How Do You Polish Your Black And Burgundy Allen Edmonds Saddle Shoe?

[knezz]

I have a pair of black/burgundy Allen Edmonds saddle shoes on the way. Being that they are multi-colored. What is the best way to shine them?

Somewhere a while back someone said that they just use black on the entire shoe -- I'm skeptical about that?

Pictures if you have them please.

 

[black_umbrella]

sharpie

 

[knezz]



sharpie

^
Bored?

 

[ter1413]

Black on the black and a "dab" of black on the burgandy...

 

[Cold Iron]

Call me crazy but I carefully do black on the black and then burgundy on the burgundy......

I want the contrast to stay the way it is.

 

[MyOtherLife]

You probably purchased the Shelton. I have a pair myself in the same colour combination.



The Black-Burgundy are factory finished with a high shine, almost like a patent leather but not quite. What I do here is:
Remove laces. Sparingly apply leather lotion with finger. Wipe off excess with cotton cloth. Wait 20 min. Buff with cloth again. Insert shoe trees. Apply KIWI Medium Brown wax polish very sparingly with finger over both colours of the shoes. Let sit 30 min. Brush, then buff with flannel cloth. Replace laces. Buff one more time. Always use shoe trees when shoes are not in use to minimise creasing.
Why I prefer the KIWI Medium BROWN wax? Because if applied thinly it is almost invisible with respect to pigment, yet provides a good shine. Several applications later the burgundy will have a tad more depth to it. After you have worn them sufficiently to the point where the creasing bothers you with that burgundy (this is many months away) you can de-glaze the burgundy with Acetone on a terrycloth, re-moisturize, and re-polish with the KIWI and the re-finished shoes will look almost like new. This is my $0.02 worth on it. Congratulations on your purchase!

 

[knezz]



You probably purchased the Shelton. I have a pair myself in the same colour combination.

The Black-Burgundy are factory finished with a high shine, almost like a patent leather but not quite. What I do here is:
Remove laces. Sparingly apply leather lotion with finger. Wipe off excess with cotton cloth. Wait 20 min. Buff with cloth again. Insert shoe trees. Apply KIWI Medium Brown wax polish very sparingly with finger over both colours of the shoes. Let sit 30 min. Brush, then buff with flannel cloth. Replace laces. Buff one more time. Always use shoe trees when shoes are not in use to minimise creasing.
Why I prefer the KIWI Medium BROWN wax? Because if applied thinly it is almost invisible with respect to pigment, yet provides a good shine. Several applications later the burgundy will have a tad more depth to it. After you have worn them sufficiently to the point where the creasing bothers you with that burgundy (this is many months away) you can de-glaze the burgundy with Acetone on a terrycloth, re-moisturize, and re-polish with the KIWI and the re-finished shoes will look almost like new. This is my $0.02 worth on it. Congratulations on your purchase!

Yes that is the shoe.

Wow! Medium Brown? I would have never thought of that. I have both Saphir medium brown cream and wax.

I have a beater pair that I can test this on (too beat to re-craft).

Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[MyOtherLife]

Welcome. I just had another look at my pair. Both colours are patent finish.
I de-glazed the Burgundy portions on mine because I preferred a less than mirror shine but that was my own preference.
Caution if ever attempting the acetone on these...Do not overwork the area or the acetone will strip the burgundy colour off and would be disasterous.

 

[Cold Iron]

Yes that is the shoe.
Wow! Medium Brown? I would have never thought of that. I have both Saphir medium brown cream and wax.
I have a beater pair that I can test this on (too beat to re-craft).
Thanks for the suggestion.

If I were to do what MOL suggested I would use KIWI as he detailed. I am new to Saphir but have Saphir medium brown cream for my AE Cascade boots and Cognac paste wax for my shell walnut Dalton boots. The Saphir has a lot more pigmentation in it than KIWI. Note the reason he states that he uses the KIWI.

