Luxury leather shoes are fun to wear. They add a classy look to your overall outfit and are comfortable at the same time. Agree? You must be a fan of premium leather shoes. You love to invest in them and they bring joy to your social life. But you’ve realized that they need good care and not every hack works well for them. Oops! You’ve just ruined your favorite pair of leather shoes. Where did you go wrong?
If this is your story or you just want to be cautious regarding the perseverance of your leather shoes then we’ve got you covered. It’s not as expensive or time-consuming as you may think. We at Biruki, have unveiled a list of secrets to preserve your luxury leather shoes.
Before we get to the list, let us inform you that these luxury entities need love. Don’t be harsh to them. Keep them with care and they’ll stay with you for many years to come.
So, without wasting more of your time, here is a list of 11 secrets to keep your leather shoes clean and new just like they were when you first got them. Let’s do it!
1. Apply a Suitable Protective Coat:
Although there are various types of waterproof products available to preserve leather shoes, don’t trust all of them. Because not every waterproofing spray will suit your pair of shoes as each of them serves a different purpose.
For example, if you wear your leather shoes in a typically wet climate like rainy or snowy climates, then it would be best to use beeswax. Beeswax is produced as a by-product of the honey production process. No doubt, beeswax products have proven to protect your shoes against water. Moreover, they don’t get absorbed in the leather, so they won’t damage the material itself.
Instead, they stick to the surface to protect it for a longer duration.
2. Say ‘No’ to Petroleum Distillates:
Some experts say that adding a layer of vaseline can protect your luxury leather shoes. The respective coating helps the leather in breathing. Also, it softens the material while smoothening the scratches and scuffs. Surprisingly, it prevents your leather shoes from cracking, adding to their reliability.
But then other experts say that petroleum distillates are harmful to leather. This is true as well. The petroleum distillates dry and harden your shoes. Because they remove natural oils from the leather.
Consequently, using pure ingredients and products like vaseline will do best for your premium leather shoes. But don’t forget to avoid petroleum distillates at all costs.
3. Don't Wear the Same Pair Everyday!
Let them rest for a day or two. Certainly, wearing the same pair of leather shoes every day will make it wear out soon. This is because when you wear it every day and for the most part, your feet sweat. And we can’t deny this fact. Eventually, the leather absorbs it which reduces its chances of longevity.
Practice care, remember? Let them breathe.
But what if you have to go out again today! No worries, invest a bit more in luxury leather shoes. Give yourself a treat and buy premium leather shoes. So, you don’t have to rely on that one pair.
4. Smooth Cleaning Procedure:
Once you reach home, clean your leather shoes before keeping them in place. As they have faced a lot of dirt, moisture, and bad weather throughout the day, it would be good to clear it all. At Biruki, we recommend a smooth cleaning procedure.
Here are the simple steps that you can easily follow:
1. Wipe off the dirt with a smooth cloth
2. Apply the cleaner and scrub lightly with a soft brush
3. Wipe off the excess dirt with a new clean cloth
4. Let the shoes dry at the room temperature
The above steps can help in cleaning your shoes and removing any dirt. However, never leave your home without adding a protectant to your shoes. Moreover, beware of getting any salt stains. In that case, you may have ruined the color of your shoe with white stains from removing the salt stains through a vinegar and water mixture.
5. Leather Conditioners Work Well:
Along with applying protective layers and cleaning your leather shoes regularly, leather conditioners can also be helpful in the shoe perseverance process.
Applying leather conditioners to your leather shoes helps in protecting them against long-term damage. You can condition your shoes once a month. And this easy practice will preserve your leather shoes for a long time.
However, the choice of leather conditioner depends on you. There are a variety of leather conditioners that serve the more or less similar purpose of keeping your leather shoes moisturized and free from cracks.
6. Polish Them Like Never Before!
Polishing your leather shoes is a good idea. But don’t overdo it.
When looking for a polish for your leather shoes, choose the exact color. Otherwise, that slight difference in shade will cost the elegance of your shoes. Yes, you’ll get them stained. Moreover, it would be best to use cream-based polishes as they’ll fill the purpose of moisturizing as well as polishing the shoes.
Now, when you’ve got the desired polish, apply it with a soft cloth moving in a circular motion. Finally, end the process with a polishing brush or glove to buff the leather shoes and retain the real shine.
7. Avoid Direct Sun Rays:
Direct sun rays can fade the color of your leather shoes. Well, it doesn’t mean that you can’t cross the road wearing your shoes under the sun. But prolonged exposure to the sun isn’t good for them.
Moreover, excessive heat and direct sun rays can lead to cracks and drying out of leather. This eventually adds to their short life. And that isn’t our goal, right?
So, to ensure the durability of your luxury leather shoes, keep them away from the sun. Also, never store them in a hot area. Instead of that, opt for dark places with a little humidity and enough ventilation.
8.Breathable Bags for Leather Shoes:
Regardless of the place where you’ve kept your shoes, they might catch dust. So, the best solution would be to keep them covered. No, not in that wrapped-up box.
When not in use, it would be best to keep your premium leather shoes inside breathable bags made up of fabric. So that they can be protected from dust and breathe anyway.
Think of leather as your skin. It needs a perfectly maintained environment to stay healthy. Not so warm, not so cold, sufficient air and a lot of care.
9. Cedar Shoe Trees:
Do you often see your leather shoes losing their original shape and resort to fixing it by pressing and pulling them here and there? This may work a couple of times to recover their shape, but you’ll soon realise you’ve just cracked your new pair of leather shoes.
So, if you want to maintain the original shape of your shoes then using cedar shoe trees is the key. Keeping these shoe trees inside your pair of premium leather shoes will help in preserving the original shoe shape and contours.
You might ask yourself why are we stressing on ‘cedar shoe trees’ instead of just ‘shoe trees’? The reason is that cedar shoe trees are good for absorbing the perspiration from your shoe linings while heavily finished wood trees won’t serve the additional purpose.
10. Shoehorn for Leather Shoes:
Leather shoes need to be worn with care. You can’t just stretch or pull them while wearing them. Because the extra stretching will create linings in the leather.
Therefore, to avoid such mistakes, use a shoehorn while you wear your luxury leather shoes. This will keep the back of your shoe (heel counter) upright and straight. Moreover, its smooth and rigid surface will allow easy insertion of your foot. Hence, your foot will easily slide inside the shoe.
So, next time, when you go out, you won’t need to complain about the top of the heel counter being crushed with your heel. Take your shoehorn and slide your feet inside. Save time while preserving your premium leather shoes.
11. Clean the Shoelaces:
Apart from caring for your luxury leather shoes, clean the shoelaces as well. The cleaning process entirely depends on the material of the shoelaces.
Untie the laces, separate them from your shoes, and clean them as per the type of their material. Similar to the shoes, don’t be harsh to the laces as well. Clean them gently, let them dry and tie them back into your shoes.
If they wear out, replace them with new ones. Don’t overlook replacing them when needed because they affect the overall look of your shoes.
Conclusion:
Luxury leather shoes are one of those classy accessories that when kept with care, can last for many years. It is not difficult to achieve their perseverance. All you need are a few good products, a cleaning practice, a follow-up of the best practices, and a bit more love for them. Also, don’t forget to have two or three pairs of shoes in your closet. This way you won’t get bored of wearing the same pair of shoes every day and they definitely won’t wear out as quickly. Grab a pair of luxury leather shoes for men now!