from you two, respectively.

Thank you. I'm happy to think I may have been of some help.

 

[Crat]

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