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

[DapperAndy]

Thanks for the reply, it's appreciated. The boots have been worn and then placed in the wardrobe without shoe trees, I've purchased some that are due soon, they have had no care taken of them apart from when they were a month old or so, they're now 3-4 years old but lightly used. I've not worn them much and sort of forgotton about them but I'm going to start wearing them again but this time taking care of them too.

I've had a good luck in my shoe polish tin and this is what I have! I'll get on Amazon for a few more bits if needed, would neutral or coloured products be recommended? What would people say are my essentials please?

thanks again.

One step at a time. If you haven't given the boots any product in 3-4 years, and you're new to this, don't smother them with product right away, as it might be difficult to tell what's helpful and what's not.

Use trees, brush, clean and condition them, then let it sit for a day or so. That alone will affect significant change, assuming the leather is quite thirsty (which it looks to be).

Brush them, then add some cream the next day to give it additional protection and replenish the color that faded or was scuffed. Use a color match. Neutral would be fine if you started with trees, brushing, and conditioner, because it would compliment the natural migration of the oils. But you neglected to care for them over the first few years. So all a neutral would do now is protect and - not - replenish the color that it could use.

That should get you going.

 

[EmmerdaleFarm]

One step at a time. If you haven't given the boots any product in 3-4 years, and you're new to this, don't smother them with product right away, as it might be difficult to tell what's helpful and what's not.

Use trees, brush, clean and condition them, then let it sit for a day or so. That alone will affect significant change, assuming the leather is quite thirsty (which it looks to be).

Brush them, then add some cream the next day to give it additional protection and replenish the color that faded or was scuffed. Use a color match. Neutral would be fine if you started with trees, brushing, and conditioner, because it would compliment the natural migration of the oils. But you neglected to care for them over the first few years. So all a neutral would do now is protect and - not - replenish the color that it could use.

That should get you going.

That's great, so I've given them a quick wipe down and am waiting for them to dry naturally with a view to brushing them and using the Saphir Reneveteur later today and leave them while, do we think this could get the black discoloration out?

appreciate the replies

 

[darhol]

Hey man, welcome to Styleforum. I'm not nearly as veteran as some of the other esteemed members on here, but allow me to share what I know about shoe shining based on my own research, experience, and consulting with other members on this forum.

For point 1. You're basically right. Renovateur is used mainly as a leather lotion, i.e. to soften, moisturize and provide the leather with nutrients. It does not contain any pigmentation, meaning that it won't change the color of the shoe. The cream polishes on the other hand, do contain pigment. They also serve to provide the leather with a bit of nourishment, but not to the same degree as the renovateur. Their main purpose is to cover up small scuffs and recolor the leather.

So because of the nature of the renovateur, you indeed don't need to use it as frequently as cream polish. It's there to provide nourishment to the leather while also doing some gentle cleaning.

For point 2. I would recommend getting a colored cream polish, but a neutral wax polish. The cream polish will do a much better job a recoloring the leather. I personally haven't used colored wax polishes yet, as they provide much less pigmentation to the leather when you're applying it to your shoes. Wax should be seen more as a protective layer you add on top of the shoe after applying cream polish first. I would therefore not recommend using only conditioner and wax, but conditioner + cream polish + wax.
In terms of regular Saphir wax and Pate de luxe wax, I have both products. Quality wise, they are both good, but I think the shine with pate de luxe is slightly better, and lasts longer than the standard wax. I also found it much easier to create a mirror shine with PDL as opposed to the standard version.

For point 3., unless you want to wash your only brush every single time depending on which shoe color you are working on, I highly recommend getting one brush per shoe color. I personally don't know of anyone who uses a separate brush for cleaning or buffing. I use the same one for different purposes. I just make sure I use them on the same shoe color.

Thanks for such a detailed reply! Your suggestions go in line with what I've since read and watched in more YouTube videos! Planning on picking these all up soon!

 

[lullemans72]

Thanks for such a detailed reply! Your suggestions go in line with what I've since read and watched in more YouTube videos! Planning on picking these all up soon!

My pleasure, and best of luck on your new journey. On a side note, I tried editing my previous post several times to include some Youtube channels I like, but for some odd reason it was never included in the edit.
Here they are again just in case:

1. Kirby Allison/Hanger project: great channel about menswear that contains a LOT of information about shining and maintaining shoes (FWIW, this is where I learned to do mirror shines).
2. Elegant Oxford: Similar channel to the above
3. Trenton and Heath: Great channel run by two shoe cobblers who regularly post videos on fixing shoes, as well as tips and tricks to take care of yours.

 

[unprocessed]

Is Saphir Renovateur an effective and safe way of removing layers of waxes, including mirror gloss? Or would it struggle to strip them off?

