Pampering your footwear - part 2
On the first post I covered buffing and all the elements that should comprise an adequate shoe care kit. Truth be told, buffing will keep your shoes looking like a million bucks but it isn’t enough to prolong their lifetime. Like the rest of your body, feet also release moisture and sweat throughout the day, which is ultimately absorved by the leather in your shoes. Eventually some of that moisture evaporates, but not entirely, leaving your footwear wrinkled and off their original shape. Last but not the least, retained moisture is responsible for smelly shoes as it leads to the appearance of sweat-eating bacteria.
As you can imagine, the current trend of going sockless just makes it all worse, since there is no fabric between your skin and the leather to absorb the sweat. Thus, you need to know how to tackle this issue. I’ve heard about all kinds of tricks to eliminate moisture: the traditional baby powder (more appropriate for sneakers), shoe deodorant sprays and even placing them in the freezer (the cold kills the bacteria). Sneakers aside, the best solution available for your leather kicks is Cedar Shoe Trees: these wooden accessories are shaped like a foot and come in a variety of models and size/width combinations. I recommend you go for the split-toe model as it adapts better to the shape of the shoe than the standard model. You are sure to find several brands, but Woodlore has been pointed as the place to go as they have been providing all kinds of cedar made products for your wardrobe since 1987 (take a look at their hangers).
The result is amazing…the moment you place them into the shoe you’ll immediately notice how it stretches to assume the original position, completely wrinkle-free. Also the aromatic cedar will fully absorb the moisture and leave a fresh fragance. This will enable your footwear to look perfect and stay healthy throughout their (extended) lifetime. For best results avoid wearing the same pair of shoes many days in a row, rotate your wearing and leave them to rest with the shoe trees in.
This may very well be some of the best 30€ you’ll ever spend. Give it a try!
The standard model.
The split-toe model (recommended).
