Saw this video last week; bought the Saphir and 2 horsehair brushes on eBay, and have just copied this technique on my 2 pairs of cheap-medium price tan leather boots. They now look like they cost 5 times what I paid for them. I'm sceptical of most of the nonsense tutorials on UA-cam but this was a winner. Thanks!
Good quality leather brushes do make a big big difference...I bought some early 20th cent ones [quite large] from a Charity shop, they were £1 each, but buff up old leather beautifully. I think they might have been used for harness back in the day, as very wide and dense...Also use them on waxed wood too. Horsehair is a good material...nylon bristles won't disperse the polish [wax] in the same way..That looks like a shoe 'Cream', the rich pigmented stuff ..People even use the wax cake shoe polishes on wood, too, especially carvings to bring up highlights
If you go back again and lay a dark black along those triple seams to make it like a fading two tone effect... that's when it really sets it off.. because you'll have the tan boot with dark spots here and there... plus the dark trim with the tan showing through here and there... It gives is so much depth.. Darken the toe too.
Hi , just wondering how long does it take to let the dye dry and not get on my hands? I did this to my wallet and after 2 days, it still leave black dye on my hand. thank you!
Great technique, well presented. Just wanted to add that antiquing works best after the shoes have been worn and have some natural bruises, wrinkles, and crevices. Keep up the good work.
@@kyle8025 However long it takes for you to break them in to the point that the leather has gained some new texture. How long that takes is going to depend on the wearer. You just need the leather to have differences in different areas so the dye isn't too uniform. Remember, our goal is to add depth and to break up the uniformity. If you have any creasing, stretching, wear, etc. you're good to go. I wouldn't worry too much about doing it too soon, and you can always repeat the process further down the line after there's been more wear.
Original English Skinheads were doing this back in late 60's early 70's to their then brown Dr Martens In the early 80's we had oxblood & cherry reds too We used to set fire to the Kiwi polish so it liquefied and mix little bit of black with the oxblood or brown for a more subtle antique effect Looks the Bollox
Apply the polish with the back of a red hot spoon, melts on lovely. Then spit polish to a shine, knock back and repeat the process. It's how to get a high gloss shine like the Guards parade boots. That's not patent leather, that's just good old fashioned elbow grease.
I agree I really actually didn't like the vangaurd boots at all, I thought they looked stiff and uncomfortable and I didn't like the coloring or laces on them either
I did this to a pair of cherry Doc Martens when I was a teenager. I wanted oxblood leather but the the cherry Docs were a lot cheaper at the time. I used kiwi black polish with a kiwi cloth and a lot of spit. It turned to a really cool looking (in my mind) black cherry finish. Nice job Carl!
It's a great technique I've always put black polish on brown Shoes, Boots since I read an artical in GQ about twenty years ago, It adds a lovely patina.
I watched and followed this video (more or less) using 5-year old dried up brown cream that had turned solid and an old can of KIWI black paste polish. I used a hair dryer to melt the polish back into a liquid, and also to pre-heat the shoe leather to accept and absorb the polish more readily. I did not use a brush at all because I do not have one. I used two old dish cloths - one to apply, and one to wipe and buff. After polishing with brown and being unhappy with the montone results, I put on the black paste on and left it there for about 4 hours. I then buffed it off until I was happy. People were very happy with the results, saying the shoes looked a LOT better. I did this to a pair of $20 shoes I found at Goodwill, just for fun. Photos available on request. Thanks for such an easy to follow video @CarlMruawski
I did this to my cherry red Dr Martens boots back in the early 70's, but I used black polish on them, after a few black polishes the boots had a lovely darkened burnished effect to the uppers. I also changed the laces to leather ones as well. but the first thing I did when they were new was to go down the river and wearing the boots walk in the water and completely get them soaked through, I would keep wearing the boots the rest of the day until they were dry, this process helped to break them in quicker. I loved my DM's and so did all my mates.
Thank you for this video. I’m a (separated, soon to be) divorced mom of a 14 year old son who has to wear suits twice a week and I try really hard to have him look good on my budget but I really cannot afford the things that I would like him to have so we often settle. Plus he’s growing so fast it wouldn’t be practical to spend a fortune on his things. Anyway, you’ve got a new subscriber with me. Between the video and a thread of comments on how to extend the wears between washes on dress shirts I’m gonna save a few dollars and help my son become a sharply dressed, but frugal young man. Edit: please consider doing more budget series videos, I know a lot of men (and mothers) that would be very interested in this type of video. Your content is great but I can’t afford most of the things you review.
Thank you so much for this comment, my sister and I grew up in a household with just mom who was a hairdresser so I know this feeling all too well. Luckily it taught me so many lessons that other kids never learned like how to do more with less and how to be tenacious and hungry for success (however you define it). It takes a comment from someone like you to really put things into perspective, and you can be sure I'll do more budget videos in the future with you in mind.
I very highly urge you to check out 6pm.com you can get super high-end stuff there for ridiculously cheap. I mostly just buy my shoes and athletic wear there, because I have odd proportions and need to try on clothes before I buy, but a friend got a $1000 suit for $85 And then spent $30 to get it tailored. He also picked up some high end dress shirts for around $20 each. I've gotten beautiful shoes and boots that typically cost anywhere from $200-400 for under $100. I also do a lot of thrifting, and have found a lot of great high-end pieces doing that as well. I've probably never spent more than $5 on a dress shirt, and my closet is full of Ralph Lauren, Eton, and Brioni (all shirts that would normally be $100-500 new) all in great condition. And sne dme a message if he needs ties, I have a lot of incredible designer and vintage ties I'd be willing to part with.
I use red shoe crème (saphir hermes red) on some of my brown shoes. The more reddish they are, the better they seem to go with navy and charcoal clothes. Poor man's Allen Edmonds' Chili.
Have done this for many years and always got a good result. Keeps an inexpensive pair of shoes or boots looking great for much longer. Reapply the black periodically and the leather will look better and better.
I did these on some relatively cheap boots. It looks amazing. Love the look! I didn't take out the laces and just did it on the rest of the boot to see how it compares. WOW. My original brown leather looks so CHEAP now compared to the black polished leather! I'm going to take out the laces tonight and go over them so the entire boot has the look. Glad you posted this video - although this technique has been around for a while, your video was the first time I was exposed to this. Thumbs Up!
