Home Remedies For Cleaning Shoes

It is very easy to accumulate dirt on your shoes when you watch outside. Keeping your shoes clean can especially be a challenge if you walk everywhere on a regular basis.

Fortunately, there are different ways to clean off your shoes. Many of these home remedies for cleaning your shoes involve mixing ingredients right at home.

The methods of cleaning shown below are meant for different types of shoes. Try to use each kind of cleaning for the type of shoe it is recommended for best results and to ensure no damage.

Please refer to care tips for the following kinds of shoes:

Canvas-Usually sneakers are made of this material. The preliminary step usually involves running your shoes in the washing machine. This helps wash away looser dirt and grime. When washing, you can add white vinegar to help wash away the stains from the shoes. You can also use Borax or baking soda to help whiten or brighten your shoes.

Plastic-Numerous kinds of sandals and flip-flops are made from this material. These kinds of shows can become very dirty when worn constantly especially outside.

The easiest way to clean these kinds of shoes is to simply wash them with warm, soapy water. You can just use dish soap applied with a cleaning cloth. To reach areas that are hard to reach you should scrub these areas with a toothbrush. An alternative method of washing would be to run them through the dishwasher.

Leather-Shoes made with this material are a bit more challenging to clean. This category of footwear requires a little bit special attention and special cleaning instruction. White vinegar is recommended for use on leather shoes for general cleaning. Then, you can use a minute amount of olive oil to shine and condition the leather after cleaning it. If you want to remove road salt from the soles of your shoes you can do so using one part white vinegar and one part water sprayed onto the shoes.

Suede-This is a softer type of leather that requires a little bit cleaning regimen than non-suede leather. You might need to use a special cleaner. However, one home method that is often used is an art gum eraser. It seems to remove suede stains quite nicely without damaging the suede fabric.

Additional Advice and Warnings

Sometimes hydrogen peroxide or bleach helps brighten a pair of white shoes. When cleaning suede remember never to use water on them. Otherwise, they will discolor. You should not even use vinegar or any other home cleaner on suede at all.

For certain kinds of shoes it may be possible to soak stains for a few hours before trying to remove them. Be very careful when doing this for any kind of shoe other than a canvas or similar material of sneaker, though.

You should also test certain kinds of cleaning solutions on an older pair of shoes that you may not wear any more before using. This is especially true if you decide to use bleach, lemon, or other material.