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

[MNJ83]

Hello gentlemen;

This is the only my second post here, I was hoping to get some insight from some of the experts here.

I have multiple “cleaning” and “conditioning” products including Bick 4, Venetian, AE Premium Conditioner in the jar, Saphir MDO Lotion, Saphir MDO Renovateur, and Saphir MDO Nappa. I have enough shoes that I normally wear a pair once or twice a month, but because of some changes in my life I haven’t worn most of my dress shoes in 6-7 months, but will resume using them in my regular rotation come the new year. They are not worn hard, No driving, long walking, water etc. Car to Office use only. I have two brand new pairs that I have not even had an opportunity to wear yet. Also, my shoes are only lightly shined with Saphir MDO Pommadier or Allen Edmonds tube polish (Collonil Waterproof). no stronger waxes have ever been used for mirror shines.

Since I am going I am going to be resuming my regular rotation soon, i decided to condition and shine my shoes. That brought up my obsessive tendencies. Based on all the information I could gather, and the opinions from some that Renovateur is not really much of a conditioner, I have reduced my routine to

1-using Bick 4 as a quick cleaner (if needed)
2-using Saphir Nappa Balm as a Conditioner (2 coats)
3-Using a minuscule amount of Pommadier to shine.

Question is this: am I missing out on something by using the MDO Nappa Balm instead of the MDO Renovateur? Is the MDO Nappa Balm good enough to be used as a conditioner to keep the top grain of shoes soft and crack free, or is it too weak?

The MDO Nappa seems to get absorbed immediately on all my shoes, but specifically so on my English and Spanish shoes (EG, Cheaney, Carmina etc)

Any advise appreciated.

 

[Munky]

Hello gentlemen;

This is the only my second post here, I was hoping to get some insight from some of the experts here.

I have multiple “cleaning” and “conditioning” products including Bick 4, Venetian, AE Premium Conditioner in the jar, Saphir MDO Lotion, Saphir MDO Renovateur, and Saphir MDO Nappa. I have enough shoes that I normally wear a pair once or twice a month, but because of some changes in my life I haven’t worn most of my dress shoes in 6-7 months, but will resume using them in my regular rotation come the new year. They are not worn hard, No driving, long walking, water etc. Car to Office use only. I have two brand new pairs that I have not even had an opportunity to wear yet. Also, my shoes are only lightly shined with Saphir MDO Pommadier or Allen Edmonds tube polish (Collonil Waterproof). no stronger waxes have ever been used for mirror shines.

Since I am going I am going to be resuming my regular rotation soon, i decided to condition and shine my shoes. That brought up my obsessive tendencies. Based on all the information I could gather, and the opinions from some that Renovateur is not really much of a conditioner, I have reduced my routine to

1-using Bick 4 as a quick cleaner (if needed)
2-using Saphir Nappa Balm as a Conditioner (2 coats)
3-Using a minuscule amount of Pommadier to shine.

Question is this: am I missing out on something by using the MDO Nappa Balm instead of the MDO Renovateur? Is the MDO Nappa Balm good enough to be used as a conditioner to keep the top grain of shoes soft and crack free, or is it too weak?

The MDO Nappa seems to get absorbed immediately on all my shoes, but specifically so on my English and Spanish shoes (EG, Cheaney, Carmina etc)

Any advise appreciated.

If you have lots of pairs of shoes and only wear a pair 'from the car to the office', my advice would be what it always is. Brush a lot, use occasional cream and/or wax. I really don't understand the idea that shoes needs loads of products thrown at them. They are made for wearing. Wear them and brush them. You can't go far wrong. Yours, as always, Munky.

 

[bjhofkin]

I know many folks really like Pure Polish products – formerly known as GlenKaren – which are truly all-natural. Looks like they have a cleaner/conditioner-in-one, cream polishes, and wax polishes.

