Polishing woes....

[corskc]

Was polishing my pair of Grenson cognac pebble grained shoes the other day, and I simply cannot figure out why my right shoe has darkened with parts of it looking 'black'. This is especially so, on the vamps and toe cap of my right shoe. It was standard procedure I used on my other shoes: 1. Leather cleaner 2. Shoe cream 3. A thin layer of shoe wax. Is such a finish natural as the shoe ages, or there is something seriously wrong with the finish on my shoes? Both shoes:

Right shoe *which doesn't look right with those 'black' patches:

Left shoe *which looks fine*:

 

[Nick V.]

What were the specific brands of products you used?
Did you let the cleaner dry completely before applying any polish?
Did the brush and/or rag have any residue of dark polish on it?

 

[corskc]

Originally Posted by Nick V.

What were the specific brands of products you used?
Did you let the cleaner dry completely before applying any polish?
Did the brush and/or rag have any residue of dark polish on it?

1. Meltonian Shoe Cleaner
2. Woly Shoe Cream, Tricker's shoe wax
3. It was a fresh cloth, a discarded old t-shirt.

 

[TheFoo]

You could just say they're antiqued.

 

[Ich_Dien]

It's just the solvent in polish. It will evaporate, don't worry.

 

[corskc]

Originally Posted by Ich_Dien

It's just the solvent in polish. It will evaporate, don't worry.

Hmm... Its been 1 week.... Will it really evaporate eventually?

 

[Mild Mannered]

Wow those look almost identical to an old pair of Florsheim Imperials I have. They are going on 20+ years now. Just to share and not hijack the thread here are some pics. They are the biggest chunky mother shoes I own. I am sure your Grensons are even nicer. On my imperials here I'm using only leather lotion, let dry, brush & buff. I'm not even using polish at all on them. Definitely one shoe looks different from the other, but only under close scrutiny. To me it adds character. Your shoes look fantastic compared to mine. Nice polishing job you did. The pebbles look great!

 

[Nick V.]

Originally Posted by corskc

1. Meltonian Shoe Cleaner
2. Woly Shoe Cream, Tricker's shoe wax
3. It was a fresh cloth, a discarded old t-shirt.


Based on what you described, the only thing I can think of is the shoe may have still been damp with the cleaner when you applied the polish. If that was the case, the wax polish sealed the damp cleaner inside the pores of the leather.

Try this:
Insert shoe trees. Get a small can of "Afta" (available in shoe repair shops, some mega stores and, large hardware stores). Use a clean white rag and remove the polish with the Afta. Let dry overnight. At that point report back to us on their appearance. Their are several methods on how to proceed from there but I'm not sure until I know the results. FYI your shoes may dry lighter in color than the original but don't worry we'll take care of that later.

 

[corskc]

Originally Posted by Mild Mannered

Wow those look almost identical to an old pair of Florsheim Imperials I have.
They are going on 20+ years now. Just to share and not hijack the thread here are some pics.
They are the biggest chunky mother shoes I own. I am sure your Grensons are even nicer.
On my imperials here I'm using only leather lotion, let dry, brush & buff. I'm not even using polish at all on them. Definitely one shoe looks different from the other, but only under close scrutiny.
To me it adds character. Your shoes look fantastic compared to mine. Nice polishing job you did. The pebbles look great!

Just curious, why do the 'pebbles' on your left shoe look larger than your right?

 

[Tarmac]

It looks like there was pre-antiquing or burnishing on your shoes, then when you put the conditioner and other fluids on there, it kind of pooled up that dark color and spread it around.

 

[corskc]

Originally Posted by Tarmac

It looks like there was pre-antiquing or burnishing on your shoes, then when you put the conditioner and other fluids on there, it kind of pooled up that dark color and spread it around.

Does this mean, I should not bother and enjoy this 'ageing' effect?

 

[Mild Mannered]

Originally Posted by corskc

Just curious, why do the 'pebbles' on your left shoe look larger than your right?

You are absolutely right, they are different. But the leather on my shoes is not 'stamped' with pebbles. reason: They are the natural wrinkles of the hide, and therefore random. That's why they are different.
You have good eyes to notice!

 

[corskc]

Originally Posted by Nick V.

Based on what you described, the only thing I can think of is the shoe may have still been damp with the cleaner when you applied the polish. If that was the case, the wax polish sealed the damp cleaner inside the pores of the leather.

Try this:
Insert shoe trees. Get a small can of "Afta" (available in shoe repair shops, some mega stores and, large hardware stores). Use a clean white rag and remove the polish with the Afta. Let dry overnight. At that point report back to us on their appearance. Their are several methods on how to proceed from there but I'm not sure until I know the results. FYI your shoes may dry lighter in color than the original but don't worry we'll take care of that later.

Afta shoe cleaner is not something I can get locally unless I mail order it overseas.
Is there a more 'natural' substitute for this?

 

[Nick V.]

Originally Posted by corskc

Afta shoe cleaner is not something I can get locally unless I mail order it overseas.
Is there a more 'natural' substitute for this?

Sorry, I thought you were in the U.S.
Afta is the only product that I trust for such situations. We use it constantly and it's very effective. It's harsh enough to remove polish yet mild enough not to cause any damage or staining.