How to dye shoes in a few easy steps
Have you ever been bored of a pair of shoes and wanted to do something about it? For example, by changing the color? I know I have, especially with many of my older shoes. This time I actually decided to do something about it, partly because I was never wearing these shoes, and partly to provide you all a post about how to do it in the leisure of your home.
Let me start off by saying that while I am skilled in shoe-shining, I am just as amateur as all of you when it comes to the subject of how to dye shoes. I have dabbled my hand at it a few times, but would not consider myself an expert by any means. That is what makes this post great: the ability to show you just how easy it is, even for a newbie like myself. I guess the first thing that you have to be able to do is swallow the fact that you just might mess up. But if you never wore the shoes anyway, then you have nothing to lose!
So, let’s learn how to dye your shoes in a few simple steps.
Table of contents
Step 1: Remove The Finish by Stripping It
First things first, you have to strip down the shoe. You can either use a product like Saphir’s Renomat or something a bit harsher like nail polish remover (acetone). Renomat is more prominently used as a leather cleaner, but if you rub it hard enough it will help to remove some of the finish and dust build-up. Renomat would be good for medium to lighter colors, but you would most likely need to use acetone for stripping darker colors.
Depending on the strength of the finish, it may take several applications of stripping. You do not need to take it down to the bare color of the leather, only unless you really want to get a light color as the base for having greyish/tannish textures in your new color. Once stripped, allow the shoe to dry overnight, especially if you have done several applications.
Note: If you attempt to skip this step, your leather will not take the dye well and it can later easily come off. This step is key to getting a great result.
Step 2: Applying the Dye
Now it’s time for the dye itself. I used Saphir’s Teinture Française Shoe Dye, noted as the best in the industry (according to the patina artists). Professional patina artists use small paintbrushes that apply the dye, so I went out and bought myself a few. I know that they have specific ones that are good for doing a proper patina, but for a straight dye job, I think that any type will do.
I purchased two types, one for applying a lot to a larger area of the shoe and another for applying a little to a smaller area. I wanted to do the brogueing in a different color, and therefore I knew that I needed a finer brush than what was provided with the dye. Finesse is important when dyeing your shoes and the smaller brushes allow for more finesse.
When applying shoe dye always start with a little to see how easily the leather absorbs it. From this point, you can tell whether or not adding a little, or a lot, is going to suffice. More likely than not, you are going to have to do a few applications if you really want a rich color. For this shoe, I did 2 applications for both the burgundy and the black. It is important to allow drying time between applications as the dye can easily over-soak the leather when applying larger amounts.
Step 3: Sealing The Dye With Polish
Once you have applied the dye, the rest of the job is quite straightforward. Now you just need to seal it all in with a good polish. As you just subjected the shoe to all kinds of chemicals, the first thing is to apply some leather conditioner to ensure that the leather does not dry up.
After allowing the conditioner to dry (circa 10-20 minutes) use a cream polish to enhance the color that you just applied via the dye. After applying ample cream polish, you then finish it off with a wax polish treatment. This will not only help seal in all of that new color but also give it the shine it deserves. As I said before, this is permanent so you do not need to worry about taking the new colors away (assuming you did NOT skip step 1). Over time, if necessary, you can simply use the dye as a touch-up tool for when the color naturally fades.
Now that you know how to dye shoes, you can go give it a whirl on your own pair. You can rest assured knowing that an old pair of shoes can always be revitalized and made to look new and fresh again!
—Justin FitzPatrick, The Shoe Snob
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Heinz-Ulrich von Boffke
The re-dyed and revitalized shoes look really, really nice!
Best Regards,
Heinz-Ulrich von B.
TheShoeSnob
Thanks Heinz-Ulrich!
Harvard J. Nasty, Esq.
Wow, excellent!
Justin- I bought a pair of light colored (comparable to Allen Edmonds Walnut, if not a shade lighter) boots with what appears to be a few water spots on one of the toes. I was hoping to add a patina to the toes to hide the marks and spruce up the boot. Would you recommend fully stripping the shoe as you have done here or will several applications of dark polish do the trick?
Here’s a pic of the boots in question:
http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/ODczWDEyMTI=/z/YKcAAOxy4dNSvc2Y/$_57.JPG
TheShoeSnob
i would strip first to see if you can get any of those waters spots a bit less noticeable…
James
Justin,
An interesting post – thanks for that. Between yourself and Ron Rider, there’s a wealth of knowledge about dyeing and re-colouring shoes.