Immediately after seeing this video, I tried this simple technique on an expensive pair a half-boot dress shoes. Been wearing them during two years, and the blacking makes these shoes look like new. Thanks!
Nice Job... I learned this technique over 60 years ago on the streets of New York. I have done with more expensive shoes like Florsheim and even Allen Edmonds. You can do once or twice as I remember and then you have to use brown or cordovan colors. We used to used Griffin wax which is no longer manufactured but Kiwi is a good second. Eventually the lighter brown come comes through and some people just removed all the shoe polish with Acetone or 90% Isopropyl and start all over. Buff concentrating on the toe with water and shoe polish was gives that NYC Harlem shoe look. As New Yorkers we always looked at our shoes since we did not look up much, probably to look for coins or to avoid the horse manure even when there were no longer any horses if you get my drift..
I did this to the Eastland Lumber Up boot to make it look a lot like the classic, Red Wing Heritage moc toe boot. It made them look aged just enough, and I swapped the laces out for a some great leather laces. I figured, if I want the Red Wing moc toe look just for aesthetic, I’m not about to drop $300 just for the simple purpose of having casual boots. I highly recommend trying this to the Eastland Lumber Up boot, to anyone who is interested in that moc toe boot look.
This video started my shoeshine obsession. I've kept up with those Rockport chukka boots, continually antiquing and shining them. No one expects that I only paid 90 bucks for them. They look like a pair of 500 dollar boots. The only thing I've since added is a really nice mirror shine on the heels and toes which increases their appeal 3x over. Also, pro tip: use nylon stockings for the buff on the heels and toe. Nylons are amazing for getting the highest of gloss shines.
Thank you so much for this video! I’ve bought recently a cheap pair of shoes at Payless for 20 bucks and I used this trick. It makes him look so much more high-quality, so much so that I constantly get compliments on how nice they look and all from just using a little black shoe polish!
I've tried doing stuff like this with my very own boots way before watching your video, and let me tell ya, it does work. I got a clear-looking chestnut pair of casual boots some months ago, and I accidentally painted them off with a shoe polish that I thought was gonna be neutral. Since they lost their original bright color, I decided I wanted to go down with it and own it by painting it even more in different grades and shades of dark brown, and now they have that burnt almond look. They somehow look more sharper and even more so expensive than what I bargained them for. I will definitely try this one method out. It is fairly similar to mine. Thanks a lot, dude.
Very cool! I didn’t realize how old this technique was before I posted this video. Some guys were doing it to their doc martins back in the 70s! ...and here I thought I was a genius. Lol
Thank you for the video. I had never done it using black but I did use dark brown on my cognac dress shoes to give it the darker shades and it worked well.
My Granddad told me a while back that business guys (when they still wore suits) if they had a shoe that was light brown or orangish brown and they wanted more color depth or a darker shade would take dark cordovan polish to them. Basically same idea. So it's apparently a tried and true method.
Few months ago, I bought a pair of oxfords from a second-hand shop. The construction seems ok, blake stiched with a fake welt. Its completely ok from a 10 euro pair of shoes. They looked nice, but the leather was the most boring uniform tan I have ever seen. I decided to try out this method, I put the most basic black shoe polish on the shoe and I used a cotton bud to put the cream into the brouging holes and inside the saw tooth decorated edges (its difficult to use the brush only, without it the polish just do not fill the holes) . The result was amazing, I especially like the contours on on the various edges. For me, this is a must to do trick.
When I'm stressed out and tense shining and polishing my boots is like the best therapy. My Grindad was a postman in the day and wore proper black shined to military stand leather walking shoes. He taught me when I was like 8 how to take care of shoes. It's crazy relaxing to me, and well, I've got 2 pairs of Docs, Oxfords and standard dull 1460's 8 eyelet, both work at least every other day. BP us bought in 1987, resilience. Oxford in 1992 wear these much more, still don't need resolving. Then my Clarke's ankle booties worn as much and leather heels. All taken care of the way my Grindad taught me. He passed 3 years ago. Lots f l d's, grandkids, great and first-year grandkids. He specifically left his shoe shine box to me. Why did I need to tell you that? Anyway. Proper care of God shows his a dying art. I have used this technique a pair of decent quality leather T Strap heels with lovely brogue detailing. They were a bit bright burgundy, used black so soften the overall color but also make the vogue really pop out. They were second hand, like new cost $2 at the charity shop, high end label, but needed something. 1 hour of actual working time and I swear, they're like 2k heels. Love it! LOVE YOUR VIDEOS.
My dad loved polishing and shining his shoes. He had fine shoes and listened to classical music while he worked. I unserstand completely. I was happy to pass on Dad's shoe shine equipment to my son, his namesake. 💗
My mum was in the army, before I was born, and used the method she learned there to look after our boots. She bullied them up to a brilliant shine and the leather would be more supple. She taught me, and it would be a relaxing afternoon or evening, either talking, listening to music or watching an old film. It was lovely time spent together that I remember with great affection.
I had this same pair of boots, saw them at pennies for $30 and had to buy them, despite the fact that they were a size and a half too small. I wore them out too. I also used this same technique on a pair of Charles tyrwhitt cap toe oxfords around the brogue and stitching and they turned out excellent. Great video, love the channel.
Going to try this on new rocking horse bridle leather too to make it blend in with 120 yr old stuff...never thought of using a black on brown leather before! 👍🏼
Years ago my older brother showed me how to get just the right color for a very good pair of ox blood colored shoes by polishing them with black. Beautiful.
Before jumping to black shoe polish on a light brown shoe, I would suggest using a waterproofing wax for leather. I have been using Nikwax Waterproofing Wax from REI. The wax is an off white color and is very easy to apply. The warning on the packaging says it will darken leather. An added benefit is that it softened the leather.
@Bobby Reed I was thinking the exact same thing (do one boot first, then compare to the untreated boot)!! My heart sank when he started daubing the other boot LOL! Great finished product though!
I like you attention to detail, and therefore the little things. I cannot stress enough how that brings the results you want.. I am a cowboy, and I got some of these techniques from a long line of older fellers. This is what I do, but I appreciate you are an aficianado of these kind of lost skills as well. I would like to correspond further with you if possible. Thanks so much for your posts.
