How to remove dirt, stains and scuffs from suede footwear
When Elvis implored us not to step on his blue suede shoes he was probably thinking of the paradox of suede: Suede footwear looks great, but shoes get dirty and this is a material that can be a nightmare to clean.
Suede is a delicate fabric with a textured surface that traps dirt and grime. But careless cleaning can also cause more damage so a careful approach is required.
Suede naturally attracts moisture, which in turn encourages dirt to stick, so we recommend using a suede protectant on your suede shoes to keep them looking good for longer. It’s advisable not to clean suede too often. But let's face it, boots are made for walking, running, jumping, looking good and feeling fine. So if you're enjoying life it's inevitable your shoes, boots or trainers will eventually scuff or stain.
Fear not, the SonicScrubber team has some simple tips to keep you and your suede shoes rocking.
Tip 1: Don’t grab a wire bristle suede brush
When suede is looking dirty the temptation can be to go straight for an old fashioned, wire bristle suede brush. Our advice is to resist that temptation. Wire bristles are too abrasive for many modern suede fabrics and can tear out the fibres of your suede along with the dirt clinging to them. After a few uses the ends of the bristles on these brushes also tend to bend, twist, clump and flatten, which makes them less effective, potentially spreading dirt rather than lifting it and increasing the risk of scratching the suede surface.
So we recommend taking a gentler approach using soft cloths, softer bristle brushes, a suede eraser and gentle cleaning solutions. Preparation is key.
The SonicScrubber Footwear System is a perfect partner to your suede cleaning tool kit. The powered grip comes with a set of four different brush heads, with different levels of flex and abrasiveness, allowing you to take a progressive approach to cleaning different parts of your shoes. The long brush has been designed with longer, narrower bristles, with just the right amount of flex and lift, to clean without being too abrasive on delicate materials like suede. The medium and large brushes are great for cleaning the bottoms and sides of your soles and the cone brush can get into dirt gathered around stitches and seams.
Tip 2: Dry your shoes
Suede attracts moisture and moisture attracts dirt. So the first thing to do is to make sure your suede shoes are completely dry before you clean them. Otherwise you might spread dirt rather than lifting it, creating a bigger stain.
We recommend stuffing your shoes with newspaper or absorbent paper to retain their shape (you could also use a shoe tree or shoe-last). Then leave them to air dry. If the weather is good, you can put them outside but leaving them outside of a cupboard or drawer, in a dry room, for a couple of days should do the trick.
You can use a fan or cool air blower to speed things up, but don’t use a hot hair dryer, it will dry out the natural oils that keep suede supple and could make stains harder to get out. Never put suede shoes in a washing machine or tumble drier, the heat, moisture and motion can all cause damage.
Tip 3: Remove dried on dirt and debris
Use dry brushes to remove any dirt or debris. Again, you can use your SonicScrubber for this job, and save yourself some elbow grease.
We recommend starting with a softish brush and working up to a medium strength bristle if you need to. A dry microfibre cloth, face cloth or hand towel can also be useful for gently removing dry dirt from suede fibres, just make sure it's dry and that it won’t transfer its colour or loose fibres onto your suede.
Try to test an inconspicuous area with your brush or cloth first to make sure it’s suitable.
Avoid using any soap, water or other cleaning products at this stage. It’s important to remember that you aren’t trying to remove every stain at this point in the process, just the excess dried on dirt and debris. Be gentle. To get rid of minor scuff marks, use a quick side-to-side brushing motion to lift the suede fibres.
The SonicScrubber long brush is designed for just this job, with just the right balance of brush strength and flex for suede. Don’t apply too much pressure, Its oscillating motion lifts dirt without you needing to push down or rub. The medium brush is stiffer and slightly more abrasive and the cone brush is great for edges, corners, grooves in the sole tread and stitching.
Tip 4: Examine for stains
Now you’ve removed the excess dry dirt, it’s time to look for stains and marks. We recommend using a suede stain eraser, sometimes called a suede rubber. If you don't have one, a clean pencil rubber can work. Use a back and forth motion to rub out marks, brushing away any rubber debris with your fingertips and by blowing. You can apply a little more pressure on this step, but start gently, don’t rub too wide an area and don't rub your suede too hard or you might risk damaging the fabric.
If a stain appears to be smearing or resisting the rubber, stop and move onto the next one. It’s a good idea to have a piece of clean paper to hand to clean your eraser between rubbing stains, an old envelope will do.
