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

[JFWR]

Once you get a shoe of every style then you'll need the various colors as well. It never ends.

Yes. I was just saying I need an oxblood half brogue Oxford in calfskin, despite having one in carbon, tan, and colour 8 cordovan.

 

[CWV]

What’s the difference between oxblood, bourgundy and #8?
I’ve never been sure. .

 

[OldTown]

What’s the difference between oxblood, bourgundy and #8?
I’ve never been sure. .

Bourgundy is more purple. Color #8 I think is more brown. Oxblood is more red.

 

[CWV]

Bourgundy is more purple. Color #8 I think is more brown. Oxblood is more red.

And Bordeaux is sinonim with bourgondy

 

[JFWR]

What’s the difference between oxblood, bourgundy and #8?
I’ve never been sure. .

I mean, burgundy cordovan cream from Saphir matches colour 8, and that is traditionally "the cordovan colour", but the variation in dyes can mean different things for different people.

I distinguished oxblood from colour 8 just so it was understood I meant shell cordovan. I could've just said that.

But yeah, oxblood/burgundy/colour 8 are usually fairly the same, but some companies are more red, others more purple.

On the other hand, saphir does distinguish hermes red from burgundy.

 

[CWV]

I mean, burgundy cordovan cream from Saphir matches colour 8, and that is traditionally "the cordovan colour", but the variation in dyes can mean different things for different people.

I distinguished oxblood from colour 8 just so it was understood I meant shell cordovan. I could've just said that.

But yeah, oxblood/burgundy/colour 8 are usually fairly the same, but some companies are more red, others more purple.

On the other hand, saphir does distinguish hermes red from burgundy.

Hermes red is refer isn’t it?

 

[OldTown]

Hermes red is refer isn’t it?

Personally I use hermes red for my oxblood polish.

 

[troika]

Does anyone know how to take care of oiled kip leather? Just got some RMW Gardener boots that have that.

 

[Unsubscr1ber]

Thought this might be of interest to my fellow amateurs who fear decimating their footwear in the quest for improvement. I purchased the pictured pair of badly mismatched derbies (at Barney’s NY, before it’s closure earlier this year) for the purpose of learning more about stripping, dyeing, and polishing. My previous experience had been with basic shoe care but I felt inspired by the IG masters.

The present state, pictured, is the result of stripping with acetone, protecting the inner surfaces with blue painter’s tape, applying three coats of mahogany Fiebing’s dye (more heavily at the toe) using wool swabs and q-tips, and following up with multiple (!) coats of Renovateur. As has been mentioned, the Renovateur does strip some of the dye and I found this helpful in tweaking the color and creating some color variation (as well as in minimizing the metallic sheen that can develop from saturating the leather with dye). I have yet to add cream polish and wax.

I’ve enjoyed the process, so far, maybe more so because I wasn’t too concerned about ruining the shoes. But I don't think think I have.

 

[JFWR]

Hermes red is refer isn’t it?

That's purple haze, I'm afraid.

 

[Mercurio]

Thought this might be of interest to my fellow amateurs who fear decimating their footwear in the quest for improvement. I purchased the pictured pair of badly mismatched derbies (at Barney’s NY, before it’s closure earlier this year) for the purpose of learning more about stripping, dyeing, and polishing. My previous experience had been with basic shoe care but I felt inspired by the IG masters.

The present state, pictured, is the result of stripping with acetone, protecting the inner surfaces with blue painter’s tape, applying three coats of mahogany Fiebing’s dye (more heavily at the toe) using wool swabs and q-tips, and following up with multiple (!) coats of Renovateur. As has been mentioned, the Renovateur does strip some of the dye and I found this helpful in tweaking the color and creating some color variation (as well as in minimizing the metallic sheen that can develop from saturating the leather with dye). I have yet to add cream polish and wax.

I’ve enjoyed the process, so far, maybe more so because I wasn’t too concerned about ruining the shoes. But I don't think think I have.

Well done, now you have a "new" pair of shoes to enjoy. Are those Barneys NY made in Italy, as were almost all of their brand shoes?

I love to do this kind of experiments with shoes. I have to present what I did with an old pair suede Chelseas full of blotches and stains that I couldn't remove, as a "transformation" exercise.

 

[Mercurio]

Mishap and evolution of my “Carlos Nieto” Chelsea boots
Cross post with the "Boots, Boots, Boots" thread

I bought my “Carlos Nieto” Chelsea boots last January 2017, so they are three years nine months old. The next images were taken during their maiden voyage day: a very deep chocolate suede colour, with a wonderful nap and touch.

​

With my shoe rotation, they were very well kept as seen in the next image taken one year later (January 2018), until the unfortunate day when they received some oil drops while I was helping in the kitchen. I didn’t realize the mishap until later on, so I couldn’t sprinkle the stain with some baby powder or cornstarch to absorb the oil, which had created a few ugly patches on the top of my boots.

I tried all sort of tricks, suede cleaning solutions, suede shampoos, brushes, erasers, I even bought colour spays to mimic the stains that still there. When you don’t want to see something in its when it's more clear, even though the rest of the people didn’t even notice it. The fact was that I felt that they were deteriorating with so many brushes, erasers and cleaning solutions...

Last December 2019 they still kept their dignity, at least that was what I thought, even though the stains were there but they didn’t show much because of my right boot position.

But, during last weeks, every time I put them on my feet, I felt that they had lost their original charm: I thought they were dirty, peeled, scraped even though it could be just my imagination. During the last months, I had bought other three Chelsea boots: they weren’t any more “unique”, as a way of saying it, I had my new Magnanni, Cheaney and Loake Chelsea boots.