Red Docs are routinely dyed with black polish to make oxblood. It's a fairly common technique, but not so widely used in this age of sneakers. Nice to see traditional techniques again. Next, do a spit shine with clear polish.
Recently got into leather boots, got a pair of white leather sneakers, dark brown chelsea sneakers and some all black chelsea boots. Went to a leathercare shop here in nethetland and they adviced me to use sapphire, still havent polished my shoes cause theyre still pretty new. but this video comes in really handy. thanks, very informative
This is great advice. Got a cheapish pair of cap-toed oxford's in a tobacco colour, and they always looked a little too yellow to me. This has dropped them a couple of shades and given the shoes a much better look. I just used the cheap Kiwi polish (i'm actually a Kiwi!), and it worked great - thanks for the advice Carl; you're THE MAN!!
Real glad I looked up why people were openly admitting to being skinheads....in the US the term is usually synonymous with neo-nazis and white supremacists so I was confused why people were so calm about saying that
I did this accidentally with my oxblood oxfords. I didn't realize the applicator I was using still had some black polish on it, but I liked the end result so much I ended up doing it on purpose.
Great tip! I tried this on a pair of used Tecovas ropers that were too light for my liking. Darkened the leather and added depth of color nicely. Exactly what I was going for. Thank you!
I actually did that the other day to my dark brown boots. They're not hugely expensive but have a good construction, the trade-off was in the bland leather (it's thick enough though). I used cherry red shoe polish to give them some character and it worked, it mostly shows on the creases and the hard parts such as the heel. Colored polish and some leather laces basically turned a bland boot into something that gets attention from women for some reason believe it or not. However it didn't change the color of the leather, only added some highlights which is exactly what I wanted.
I had some docker double monk straps that were almost a khaki color, I used a ox blood red polish for the first layer then followed up with a deep brown and finished with a clear high gloss paste wax. My results were amazing! I've been treating all my leather products for years, if someone doesn't make what you want.....do it yourself. Cheers.
I do this often! Love the look it gives.. I also sometimes will purposefully scratch and mar leather before I do this to give depth. I'm doing a pair of Allen Edmonds tonight, and my Becket Siminon's this weekend
I did this to a pair of doc Martin's, not for the visuals but because I needed black shoes for work. I'll try stripping some of the black off to see what kind of look they have now 👍
Nicely done. I've done this with my brown brogue wingtips, used dark brown cream and mid brown hard wax polish - I've been getting compliments ever since!
I did something similar to my old Doc Martens boots a while back, but I used a KIWI neutral polish to revitalize the leather...it worked. I'll consider a black polish next time, I can't wait to see the results. Thanks for sharing.
I got an similar effect on my boots by just using bee wax. They didn't go this dark, but the accents were there. The boots were not new and I think that helped as well.
Great video. I have boots very similar to these I got for only $25. I antiqued them with black polish and they ended up looking much more expensive, too. Even got compliments on them at an upscale dress party.
Using an oven I would worry about burning the boot. A safer method might be using a hot hair dryer which would take longer than using an oven. Moving the dryer over different parts as not to keep it too long over one spot or too close to the boot.Sometime ago I was DIY waxing some outerwear to make it water-resistant and using an oven or a hot hair dryer was recommended. In less than a minute in the oven I had pull out the clothes not wanting to take the anymore of a chance and went with using a dryer.
If you do it with kiwi shoe shine you have to buff it out with your knuckle hard. Very hard. You got to put some elbow grease into it. And you got to spray your shoes with water like a mist
I just bought a pair of captoe round lace ups - only thing is they were far lighter than I would have wanted. I used black polish and used this method and they look perfect now! Thanks!
Great video! I've been doing something similar for years to many of my shoes, boots and sandals. However, I use liquid shoe polish and acrylic paint. It works especially well to transform the orangey brown that is sometimes seen on women's shoes to a rich mahogany with grain and texture. I have never had to reapply the antiquing, even after wearing the shoes in the rain and snow for several seasons. Can't wait to try some of your techniques on my next pair of cute-but-wrong-color shoes :-)
Tried this on a whim with a pair of light brown Clark's that I have. Only had the Kiwi paste at the time and found that over time, and with periodic brushing and light cloth buffing, most of the black has come off. Time to try it again with some better polish. Definitely made the boots more interesting.
Decades ago I lusted after the antiqued shoes and boots I saw worn in the offices i which I worked in New England ,really upper end offices. And older gent I watched buff his shoes daily and looked spectacular to me. So I tried to imitate what he did. He saw me one day buffing my shoes,called me over and showed me what he did..I was sold and what he did was almost zactly what you are showing .For years I did the same thing while I worked where I had to wear shoes.Then sneakers arrived....In 2004 I started hiking and hi altitude hiking and bought my first pair of over 100$ BOOTS not shoes, Real leather called VASQUE sundowners.A bud who had clmbed KILI suggested them. and when I went out to Africa to climb KILi in 2005,I wore them, best things I had ever put on my feet, no breakin req'd. When I came off the mountain I had them cleaned and polished in Arusha day after summiting. 15 years later I wear them at least twice a week, they are the best things I have ever bought.....I clean them several times a year using the method you reccommend. AND they always get compliments when I wear them,cleaned and polished as you show.. An aside, I work now in the yacht biz here in So. Fl. and usually sneaks or soft soled shoes almost mandatory when boarding a yacht.Except for my always HI polished Vasques. Owners have told me that any man who takes care of his footware as I do is welcomed to wear them on board their yachts. I always wear themwhen I have to go to really dressy affairs ;polished they put ordinary shoes to shame
Agreed - I learned from my dad and Granddad to clean and polish my shoes and boots. My Vasque Sundowners project an image of classic quality, ruggedness and style. Years later, a quick clean, polish and buffing and the boots look new. Vasque nailed it on these boots. They used the best leather and straightforward design elements. They look beautiful. BTW, I repaired a sole that became separated this summer. It was a simple fix and preserved these classic boots for many more years. These boots are absolutely worth it. I wear them several times a week.
Nice. I used to do this to $40 work boots, but I'd use the Cordovan red. Wasn't trying to look expensive, (Those steel toes would take a beating,) but I liked the way it looked.