The leather in the Shelton is called cobbler leather by AE. I despise patent leather more than most, for 20 years I never could understand why some men would put plastic Bates corafram shoes on their feet when a little elbow grease and a stocking donated by a willing pretty lady would equal or actually surpass the results using leather shoes. As MOL said it is personal preference. The cobbler leather is not the same as patent leather to my eye and one of the few shoes I shine to a high polish. If you strip using acetone on the cobbler leather be very careful as MOL also states, you can ruin the shoes permanently if you go too far. Ron Rider has a very detailed thread on antiquing shoes and working with leather using acetone. He is a professional and mentioned that he would not try the acetone stripping on the AE polished cobbler leather: http://www.styleforum.net/t/45530/shoe-antiquing/75#post_796227 I happened to be reading that thread last week as I am considering changing the color of my 5th Street boots to burgundy from dark brown.

 

[MyOtherLife]

Cold Iron, thank you and I sit corrected. It is Cobbler leather.

 

[knezz]

My Sheltons in black/burgundy have arrived!

They must have changed the shoe – reading you description of the leather.

They look like calf and don’t have the shine of my beater pair that I’ve had 2nd hand for a few years (which Cold Iron referred to a Cobbler Leather). Looking at my beater pair it matches your explanation of the very glossy black. The burgundy section of the saddle shoe isn’t as glossy.

As for the new pair it has the normal calf low (non-polished) gloss-less look on both the burgundy and black sections. The shoe looks really good. It will go great with jeans or slacks. The burgundy is a rich darker burgundy. The last fits my feet very very well (like a glove).

As for the medium Kiwi medium brown, where can I get that? I only see the on brown

http://www.kiwishoeshine.com/KIWI-Wax-Shoe-Polish-1-18-oz_p_432.html

I did a search but maybe my skills aren’t as good as others. I also called a number of stores in my area and they don't carry Kiwi in medium brown and every one of them said that Kiwi only has one brown.

I would like to get these shoes on the asphalt as soon as possible. Any help would be appreciated.

 

[Shiny]

I used to own a pair of saddle shoes like this a long time ago. I think they were made by J&M. I'd like to bring back this model to my rotation. With J&M quality having gone downhill, I'll go with AE. Any tips on the best possible deal on them?

 

[MyOtherLife]



My Sheltons in black/burgundy have arrived!

They must have changed the shoe – reading you description of the leather.

They look like calf and don’t have the shine of my beater pair that I’ve had 2nd hand for a few years (which Cold Iron referred to a Cobbler Leather). Looking at my beater pair it matches your explanation of the very glossy black. The burgundy section of the saddle shoe isn’t as glossy.

As for the new pair it has the normal calf low (non-polished) gloss-less look on both the burgundy and black sections. The shoe looks really good. It will go great with jeans or slacks. The burgundy is a rich darker burgundy. The last fits my feet very very well (like a glove).

As for the medium Kiwi medium brown, where can I get that? I only see the on brown

http://www.kiwishoeshine.com/KIWI-Wax-Shoe-Polish-1-18-oz_p_432.html

I did a search but maybe my skills aren’t as good as others. I also called a number of stores in my area and they don't carry Kiwi in medium brown and every one of them said that Kiwi only has one brown.

I would like to get these shoes on the asphalt as soon as possible. Any help would be appreciated.

http://www.modernshoe.com/store/KIWI-MIDTAN!SAD/Kiwi+Mid+Tan+Shoe+Polish+1+1/8+fl+oz

 

[knezz]

Well thank you!

I was looking for medium brown. I'm sure I can find mid tan locally.

 

[MyOtherLife]

I apply it with my finger very sparingly...creating a fine film of wax on the shoe. 30 min later I take the brush to them, let sit 20 more min, then buff lightly with a flannel cloth. The application is so thin and there is little pigment so it is almost like a clear coat. Why I don't use neutral polish is because where the shoe creases, a white flaky film emerges. This doesn't happen with the tan or mid brown.