A Shoe Polishing Guide
Posted by Pavers Blog Team on
With great shoes comes great responsibility. Taking extra care of your footwear is a sure-fire way to help your shoes last. Let’s face it, your favourite shoes have probably been gathering dust over the course of the last two years, so it’s time to show your shoes the love that they truly deserve.
How do you keep your shoes looking their very best? By giving them a good polish of course! They say a lot can be said about a person by their footwear and a well-polished pair of shoes are essential for looking well presented.
Learning how to polish your shoes correctly is a useful skill that will prolong the life of your shoes while simultaneously helping you look and feel the part.
From buffing out the scuffs on your loafers, adding the perfect shine to your heeled pumps, or breathing new life into your much-loved Chelsea boots, our guide on how to polish shoes will give you insider tips and tricks of the business.
Polishing Your Shoes
Polishing your shoes will give you an instant sense of satisfaction, and of course will lengthen the life of your footwear. With the right know-how and materials, shoe polishing is very simple to do and is the perfect way to while away a rainy day during a spring clean.
Follow our simple steps to give your shoes the perfect polish …
What You Will Need:
Lint-Free Shoe Cloths
A good quality shoe cloth is needed for cleaning shoes, it will help to remove any dust or loose dirt. We recommend investing in two cloths as you will need one to clean your shoes and another to apply leather conditioner and buff out any polish for the perfect shine.
Shoe Brush
Shoe brushes make an essential part of any shoe care kit as they’re needed for both cleaning and buffing your shoes. The bristles of a shoe brush are extra flexible and will easily get into every nook of your shoe to help to dislodge any dirt and apply shoe polish.
Leather Shoe Cleaner
A good leather cleaner should be your go-to product when it comes to keeping your leather shoes in tip-top condition. Also known as a leather conditioner, a cleaning cream will help to nourish leather uppers and prevent the leather on your shoes from becoming brittle and eventually cracking.
Shoe Polish
Shoe polish is the essential component of a shoe care kit, it’s a product that will keep your shoes looking brand new and will also form a protective barrier against any grit or dirt. It’s vital that you pick a polish that matches the colour of your shoes and is suited to the material your shoes are made from.
The Essential Shoe Care Kit
To kick start the footwear basics our Shoe Care kit holds 6 mighty essentials to keep your shoes looking their very best. At just £8.99, the handy compact kit includes:
Black Polish | Neutral Polish | Shoe Shine | Shoe Horn | Polishing Cloth | Shoe Brush
Shoe Care Kit
How to Polish Your Shoes
1. Prepare Your Shoes
When polishing your shoes, preparation is key. To help clean and polish all areas of your shoes, remove any shoelaces, and set them to one side.
2. Clean Your shoes
Use a shoe brush to dislodge any dried dirt, make sure you get into any seams or crevices where dirt might build up. Then using a soft dampened cloth, wipe over your shoes and your shoelaces to clean off any further dirt.
3. Conditioning Leather Shoes
Use a small amount of leather conditioner on a lint-free cloth, spread evenly across your leather shoes and leave to absorb for around 15 minutes.
4. Polish Your Shoes
Apply polish to your shoes a little at a time using a lint-free shoe cloth, apply in small circular motions in a thin layer and apply a second if your shoes need a little extra shine. Leave your shoes to absorb the polish for around 20 minutes.
5. Buff Your Shoes
Once the shoe products have absorbed, it’s time to buff them with a soft cloth or brush. This will help to remove any excess polish and will give your shoes the perfect shine.
6. The Final Polish
Adding an extra layer of shoe polish will help you to achieve an extra high-shine finish. Use a clean, damp cloth and rub a little polish over your shoes in circular motions to apply a thin layer. Continue to buff with the soft cloth until your shoes are bright and shiny.
How Often Should You Polish Your Shoes?
If you wear the same shoes everyday or on a regular basis, polishing your shoes every 1-2 months will help to preserve them and keep them looking as good as new. For shoes that you wear infrequently, polishing them every six months will help to restore their shine and keep them feeling fresh.
We recommend that you wipe down your shoes with a cloth when it is needed, this will help to reduce a build-up of dirt which can damage your shoes.