Caring for your shoes is just as important as buying the right pair to begin with. But with different materials and different products out there, how do you know what the right thing to do is?
We sat down with Julius Marlow Product Manager, Gino Volpe, to get his tips and tricks on helping your shoes look and feel their best.
Shoes can often get ignored, so what are your top tips to keep footwear looking their best and ensuring longevity?
Caring for your shoes is important for sure. So, my top tips would be:
Alternate your footwear rather than wearing the same shoes everyday. Perspiration is different in everyone, but perspiration breaks down the glues, eats away at the linings, and things start to break down. Alternating your shoes gives them time to dry naturally and they end up lasting longer.
Don't ever dry your shoes in front of heaters. If your shoes get wet from perspiration or from the rain, dry them naturally in a normal temperature. Don’t ever put them in front of heaters as it will dry out the leather, and eventually they will crack and lose their shape.
Use a good quality shoe polish with wax. Especially if you have a shoe that isn’t one solid colour, I recommend using a neutral polish as it revives all the colours as they are.
And what about suede as it can be tricky to keep it clean, especially in the winter?
There are a lot of products that are good for suede but obviously waterproofing them before you wear them is a good thing. The thing is though, you have to keep it going because it does wear away. Even with water resistant shoes, the resistance wears away. Give them light coats every couple of weeks so if you drop something on them, it sits on top and doesn’t get it. It makes them easier to clean. Products like suede shampoos can also be great as it helps revive them, gives them back their colour and gets them looking nice again.
Are there some key things to look for when wanting to buy good quality shoes that will last?
To look at a shoe and say that’s going to last forever is impossible, but one thing to note is price is definitely not something that dictates quality. Shoes at $500 can fall apart and shoes at $20 can fall apart. Finding good quality leathers can help, but a reputable brand, like Julius Marlow of course, can make things easier, knowing you can trust them.
In saying that, a good shoe you need to break in, and once it’s broken in it will last a lot longer.