Yuya Hasegawa's ardent shoeshine dojo Part 5

This is the "Yuya Hasegawa's Ardent Shoeshine Dojo" series. In the 15th installment, Yuya Hasegawa talks about the final "15th process" of shoe polishing. Yuya Hasegawa talks passionately about it.

Thank you very much for your support over the past year. We would like to thank all of you who have been with us for the past one year. (I don't think there is anyone in the world like that.)

Now, I would like to talk about the 15th and final step, "oiling the soles".

For shoes with leather soles, leather sole oil is applied as a finishing touch. This nourishes the leather sole and makes the sole supple.

The reason why this is the last step is that if you polish the shoes after the sole has been oiled, there is a risk that the oil from the sole will stain your hands. Therefore, the rule of thumb is to apply oil to the sole only after all the polishing has been completed.

As we mentioned in detail in last week's article "THE LEATHER SOLE OIL," we apply our original oil, which is a combination of several kinds of vegetable oils and vinegar, to the soles of the leather.

If you do not have a colorless emulsifying cream, you can use a colorless emulsifying cream as a substitute, but we recommend that you apply a special sole oil to the sole to allow it to soak into the sole and to eliminate bacteria caused by vinegar.

Since sole oil is an oil by that name, spilling it on the upper can cause problems such as stains or loss of luster, so we have developed a sponge type with a tip. Hold the bottle a little tighter to soak the oil into the sponge, and then start applying.

First, apply the oil from the toes, carefully applying it in a vertical direction. Apply two coats of oil to the center of the sole, where the sole bends, to soak up the oil.

When the entire area is covered, you are done. I also apply it to the heel, but it is not necessary for the function of the shoe. It will dry in about 10 minutes, during which time you can remove the shoelaces and put the laces back on.

This completes the shoe polishing process! The final step is very easy....

If you can do this process once every 10 times you wear your shoes, you are an excellent shoe polisher. More specifically, I believe that shoes will not deteriorate even if they are polished once every six months if they are polished as well as this.

I myself currently own about 50 pairs of leather shoes (I try my best to keep it down to about 20 pairs, but the number keeps increasing), and all of them are in good condition because I give them a good polish once every six months. We hope that you will find a good routine for yourself and follow all the basic steps of shoe polishing that we have explained here.

Continuity is power.

There is nothing better than regular maintenance, so please make sure that your shoes will be your partner for the rest of your life.

From the next issue, we would like to provide you with a wide range of information on how to polish shoes made of other materials, such as brushed materials and special materials, so please stay tuned to Ardent Shoeshine Dojo. See you soon! I'll see you all soon!