A quick question for you – after applying a few coats of acetone to strip off the original colour, would you recommend moisturising the leather before applying the dye, or do you think it’s alright to simply apply the dye and then moisturise afterwards?
TheShoeSnob
while it would be better to moisturize first, I don’t as I feel that the moisturizer on a stripped leather will naturally darken it…so I go straight to dye, then moisturize later
Juan Manuel
Great post! Exactly what I was looking for because I’ve got a pair of derby brogues I’d like to change the colour of.
TheShoeSnob
glad that you enjoyed!
TheShoeSnob
glad that you enjoyed it!
James H
Hi. Would this method work on patent leather too?
TheShoeSnob
no unfortunately not. Sorry
Brent DeNatly
I would never have tried dyeing my shoes without this article. Justin made it sound easy and gave great instructions so I gave it a try. I started with a well worn light brow To Boot New York cap toe balmorals. I used cotton balls and Q-Tips to apply fingernail polish remover and took them down to almost the raw leather color. I them gave them a healthy application of Bick 4 leather conditioner and waited a few days. I ordered the Saphir Navy blue dye from Justin and followed the directions. It went on easy with the supplied applicator and the coverage was great without any splotchy areas. After two coats the shoes were done and there was almost half a bottle of the dye left. The shoes dried in a couple of hours. I applied more Bick 4 conditioner and followed with Justin’s recommended polish routine with a navy cream polish followed by several coats of a wax polish. The shoes took a great polish and look great except….the navy blue came out BLACK. even under direct sunlight there isn’t any blue hue. When next to my black shoes they look slightly different, but not blue. I didn’t want royal, but I expected to be able to tell they were blue and not black. Next time I will try a lighter colored dye. Still, a great result and I appreciate Justin giving me the courage to try it. Don’t be afraid to give this a try.
TheShoeSnob
thanks for sharing Brent and for your kind words. I appreciate it. To dilute a color, pour the dye into another container and mix it with water, that will lighten it up and should give you a lighter blue next time. Thanks for your support
Frank k.
Try to mix the color to lighten up with white rubbing alcohol.
John Billings
Awesome
Chris Furkioti
I have a pair of shoes that is almost the same red color as the finished product you have in this article. Do you think it is possible to make them light enough to dye them a light tan?
TheShoeSnob
that will be tough as usually you don’t dye to a lighter color, always a darker one. You would have to really strip the leather of all its color and then find a tan dye, which might prove challenging. But like Brent said, give it a shot and see!
Jeremy
I have a pair of Barker Grassingtons – https://www.jonesbootmaker.com/barker-formal-shoes-classic-laced-2723425351 – which I would like to dye a true burgundy, much like the colour you dye your shoes in this post – however, I wouldn’t be concerned if they came out darker. Do you think that would be possible?
katy
Great job. Thanks for sharing. I have a pair of brown Born that i want to dye black.
Bill
I own a pair of shoes which I’d class as currently a dark tan (Birch Leaf by Russell and Bromley) but I want to darken them to a dark brown, similar to that of your dark brown on ‘Madison’ for example. Would I need to strip them down or would a darker shoe polish work over time?
JazzLad
Thank you for posting this! I was curious about dyeing shoes & read all I could find, but your blog was one of the most detailed accounts I could find. I’ve done it twice now (and so far pretty happy with my results); here’s my write-up if you’d like to see (I know your write-up was several years ago & and sorry in advance if you don’t appreciate the link in my reply!): http://www.jazzlad.com/burgundy-to-purple
Any chance you did it again? I’d love to see ‘a guide to dyeing your own shoes revisited’ 🙂
-Don
Samuel
Good information about dyeing shoes, just what I was looking for. Thank you.
Justin FitzPatrick
My pleasure!
Miguel Florit
Mr FitzPatrick your knowledge of shoes is amazing. You’ve been a great help.
Please continue sharing your knowledge and experiences with us ..!
You have a friend in Miami if you’re ever in town I would be pleased to show you around.
Thank you again my shoes look great thanks to you !
Warmest,
M. Florit
Justin FitzPatrick
Thank you for your kind words Miguel, I do very much appreciate it. I will be sure to reach out if ever in Miami! Be well
Douglas John Beevers
I dyed a cordovan boots to brown but the dark brown had some gap that still show light – do I need to restrip again? Or just add more dark brown dye – 90% of the shoe took the dark brown.