I was a medic and my father in law served in Vietnam. I darkened some work boots with a spill while oiling them and he taught me this technique. It had made two pair of weathered work boots look goood. As many boots as I mirror polished it took an old hand to give me the guys to do this. Great video.
Good video man. Thanks for all the info. I appreciate you not asking to subscribe, you just got yourself another subscriber. I look forward to your next video.
Thanks man, I try to let the video do the talking for me. Plus I can't stand videos that begin with several minutes of asking for likes and subscriptions.
Fantastic video. That's something I will definitely try. Thanks. My only criticism is the background music. It sounds like the soundtrack to some erotic thriller from Cinemax or the Red Shoes Diary.
Two things; the boots look great, and Kiwi is not cheep. Kiwi is blended for hotter environments--specifically summer in North America. It is harder then a paste wax like briwax or Saphir but less likely to bleed onto your pants in 95deg weather.
I used to do this with my work boots when I worked at the shipyard. I would give them a good cleaning and would apply shoe polish to fill cuts and blemishes before shining them up. I would always get compliments on them when I went out
Brilliant tip. (You prob already know this by now but Saphir isn't pronounced "sapphire", though I do believe it stems from that word. The name's pronounced "sa-fear" or even "sa-fir" depending on dialect.)
Wow! Handsome pair of boots. The black saphir on the brown/tan boots made me wonder if they were ruined. But, came the polish, turned out very rich color. I've gotta try this. Thumb up. Thanks.
Liberal polish on the boot. Small pan of hot water with a few spoons in there. When they're hot rub the back of one of them over the shoe smoothing out surface texture. When they're both done, buff until almost finished. Then dip the brush in water, shake off the access and brush the shoe vigorously. Dry off with a dusting cloth. Them shoes will shine and poo like he'll.
Great post! Really enjoyed the info and the result was quite impressive. Keep up the good work. Also, you have nice camera presence and a good voice. 😉👍
This is the video I needed! I ordered a cognac color of boot and regretted not getting the dark brown. (I wanted to have the same boot as Clarice Starling) I'm glad now that I could use the yellowy cognac color to create that natural color gradient in coordination with the dark polish! Thanks a bunch!
That was a heavy dose of polish but the result is great. I just did the same thing with Saphir Hermes red on boring brown, plastic looking Bostonians. I have ordered some marine blue in an attempt to create a burgundy end result. I might antique around the bottom first. It's fun & not hard to turn mediocre footwear around.
Saw this video last week; bought the Saphir and 2 horsehair brushes on eBay, and have just copied this technique on my 2 pairs of cheap-medium price tan leather boots. They now look like they cost 5 times what I paid for them. I'm sceptical of most of the nonsense tutorials on UA-cam but this was a winner. Thanks!
I’m so happy to hear this!
Good quality leather brushes do make a big big difference...I bought some early 20th cent ones [quite large] from a Charity shop, they were £1 each, but buff up old leather beautifully. I think they might have been used for harness back in the day, as very wide and dense...Also use them on waxed wood too. Horsehair is a good material...nylon bristles won't disperse the polish [wax] in the same way..That looks like a shoe 'Cream', the rich pigmented stuff ..People even use the wax cake shoe polishes on wood, too, especially carvings to bring up highlights
If you go back again and lay a dark black along those triple seams to make it like a fading two tone effect... that's when it really sets it off.. because you'll have the tan boot with dark spots here and there... plus the dark trim with the tan showing through here and there... It gives is so much depth.. Darken the toe too.
any chance we can get a picture?
I started sellin shoes, now I am falling in love with them. Nice money making tip
You created a monster! My wife is polishing all our old shoes now!
No more new shoes for you ---
Hi , just wondering how long does it take to let the dye dry and not get on my hands? I did this to my wallet and after 2 days, it still leave black dye on my hand. thank you!
This is hilarious!!!
@@Gao960 Shoe polish won't really dry, using it on a wallet might require more specialty dyes.
@@Gao960 You’re not supposed to put shoe polish on your wallet but rather leather dye.
Great technique, well presented. Just wanted to add that antiquing works best after the shoes have been worn and have some natural bruises, wrinkles, and crevices. Keep up the good work.
Excellent point! Thank you for sharing your tips.
Excellent point!
Worn for how long?
@@kyle8025 However long it takes for you to break them in to the point that the leather has gained some new texture. How long that takes is going to depend on the wearer.
You just need the leather to have differences in different areas so the dye isn't too uniform. Remember, our goal is to add depth and to break up the uniformity. If you have any creasing, stretching, wear, etc. you're good to go.
I wouldn't worry too much about doing it too soon, and you can always repeat the process further down the line after there's been more wear.
@@kyle8025 Likely 6 months to a year.
Original English Skinheads were doing this back in late 60's early 70's to their then brown Dr Martens
In the early 80's we had oxblood & cherry reds too
We used to set fire to the Kiwi polish so it liquefied and mix little bit of black with the oxblood or brown for a more subtle antique effect
Looks the Bollox
Danugo 67 - we used to set fire to black kiwi to Bull our boots for parade
Everyone from New Zealand, calm down, It's just a brand.
Skins still do this, made my cherry docs oxblood and kept them that way back in the early 00s.
Apply the polish with the back of a red hot spoon, melts on lovely. Then spit polish to a shine, knock back and repeat the process. It's how to get a high gloss shine like the Guards parade boots. That's not patent leather, that's just good old fashioned elbow grease.
3:50 getting into the action
You did a great job. In my opinion, you made the cheap shoes look even nicer than the expensive ones.
lol im just here tryna make my expensive shoes look expensive
welp doesn't work my aldens already look like that
60 bucks and cheap.. it's kinda relative
I agree I really actually didn't like the vangaurd boots at all, I thought they looked stiff and uncomfortable and I didn't like the coloring or laces on them either
@@dandiehm8414 are we paying for a the boot or the name?
I did this to a pair of cherry Doc Martens when I was a teenager. I wanted oxblood leather but the the cherry Docs were a lot cheaper at the time. I used kiwi black polish with a kiwi cloth and a lot of spit. It turned to a really cool looking (in my mind) black cherry finish. Nice job Carl!