At the end of this step, if you still have some stains or marks left on your shoes, it’s time to tackle them.
Tip 5: Treat stubborn stains
For any remaining tough stains we recommend trying bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) or cornflour before moving onto liquid cleaners.
Bicarbonate of soda absorbs dirt, grease, and salt marks. If you don’t have any handy you can also try cornflour. Some websites suggest using kitchen salt, DON’T do this! Salt can draw out oils and dyes, leaving you with white stains on our suede.
Gently rub some of the bicarbonate of soda or cornflour powder over the stain with your finger, without pushing down hard. Then sprinkle some more over the top and leave your shoes for an hour or so. Next, use a vacuum cleaner with a plastic nozzle attachment (not a brush head) to gently lift off the excess powder, which will have soaked up some grease. Now use a soft brush, such as the long brush on your SonicScrubber, to remove any residue.on the stains. Use a dry towel, a SonicScrubber medium brush head with the power turned off, an old clean toothbrush or a specialist suede brush (one without wire bristles) to restore the nap of the suede. You can repeat this a few times.
If after all the previous steps you still have some stubborn stains left, white salt marks, greasy stains and ingrained grime can be treated using white distilled vinegar. You can also use rubbing alcohol or a specialist suede cleaning fluid, but white vinegar is our go to suede cleaning fluid. White distilled vinegar is both a gentle cleaner and a natural disinfectant.
Dab the stain with a white or colourfast cloth dipped in your vinegar or cleaning fluid. When one part of the cloth becomes dirty, move to a clean part. Don’t soak the stain, dab it, but avoid it becoming too wet. Once you’ve gone over the stains, let them dry, occasionally using a soft brush, such as your SonicScrubber long brush as it dries, to agitate the nap. You can use a fan or cool hair dryer whilst brushing, if you are in a hurry.
Once your shoes are completely dry-brush them again with a dry towel, toothbrush, or suede brush to restore the nap.
You can repeat this process if you need to, but let the suede dry between treatments and never let it get soaked
Tip 6: Chewing gum and coloured stains
Discarded chewing gum is a menace and particularly hard to remove from suede. If you have chewing gum on your suede shoes, don’t rub it or heat it- which will only make it stickier. Spritz your shoes with a spray of white vinegar to disinfect them (don’t soak them) and let them dry. Next put them in a bag and place them in the freezer for 30 minutes. Remove them and the chewing gum should have gone hard and flaky, if not pop them back into the freezer for another 15 minutes. Once the gum is hard and flaky, you can gently flake it off, be gentle to do as little damage as possible to the suede fibres. Once you have most of the gum off you can use the tips above on any remaining stains.
For stains like blood from nosebleeds, coloured food-sauce spills and other stains which have left a coloured mark, we recommend dipping a cotton wool ball, cotton bud or clean towel in a small amount of rubbing alcohol and gently dabbing the stain, using new cotton wool or a clean area of the cloth when the surface becomes dirty. Don't rub at the stain, dab it and try not to soak the area around the stain, which could cause it to spread. Take it slowly and pause if you need to. Allow the shoe to dry and repeat if necessary.
If rubbing alcohol doesn’t work, you can try the same approach with a stain removing cleaner containing hydrogen peroxide. Be warned though, this does come with a risk of bleaching, so test an inconspicuous area first. Follow the instructions, go gently and be careful.
Tip 7: Minimise staining in the first place
When it comes to keeping suede looking suave, prevention is better than cure. We’d recommend investing in a good suede protector spray and treating them once every three months. A tip is to put something in your calendar for three months after you’ve sprayed your shoes to remind yourself.
If you live in the UK, or Northern Europe, it’s hard to avoid the odd rain shower, but ideally avoid wearing suede shoes on very wet days.
Suede absorbs moisture, which includes the moisture from your feet. So we’d recommend not wearing suede shoes on consecutive days and investing in a shoe tree to keep them aired and well shaped between the days that you do wear them. Alternatively you could pop a silica gel pack inside each shoe or treat yourself to a pair of boot bananas.
Invest in the best shoes you can afford, look after them and they’ll look after you.
Adding the SonicScrubber boot brush (Footwear System) to your shoe care kit is a smart way to spend less time cleaning your shoes and more getting out and enjoying the world. It's available here on our website, from Cotswold Shoes, Amazon, Brantano and other great retailers.
We hope you found this guide useful. Look out for our regular tips for cleaning, homes, cars, bikes, shoes and everything in-between.
