need advice for taking care of leather shoes

Hello, I wear leather dress shoes for work (school teacher) and they only last me a year or two before they are all scuffed up and need to be replaced (they take a good beating, sun/rain etc). Now doing some research, I cam upon many ways to condition/polish/wax etc your shoes to keep them going... and many many products one can purchase (Rad, but for shoes I suppose). Is there maybe one or two products that are "all purpose" that you would recommend that I could use for most shoes? Preferably colourless so that I can apply on both black and brown colours... does it exist? or am I dreaming? Thank you in advance.

INMO shoe care products can be like traditional shaving products, you can be a maximal or minimal as you want. You could probably get away with just applying some neutral (i.e. colorless) polish every once and a while. And if you really wanted to do it with as little fuss as possible, you could get a polish that has a built-in applicator, so you don't have to use brushes (both polish and buffing) or rags. I try to be as bare-bones as I can, but I also like to condition the leather as well so I use a leather conditioner first and then a polish. If you really don't care all that much about polishing, you could probably just use the conditioner or something like neatsfoot oil which will condition and preserve and sometimes can add a little bit of a shine that won't last long. There really isn't a single product that will condition and polish.

If you are wearing dress shoes, I suggest Saphir "renovateur". https://www.hangerproject.ca/saphir...mdsf0lbe6ojtqch3qh435&___store=canada_default

If you are wearing more casual leather shoes, Obenauf's LP. http://www.obenaufs.com/Heavy-Duty-LP-8-oz-p/heavy-duty-lp-8.htm

Both are "clear" so fine for black, brown, tan, ... anything but blue suede.

Seek out a real shoe store, not the shoe section of a department store. They probably have a wide selection of shoe-care products, and can provide you with some good advice on how to achieve the results you want.

Pick their brains for advice, and buy one or two small items as a courtesy. Then go looking online or at other stores for the products you saw in that shoe store, because their prices for accessories like this will probably be sky-high.

One question is what kind of shoes are you buying? If you are getting $50 shoes, you are lucky to get 2 years out of them with normal wear. A better quality leather that can be buffed and polished shouldn't get beyond repair unless you just completely ignore them.

You should also brush them off after you wear them to take care of any scuffs you picked up during the day. Also, get shoe trees, and keep them in the shoes when you aren't wearing them. Hit them with a leather conditioner every few wears, and with a cream polish every month or so, or to take care of any bigger scuffs your brush won't take out.

"what kind of shoes are you buying?"

I'll spend about $100 on a pair of shoes, ok so from the responses, I need a conditioner, and a polish. I have a black hockey puck of moneyworths polish, but I will look for a colourless one. Will polish waterproof? That obenaufs leather preservative.... is that considered polish or conditioner? Description seem to indicate both... I like that its a big tub though. Thanks for the input so far

Pecard's has a product for any kind of leather. Very good stuff, popular with museums and people preserving and restoring old leather. I myself use their Boot Oil on oil-tanned leather items like belts and shoes and their Leather Care Lotion on car seats a, leatherjackets and gloves. Another good brans is Collonil. I like their foam conditioner on all types of leather and Waterproof Colours (vlear product) cream for boots and gloves.

hotwheels

https://www.pecard.com

Would you recommend anything from Nikwax? I noticed that they make leather conditioners and waterproofers, I saw as I am familiar with their soft shell and performance wear side of things.

Or maybe the g-wax or leather conditioner from Grangers?

https://grangers.co.uk/footwear-care/

So many products to choose from...

I think Nikwax is good for waterproofing fabrics and leather, but for conditioning leather I prefer other products. For fabrics I like Penguin Ultra Dry spray for waterproofing.

hotwheels

Your info says you are in Cananda, but your product link points at the UK. If in the UK, give Collonil a shot.

http://www.collonil.com/en/waterstop-classic-2141.html

http://www.collonil.com/en/

hotwheels

hotwheels said:

Your info says you are in Cananda, but your product link points at the UK. If in the UK, give Collonil a shot.

http://www.collonil.com/en/waterstop-classic-2141.html

http://www.collonil.com/en/

hotwheels

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Oh sorry, yes I am in Canada. The UK grangers site is just the default main site it goes to.

linty1 said:

Will polish waterproof?

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No.

That obenaufs leather preservative.... is that considered polish or conditioner? Description seem to indicate both... I like that its a big tub though.

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It's a conditioner, but you can sort-of polish with it, and get a decent shine if you put in the effort. Or you can apply a polish over top, if you are looking for a really glossy shine.

I saw a sale on Saphir renovateur and ended up getting that, also a tin of Saphir pate de luxe. Hopefully that will suffice with condition/waterproof needs. Now on to youtube to watch then practise.

really good choices. I would humbly say that you should save and buy better shoes that can be resoled. spending 200-250 on allen Edmonds seconds that can be redone a couple times will save you money and help you immeasurable in the future

Plenty of good tips above. Treat and maintain your shoes like you would any other quality tool or piece of gear for maximum life.

daveinsweethome said:

really good choices. I would humbly say that you should save and buy better shoes that can be resoled. spending 200-250 on allen Edmonds seconds that can be redone a couple times will save you money and help you immeasurable in the future

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Allen edmond seconds? my ears are perked, where may I get these?

Shoebank.com or any Allen Edmonds outlet store.

Sweet! I also came up with Jack Erwin and John Doe for well made dress shoes at a good price.

My father was a high school teacher then administrator. Always wore dress shoes, and I know recognize that they were Florsheim Imperials for the most part. I never remember him actually buying a pair, though I do remember him taking them to the shoe guy for heels and soles. At least once a month I would help him shine shoes, and was thrilled when I had some of my own to shine.

A pair of good shoes will last several times longer than even one or two pair of average ones with proper care and periodic heel/sole replacement. I've never used danite/vibram soles but they apparently last much longer.

strop said:

I've never used danite/vibram soles but they apparently last much longer.

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from googling that means rubber sole as opposed to a wood one?