I was in a bit of a pickle recently. I borrowed someone’s patent leather boots for Halloween and completely wore them out. I was dressed as Old Gregg (how did I do that?), a respectable and humorous costume that requires the wearer to carry a large bottle of Bailey’s; there was an inverse relationship between the amount of cream liqueur I had left at the end of the night and the amount of wear on the boots. I was, frankly, too scared to give them back, so I put it off, which is neither sporting nor polite.
How do you remove scuff marks from patent leather?
It turns out, however, that you can easily get scuff marks out of patent leather if you have the right tools. After trying a few methods, the stains were gone and I was able to return the boots without the real owner having any idea what they had been through.
The first thing I tried was soap and water, which I had read would help remove the scuff marks. It didn’t do anything. I hoped it would, since soap and water is available to pretty much everyone, but it didn’t do much more than clean the shoes. The black lines remained. If you’re going to try this, use something stiff, like a scouring pad, but be warned that you could tear the patent itself, making the whole situation worse. In my experience, cheaper shoes are more likely to tear, but logically you don’t want to risk it with more expensive shoes either, so unless absolutely necessary, avoid this.
A few places I looked recommended nail polish remover, so that was my next step. I also saw recommendations for using shoe polish, but that can get expensive and may not be worth the investment if you’re just trying to fix cheap shoes. My nail polish remover only cost me $2, but chances are you already have some on hand. If you have regular nail polish on your nails, put on gloves before trying this. Sacrificing a manicure for your shoes is a Sophie’s Choice situation and we just don’t have to do it.