The next image was the last I made when I decided that if it was not possible to get an appearance that would satisfy me, they would be part of an experiment that I wanted to make but I needed a suitable pair of shoes to do it. The change from the first photos to the latter is clear: the deep intense chocolate colour wasn’t there anymore, and instead of that I had stains and discolourations that were already difficult to correct.

So, I converted the fragile suede Chelsea in a pair of boots that I could use without restriction under the rain or in any harsh situation with a radical appearance change: I applied Sno-Seal that I had used before with my Pimlico chukkas, in this case over the suede for a homemade waxed effect, whose result I imagined although it was still an experiment that could end in total botch...

Next images are the final exercise result: the appearance changed radically, nothing to do with the chocolate suede that I enjoyed during the last years. Now they have an aspect that reminds me a newly waxed Barbour, with some shine but at the same time mate colour, with a "rough" texture that I don't know how it will evolve over time.

How pictures are worth a thousand words, these are my “new/old” Chelsea boots. Now I “need” a new pair of chocolate ones but I have a pair that I will use with my Barbour jackets, that are unique and exclusive and show with their wrinkles and character the use they have had.

​

It is now up to you to tell me now if this was crazy. Personally, I am very satisfied with these experiments.

 

[JFWR]

Mishap and evolution of my “Carlos Nieto” Chelsea boots
Cross post with the "Boots, Boots, Boots" thread

I bought my “Carlos Nieto” Chelsea boots last January 2017, so they are three years nine months old. The next images were taken during their maiden voyage day: a very deep chocolate suede colour, with a wonderful nap and touch.

​

With my shoe rotation, they were very well kept as seen in the next image taken one year later (January 2018), until the unfortunate day when they received some oil drops while I was helping in the kitchen. I didn’t realize the mishap until later on, so I couldn’t sprinkle the stain with some baby powder or cornstarch to absorb the oil, which had created a few ugly patches on the top of my boots.

I tried all sort of tricks, suede cleaning solutions, suede shampoos, brushes, erasers, I even bought colour spays to mimic the stains that still there. When you don’t want to see something in its when it's more clear, even though the rest of the people didn’t even notice it. The fact was that I felt that they were deteriorating with so many brushes, erasers and cleaning solutions...

Last December 2019 they still kept their dignity, at least that was what I thought, even though the stains were there but they didn’t show much because of my right boot position.

But, during last weeks, every time I put them on my feet, I felt that they had lost their original charm: I thought they were dirty, peeled, scraped even though it could be just my imagination. During the last months, I had bought other three Chelsea boots: they weren’t any more “unique”, as a way of saying it, I had my new Magnanni, Cheaney and Loake Chelsea boots.

The next image was the last I made when I decided that if it was not possible to get an appearance that would satisfy me, they would be part of an experiment that I wanted to make but I needed a suitable pair of shoes to do it. The change from the first photos to the latter is clear: the deep intense chocolate colour wasn’t there anymore, and instead of that I had stains and discolourations that were already difficult to correct.

So, I converted the fragile suede Chelsea in a pair of boots that I could use without restriction under the rain or in any harsh situation with a radical appearance change: I applied Sno-Seal that I had used before with my Pimlico chukkas, in this case over the suede for a homemade waxed effect, whose result I imagined although it was still an experiment that could end in total botch...

Next images are the final exercise result: the appearance changed radically, nothing to do with the chocolate suede that I enjoyed during the last years. Now they have an aspect that reminds me a newly waxed Barbour, with some shine but at the same time mate colour, with a "rough" texture that I don't know how it will evolve over time.

How pictures are worth a thousand words, these are my “new/old” Chelsea boots. Now I “need” a new pair of chocolate ones but I have a pair that I will use with my Barbour jackets, that are unique and exclusive and show with their wrinkles and character the use they have had.

​

It is now up to you to tell me now if this was crazy. Personally, I am very satisfied with these experiments.

I mean, I am glad you're happy with them, but I personally think you took a really nice pair of suede shoes, and now made them look like a really weird, hairy rubber?

Those pictures might not do the shoes justice, but they don't even look like suede to me anymore. They look like they have a rubbery consistency, which I dare say doesn't nearly match their original charm at all. Couldn't you just have done suede cleaning kit?

 

[Mercurio]

I mean, I am glad you're happy with them, but I think you took a really nice pair of suede shoes, and now made them look like a really weird, hairy rubber?

Those pictures might not do the shoes justice, but they don't even look like suede to me anymore. They look like they have a rubbery consistency, which I dare say doesn't nearly match their original charm at all. Couldn't you just have done suede cleaning kit?

Thank you for your comment. You are right, they are not suede boots anymore, they are waxed and they look like a waxed garment prepared for rain and harsh time.

I did all tricks that could be done to recover their original charm but finally, I decided to take another route as it proved impossible: instead of improving, they were going down and I wasn't using them with the same pleasure than before.

Anyway, as I mentioned before, I was aware that this was an experiment that could end in a total botch. Now they will have a different use than before, and I still own other Chelsea's as well as suede shoes.

 

[JFWR]

Thank you for your comment. You are right, they are not suede boots anymore, they are waxed and they look like a waxed garment prepared for rain and harsh time.

I did all tricks that could be done to recover their original charm but finally, I decided to take another route as it proved impossible: instead of improving, they were going down and I wasn't using them with the same pleasure than before.

Anyway, as I mentioned before, I was aware that this was an experiment that could end in a total botch. Now they will have a different use than before, and I still own other Chelsea's as well as suede shoes.

Okay, well, I mean, waxed suede is definitely a thing, so it isn't completely unique or strange.

It looks a bit odd to me, but hell: they'll be useful in the bad weather as you said!

Enjoy 'em!