How to Clean Suede and Nubuck Shoes
5 simple steps to Clean Suede and Nubuck Shoes
We have created a series of short films that feature advise and tips on common questions around shoe care, cleaning and lots of other useful tips and hints often reserved for those in the know. Here we breakdown a common question we get asked: How do I Clean Suede and Nubuck Shoes?
How to Clean Suede and Nubuck Shoes
Suede is a type of leather that has a unique and interesting look and feel. These exact qualities are what makes Suede leather a material that needs some specific attention for keeping your Grenson Suede shoes or Suede boots in perfect condition. Suede is very susceptible to damage by water and can sometimes show scratches and scuffs easily. As with all leather footwear, the better you care for Suede the longer it will last.
In this guide we take ‘just a minute’ to look at how Suede and Nubuck is manufactured, its qualities and its durability. We will detail some useful tips on how to care for and clean your Grenson suede and nubuck shoes. We have also recorded a quick video tutorial on using the Grenson range of shoe care products designed to care for Suede as used in our Northamptonshire factory. This guide provides you with the perfect suede shoe care regime to keep your shoes looking perfect for longer.
What is Suede and Nubuck?
Suede is a leather made from the underside of animal hide. What makes Suede noticeably different from other leathers is that the surface retains small, raised fibres referred to as the ‘Nap’. These fibres are sanded during the tanning process to create a fuzzy and velvety surface. The finished surface is smooth and soft to the touch. Nubuck leather is created in a very similar process although the nap is finished shorter creating a slightly smoother and often even softer to touch finish.
Suede and nubuck can produce beautifully rich colours and tones that are unique to these materials. Suede and Nubuck are used across lots of Grenson shoes and make for some beautiful and timeless footwear.
How to care for Suede Shoes, Boots or Sneakers
Caring for your Suede or Nubuck shoes isn’t difficult and adopting a ‘little and often’ approach can work wonders.
We have broken down caring for your Suede footwear into several helpful guides as per below. We cover cleaning and protecting Suede, longer term storage and handling slight scratches.
Some useful products we would advise on for helping clean & care for your Suede footwear are firstly, a Suede protector product such as the William Green Suede Salvation spray as used in the Grenson factory. This is a suede protector spray that helps protect the Suede leather from water splashing, dirt and light scratches or scuffs.
Secondly, purchasing a specific Suede brush will be of great use when caring for your suede footwear as detailed within the guides below.
As we have stated, water is a big no when it comes to Suede and Nubuck. This includes using water for cleaning and care as well as avoiding splashes as much as possible when wearing Suede footwear. Suede and Nubuck should never be rinsed directly under a tap or if you have Suede sneakers, they must never be placed in the washing machine like you might with other sneakers.
How to clean suede shoes
If your Suede shoes, boots or sneakers pick up any dirt or light stains, we recommend the following tips for cleaning suede.
Step 1: Allow the shoes or boots to dry naturally if wet or damp
Stuffing with paper towel can help with this process. It’s important not to place them on a radiator or other heat source. This could dry out the leather too much and make it brittle or potentially crack over time.
Step 2: use a dedicated suede brush
Once the shoes are dry, use a dedicated suede brush to brush and buff the material and dust off any excess dust or dirt. A Suede brush can also be useful for buffing out minor scratches as well so a very useful item to own..
STep 3: Use the William Green Suede Salvation spray
Use the William Green Suede Salvation spray to cover the entire suede area in a mist of the liquid from around 30cm distance from your shoes or boots.
step 4: leave your shoes to dry again
Leave your shoes or boots to dry naturally for around 10 minutes to give the protective coating time to activate.
step 5: use protective shoe bags and Cedar shoe tree
If you aren’t going to wear your shoes or boots for a while, we would advise placing them in protective cloth shoe bags and using a Cedar shoe tree to help the shoes or boots stay in the best shape by preventing creasing of the leather. Cedar as a material can also add partial anti-odour properties as well with being a porous natural wooden material.
Stubborn stain or mark?
For a more thorough clean, or to ask after caring for a specific mark or stubborn stain on your suede or nubuck shoes then our in-store team at any of our Grenson stores within central London will be more than happy to advise you further.
How to fix a scratch on your suede shoes
Unfortunately, Suede & Nubuck can also show scratches quite easily. It’s not the end of the world though if this happens to your shoes or boots depending on the severity of the scratch or scuff mark.
For a minor scratch using a Suede brush to gently brush the affected area might adjust the fibres of the nap enough to make the scratch less visible.
If the scratch is larger or deeper, we would advise contacting our customer services team with as best a photo of the scratch as you can. Our customer services team will liaise directly with our expert factory staff here in Northamptonshire to make sure you get the best advise possible.
Suede & Nubuck makes for some beautiful looking shoes and boots. By taking just a minute for some simple and regular care, your footwear will stay looking as beautiful as the day it left our factory for many years to come.
We are proud of every pair of Grenson shoes and want you to be too as well whilst wearing them for as long as possible.