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Barker shoe care Rosewood Calf

Danjwilko

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Hello all
I’ve recently picked up a pair of some lovely barker mcclean shoes in rosewood calf, problem being I have no idea on the best practise for care and maintenance on them mostly due to the colour. Being ex forces I’m all well versed in polishing buffing and getting a glass finish however black is black.

Is there a specific cream/polish or wax I should be using or a combination of two colours to get the tone?

Shoe trees have been ordered just to note.

Added a few photos so you can see the colour. I’ll still have a trawl through threads on here for any further info on cleaning etc not sure what products to use since there is conflicting views between polish, cream and wax always had kiwi parade gloss and kiwi plain black along with a assortment of brushes and selvyt cloth.

First decent pair of shoes so I want to get it right.

Any guidance or help is appreciated.

Daniel

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Last edited:

Danjwilko

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Well after reading pages and pages of posts nothing really presents itself mostly discussions on what cream or polish to use or how it affects the leather.
I did find a tutorial from herring shoes which outlined the use of light tan 2 layers and then a burgundy layer.
Can anyone shed light on this or vouch for its effect.

Do I also use cream or polish? Not after a high shine just want to protect the leather stop it from cracking/drying out and retain a nice luster.

Again any input or advice appreciated

Regards
Daniel
 

Evergreen88

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Hi Daniel, I found myself in your same situation few months ago when I bought my Barker Johnny. They are not rosewood, but a weird dark brown/burgundy.

Personally I use colored cream rather than polish. Cream is more moisturising and actually penetrates the leather, affecting the colour of the shoe. Polish is more of a protective layer that gives shine, that sits on top of the leather.
Depending on how shiny you want them, pick one of these two, or both.

If you go with cream, as I did, you don't have to get exactly the same colour of your shoe. Same or darker colours will permanently darken your shoe over time.

Saphir is a very popular choice on SF and they have a considerable amount of colours.

I brush my shoes pretty much every time I wear them (once a week) and cream them every 2 or 3 months.

This is just the opinion of a noob, wait for someone more experienced than me to take a decision!
 

Danjwilko

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Hi Daniel, I found myself in your same situation few months ago when I bought my Barker Johnny. They are not rosewood, but a weird dark brown/burgundy.

Personally I use colored cream rather than polish. Cream is more moisturising and actually penetrates the leather, affecting the colour of the shoe. Polish is more of a protective layer that gives shine, that sits on top of the leather.
Depending on how shiny you want them, pick one of these two, or both.

If you go with cream, as I did, you don't have to get exactly the same colour of your shoe. Same or darker colours will permanently darken your shoe over time.

Saphir is a very popular choice on SF and they have a considerable amount of colours.

I brush my shoes pretty much every time I wear them (once a week) and cream them every 2 or 3 months.

This is just the opinion of a noob, wait for someone more experienced than me to take a decision!
Aprreciate your input, I’ve just found the the thread about shoe care etc probably would of been better off posting this on there since it would help anyone in a similar situation.
I did read about the saphir products that and collonil seem to have a good reputation. But I was stumped on what should be used since I’ve never touched the creams, conditioners only the kiwi polish in black/brown and parade gloss for the usual polishing and bulling of boot toe caps.
 

breakaway01

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You should use mostly cream. If you want, you can use some polish on the toe if you're looking for a shine. Less is more -- don't overapply or apply too frequently.

I've used the Saphir Medaille d'Or creams with good results. I think the medium brown would work for those shoes.
 

Danjwilko

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You should use mostly cream. If you want, you can use some polish on the toe if you're looking for a shine. Less is more -- don't overapply or apply too frequently.

I've used the Saphir Medaille d'Or creams with good results. I think the medium brown would work for those shoes.
Thank you for your input, I’ve put an order in for neutral and mid brown collonil de lux creme and saphir not keen on the old turpentine content but we’ll see how strong it will be.

Any advice on sole protection ie toe taps or topy or should I just wear them and get the pair resoled when required?
 

breakaway01

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Toe taps or topy—depends on how/where you wear your shoes. Some people wear the toe edges of their soles very rapidly because of their gait and benefit from toe taps. Some people wear their shoes frequently in wet weather; leather soles wear more rapidly when wet so topys might make more sense.

If you’re undecided, just stick with leather soles for now.
 

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