Also, if you're ever in need of waterproofing for winter wear, @DWFII recommends Montana Pitch Blend, which, unlike Sno Seal for instance, is also all-natural.

I'm planning on trying those products and using them instead of Saphir if they work well for me.

Hello gentlemen;

This is the only my second post here, I was hoping to get some insight from some of the experts here.

I have multiple “cleaning” and “conditioning” products including Bick 4, Venetian, AE Premium Conditioner in the jar, Saphir MDO Lotion, Saphir MDO Renovateur, and Saphir MDO Nappa. I have enough shoes that I normally wear a pair once or twice a month, but because of some changes in my life I haven’t worn most of my dress shoes in 6-7 months, but will resume using them in my regular rotation come the new year. They are not worn hard, No driving, long walking, water etc. Car to Office use only. I have two brand new pairs that I have not even had an opportunity to wear yet. Also, my shoes are only lightly shined with Saphir MDO Pommadier or Allen Edmonds tube polish (Collonil Waterproof). no stronger waxes have ever been used for mirror shines.

Since I am going I am going to be resuming my regular rotation soon, i decided to condition and shine my shoes. That brought up my obsessive tendencies. Based on all the information I could gather, and the opinions from some that Renovateur is not really much of a conditioner, I have reduced my routine to

1-using Bick 4 as a quick cleaner (if needed)
2-using Saphir Nappa Balm as a Conditioner (2 coats)
3-Using a minuscule amount of Pommadier to shine.

Question is this: am I missing out on something by using the MDO Nappa Balm instead of the MDO Renovateur? Is the MDO Nappa Balm good enough to be used as a conditioner to keep the top grain of shoes soft and crack free, or is it too weak?

The MDO Nappa seems to get absorbed immediately on all my shoes, but specifically so on my English and Spanish shoes (EG, Cheaney, Carmina etc)

Any advise appreciated.

 

[BertCaes]

Dear Gentlemen,

I am a shoe repairer in Belgium. The painting of shoes intrigued me enormously and would have liked some info about this.

Since I would like to add this to my job. because this could be an added value for my work and my store.

Where do you buy Crust leather shoes?

Which paint is the best and where can you find it?

Is someone willing to give a small education to me, to help me get started (preferably in Belgium or neighboring countries)?

With best regards

Bert

 

[Christian GV.]

Dear Gentlemen,

I am a shoe repairer in Belgium. The painting of shoes intrigued me enormously and would have liked some info about this.

Since I would like to add this to my job. because this could be an added value for my work and my store.

Where do you buy Crust leather shoes?

Which paint is the best and where can you find it?

Is someone willing to give a small education to me, to help me get started (preferably in Belgium or neighboring countries)?

With best regards

Bert

Welcome to StyleForum!

Some shoe makers sell shoes with only crust leather, e.g. Yanko Shoes and can be acquired at patine.pl (link to patine.pl crust shoes). Or you can contact shoe makers directly.

There are three main brands for leather dye. French brand Saphir, and American brands Fiebings and Angelus. I guess Saphir is the best option since you're based in Belgium and they have a lot of colours to choose from. Available at web shops like Valmour, AFPOS, MonsieurChaussure, etc.

For starting up, Niklas Nordin's patina guide on skolyx.se is perfect. Have fun and feel free to share your results along the way!

 

[HarrisonK]

I use Saphir Renovateur on all of my shoes (from low end shoes to C&J) without issue. I recently bought a new pair of shoes, from a manufacturer who I will not name, and I applied Renovateur to the first shoe as I always do. To my surprise, it appears the Renovateur stripped the shoe of its color. The shoes are one week old and I've only worn them once. I have already emailed the manufacturer to ask for guidance. In the meantime, what do you think happened here? Will my local cobbler be able to fix this?

