How to clean leather shoes?

Practice shows that only a few people know how to clean leather shoes in accordance with all the rules. The reason is simple - many simply do not understand that such products come in different types and have different care requirements. Even if not folk remedies are used, but ready-made specialized products, certain recommendations must be followed. In order not only to clean the material without damaging its texture, but also to give it additional aesthetic appeal, you need to learn to distinguish between types of processing of leather products.

Types of leather shoes and their features

There are not so many types of leather shoes, but each of them has certain properties and characteristics that affect the features of cleaning and care:

• With finishing. This approach gives the skin shine and allows it to maintain its properties. Such products are more resistant to moisture, so they can even be washed. To achieve the desired effect, manufacturers use different sprays, oils and waxes. It is such shoes that are most often sold in stores.

• Without finishing. Quite capricious products that you can take care of correctly only with the help of special tools. Only in this case they will not lose their functionality and appearance.

• Varnished. A special type of skin that is created using special natural and artificial resins. If you clean such a product at least once in violation of technical standards and requirements, its appearance will suffer significantly.

• Colored. A wide range of colors is achieved through the use of dyes, which affect the most ordinary skin during its processing. It is necessary not only to wash it in a special way, but also to choose the right shade of the care product.

• White. It is especially difficult to remove stains from such a surface, and any incorrect manipulation can change the original color of the product.

Understanding the difference between existing types of leather shoes, and taking into account their specifics, you can quickly and accurately clean your favorite products without the help of professionals.

Rules for cleaning leather shoes

When dealing with leather shoes with finishing, you need to pay attention to the following points:

• Preliminary preparation is necessarily carried out, for which they use a soft brush, a rag and a little warm water. First, with a brush, remove adhering dirt and dust from the surface of the product. Then we treat the skin with a dry cloth, completing the preliminary dry cleaning. Next, we wet the fabric, squeeze it hard and try to clean the visible persistent dirt. We send the product to dry, but not in the sun and not on the battery.
• If after surface cleaning the skin remains contaminated, they can be slightly rubbed with vinegar diluted with water in equal proportions. When the desired result is achieved, we proceed to further care for the dried shoes. To do this, apply a little cream of a suitable shade to the material and rub it with a lint-free cloth without passing a single patch. After the composition has dried, polish the skin with a soft brush. At the end, drip a little water on a clean cloth and polish the surface again.

Tip: When working with leather shoes, experts recommend using only filtered or boiled water. If you wash or clean such capricious products with tap water, then you will have to look for a means to remove limescale.

Pursuing material that has not undergone processing, we adhere to the following recommendations:

• In this case, pre-processing is again required, but it has certain specifics. First you need to clean the surface of the product with a dry brush, then with a slightly damp cloth.If there are old dirt on the skin, then we take a little saddle soap, whip it into a thick foam, apply it to the problem area and wash off with water. We properly dry the shoes (without external sources of exposure) and proceed to the caring manipulations.
• Leaving completely duplicates the approach, characteristic for products with finishing processing, but for final polishing not water, but mink oil is used.

When caring for other types of leather shoes, you need to pay attention to such points:

1. Contrary to popular belief, patent leather cannot be washed in the literal sense of the word. You need to take a clean sponge, moisten it in water, squeeze and lightly process the surface. You can not rub the skin, even fine sand can scratch the waxed material. Then we wait until the product dries and polish it with a velvet cloth. If patent leather has become tough, it can be restored with castor oil.
2. In the case of colored skin, first of all, we pay attention to the type of processing and act according to one of the instructions already given. After the material has been cleaned, it must be treated with the appropriate cream (if the skin is not varnished) and the main thing is not to make a mistake with the color and work through the entire surface without being distracted. Otherwise, after some time the product will go stained.
3. For pre-treatment of white products, we take a sponge, soap (can be replaced with shampoo) and water. From water and soap we prepare a homogeneous solution without lumps and drops. Wet a soft sponge in it, squeeze it slightly and pass along the skin surface. It is not worth washing white products, even if it seems that the material will withstand such an impact. After cleaning, repeat the procedure with clean water and dry the shoes. Stubborn stains are best treated with specialized store-based products or milk. White skin care consists of the use of colorless aerosols and sprays. In case of cracks and scuffs, we connect waxes and oils for white skin to the arsenal of products.

The listed cleaning methods are recommended not only if obvious contaminants are found. Better to resort to them every day. This will prevent quick wear of the products and maintain their original appearance for several years.