The maintenance of leather shoes and leather has always been a knowledge worth learning and exploring for friends who love leather craft products. Among them, the fact that leather is afraid of water is a subject that must be learned. There are many friends who have just come into contact with leather shoes, especially shoes with leather soles, and always have a stereotype, thinking that Taiwan’s humid climate cannot often wear leather shoes to go out, which will cause mold and deformation of the leather surface……
In fact, as long as you develop a good habit of leather maintenance on weekdays, and the correct concept of leather maintenance. It will keep the leather shoes in the best condition when the rain comes, and go out with you handsomely. However, if you want to do a good job, you must first sharpen your tools, and here are three steps to help your leather shoes no longer be afraid of rain!
Waterproof steps for leather shoe maintenance| Step 1: Prevention is always better than cure (leather care oils, waxes).
Prevention is better than cure! On weekdays when the weather is stable, do a good job of basic maintenance in advance, so that the leather shoes have a basic layer of protection. A small amount of water splashes can effectively protect the upper. For basic leather shoe maintenance, first remove dust with a shoe brush, apply leather care milk, and then use leather maintenance wax to evenly apply the leather upper.
The wax seals out moisture from the leather and forms a protective film that reinforces the waterproofing of the shoe itself. At the same time, this is also to maintain the toughness of the leather upper leather, so that the leather shoes will not be easily damaged and broken when exposed to external forces. It should be noted that excessive leather oil or wax will cause clogged pores and mildew.
※ Frequency of use: Regular maintenance of leather shoes every 1~2 months, for more maintenance methods, please refer to the leather shoes maintenance │ basic maintenance trilogy.
Read Leather Shoe Maintenance│Basic Maintenance Trilogy
Leather Shoes Care Waterproof Steps | Step 2: Surface waterproofing (waterproof spray).
After using the leather maintenance oil and wax, let it sit overnight to allow the leather shoes to absorb the ingredients of the skin care products. After that, prepare a waterproof spray for leather the next day, spray it evenly on the upper about 30 cm away from the upper, and wait for 15 minutes for the leather surface to dry, so that the upper has a stronger waterproof effect. (This step is recommended to be repeated 2-3 times)
Spraying a waterproof spray is like a second layer of protection for leather shoes, which can effectively isolate the penetration of moisture, and also has the effect of preventing dirt adhesion, so as to increase the stronger water insulation power for the leather and make the leather get more complete protection.
※ Frequency: once every 1~2 weeks
▲ waterproof spray measurement video
▲ forest fruit waterproof spray
Leather shoes maintenance waterproof steps | Step 3: Leather shoes are maintained on a daily basis (wooden shoe supports).
If it is unfortunate that the leather surface of the leather shoes has been penetrated by moisture, it is necessary to take follow-up reinforcement treatment immediately. As long as the shoes have been drenched in heavy rain, you can prepare a white clean cotton cloth, wring it out in water, gently press the upper of the shoes to absorb the dirt in the rainwater, and then put the shoes near the dehumidifier to dehumidify for 1~2 days. It is recommended to do basic maintenance for the shoes after they are completely dry.
It is not uncommon for us to experience deformation of shoes after wearing them on rainy days, mainly because of the stretching properties of leather. Therefore, in rainy days, you should make good use of the hanger of shoes-shoe support. “Shoe support” is an indispensable part of the daily maintenance of gentleman’s leather shoes, which can provide good support for the shoe body, so that the leather shoes are not easy to deform and soften due to factors such as long-term wear or moisture. Choose a pair of shoesticks that are the right size, and when you take off your shoes, put them in when the leather is still warm and the warmth of your feet has not begun to shrink, so that you can maintain the original shape of the shoe and help maintain the shine of the leather.
Remember, do not use a hot air dryer to dry your shoes directly.
※ Frequency of use: Use every day
▲ 3/4 carved zigzag wing pattern oxford shoes
In addition to high durability, wood is very suitable for placing in shoes to maintain a certain amount of humidity because of its ability to regulate humidity. Too dry and too wet is not a good leather maintenance environment, which is why we recommend using wooden shoe support, and compared with plastic shoe support, it is more helpful to absorb the foot sweat left in the leather shoes, so as to control odor and keep dry.
Another reason for using the log material is that the elegant wood texture presented by the log and the unique natural aroma of the wood itself are also one of the reasons why many people with good taste love to use it.
Tips for daily maintenance of leather shoes
If you are wearing leather shoes with leather soles, be sure to “tilt” the soles to keep the soles ventilated after they are embedded in the shoe supports, and the leather outsoles can use the pores of the leather surface to dry the soles more quickly, and can also effectively prevent the leather from getting wet and softening for a long time. Remember! Do not expose your shoes to the sun and do not use hot air to dry, because the high temperature will cause brittleness in advance, and then cause cracks in the leather.
After natural air drying, it can be a good time to apply maintenance oil to your shoes because rainy days will wear out the maintenance oil and lose a certain degree of oil. When the rain comes, through this maintenance method, you can prolong the life of the leather shoes you wear on your feet and accompany you to walk more and farther. But if you are not very wet by heavy rain or have moldy, you can also refer to this collection of leather shoes moldy, how to deal with it at home?, so that you can do preliminary treatment.
▲ 3/4 carved zigzag wing pattern oxford shoes
Finally, we often recommend that our customers try to keep more than two pairs of leather shoes for replacement, especially in the rainy and humid environment in the north, leather shoes need a period of time to dry and repair when wet, and taking turns to replace them is a great help for the life of leather shoes.
For office workers who need to wear leather shoes every day, if there are two pairs of shoes that can be replaced in turn, one of them can choose leather soles, and the other can choose rubber soled shoes, so that they can be worn in rainy days, so as to avoid the dilemma of not having shoes to wear on important occasions.
See more leather shoe care gadgets
The treatment of water marks and rain stains on leather shoes
During the rainy season, many friends will bring their shoes to the store to inquire about how to maintain them, and the most common problem is “water marks”. The appearance of water marks is varied, may be light, dark, smudged, and the reason is that under the rain wash, the upper part of the oil wax peels off, and the moisture penetrates into the leather and forms spots, such rain stains also cause many customers to mistakenly think that it is damp and moldy. Through simple treatment, you can fade the water marks, but the best way is to develop the habit of daily maintenance!
▲ Water marks on shoes after a rainy day
Step 1: Clean the upper with detergent or water
Use Columbus Cleanser to remove the old shoe milk and wax from the upper, and if you don’t have a special cleaning milk for leather shoes, you can wipe the upper with a cotton cloth moistened with water and wrung out.
Step 2: Wet compress water stains, spots, and dirt
After the cleaner or upper is dry, wipe with a clean white damp cloth and wet the upper to dissolve the water stains and dirt before drying. Stubborn spots can be rubbed repeatedly to make them fade and not noticeable. When the junction of the water marks is relatively inconspicuous, use the same cleanser and wipe as described above until the marks fade away.
Step 3: Dry it out
After confirming that the water marks have disappeared, place the shoe support inside the shoe and place the shoe in a well-ventilated place. Once the shoes are completely dry, it’s time for basic maintenance.
▲ After maintenance
Read Leather Shoe Maintenance│Basic Maintenance Trilogy
The leather shoes in the “Further Reading”
collection are moldy, how to deal with them at home?
How do you make the shoes you wear look new? Four tips for cleaning leather shoes [Practical teaching of leather shoe maintenance] A leather shoe maintenance class that men can learn
Words / Qian Wen/Gary
