Nearly all of us bar the most hardened vegan loves leather shoes. These types of shoes give us the most value for our money in the long-term: proper care and attention can ensure they last for many years to come. Leather shoes are durable and should give you much pleasure for a long time so their ‘return on investment’ is generally high.
Leather shoes are also typically a lot more comfortable than shoes that are made from synthetic materials. This is because leather shoes mould to your feet’ proportions when they stretch from wearing. And leather doesn’t get as hot, sweaty and uncomfortable as synthetic shoes do.
So how do you give your Van Dal shoes the care, love and attention that they need? There are a few tips that you should adhere to if you want your shoes to last well into the next century. These tips may feel restrictive at first but you’ll soon become used to them.
Don’t wear your Van Dals every day
It happens all the time. Girl meets shoes. Girl falls in love with shoes. Girl takes shoes home and they live happily ever after. But what no-one ever talks about is her relationship with said shoes. Is she needy and wear them every day, or does she give the shoes ‘space’ by only wearing them every other day? Rotate your shoes so that they have time to get some rest. This takes a lot of self-restraint in the beginning but it’s essential for a great, long-term relationship with your shoes.
Put your shoes in a tree
Shoe trees come in different materials and sizes. We mainly use them so that our shoes retain their wonderful, original shape but there are other reasons why they’re beneficial: they help the shoe to absorb some of the moisture from the shoes’ lining, and they help to prevent creases and cracking.
You can buy wood or plastic shoe trees, though plastic shoe trees are generally the cheapest and most prolific. Cedar shoe trees, however, remain the better choice, even though they’re much more expensive than plastic ones.
Polish those shoes a bit
Your shoes will thank you for this – they need natural oils to shine. So polish them as regularly as you can. You want to stay away from synthetic materials and only use materials that have high quality. Beeswax or cream polishes should do the trick splendidly.
Author bio:
Gray and Osbourn wrote this article about how to keep your Van Dal footwear look their best day after day.