It's a great technique I've always put black polish on brown Shoes, Boots since I read an artical in GQ about twenty years ago, It adds a lovely patina.
article* phew
I watched and followed this video (more or less) using 5-year old dried up brown cream that had turned solid and an old can of KIWI black paste polish. I used a hair dryer to melt the polish back into a liquid, and also to pre-heat the shoe leather to accept and absorb the polish more readily.
I did not use a brush at all because I do not have one. I used two old dish cloths - one to apply, and one to wipe and buff. After polishing with brown and being unhappy with the montone results, I put on the black paste on and left it there for about 4 hours. I then buffed it off until I was happy. People were very happy with the results, saying the shoes looked a LOT better.
I did this to a pair of $20 shoes I found at Goodwill, just for fun. Photos available on request.
Thanks for such an easy to follow video @CarlMruawski
Really great to see a channel where men are focussed on looking and feeling good about themselves!
Well done and great result!
Thank you so much!
I did this to my cherry red Dr Martens boots back in the early 70's, but I used black polish on them, after a few black polishes the boots had a lovely darkened burnished effect to the uppers. I also changed the laces to leather ones as well. but the first thing I did when they were new was to go down the river and wearing the boots walk in the water and completely get them soaked through, I would keep wearing the boots the rest of the day until they were dry, this process helped to break them in quicker. I loved my DM's and so did all my mates.
Water destroy leather
Thank you for this video. I’m a (separated, soon to be) divorced mom of a 14 year old son who has to wear suits twice a week and I try really hard to have him look good on my budget but I really cannot afford the things that I would like him to have so we often settle. Plus he’s growing so fast it wouldn’t be practical to spend a fortune on his things. Anyway, you’ve got a new subscriber with me. Between the video and a thread of comments on how to extend the wears between washes on dress shirts I’m gonna save a few dollars and help my son become a sharply dressed, but frugal young man.
Edit: please consider doing more budget series videos, I know a lot of men (and mothers) that would be very interested in this type of video. Your content is great but I can’t afford most of the things you review.
Thank you so much for this comment, my sister and I grew up in a household with just mom who was a hairdresser so I know this feeling all too well. Luckily it taught me so many lessons that other kids never learned like how to do more with less and how to be tenacious and hungry for success (however you define it). It takes a comment from someone like you to really put things into perspective, and you can be sure I'll do more budget videos in the future with you in mind.
Such a nice comment 😊 Hope then your son grow he will read it
I very highly urge you to check out 6pm.com you can get super high-end stuff there for ridiculously cheap. I mostly just buy my shoes and athletic wear there, because I have odd proportions and need to try on clothes before I buy, but a friend got a $1000 suit for $85 And then spent $30 to get it tailored. He also picked up some high end dress shirts for around $20 each. I've gotten beautiful shoes and boots that typically cost anywhere from $200-400 for under $100. I also do a lot of thrifting, and have found a lot of great high-end pieces doing that as well. I've probably never spent more than $5 on a dress shirt, and my closet is full of Ralph Lauren, Eton, and Brioni (all shirts that would normally be $100-500 new) all in great condition. And sne dme a message if he needs ties, I have a lot of incredible designer and vintage ties I'd be willing to part with.
Thriftstores have really cheap suits and shoes, shouldn't cost more than a couple of bucks.
Your son is lucky to have you. Keep up the great work
I did this on my tan coloured boots 5 or 6 months back now it has changed totally now it's more like dark coffee brown which am loving it...
I made my boots look super expensive and somebody stole them.
Its a good thing they were cheap
Lmao
They are in need of cleaning now so I’ll give them back. Sorry for your loss
😆😄🤣😂
😂😂😂
I use red shoe crème (saphir hermes red) on some of my brown shoes. The more reddish they are, the better they seem to go with navy and charcoal clothes. Poor man's Allen Edmonds' Chili.
I’d love to see them!
Wow i would have really like to have seen that! I bet they looked amazing!!
Can anything be done to fake leather or it there anything that can be done to pretreat fake leather to prevent peeling?
Have done this for many years and always got a good result. Keeps an inexpensive pair of shoes or boots looking great for much longer. Reapply the black periodically and the leather will look better and better.
I did these on some relatively cheap boots. It looks amazing. Love the look! I didn't take out the laces and just did it on the rest of the boot to see how it compares. WOW. My original brown leather looks so CHEAP now compared to the black polished leather! I'm going to take out the laces tonight and go over them so the entire boot has the look. Glad you posted this video - although this technique has been around for a while, your video was the first time I was exposed to this. Thumbs Up!
Immediately after seeing this video, I tried this simple technique on an expensive pair a half-boot dress shoes. Been wearing them during two years, and the blacking makes these shoes look like new. Thanks!
This totally works!!! I just executed the same technique and using the same product on some inexpensive boots,
And the results were amazing.
you could hit the toes with a dark brown burnish for an additional touch.
Good call!
Great idea
This actually works...totally loved the result ❤️
I just did this on my Rockport brown chukka boots and they look absolutely splendid now. Great video!
Wow! Worked exactly as described. Bought a pair of light tan shoes from goodwill for $10. Look amazing now. Thanks!
Nice Job... I learned this technique over 60 years ago on the streets of New York. I have done with more expensive shoes like Florsheim and even Allen Edmonds. You can do once or twice as I remember and then you have to use brown or cordovan colors. We used to used Griffin wax which is no longer manufactured but Kiwi is a good second. Eventually the lighter brown come comes through and some people just removed all the shoe polish with Acetone or 90% Isopropyl and start all over. Buff concentrating on the toe with water and shoe polish was gives that NYC Harlem shoe look. As New Yorkers we always looked at our shoes since we did not look up much, probably to look for coins or to avoid the horse manure even when there were no longer any horses if you get my drift..
I did this to the Eastland Lumber Up boot to make it look a lot like the classic, Red Wing Heritage moc toe boot. It made them look aged just enough, and I swapped the laces out for a some great leather laces. I figured, if I want the Red Wing moc toe look just for aesthetic, I’m not about to drop $300 just for the simple purpose of having casual boots. I highly recommend trying this to the Eastland Lumber Up boot, to anyone who is interested in that moc toe boot look.
