How to take care of your leather shoes

You've spent good money on those fashionable shoes. Spend a little time with some easy preventive maintenance techniques that can make those expensive leather shoes last longer.

Use water repellent

Before using your shoes for the first time, apply water repellent to the leather. This will keep them better preserved, and your feet dry should you land in a puddle. After the first application, reapply it as instructed on the products label. Most experts recommend that you use a water-based repellent to seal the leather because it allows it to breathe and the moisture inside it to escape. Moisture impacts leather’s properties so keeping moisture at the proper level is necissary; too much moisture causes the leather to stretch, while too little moisture causes the leather to shrink. In both cases, the leather becomes ugly and loses its original fit. For as little as $8, a can of spray-on water repellent can dramatically increase the comfort and the lifespan of your leather shoes.

Tip: Wipe your shoes with a clean, warm sponge before adding more coats of repellent; this will warm the leather, and allow the leather to better absorb the repelent, and it also prevents trapping dirt between the leather and the repellent. It would be bad to rub the dirt into your shoes.

Use shoe polish, It protects like wax on your car

A good shoe polish keeps leather shoes shining like a new dime. Polishing your shoes regularly does two things: It covers and repairs the damage of daily wear and tear and it nourishes and moisturizes the leather, keeping it flexible and healthy. Experts recommend using cream-based polishes and taking your shoes with you when you purchase polish to ensure you get the best matches for the tone of your shoese.

Tip: Buff the polish off your shoes with a pair of panty hose to get an optimal shine.

Hang your shoes on a tree

Do yourself a favor: Use shoe trees in all of your good pairs of leather shoes. The advantage of using shoe trees is that they fill out the shoe, helping the leather maintain its form. This prevents the leather from shrinking and creasing, as well as removing excess moisture which again helps prevent this damage.

Like other preventative measures, you have multiple choices when buying shoe trees, but the experts will tell you there’s only one viable option: ones made of cedar. Cedar has the ability to absorb harmful moisture and objectionable odors. Any reputable shoe store will have shoe trees in stock, so go ahead and get this $20 add-on to keep your shoes in mint condition.

Tip: Insert the shoe tree immediately after taking off your shoes; this allows the interior moisture to be instantly absorbed.