Top 4 Leather Shoes and 5 Tips to Maintain Them

Sleek and elegant in appearance, leather shoes are mainly used for formal wear. These dress shoes are available in different designs and shapes. But to maintain and give them a longer life, you will have to give extra care.

4 Types of Leather Shoes

A number of types of shoes have availability in leather variants. Here’s a pick of the best 4 that will complement most of your outfits and give you a chic look.

Balmoral

The dressiest alternate of the Oxfords, balmorals have a smooth and refined finish. Most appropriate for suits, balmorals are offered in solid dark shades. Also available in the category of branded shoes and designer shoes, you would have several options to choose from.

Loafers

Ideal for travels owing to their comfort, convenience, and ease of putting on and off, loafers in leather can be teamed with formals and business casuals both. Tassels, monk straps, and unlaced moccasins are the common variations. Also, Italian shoes look best, owing to their elegance.

Dress Boots

Leather boots up to the ankle match with partly-formal outfits and can be used as semi formal shoes. Avoid pairing boots with suits. Go for a leather cut that is water resistant.

Bluchers

The only difference between bluchers and oxfords is that bluchers have a lace system outside the shoe and is not inbuilt (like in Oxfords). Bluchers in leather match well with formals as well as casual business outfits.

5 Tips for Longevity of Leather Shoes

Leather is a hard-to-maintain material. If not taken care of properly, the shoes will lose their shine and thereby wear off in a short period of time. Here are 5 tips for giving your leather shoes a longer life:

1) Do not wear the same pair everyday

Leather has a tendency to soak water from your feet. It eventually recovers by drying naturally, but needs time for the same. If you wear the shoes every day, they won’t dry properly, and will hence wear down faster.

2) Utilize shoe trees

Shoe trees are small devices that are placed inside the shoe to help retain their shape. After leather dries, it returns to its natural shape, shoe trees allow that in an efficient manner. The crucial time for using shoe trees is only an hour or two after removing the shoes from your feet.

3) Avoid keeping your socks in the shoes

Socks, on being kept inside the shoes, leave a pungent smell in the shoe-insides. The bad odor then transpires into the fresh pair of socks that you wear with the shoes. This leads to the shoe wearing off in a short period of time.

4) Avoid water

Definitely water is the worst enemy of leather footwear. Leather takes a lot more time in drying than other materials and also water works against this material, contributing in losing shine and early wearing off. Linseed oil can be applied to make the shoes waterproof.

5) Polish regularly

Polish at least 3 times a week or if possible, at the end of every day, to remove minor scuffs. Depending on your usage, apply cream once a month or more to keep the leather supple and avoid cracking of the material.

To sum up, leather shoes have an elegant, chic, and classy appeal. They can be bought in a number of styles to work for different occasions. However, they must be taken care of well to give them a longer life.