I still refuse to use alcohol or Renomat, but my concern is that the captoe won’t get nourished unless I strip the waxed every couple of months.

 

[Betelgeuse]

Some suede care. My cousin bought the same pair of slippers as me but he is not a shoe care aficionado, so he has never gave them some care. Nothing. Not even brushing or using shoe trees. So when I posted last week how my shoes ended up after cleaning he asked me if I can clean his, so as a good shoe care aficionado I accepted. He thought they were ready to meet a new owner or the trash can. I told him he was crazy, I mean the lock stitch of the sole isn't even visible yet, they still have like 80% of their life. This is how they looked before:

So, the first thing I did was to put in shoe trees and I left them one full day so they return a bit bacj to shape. Then after brushing with a boarwith brass bristle brush I proceeded to remove the stains of the toe with the gommadin. Most of them went out easily (which I think that a regular brush after wearing will prevent that) but I still thought they needed a deeper cleaning. So I used Omnidaim and left them to dry another day with the shoe trees in. After that, I used the crepe brush to bring up the nap again and saw some dark spots so tried with Gommadin to take them out and worked perfectly. Then brushed aain with the boar/brass bristle brush and applied suede renovateur.

After that, I let it dry 15 minutes and brushed again with the boar/brass bristle. Then applied Nano Protector so if he spills something on his shoe, it doesn't get stucked. Brushed again and this is the final result, what do you think?

 

[SchachMundialECapital]

Excellent result, albeit the last image is clearly using an Instagram filter, thus not rendering the color accurately.

 

[Betelgeuse]

Excellent result, albeit the last image is clearly using an Instagram filter, thus not rendering the color accurately.

Thnaks! Nope, no filter hehe it was hard to get the White Balance right cause there was a lot of light coming in so it came out a little bit more saturated.

 

[SartorialTaste]

Can anybody tell me what is wrong with my shoes? The leather seems to be rubbing against each other in the part where the shoe creases. They are Herring Richmonds and I polish them with Meltonian shoe cream. When I first bought them I polished the entirety of the shoes with cream polish and then a light coat of wax polish. Is the prior coating of wax polish causing the leather not to absorb the cream polish as well or is it something else?

 

[Reiver]

Can anybody tell me what is wrong with my shoes? The leather seems to be rubbing against each other in the part where the shoe creases. They are Herring Richmonds and I polish them with Meltonian shoe cream. When I first bought them I polished the entirety of the shoes with cream polish and then a light coat of wax polish. Is the prior coating of wax polish causing the leather not to absorb the cream polish as well or is it something else?

Strange. I don't think the polish will be stopping the cream polish from absorbing, this would only be the case if they had many layers built up.

I would possibly just add a coat or two of dark brown wax polish which may help. Coloured shoe cream may help also.

The leather generally looks in good condition.

 

[SartorialTaste]

Thanks Reiver for the reply. This problem doesn't occur with my other shoes. Maybe it is the creasing pattern that causes the leather to rub against itself. Or maybe I should let the polish dry a little longer before I wear them.

 

[Reiver]

Thanks Reiver for the reply. This problem doesn't occur with my other shoes. Maybe it is the creasing pattern that causes the leather to rub against itself. Or maybe I should let the polish dry a little longer before I wear them.

I’ve never really seen it like that before. I would imagine with a gradual and light build up of polish or coloured cream it can be hidden.

I wouldn’t think it’s down to not leaving polish long enough before wear unless there was far too thick a layer on.

 

[Betelgeuse]

My mom's shoes needed a bit of care, she was pleased with the result.

 

[aj2603]

Can anybody tell me what is wrong with my shoes? The leather seems to be rubbing against each other in the part where the shoe creases. They are Herring Richmonds and I polish them with Meltonian shoe cream. When I first bought them I polished the entirety of the shoes with cream polish and then a light coat of wax polish. Is the prior coating of wax polish causing the leather not to absorb the cream polish as well or is it something else?

maybe too much of polish.. u can try removing all the polish and applying a new coat

 

[eTrojan]

Can anybody tell me what is wrong with my shoes? The leather seems to be rubbing against each other in the part where the shoe creases. They are Herring Richmonds and I polish them with Meltonian shoe cream. When I first bought them I polished the entirety of the shoes with cream polish and then a light coat of wax polish. Is the prior coating of wax polish causing the leather not to absorb the cream polish as well or is it something else?

From my POV there is way too much product being applied across the board. I only use colored polish if the existing polish appears to have lost some color or I have a ding to cover. For the most part, I keep my shoes conditioned with Bick 4, hit it with a brush when the conditioner is dry, and then buff it out with a flannel. Keeps them glowing. Occasionally -- and especially for shell cordovan -- I will use Venetian Shoe Creme (VSC) to add luster and to remove some surface grime as it has some very mild solvent qualities.