This video started my shoeshine obsession. I've kept up with those Rockport chukka boots, continually antiquing and shining them. No one expects that I only paid 90 bucks for them. They look like a pair of 500 dollar boots. The only thing I've since added is a really nice mirror shine on the heels and toes which increases their appeal 3x over. Also, pro tip: use nylon stockings for the buff on the heels and toe. Nylons are amazing for getting the highest of gloss shines.
Thank you so much for this video! I’ve bought recently a cheap pair of shoes at Payless for 20 bucks and I used this trick. It makes him look so much more high-quality, so much so that I constantly get compliments on how nice they look and all from just using a little black shoe polish!
I've tried doing stuff like this with my very own boots way before watching your video, and let me tell ya, it does work. I got a clear-looking chestnut pair of casual boots some months ago, and I accidentally painted them off with a shoe polish that I thought was gonna be neutral. Since they lost their original bright color, I decided I wanted to go down with it and own it by painting it even more in different grades and shades of dark brown, and now they have that burnt almond look. They somehow look more sharper and even more so expensive than what I bargained them for. I will definitely try this one method out. It is fairly similar to mine. Thanks a lot, dude.
Very cool! I didn’t realize how old this technique was before I posted this video. Some guys were doing it to their doc martins back in the 70s!
...and here I thought I was a genius. Lol
Thank you for the video. I had never done it using black but I did use dark brown on my cognac dress shoes to give it the darker shades and it worked well.
Yeah, been antiquing boots for about 30yrs. Adds a great level of protection too with a finish of Dubbon.
G'day from Australia 🇦🇺
My Granddad told me a while back that business guys (when they still wore suits) if they had a shoe that was light brown or orangish brown and they wanted more color depth or a darker shade would take dark cordovan polish to them. Basically same idea. So it's apparently a tried and true method.
yeah i try this on my $40 pull up leather boots (handmade boots from bandung, indonesia) comes out super nice !!! thanksssssssssssss and GBU !!
We polished our docs with black polish back in the 70s. Polished up like glass. Ah, fun times.
I don't even own a pair of boots, nice vid
Hahaha thanks!
I own 4 pairs 2 cheap and 2 costly. Planing for more. I'm crazy. I'm a boot fan!!
@@nishantkumar6960 stupid...
You have four pairs and think that you have a lot...LOL
I have a few pair of red wing iron rangers, got a pair resoled. Also, I have 2 pair if custom handmade boots from Role Club.
you can try this technique on a pair of brown socks
Few months ago, I bought a pair of oxfords from a second-hand shop. The construction seems ok, blake stiched with a fake welt. Its completely ok from a 10 euro pair of shoes. They looked nice, but the leather was the most boring uniform tan I have ever seen. I decided to try out this method, I put the most basic black shoe polish on the shoe and I used a cotton bud to put the cream into the brouging holes and inside the saw tooth decorated edges (its difficult to use the brush only, without it the polish just do not fill the holes) . The result was amazing, I especially like the contours on on the various edges. For me, this is a must to do trick.
When I'm stressed out and tense shining and polishing my boots is like the best therapy. My Grindad was a postman in the day and wore proper black shined to military stand leather walking shoes. He taught me when I was like 8 how to take care of shoes. It's crazy relaxing to me, and well, I've got 2 pairs of Docs, Oxfords and standard dull 1460's 8 eyelet, both work at least every other day. BP us bought in 1987, resilience. Oxford in 1992 wear these much more, still don't need resolving. Then my Clarke's ankle booties worn as much and leather heels. All taken care of the way my Grindad taught me. He passed 3 years ago. Lots f l d's, grandkids, great and first-year grandkids. He specifically left his shoe shine box to me. Why did I need to tell you that? Anyway. Proper care of God shows his a dying art. I have used this technique a pair of decent quality leather T Strap heels with lovely brogue detailing. They were a bit bright burgundy, used black so soften the overall color but also make the vogue really pop out. They were second hand, like new cost $2 at the charity shop, high end label, but needed something. 1 hour of actual working time and I swear, they're like 2k heels. Love it! LOVE YOUR VIDEOS.
My dad loved polishing and shining his shoes. He had fine shoes and listened to classical music while he worked. I unserstand completely. I was happy to pass on Dad's shoe shine equipment to my son, his namesake. 💗
@@dacanale it is so cool to hear from someone who gets it about the care and art of taking care, and of it being passed down. 💞
My mum was in the army, before I was born, and used the method she learned there to look after our boots. She bullied them up to a brilliant shine and the leather would be more supple.
She taught me, and it would be a relaxing afternoon or evening, either talking, listening to music or watching an old film. It was lovely time spent together that I remember with great affection.
I had this same pair of boots, saw them at pennies for $30 and had to buy them, despite the fact that they were a size and a half too small. I wore them out too. I also used this same technique on a pair of Charles tyrwhitt cap toe oxfords around the brogue and stitching and they turned out excellent. Great video, love the channel.
Going to try this on new rocking horse bridle leather too to make it blend in with 120 yr old stuff...never thought of using a black on brown leather before! 👍🏼
Years ago my older brother showed me how to get just the right color for a very good pair of ox blood colored shoes by polishing them with black. Beautiful.
Before jumping to black shoe polish on a light brown shoe, I would suggest using a waterproofing wax for leather. I have been using Nikwax Waterproofing Wax from REI. The wax is an off white color and is very easy to apply. The warning on the packaging says it will darken leather.
An added benefit is that it softened the leather.
That’s a good idea!
The music choice is excellent by the way, well done for that, not many youtubers can get that right!
Very nice technique. Next time perhaps do one boot to completion so we can see the before and after. Great stuff from you!
That would have been a good idea, maybe next time!
@@CarlMurawski ... Or simply do a split screen.
@Bobby Reed I was thinking the exact same thing (do one boot first, then compare to the untreated boot)!! My heart sank when he started daubing the other boot LOL! Great finished product though!
I like you attention to detail, and therefore the little things. I cannot stress enough how that brings the results you want.. I am a cowboy, and I got some of these techniques from a long line of older fellers. This is what I do, but I appreciate you are an aficianado of these kind of lost skills as well.
I would like to correspond further with you if possible. Thanks so much for your posts.
Awesome job, incredible outcome. Need more of these mod/restoration videos, would love to see more samples.
I’d love to make some more, any ideas?
Hard to tell, I love all shoes, from boots to Yeezy's, I will appreciate all the videos!
