1- Cleansing milk to wash your white leather sneakers
After removing the laces and dampening a clean cloth, clean your pair of leather sneakers with it. Then pass a cotton ball with cleansing milk over the entire shoe. In addition to cleaning the leather, the milk will nourish it. You can finish taking care of your pair of sneakers by polishing it with a cloth or a few dry cotton balls.
It is of course not necessary to take a high-end cleansing milk to clean your shoes!
2- Baking soda to wash your white canvas sneakers
Start by removing the laces. Then pour washing-up liquid into hot water, mix a little, then soak a toothbrush in it before sprinkling baking soda on it. All you have to do is rub the dirty area with the toothbrush in small circles. If the canvas no longer foams, you can soak your toothbrush again in soapy water or add a little baking soda on it. Leave it on for a bit and then rinse it all off with a sponge under clean water until all the soap is gone. All you have to do is dry your sneakers, still without laces, out of the sun.
You can use this technique to clean not only the canvas of your sneakers but also their rubber sole.
3- Toothpaste to wash your soles
Besides baking soda, toothpaste is also a good solution for cleaning the rubber parts of your sneakers.
Put some white toothpaste on a toothbrush and rub the area in small circles. Wipe your sneakers with a damp cloth and then put them out to dry in the shade.
If your shoes are very dirty, you can also soak them in water with a little washing-up liquid (just the sole for leather sneakers, the whole shoe if they are canvas) then rub in circles with a clean toothbrush. Then you just dab the foam with a towel to remove it and then proceed to the toothpaste step described above.
4- The remover for stubborn stains
To remove stubborn stains from the leather or rubber of your sneakers, you can use a cloth on which you have poured a little nail polish remover. After scrubbing the area, you can remove the remover residue by rubbing the shoe with a clean cloth and clean water.
You can use a cotton bud for small spots. Be careful, however, not to put too much solvent on your cloth or cotton bud and to do a test beforehand on a concealed part of your sneaker.
5- Dry your sneakers
Whether leather or canvas, it is important to let your sneakers air dry, away from a source of heat, otherwise your shoes could be damaged. The negative consequences will be the same if you put them in the sun. You can help by wiping them down with a towel or putting newspaper inside.
If you want to speed up drying, you can use a hair dryer in "lukewarm" or even better "cold air" mode, but sparingly.
6- Wash your laces
You can take advantage of the soapy water used to clean your canvas sneakers with baking soda to soak your shoelaces. You can also scrub them with the same toothbrush if needed.
As indicated for each of Petit détail sneaker laces, you can also machine wash them, preferably cold (30°C maximum) and protected in a laundry bag. This last tip will prevent your laces from "disappearing" in the drum of your machine.
7- Customise your sneakers
To accessorise and personalise your favourite sneakers, several options are available:
. tie your laces in an original way
. coordinate your laces to your outfit or your mood of the day
. coordinate your laces with the touches of colour already on your sneakers
Take a look at Petit détail white laces to find inspiration!
And if a little meditation session tempts you after taking care of your shoes, here is a flow specially designed for you when you put on your laces: Change your shoelaces in full mindfulness.
To also read on the topic:
. How to choose your sneakers?
. Wedding with sneakers or classic, Petit détail has what you need
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