**The Official Shoe Care Thread: Tutorials, Photos, etc.**

[thomas199023]

Just bought these Saint Laurent Sheepskin Espadrilles.

How do I take care of these, can I just condition with Saphir Renovateur, or would Bick 4 be better? Have no experience with Sheep Leather.

Also any idea how to clean the “rope” part of the shoe, if it gets dirty?

 

[aj2603]

i would say a light application of Bick 4 or Saphir renovateur should do the trick. Chamberlain's leather milk is another good option

 

[aj2603]

For the rope part, there r various sneaker cleaning solutions out there, u can use one of those or maybe go for saddle soap

 

[ShoeWho]

I'd spray the rope with water/stain repellent.

 

[audog]

I'd spray the rope with water/stain repellent.

+1 on this, perhaps Tarrago Nano spray? Used it on a pair of Espradilles with good results

 

[thomas199023]

+1 on this, perhaps Tarrago Nano spray? Used it on a pair of Espradilles with good results

That's a great idea, this one? I'd tape off the leather as I don't think I would want it to get on there.

 

[audog]

That's a great idea, this one? I'd tape off the leather as I don't think I would want it to get on there.
View attachment 1205737

That's the one, and do tape off the leather.

 

[Nick V.]

Not necessary to tape the leather. The Nano will not harm it. You might as well spray the entire shoe.
When you tape you are taking a risk that some of the finish/color will lift when you remove the tape.

 

[miburo]

I got a pair of JM Weston shoes I need stripped, redyed, and finished with patina. Any recommendations who I can send them off to for a more or less professional result? I tried reaching out to Nick Nelson via PM quite a while ago but never heard back. Thanks!

Try Steve at Bedo Leatherworks

 

[miburo]

Got these pair of John Lobb Westminsters from ebay in pretty good condition. There are filled in scratches and scuffs i see here and there and was wondering what (if anything) I could do to make them more smoothed out. Also any suggestions on what color i could use to patina it some? The current color gives a pretty monotone look (not sure how to explain) + i don't know what creme i could match it with as it's a kinda different brown than i'm normally used to seeing.

Thanks guys!! I've been a long time reader and recently gotten back into finding diamonds in the rough on ebay game

View attachment 1167928

Just got these pair back from Steve @ bedo leatherworks attached pictures. When I received them they were the rather bland one tone brown with crepe heels. I think he did an amazing job

 

[Keith Taylor]

I wanted to update a post of mine from a couple of weeks ago, now that I’ve made some very unusual and terrifying repairs.

This is a pair of Alfred Sargent Blenheims from their Premier line, a bargain from eBay thanks to a number of unsightly scuffs on both toe caps that had been darkened by repeated polishing. From a distance they looked perfectly passable, but as you can see up close the damage was very obvious, and it was only ever going to get worse because several of the scuffs were deep and jagged enough to catch on a cloth with every polish. It was only a matter of time before I gouged out an enormous chunk of the uppers.

I ordered a tin of Fiebing’s saddle soap to clean out the scuffs, a jar of Saphir renovateur to prepare the leather and, thanks to a recommendation from here, a bottle of Saphir renovating cream to fill and mask the damage.

Long story short, it didn’t really work. The saddle soap did an excellent job of removing the ground in polish and dirt, and I’ve fallen in love with the renovateur, but unfortunately the renovating cream just looked wrong. The colour was a very close match but the texture made it extremely noticeable. It just looked like I’d slapped spots of matte paint on the shoes, and when I tried to apply it to a larger area in an effort to blend it in it looked even worse, even after applying cream and wax polish. I’ve no doubt that it’s an excellent product, but it just wasn’t meant to be for this shoe.

I once again stripped the shoes with saddle soap and then decided - thank God these shoes only cost $50 - to try sandpaper to level out the leather. I know, I know. It would have been smarter to make my peace with the scuffs and nicks. Smarter still to take the shoes to a cobbler and have a professional deal with them, but as I live in Mongolia the closest decent cobbler is about 600 miles away in Beijing, and I’m persona non grata in China these days.

Anyway... the sandpaper kinda worked.

I used 320 grit paper lightly on the scuffs, and then 600-and something across the entire toe cap to even it out as best I could. Even with light pressure I went a little too hard on the scuffs. Should have stopped as soon as the actual nicks were levelled out, but I kept sanding in an effort to remove the polish that had soaked deep into the leather through the nicks. There was no need, and any imperfections in the leather are the result of that overzealousness.

