How To Shine Your Shoe — The Easy Way

Terry Arsenault
5 min readDec 3, 2016

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Your shoes might not seem important, but they are much more than you think. To polish shoes is an art. It will give you an incredible look and sense of neat. When your shoes shine, then everything fits in place, and your overall body will glow.

On the following sections, we will show you everything there is to know about how to shine your shoes. You will get some tips about the right utensils to get them shining properly.

Who are expected to keep their shoes shiny?

To have polish shoes is a matter of presentation. It is important for everyday life. Some professions are fonder than others on personal presentation, particularly of the shoe shine.

For example, if you were in the military, you would be expected to polish shoes and make them shine like mirrors. On the other hands, for architects who work at a construction site, it is not as important. They will get dirty anyway on the first hour of work.

People in business take shoe shine seriously. You will not be punished if your shoe shine is not right, but you might look like a stranger when all other people have polished their shoes.

Special Occasions to Shine your Shoes

For special occasions, shoe shine is a must. You cannot show to your wedding with dirty shoes. Other special events like proms, anniversaries, and formal parties also require you to polish shoes.

At times, people get new garments for such occasions. However, if you are using your old and faithful shoes, then it is best to take care of the shoe shine first.

Benefits of Shinning your Shoes

Shining your shoes has further benefits than the mere presentation. To polish shoes is a way of maintenance for your footwear. Think of it like washing your clothes.

Besides, shoe shine protects the leather from spanning. It gives the necessary moisture and reinforces the natural waterproof properties of leather. When you polish shoes often, they will have a longer and better life.

Utensils to Polish Shoes

The right utensils to polish your shoes depend on your shoe stock. We will go through all the details for polishing leather. You will need:

  • Shining cloth.
  • Small cotton balls.
  • A shoe polishing brush.
  • A shining brush.
  • A can of polishing wax.

The shining cloth should be 100% cotton. You can use an old shirt you will not use anymore to make one. The shining brush is best when it is made out of horsehair. For the polishing wax, you can get a neutral (no color) wax. However, if you don’t have much variety of colors, it is best to get a colored wax. Most men, for example, only bare black and brown shoes. In that case, you can get a can of polishing wax for each color.

Simple Steps to Shine your Shoes

Before you start the shoe shine process, find something to protect your working area. You don’t want to taint your favorite carpet while you polish your shoes. Once you’ve done it, proceed to use these four simple steps to shine your shoes:

  1. Use the shining brush to take off any dirt on your shoe. If you find it hard to take it off, then you can use the shining cloth with some water to tear off all dirt. Before proceeding, dry the shoe or wait until it dries naturally.
  2. Use the shoe polishing brush to apply the polishing wax. Remember that your polishing wax should be the same color of your shoe. If your shoe is a rare color, there are neutral waxes with no color. When you apply the wax do it evenly, and cover every corner of the shoes. Once you’ve applied the wax, let it rest for a quarter hour. The wax will dry to be ready for the following step.
  3. Now it is time for the shoe shine. Use the shining brush again, and this time brush vigorously. You should take off the excessive polish. While you do this, the opaque color of the shoe will start changing into a beautiful bright
  4. Finally, go for the details. Most shoes need particular attention on the heel and toe. Use the small cotton balls to polish on circles. You will cover the damage on these zones, giving your shoes new life. Once you’ve used a small cotton ball, dispose it and use another to continue.

Additional Advice

You can improve the shoe shine with the shining cloth. Secure your shoe in a safe place and rub it with the cloth until you get satisfied with the results. This technique is a complement of the use of the shining brush.

To polish shoes for the first time can take some time. Be patient to get the best shoe shine. In average you can take 45 minutes to an entire hour to get a perfect shoe shine from old and damaged shoes. When they are not as bad, polish shoes is just a matter of 15 to 30 minutes.

Conclusion

To polish shoes is not just essential for your personal presentation. It is also useful to maintain your shoes properly.

Make sure you have all the right tools at hand before you start the polish shoe process. Depending on how damaged are your shoes, it can take some time. Be patient and o it thoughtfully to obtain the best shoe shine.

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