For anyone looking: the song in the background is called “Reach for the Stars” by The New Fools
Red Docs are routinely dyed with black polish to make oxblood. It's a fairly common technique, but not so widely used in this age of sneakers.
Nice to see traditional techniques again.
Next, do a spit shine with clear polish.
Recently got into leather boots, got a pair of white leather sneakers, dark brown chelsea sneakers and some all black chelsea boots.
Went to a leathercare shop here in nethetland and they adviced me to use sapphire, still havent polished my shoes cause theyre still pretty new. but this video comes in really handy. thanks, very informative
At first I was like, "Nooo!", but then after I saw the result I was like "Whoa!". Awesome stuff bro!
This is great advice. Got a cheapish pair of cap-toed oxford's in a tobacco colour, and they always looked a little too yellow to me. This has dropped them a couple of shades and given the shoes a much better look. I just used the cheap Kiwi polish (i'm actually a Kiwi!), and it worked great - thanks for the advice Carl; you're THE MAN!!
That’s been my little trick for years....also works on higher quality brown shoes or boots (applied more sparingly) to get a burnished look.
Did this technique about 10-15 years ago on a pair of Acorn coloured Trickers boots. Worked very well indeed.
We used to do this with our oxblood dr martens back in the 80’s. We called it “antiquing”. Not sure if that was the proper terminology or not.
That must have looked badass!
Exactly, I got it from my skinhead days
Mike Ayres concur , wear’em for a couple months until broken in. Then do it. Reapply once a year and your soles will wear out before the leather.
Real glad I looked up why people were openly admitting to being skinheads....in the US the term is usually synonymous with neo-nazis and white supremacists so I was confused why people were so calm about saying that
I did this accidentally with my oxblood oxfords. I didn't realize the applicator I was using still had some black polish on it, but I liked the end result so much I ended up doing it on purpose.
Great tip! I tried this on a pair of used Tecovas ropers that were too light for my liking. Darkened the leather and added depth of color nicely. Exactly what I was going for. Thank you!
I actually did that the other day to my dark brown boots. They're not hugely expensive but have a good construction, the trade-off was in the bland leather (it's thick enough though). I used cherry red shoe polish to give them some character and it worked, it mostly shows on the creases and the hard parts such as the heel. Colored polish and some leather laces basically turned a bland boot into something that gets attention from women for some reason believe it or not. However it didn't change the color of the leather, only added some highlights which is exactly what I wanted.
Hey, attention from women is never a bad thing! They usually have an eve for detail most men lack.
I had some docker double monk straps that were almost a khaki color, I used a ox blood red polish for the first layer then followed up with a deep brown and finished with a clear high gloss paste wax. My results were amazing! I've been treating all my leather products for years, if someone doesn't make what you want.....do it yourself. Cheers.
I’d love to see that!!!
I couldn´t care less about boots, but you are very interesting to listen to. Thank you.
You can do the same thing with shoes.
@@michaelalguire419 This person most likely wears primarily sneakers.
I do this often! Love the look it gives.. I also sometimes will purposefully scratch and mar leather before I do this to give depth. I'm doing a pair of Allen Edmonds tonight, and my Becket Siminon's this weekend
Serious upgrade. Classy on a budget. I'm going to use these on my leather Merrell jungle mocs.
Love the background music
I did this to a pair of doc Martin's, not for the visuals but because I needed black shoes for work. I'll try stripping some of the black off to see what kind of look they have now 👍
Nicely done. I've done this with my brown brogue wingtips, used dark brown cream and mid brown hard wax polish - I've been getting compliments ever since!
Excellent! What model shoes? I'd love to see the results!
Carl, I have been doing this process for years. Black on brown. I love the effect you have achieved.
I think I need to learn more from you because I thought this was a novel process until the comments came in! Any other ideas for good DIY techniques?
I just did this to an old pair of Stacy Adams and they looked super nice. It works!!! Nice vid.
Thank you!
I did something similar to my old Doc Martens boots a while back, but I used a KIWI neutral polish to revitalize the leather...it worked. I'll consider a black polish next time, I can't wait to see the results. Thanks for sharing.
This comment section is hilarious when you really dig through it. Never stop making vids Carl. 🙏
I got an similar effect on my boots by just using bee wax. They didn't go this dark, but the accents were there. The boots were not new and I think that helped as well.
Great video. I have boots very similar to these I got for only $25. I antiqued them with black polish and they ended up looking much more expensive, too. Even got compliments on them at an upscale dress party.
What do you think? Would you try this technique on a pair of shoes or boots? Let me know in the comments below!
Carl Murawski Put boots in for 8 mins at 150 and just heat that leather up and soak in all the dye.
Just did and it ruined them. This does not work on pleather!
Using an oven I would worry about burning the boot. A safer method might be using a hot hair dryer which would take longer than using an oven. Moving the dryer over different parts as not to keep it too long over one spot or too close to the boot.Sometime ago I was DIY waxing some outerwear to make it water-resistant and using an oven or a hot hair dryer was recommended. In less than a minute in the oven I had pull out the clothes not wanting to take the anymore of a chance and went with using a dryer.
Carl Murawski really nice!! You could leave more of the dark polish on the toe and near the heel to really add to the perceived value.
I've been doing this for years
I tried these almost 25 years before when I was school. And it works perfect.
If you do it with kiwi shoe shine you have to buff it out with your knuckle hard. Very hard. You got to put some elbow grease into it. And you got to spray your shoes with water like a mist
I use flex-seal on my boots
@@thedevilsadvocate5210 haha, that makes them look super expensive
I just bought a pair of captoe round lace ups - only thing is they were far lighter than I would have wanted. I used black polish and used this method and they look perfect now! Thanks!
Great video! I've been doing something similar for years to many of my shoes, boots and sandals. However, I use liquid shoe polish and acrylic paint. It works especially well to transform the orangey brown that is sometimes seen on women's shoes to a rich mahogany with grain and texture. I have never had to reapply the antiquing, even after wearing the shoes in the rain and snow for several seasons. Can't wait to try some of your techniques on my next pair of cute-but-wrong-color shoes :-)
Tried this on a whim with a pair of light brown Clark's that I have. Only had the Kiwi paste at the time and found that over time, and with periodic brushing and light cloth buffing, most of the black has come off. Time to try it again with some better polish. Definitely made the boots more interesting.