 

[stage]

I use Saphir Renovateur on all of my shoes (from low end shoes to C&J) without issue. I recently bought a new pair of shoes, from a manufacturer who I will not name, and I applied Renovateur to the first shoe as I always do. To my surprise, it appears the Renovateur stripped the shoe of its color. The shoes are one week old and I've only worn them once. I have already emailed the manufacturer to ask for guidance. In the meantime, what do you think happened here? Will my local cobbler be able to fix this?

I recommend that you do not use Saffir Renovat freely. Except when you adjust the color of your shoes or modify the color. Also, I don't think there's anything you can do about it now because you already used Saffir Renovat. The question is how experienced a cobbler will be to ask for this work. From the pictures, I don't think it'll be solved with shoe cream. I think It need to dye recover. Final result would be more darker better than now : )

Here is my shoes dye video : )

 

[troika]

Are we sure that we're not confusing renomat with renovat? I've been using renovat for all types of shoes in every color and never had it strip a finish.

The only thing I can think of besides the confusion in the product, is that the shoe was already wet and the friction caused the dye to come out?

 

[EZB]

Are we sure that we're not confusing renomat with renovat? I've been using renovat for all types of shoes in every color and never had it strip a finish.

The only thing I can think of besides the confusion in the product, is that the shoe was already wet and the friction caused the dye to come out?

It looks to me like the shoe was painted and not dyed. Renovateur will strip color that is applied cheaply as a paint

 

[MNJ83]

If you have lots of pairs of shoes and only wear a pair 'from the car to the office', my advice would be what it always is. Brush a lot, use occasional cream and/or wax. I really don't understand the idea that shoes needs loads of products thrown at them. They are made for wearing. Wear them and brush them. You can't go far wrong. Yours, as always, Munky.

Thanks for your reply. I always hear how important it is to keep the shoes conditioner, so that’s why I have been wondering about the Nappa vs. Renovateur.

 

[BXpress]

The only thing Renovateur does to my shoes is to make them look greasy for a relatively long time. I recommend using it on shoes that will be out of your rotation for the forseeable future. The shoes on your picture look like a worst case of Renomat usage (which i personally haven't experienced either so far).

Renovateur is not only a conditioner but also a cleaner and as EZB mentioned, can strip off the colour of shoes that are not thoroughly dyed.

Freshly renomated and renovated shoes, no issues other than a greasy look which will recede given time (my cheapest shoes btw):

 

[Munky]

New shoes are, by definition...er...new. They don't need renovating. Sincerely yours, Munky.

 

[HarrisonK]

So I definitely used the Renovateur conditioner, not renomat. The manufacturer emailed me telling me that the "museum" finish of the shoe is more delicate than regular calf and thus he's not surprised that the conditioner stripped the finish. I'm a little upset that wasn't made clear to me either via the website, or via the salesperson who told me care instructions in the store. I took the shoes to my local cobbler who is going to strip all the finish from the pair then redye them some shade of mid-brown using Saphir dye. I should have plain brown calf shoes after this process. I'm a little disappointed that the manufacturer didn't offer to exchange the shoes as this shouldn't have happened, but not much I can about it as I love almost all the shoes in this company's lineup and I plan to buy more as I can afford it. I just feel like I wasted several hundred dollars for literally one wear.

Also, Munky, my understanding is it is not unusual for new shoes to come arrive in need of a conditioning. You never know how long the shoes have been sitting in a box in the warehouse. Additionally, for most shoes, conditioning can't hurt the shoe.

 

[Munky]

d
Also, Munky, my understanding is it is not unusual for new shoes to come arrive in need of a conditioning. You never know how long the shoes have been sitting in a box in the warehouse. Aditionally, for most shoes, conditioning can't hurt the shoe.[/QUOTE]

...except, of course, when it can.

 

[HarrisonK]

d
Also, Munky, my understanding is it is not unusual for new shoes to come arrive in need of a conditioning. You never know how long the shoes have been sitting in a box in the warehouse. Aditionally, for most shoes, conditioning can't hurt the shoe.

...except, of course, when it can. [/QUOTE]
LOL yes. Unbelievable.