The polish and the lacquer of shoes is a practice that exists since the protective covers for legs, the shoes, were discovered. Polishing does not only offer shoes a bright, enchanting appearance, but simultaneously hydrates their skin and maintains them in good condition, adding to them duration and resistance. Without care and protection, the shoe skin dries, creases and is destroyed.
 
Shoes from good quality leather can be polished once a month, in order to have big life duration, if they are used and worn out under regular conditions. In the same way you clean and attend other materials you use that need dry cleaning, in that way you should protect your shoes. Clean and polish, only whenever this is essential.
 
If your shoes are worn out very little, you clean once a month, brush and shine only when it is necessary.

Polish of spoil skins with products for shoes

1. Use a clean and soft cloth in order to remove dust and pollutants. Spoil skins can be cleaned with special soap for horse saddles and a wet cloth. If you do not have any detergent for skins available, you may use a lightly wet cotton cloth. Give special attention in the seams, the soles and the heels.
2. Care. Use an improvement product for skin, special for spoil skins in order to soften your shoes.
3. If the scratches or other marks are obvious, you correct the imperfections with a cream that is one tone lighter from the real colour of the shoe.
4. Use an appropriate polishing product. Polishing products of ointment, wax or cream are all effective for leather shoes with spoil texture. Stretch out the shine product with small circular movements, beginning from the heels. Give attention in marks from deterioration, scratches, seams, rabbets and in the region of fingers.
5. After the shoes dry pass the waterproof layer.

Traditional recipe for shoe polishing

1. By using a humid cotton cloth, you can clean pollutants and dust from the shoes with a smooth cloth and pass with a dry towel.
2. Dribble few drops of olive oil or seed-oil in a soft, cotton cloth and you rub the entire surface of the shoe. Leave the oil to be absorbed.
3. Use a dry cotton cloth and rub the shoes until they shine.
4. Put a small quantity of vaseline in a cotton cloth, scrub and polish the shoe surface. (This will help the skin to be kept smooth and flexible and you will avoid cracking.)

About Suede
Suede shoes need particular attention. Suede, crude leathers, patterned and nubuck should never be polished. They can however be cleaned, be protected from water and be maintained.

Polish of suede skins with products for shoes
Spray the shoes with spray for dry cleaning or for suede and you leave them until they dry. Then you brush the shoes, with a brush for suede or nubuck (toothbrush can be used as well). For intense stains, spray again the shoes and insist in brushing.
When they dry, spray with special protective spray.

Tradiotional recipe
Suede can be cleaned from stains and scratches, with a common rubber or with a small piece of a very thin sandpaper. After you clean the dirty parts, you rub the suede with a towel in order to help the skin and remove any shine or destroyed stain. Protect them with specialised products for suede or nubuck.

After dusting them, you stretch out mink oil with a dry clothing. The oil will penetrate the skin and will maintain shoes soft and shine.

Sweep the shoes with a wet cloth.

Wash the shoes and leave them to dry. Then you stretch out a white dye so that the colour will be refreshed. Leave them until they dry well. Spaying them in order to avoid smudges is recommended.