Shoe Cream Vs. Shoe Wax: A Recessionista's Guide

[Shomore]

In our economy, polishing your shoes at home might be a better option so that you can save up more money for buying shoes. The jars are quite cheap, and if you <a href="http://www.shoeshinekit.com/kit1.html">invest in a kit</a> or just a brush and a couple jars of polish and cream (white, cream, black, navy blue, tan and brown would be good to start with), you'll be saving yourself quite a bit of money over the years and looking nice at all nices, not just when you have time to stop in for a shoe shine. So try polishing at home if you have a moment.

There are a couple different options when it comes to shoe cream versus shoe wax, but the most well known and used brands are <a href="http://www.kiwicare.com/">Kiwi Shoe Polish</a> and <a href="http://www.meltonian.com/">Meltonian Shoe Cream</a>. These are the brands that my parents used in their shoe repair stores, and these are the brands that I trust. These labels and jars are so familiar to me that I could probably draw them in my sleep.

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What is the difference between shoe cream and shoe polish you ask? Well, when you want a deep moisturizer, you're going to want to use shoe cream. When you want a high polish, you're going to want shoe polish. That's the basic difference, but there are some more options.

You can alternate using one after the other, or you can use both. You could use a neutral shoe polish and a colored cream. The benefit of putting some color on your shoes is that it really covers up the scuffs. My mother's vintage Ferragamo black dress heels have been beautifully black for years because she takes care of them, putting cream and polish on them in turns.

Black shoes with a black sole are easy. It's the other colors that can be difficult to match. My parents sometimes mixed colors, but tried not to, instead trying to have the widest range of colors available for that picky customer who came in with chartreuse shoes. For you at home though, I'd suggest a neutral shoe polish unless there are scuffs. If there are scuffs, I'd take your funny-colored shoes to a professional or go in person with your shoes to buy the shoe polish so that the color is matched exactly.

How to polish? <a href="http://www.shoeblog.com/blog/how-to-shine-your-leather-shoes/">See our previous post</a>. (And don't forget to take out those laces!!! And to let the polish or cream soak in before polishing.)

When I took equestrienne classes in high school, we used <a href="http://www.shoeshinekit.com/kiwparglos.html">Kiwi Parade Gloss</a> on our riding boots. With more wax than other polishes, it's shinier than the average Kiwi gloss even. The silicone repels water nicely for those rainy days, but I'll post more on waterproofing your winter boots in my next cobbler post.

Happy shiny shoes!

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