Brown Shoe Emergency

[JD89]

Ok, I hope this is the proper place for this. I've been reading SF for awhile, but this is my first post. I recently purchased some brown shoes and the first time I polished them they darkened, which I actually liked. However, in the last polishing the toe on one of the shoes darkened to almost black! Is there a way to strip this wax and bring the shoes to their original shade? I was using kiwi brown.

 

[Cantabrigian]

This sounds like an emergency.

You definitely don't want you shoes to look as though they have been worn and cared for.

 

[JD89]

I'm new to the world of polishing shoes (and fashion in general), so give me a break here. I was hesitant to even post on SF because frankly, there seems to be a lot of condescension toward anyone who isn't an expert. I'm trying to learn here.

Anyways, I'm worried that I may have ruined my shoes. It's a large area on the tow of the shoe that seems extra dark and I'm confused by it. Granted, I'm sure it's something that I did wrong. To give more info, I had read about "fire shining" and tried that. So, I'm wondering if perhaps that is the culprit? Like I said, I'm fairly new to this, but it'd be a shame to have ruined my new shoes.

 

[Cantabrigian]

Did you fire shine your shoes?

That could be the problem.

Otherwise use a lighter polish or if you're really worried, buy some Allen Edmonds shoe cleaner or acetone (use sparingly) and strip the excess polish off.

 

[JD89]

Yes, I fire shined my shoes.

I was worried that would be it. Is there away to reverse this? I tried a bit of acetone with no luck.

 

[Cantabrigian]

Ummm... yea...

Don't light your shoes on fire.

In general, don't light things on fire.

Let the dark mark on your shoes serve as a reminder of this advice.

 

[JD89]

Well, that's not what I wanted to hear, but I expected it.

Thanks for the help. Lesson learned.