Proper shoe care

[Oshare]

Hello everyone,

Am I slowly ruining my expensive shoes? Here is my routine:

1. After taking off my shoes, I usually give them a quick brush with a horsehair brush to remove the day's light scuffs, insert shoe trees, and put them into a shoe closet.
2. Every other month or so (maybe 8 to 12 wears) I brush them off more thoroughly, and apply a coat of Saphir Medaille D'Or Pommadier Cream Polish, wait until dry, then brush to get a dull shine, and finally wipe briskly with a synthetic chamois polishing glove to bring out more shine.

Reading various articles and watching videos on shoe care, something that a lot of the online instructions say is to strip off the old polish, then use a conditioner -- things I have never done -- before finally re-polish with cream polish or wax polish.

Is it important to occasionally strip off the old polish? And am I harming my shoes by simply applying more cream polish each time without ever stripping off the old polish completely?

Thanks for the advice.

 

[Chowkin]

Judging by your routine of using only cream with lots of brushing, I don't think you need Renomat which is used to strip off old waxes one uses to create mirror shine.

 

[GBR]

There is a grave danger that people spend a fortune on various creams and other unctions which are all quite unnecessary and add nothing whatever to the life of shoes. The leathers are all tanned for the robust life that the shoes will inevitably live and simply polishing routinely is quite sufficient.

 

[starro]

You're fine. Not ruining them. You might want to introduce conditioner every 3-6 months, especially for the lining and insole leather. If you want extra protection against scrapes and scratches, consider colored wax after cream. The extra protection is only on the margins, so overall you're doing quite well by your shoes.

 

[Oshare]

Great! That's a relief. Thanks for the responses.

 

[SGTROCK]

I look forward to the day when I can no longer use a pair of shoes so that I can justify a new purchase.