I’m not going to say it’s a perfect result, because it isn’t. There’s a slightly rough patch on the right toe cap (due to rubbing too hard), and a couple of the scuffs on the left were so deep they’re still evident, but overall I’m pleased - and extremely surprised - with the outcome. The above pictures are the result after another application of renovateur and a quick once over with burgundy cream polish and a little brown wax polish. Nothing too gung ho as it’s 4AM and I don’t have it in me to bring up much of a shine, but all I’ll say is that from the feel of the leather under the cloth you wouldn’t know they’d been anywhere near a sheet of sandpaper.

I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone. It’s scary, and one false move and you’ll be left with shoes that are only good for gardening, but as a last resort the results might be worth the risk

 

[miburo]

You did a great job, and most importantly if you are satisfied with the result it's all worth it!

 

[eTrojan]

I wanted to update a post of mine from a couple of weeks ago, now that I’ve made some very unusual and terrifying repairs.

This is a pair of Alfred Sargent Blenheims from their Premier line, a bargain from eBay thanks to a number of unsightly scuffs on both toe caps that had been darkened by repeated polishing. From a distance they looked perfectly passable, but as you can see up close the damage was very obvious, and it was only ever going to get worse because several of the scuffs were deep and jagged enough to catch on a cloth with every polish. It was only a matter of time before I gouged out an enormous chunk of the uppers.


View attachment 1207936 View attachment 1207937

I ordered a tin of Fiebing’s saddle soap to clean out the scuffs, a jar of Saphir renovateur to prepare the leather and, thanks to a recommendation from here, a bottle of Saphir renovating cream to fill and mask the damage.

Long story short, it didn’t really work. The saddle soap did an excellent job of removing the ground in polish and dirt, and I’ve fallen in love with the renovateur, but unfortunately the renovating cream just looked wrong. The colour was a very close match but the texture made it extremely noticeable. It just looked like I’d slapped spots of matte paint on the shoes, and when I tried to apply it to a larger area in an effort to blend it in it looked even worse, even after applying cream and wax polish. I’ve no doubt that it’s an excellent product, but it just wasn’t meant to be for this shoe.

I once again stripped the shoes with saddle soap and then decided - thank God these shoes only cost $50 - to try sandpaper to level out the leather. I know, I know. It would have been smarter to make my peace with the scuffs and nicks. Smarter still to take the shoes to a cobbler and have a professional deal with them, but as I live in Mongolia the closest decent cobbler is about 600 miles away in Beijing, and I’m persona non grata in China these days.

Anyway... the sandpaper kinda worked.

View attachment 1207938 View attachment 1207939

I used 320 grit paper lightly on the scuffs, and then 600-and something across the entire toe cap to even it out as best I could. Even with light pressure I went a little too hard on the scuffs. Should have stopped as soon as the actual nicks were levelled out, but I kept sanding in an effort to remove the polish that had soaked deep into the leather through the nicks. There was no need, and any imperfections in the leather are the result of that overzealousness.

I’m not going to say it’s a perfect result, because it isn’t. There’s a slightly rough patch on the right toe cap (due to rubbing too hard), and a couple of the scuffs on the left were so deep they’re still evident, but overall I’m pleased - and extremely surprised - with the outcome. The above pictures are the result after another application of renovateur and a quick once over with burgundy cream polish and a little brown wax polish. Nothing too gung ho as it’s 4AM and I don’t have it in me to bring up much of a shine, but all I’ll say is that from the feel of the leather under the cloth you wouldn’t know they’d been anywhere near a sheet of sandpaper.

I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone. It’s scary, and one false move and you’ll be left with shoes that are only good for gardening, but as a last resort the results might be worth the risk

There are some folks on the Vintage Shoe thread who swear by 3000 grit wet sanding paper (from automotive stores) used with a conditioning lubricant like Bick 4 or VSC. Buffs scratches out pretty well without taking too much leather. YMMV.

 

[teddieriley]

Try Steve at Bedo Leatherworks

Thanks. Looks like neither Bedo or Nick can do it. Any other suggestions for someone who can refinish?

 

[miburo]

Thanks. Looks like neither Bedo or Nick can do it. Any other suggestions for someone who can refinish?

Try

https://m.facebook.com/cobblerco/ the son of the family just won a shore restoration reward in Germany and is still 'up and coming' . I've been talking to him on Facebook and seems like he's up for most levels of restoration.