Boot care?

[FessaEst]

I have a apir of short Fly boots, and a newer pair of calf-length Office boots and both could do with a clean up. I am rubbish at caring for shoes. One pair is bottle green, the other brown. What should I be cleaning/polishing them with? I wear both loads so guess I should be using a protector of some sort too? TIA.

Okay, I don't practice what I preach but I did work in a shoe shop a while back and had to sell all the cleaning products so I should be able to advise!

You should use a soft shoe cloth and find some shoe cream that matches. If you can't find one that matches then you can get a neutral cream. Cream is better than polish as the cream sinks into the leather (apparently!) like moisturiser, rather than just sitting on top of it.

And then you should use a leather protector spray on top of them to make them water resistent.

Do you have any boot trees? They will help to keep the shape of your boots for longer and stop them sagging!

Shame I'm not still on commission

Thank you!

I was thinking about boot trees the other day - def need some for my longer ones.

Really not sure I will find the right colour matched cream for the Fly boots. Unless Fly do them...

What kind of shop am I looking for? Timpsons? Clarks? Supermarket?

Try good shoe shops like Jones Bootmaker, Russell & Bromley, although Clarks and Timpsons probably have it all too - supermarkets won't have very much.

boot trees on sale at my local clarks for a fiver at the mo. dunno if thats the case everywhere!

Woly for hard to match colours, there polishes are wonderful and can also be used to refurb handbags.

Do not use creams and polishes on suede or nubuck leathers, just smooth leathers.

Remove dust & dirt first with a brush before. Apply a little bit of cream and polish and work in with a soft cloth. Leave for a bit, then polish with a soft brush to within an inch of its life ... or until you have the level of shine you want. Breath on them occasionally or use a drop of water to bring out shine.

For patent leather use of neutral polish.

Check soles and heels for wear and get them repaired early because polished shoes with unkempt heels and soles look just wrong.

Have learnt a lot from DH who is ex RAF and polishes all shoes in this household

Thank you for all tips!

Woly creams ordered - sadly quite excited about rejuvenating my boots!

Thanks for the woly recommendation...have struggled to get the right purple for my new boots.