How to Shine Leather Shoes Without Polish: 9 Effective Remedies

Being a working professional, I know that a clean and shiny shoe greatly impacts one’s personality. Whenever I don’t see my polish kit in my cupboard, I try some home remedies, which work perfectly.

But not investing in shoe conditioners due to all these methods is not the right move at all because it does the job of protecting, and rejuvenating the shoes in the long run.

In this article, we will use items to give the shoe a glossy shine and finish that you already have at your home.

But it is also necessary to take some precautions. Whatever step you read, first you apply in a small part of the shoe, to know if it has any bad effect on the shoe color or not.

Let’s Start……

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How to Shine Leather Shoes Without Polish

Regular Brushing

Requires Items:

• Horsehair brush
• Clean cloth

Process:

• After wearing the shoe instantly clean it with a horsehair brush.
• If you notice any marks or spots then with a damp cloth clean it and dry the shoe.
• Again brush the shoe by pressing a little.

Impact:

• First of all stubborn stains do not remain on the shoe by cleaning it daily and the color also remains intact.

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Homemade Shoe Polish

Required Items:

• A bowl
• Liquid detergent
• Vegetable oil or Coconut oil
• A clean cloth

Process:

• First, clean the shoe with a horsehair brush to clean the dust and debris. Keep in mind this is the first step of every method that I will discuss here.
• Now in the bowl take liquid detergent 5 ml and oil 6-7 ml and mix it well.
• Keep the solution for some time.
• Now deep the cloth in the solution and apply it on the shoe surface.
• Keep the shoe for some minutes.
• Now with a dry cloth remove the extra solution from the surface.
• As this is a ready-to-use product so, you can store it in an airtight jar for a long time and can use it.

Impact:

• The liquid detergent will clear all the marks and make the shoe completely clean.
• The oil will resist detergent and not damage the tissue, giving a glossy shine.

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Olive Oil to Shine Shoes

Any oily substance is good for polishing shoes because of it contains fatty acids. Olive oil contains more acids than other oils which have different benefits for shoes.

Required Items:

• A clean cloth
• Lemon juice or vinegar
• A bowl
• Olive oil

Process:

• Take a bowl and take 5 to 6 ml of olive oil.
• To make it more effective add 1 drop of raw lemon juice or vinegar.
• Now with your hand apply this solution to the shoe.
• With the cloth rub the shoe and remove extra oil from it.
• Now the shoe is ready to wear.
• If you do not have olive oil then you can simply use coconut oil as well.

Impact:

• An acid called linoleic acid is found in olive oil that helps the skin maintain moisture. So, in the case of leather, it works as same.
• Adding lemon juice or vinegar helps to kill the fungi spores and eliminates the foul odor.

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Banana Peels

To shine leather all the companies use one key ingredient potassium. And the bananas are rich in potassium, but here we need only peels.

Required Items:

• Banana peels one or two
• A bowl
• A cloth
• Coconut oil

Process 1:

• Take a banana peel and directly rub the inside part of it on the shoe.
• Keep the shoe for some minutes.
• Now with the cloth just wipe out the peels left on the surface of the shoe.

Process 2:

• With any sharp object grate the inner part of the banana and take it out in a bowl.
• Add a drop or two of coconut oil and mix it well.
• Apply the mixture directly on the shoe.
• Keep the shoe rest for some minutes.

Impact:

• Banana peels can give the shine but not like a premium quality polish.
• Adding a drop or two of oil improves the shine and also protects the shoe from water.

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Lemon Peels

The lemon peel works very well to get rid of the bad smell inside the shoes. But along with this, we can also use it to polish shoes.

Required Items:

• Lemon peels
• Vegetable oil
• A cloth
• A horsehair brush

Process:

• First, grate the lemon peels finely.
• In a bowl take those peels and some drops of water.
• Mix the solution well and with your hand apply it on the shoe surface.
• Now keep the shoe at rest for some hours.
• With the horsehair brush rub the surface to remove the extra peels.
• With the oil-dipped cloth simply rub the surfaces till you not noticed shine.

Impact:

• Lemon peels help to kill bacteria, and fungus easily and removes bad odor.

You May Also Read: How to Remove Bad Odor from Shoes

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Petroleum Jelly

Petroleum jelly is a very good compound to give a mirror-like shine to the shoe. But keep this in mind that use adulterated jelly without any other ingredients.

Required Items:

• Petroleum jelly
• Wet cloth
• Hair dryer

Process:

• Take petroleum jelly with your clean hand and apply it on the hole shoe properly.
• Blow hot air with a hair dryer on the shoe to melt the jelly and spread it evenly to every portion of the shoe.
• Now with the wet cloth just rub on the shoe for some minutes until the shine is not visible.

Impact:

• It not only shines the shoe but also creates a protective layer on the shoe to save it from water.

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Bees Wax (Home Made Wax Based Shoe Polish)

Every wax-based shoe polish is made up of it. But it cannot be used directly on the shoe.

Required Items:

• Beeswax
• Saucepan
• Any heating medium (Stove or induction)
• Olive oil
• Coconut oil

Making Process:

• Heat up the saucepan and add beeswax around 4 to 5 tablespoons.
• Wait till the wax melt completely.
• Add 5 to 6 tablespoons of olive oil and 3 to 4 tablespoons of coconut oil into it.
• Mix the solution properly with a spoon.
• Now store the mixture in a tin can and use it for a long time.

How to Use:

• Dip a horsehair brush directly into the mixture and apply it to the shoe and rub for some minutes.
• Make sure to apply it properly in every area of the shoe.

Impact:

• It is a homemade product and no chemicals in it. So, it will not be harmful to the shoe.
• It mainly rehydrates the tissue and gives it a proper shine.

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Aloe Vera Gel

Aloe vera gel basically rehydrates the human skin and hair and gives shine to them. The same way it works for your boots also.

Required Items:

• Raw aloe vera
• Mineral oil

Process:

• In a bowl take raw aloe vera gel and add mineral oil in a 1:2 ratio.
• Make a fine mixture and directly apply it to the shoe.
• With a clean cloth rub the shoe until you get desired shine.

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Baking Soda

If you have a white leather or fabric shoe, then the above methods are useless for you. Because for white shoes you need any white substance to clean.

Required Items:

• Baking soda
• Water
• Toothbrush

Process:

• Make a thick solution by taking two tablespoons of soda and 10 to 12 ml of water.
• Now first make sure to clean the dust particles completely from the upper part and bottom part of the shoe.
• If it is a fabric shoe, then with detergent water wash it. If leather, then do not use detergent.
• Now with a toothbrush just take the solution and apply it to every area of the shoe.
• Keep it under sunlight for some minutes. You can notice the shoe will look like a new one.

Impact:

• As white shoe materials so, we cannot use any oily substance or other non-white products.
• However, toothpaste is another option instead of baking soda. But I will prefer baking soda over toothpaste.

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Final Thoughts on How to Shine Leather Shoes Without Polish

The products available in the shops work very quickly to shine the shoes, but getting the right product is also a challenge. This is where all our home remedies come in handy.

I have talked about these 9 remedies, there is nothing other than this, just this is being told to you in a different way. For example, if you do not have olive oil, you can use coconut oil or any other mineral oil.

Exactly like I told you about Bees wax but if you want you can use natural plant oils or carnauba wax also. All will work in the same way.

All these methods are very good when you can invest time to properly make it, otherwise, there is no harm in investing some money in polishing kits. It is totally upon you.

If you applied any of these methods with your shoes, then do not forget to comment down below your experiences. It gives us motivation.

Thank You……

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FAQs on How to Shine Leather Shoes Without Polish