Decades ago I lusted after the antiqued shoes and boots I saw worn in the offices i which I worked in New England ,really upper end offices. And older gent I watched buff his shoes daily and looked spectacular to me. So I tried to imitate what he did. He saw me one day buffing my shoes,called me over and showed me what he did..I was sold and what he did was almost zactly what you are showing .For years I did the same thing while I worked where I had to wear shoes.Then sneakers arrived....In 2004 I started hiking and hi altitude hiking and bought my first pair of over 100$ BOOTS not shoes, Real leather called VASQUE sundowners.A bud who had clmbed KILI suggested them. and when I went out to Africa to climb KILi in 2005,I wore them, best things I had ever put on my feet, no breakin req'd. When I came off the mountain I had them cleaned and polished in Arusha day after summiting. 15 years later I wear them at least twice a week, they are the best things I have ever bought.....I clean them several times a year using the method you reccommend. AND they always get compliments when I wear them,cleaned and polished as you show..
An aside, I work now in the yacht biz here in So. Fl. and usually sneaks or soft soled shoes almost mandatory when boarding a yacht.Except for my always HI polished Vasques. Owners have told me that any man who takes care of his footware as I do is welcomed to wear them on board their yachts. I always wear themwhen I have to go to really dressy affairs ;polished they put ordinary shoes to shame
Agreed - I learned from my dad and Granddad to clean and polish my shoes and boots. My Vasque Sundowners project an image of classic quality, ruggedness and style. Years later, a quick clean, polish and buffing and the boots look new. Vasque nailed it on these boots. They used the best leather and straightforward design elements. They look beautiful. BTW, I repaired a sole that became separated this summer. It was a simple fix and preserved these classic boots for many more years. These boots are absolutely worth it. I wear them several times a week.
The chill music is a nice effect for boot buffing videos
I did this with Alllen Edmonds brown shoe polish and it had the same effect.
Nice. I used to do this to $40 work boots, but I'd use the Cordovan red. Wasn't trying to look expensive, (Those steel toes would take a beating,) but I liked the way it looked.
Wow! The result is truly amazing!
It's a vast improvement, I'm very happy with the end result.
I was a medic and my father in law served in Vietnam. I darkened some work boots with a spill while oiling them and he taught me this technique. It had made two pair of weathered work boots look goood.
As many boots as I mirror polished it took an old hand to give me the guys to do this. Great video.
Thanks for sharing! Very cool
Good video man. Thanks for all the info. I appreciate you not asking to subscribe, you just got yourself another subscriber. I look forward to your next video.
Thanks man, I try to let the video do the talking for me. Plus I can't stand videos that begin with several minutes of asking for likes and subscriptions.
Great video. Very down to earth. I'm still in the brainstorming phase of developing my own channel. Its gonna be pretty much this episode.
Much appreciated! Developing a channel is more complex and more rewarding than I realized. Best of luck to you, and let me know if I can help.
Fantastic video. That's something I will definitely try. Thanks.
My only criticism is the background music. It sounds like the soundtrack to some erotic thriller from Cinemax or the Red Shoes Diary.
Randomly came across your video and know nothing about you, but I wanted to let you know that you have an awesome speaking voice.
I used Olde English wood polish dye oil applied to the toe of my shoes to give it that "worked in" look
Two things; the boots look great, and Kiwi is not cheep. Kiwi is blended for hotter environments--specifically summer in North America. It is harder then a paste wax like briwax or Saphir but less likely to bleed onto your pants in 95deg weather.
Yes! Great video. Still think I will be purchasing the Thursday boots, but this is a great alternative. Also, congrats on the shout-out from RMRS!
Thanks man!
Been doing that for years. Still...it's nice to get confirmation from a UA-cam video. Nice work! Cheers!
Absolutely!
Great advice Carl. I m going to be using this technique. The new profile pic with hat looks Savage !
Hahaha thanks man!
I used to do this with my work boots when I worked at the shipyard. I would give them a good cleaning and would apply shoe polish to fill cuts and blemishes before shining them up. I would always get compliments on them when I went out
Brilliant tip. (You prob already know this by now but Saphir isn't pronounced "sapphire", though I do believe it stems from that word. The name's pronounced "sa-fear" or even "sa-fir" depending on dialect.)
Wow! Handsome pair of boots.
The black saphir on the brown/tan boots made me wonder if they were ruined. But, came the polish, turned out very rich color. I've gotta try this. Thumb up.
Thanks.
Thank you very much!
Liberal polish on the boot. Small pan of hot water with a few spoons in there. When they're hot rub the back of one of them over the shoe smoothing out surface texture. When they're both done, buff until almost finished. Then dip the brush in water, shake off the access and brush the shoe vigorously. Dry off with a dusting cloth. Them shoes will shine and poo like he'll.
Damn good tip!!! Thanks!
I am lost at the "poo" part
@@RiverSiege pop
Great post! Really enjoyed the info and the result was quite impressive. Keep up the good work. Also, you have nice camera presence and a good voice. 😉👍
Very much appreciated!
i wish i lived in a state with a winter season. must be nice having different outfits depending on the weather
It’s a double edged sword man. I love the variety but the storage is a pain.
This is the video I needed! I ordered a cognac color of boot and regretted not getting the dark brown. (I wanted to have the same boot as Clarice Starling) I'm glad now that I could use the yellowy cognac color to create that natural color gradient in coordination with the dark polish! Thanks a bunch!
I remember doing stuff like this as a kid. I have not done it in years
I'm a truck mechanic and I just dump mine in a bucket of hydraulic oil. Darkens up great lol
This video is very Interesting !
Song playing is "Reach For The Stars," by The New Fools.
Ive never owned boots in my life but I still very much enjoyed this video. Thank you!
That was a heavy dose of polish but the result is great. I just did the same thing with Saphir Hermes red on boring brown, plastic looking Bostonians. I have ordered some marine blue in an attempt to create a burgundy end result. I might antique around the bottom first. It's fun & not hard to turn mediocre footwear around.
Carl Man!!!! I thought I was one of the few that had been doing this all along!!! EXCELLENT VID DUDE!!!!❤
Nope, you're in good company!