How To Care for Shoes

Polish your leather shoes appropriately. In order to care for your shoes and keep them looking their best, you should try to polish your leather shoes regularly. Make sure you choose a polish that matches the color of your shoe, as the dyes and waxes will blend into your shoes and cover any scuffs. Take out the laces and first give your shoes a quick clean with a damp cloth or sponge. Then apply polish in a circular motion with a rag, ensuring you reach every little nook and cranny of your shoe. Set the newly-polished shoe on a piece of newspaper to dry and then buff it to a perfect shine afterward.

Keep your canvas clean. Canvas shoes, running shoes, sneakers - these shoes are all made of basically the same materials and require the same care. You can purchase sneaker shampoos for extra tough or smelly stains. But some mild dish soap, water and a toothbrush are just as effective at caring for your shoes. Using a brush applicator and some elbow grease, you should be able to bring your sneakers back to their original color. Remove the laces and run them through a cycle in your washing machine. And then leave your shoes in a warm, breezy place to dry. (Avoid putting shoes into the dryer - they'll lose their shape and will often fall apart.)

Clean suede shoes properly. Suede shoes need a bit more special care than your sneakers do. To care for suede shoes, first know that they can't be polished. The idea with suede is that you prevent scuffs rather than care for them. So to keep your suede or nubuck shoes in tiptop shape, apply a good coat of water and stain repellant before you even wear them. This can be purchased from any shoe store. (And don't forget to reapply for best results). Using a fine brush, you can gently go over your suede or nubuck shoe to remove dirt, but don't scour the shoe! It will leave permanent marks on the nap of your suede shoe that no amount of care can fix. Suede cleaners can be purchased to get rid of general grime and build-up, but particularly harder stains will need the attention of a shoe-care professional.

Know general shoe care techniques. Everyone should be aware of general shoe care techniques. Keep more expensive shoes safely protected in shoe bags or boxes. This will stop them from rubbing and scrubbing against your other shoes and losing their shape. As well, clean your shoes regularly according to the materials they are made of so that stains won't permanently set. You'll save yourself a lot of money in the long run if you take the time to properly care for your shoes.