shoe storage

[duke]

With approx. 60 pair of carefully maintained leather shoes ( lobb. green. g&g }, I am concerned that as stored on open shelves in an air conditioned closet, the moving, dry air conditioned air will adversely affect the leather over the long term. I enjoy displaying them. Some shoes are over 10 years old and have been refurbished, others are several years old and not worn a great deal. Others are new or have never been worn. Am I better off storing the shoes on the shelves in the original bags and boxes to keep air flow off the shoes, and give up the visual pleasure of viewing them in all their glory.

 

[Nexus6]

It's only my opinion, and I am also still learning,
But I am under the impression that keeping the shoes in good condition,
on display or not, would require the following:

-A dust-free environment
-A moisture-free environment
-No Direct sunlight hitting the shoes (get them away from any windows)
-Use Shoe Trees (Cedar preferred)
-If you don't have Cedar shoe trees,
Plastic trees -will- hold the shape for storage as a last resort.
Apparently newspaper can also be stuffed (not too tightly) to maintain shape

-Applying a leather lotion regularily will help the leather stay soft and supple,
preventing cracking over long periods of not wearing them.

Most of all....check this thread periodically to see what the senior members type here.
I am only a beginner with all of this,
so my response needs to be validated by the pro's.

Lastly,
I purchased at Home Depot,
several (gulp..) particle board shelving units, and created my Shoe Condominium,
because I also love to look at my shoes every day.

I dust with a feather duster once per week.
I apply leather lotion once per 3 months wether I have worn them or not.

I would also like to see what others have to say,
as it would help me too.

Best of luck,
and I hope my input has helped some.