What basic things should people know about caring for leather?
Oh, how I love all the questions /genuine 💞💞
Okay!!!
So, leather is a skin, right?? It’s a hide. How do we care for our own skin?? Your basic steps:
Rinse
Clean
Rinse
Moisturize
A light spray of water, clean with a gentle soap (non-scented glycerin soap or saddle soap and a small horsehair/badgerhair brush), rinse and wipe off all the soap residue, and moisturize!
“Sen,” you say, “how do I moisturize leather?” Good question!! It’s going to depend on the type of leather.
There’s two big categories of leather; oil tan, and high shine. Oil tan leather is matte, soft, and more flexible (think of old leather dress shoes or casual boots). High shine leather is, well, self explanatory lol (shiny, less flexible, more glossy).
With oil tan leather, you’ll use a leather conditioner! Most bootblacks recommend Hubberd’s Shoe Grease (a heavier, denser conditioner), Obenauf’s Heavy Leather Preservative (more waxy), or Aussie Saddle conditioner (like Obenauf’s, but has a higher beeswax content). These are all pretty easily available online, and can even be bought in bulk and put into other containers!
For high shine leather, you use polish! There’s lots of different brands, but most folks get their start with Kiwi shoe polish (not super high quality, but readily available at big box stores like Walmart and Target). Most experienced bootblacks will use Lincoln or Angelus polish (your choice will depend on things like local humidity, altitude, experience, and technique). Apply a thin layer of polish to the boot, mist with a light spray of water, buff with a horsehair boot brush, and finish with a fine cotton buffing cloth!
I love bootblacking, and I love teaching. If anyone wants, I might record myself the next time I do my boots, so y’all can see these techniques in action!
