Proper shoe care is a guarantee of long wearing and beautiful appearance. It is not enough just to buy the pair you like. You need to properly look after her so that she pleases your legs with comfort, and your eyes with beauty.
Shoe care begins with finding out what material it is made of. Various tips, sometimes diametrically opposite, help preserve the appearance of genuine leather and nubuck. In addition, the care of winter boots and summer sandals is also different. Let’s figure out together how to care for shoes made of various materials.
General tips for taking care of your shoes at home
Shoe care should be carried out regularly so that it will serve you for many years and remain in its original condition.
Looking at a pair of shoes, you can draw conclusions about the character of their owner: if they are clean, then you have a neat and tidy person in front of you. To make the right impression, everyone needs to know the basics of proper shoe care.
Today in specialized stores you can buy shoe care products, and the range of them will be huge. With their help, you can clean both natural suede and fabric, lacquered coating. The main thing is to choose the right shoe care kits.
You need to take care of your shoes correctly. In order not to be mistaken, adhere to the following recommendations, they will help you clean your shoes yourself, completely remove dirt and restore the pristine look of your beloved pair.
- First of all, you need to understand that shoes must be correctly selected depending on the size of your feet. However, you don’t need to buy a pair that is much longer than your tall combat boots, or the boots will wobble. The size should be such that you feel comfortable. What happens if you wear shoes that are not the right size? The shoes will immediately lose their shape: the seams will come apart, cracks will appear on the lining, the sole will warp, the upper part of the material will come apart. In such a situation, even the most careful care will not help.
- Shoes must be suitable for the season. For example, you cannot wear summer sneakers in the winter season or shoes when it rains. You will not only catch a cold, but also throw out a new pair, which will immediately become unusable from cold and moisture.
- Before buying care products, you should carefully study the packaging, because each of them is intended for a specific material.
- Shoes should be dried on special stretch marks or with the help of pads. So wet shoes will become dry after 2 hours, while the insole will not tighten or deform. Don’t have special dryers? Then fill the shoes with crumpled paper sheets.
- When purchasing a shoe care gift set, make sure that the product you choose is high quality and suitable for the type of material.
- Shoe care begins with the fact that it must be properly stored, in no case allowing exposure to ultraviolet radiation. When exposed to sunlight, the material will burn out and deteriorate.
- The most important rule of care: the boots should be resting. This means that you have to have several pairs for one season.
- Before you start cleaning, you should inspect the boots. Have you noticed cracks or deformation? This means that the damage must be repaired, and then the surface of the shoe should be cleaned. Otherwise, by your actions, you will only harm, and the shoes will deform.
- Remove dirt from your beloved couple in the evening. Apply a cleansing cream or foam to the material, wait until the composition is absorbed. Then buff the surface until it shines. It is not recommended to clean your shoes in the morning, because the material will not dry out, dust will stick to the surface.
- It is worth covering your shoes with a protective cream 2-3 hours before you go outside.
- What should be the care of shoes to protect them from reagents sprinkled on sidewalks during icy conditions? In this case, it is necessary to choose creams based on beeswax or animal fat. These substances form a protective film on the surface, it will not allow the reagents to spoil the material.
- If your shoes have a sole made of genuine leather, prevention should be established.
Today in stores you can buy all kinds of care products. When choosing them, you need to understand whether a specific composition is suitable for the material from which your shoes or sneakers are made.
Leather products should not be used on suede boots, otherwise the material will be damaged. Next, let’s figure out how to clean the surface, as well as the inside of the shoes, and whether it is worth using water for this.
What should be the care for shoes made of genuine leather
If you have leather shoes and want them to last you as long as possible, shoe care should be correct and daily. When you wear your favorite pair all the time, water, dirt, reagents, salt and sunlight get on it, high temperatures are detrimental, which means that in order to maintain functionality and original appearance, care must be effective.
What happens if you don’t clean your shoes properly:
- spots and streaks form on the skin;
- the shoes will smell bad;
- the surface will not repel moisture;
- cracks and microdamages will appear on the skin;
- the material will burst;
- the skin will become dull;
- shoes will stop letting in air, the leg will sweat.
Proper care of leather shoes should be as follows:
1. Purification
When you go home after a walk, clean your shoes with a cloth soaked in water. A damp cloth or a stiff brush will also work to remove dust and dirt. In the most neglected case, when the shoes are dirty, a special shampoo should be applied to the surface. It must be mixed with water in a container, moisten a cloth, wring out, and then wipe the boots. At the same time, the surface is cleaned in the following sequence:
- first wash the heel;
- then the sole;
- then the outside of the cover.
To remove dirt from the surface, use a wide brush with sufficiently stiff bristles.
2. Wipe
When the shoes have been thoroughly cleaned of dirt, they should be wiped off. This step is necessary to prevent water from entering the leather and the seams between the top of the boots and the insole. Without wiping, the shoes will remain wet for a long time, because of this, they can come unstuck, mold may form inside the shoe, and the shoes will start to smell bad. To wipe your shoes, you should use a soft flannel or cotton rag. Rubbing is carried out in the following sequence: toe, vamp, ankle boots, back, then the sole.
