Extra care has to be taken with suede shoes, which can be trickier to keep clean, and easier to inadvertently ruin. “Cleaning suede footwear requires special care to avoid damaging the delicate material and keep them looking their very best,” explains Marcus Fairfax Fountaine, co-founder of the Norfolk accessories brand Fairfax & Favor.
“Start by brushing off any surface debris before utilising a suede cleaner in gentle circular motions to spot clean any light marks. If you’re dealing with any oily stains, sprinkle a small amount of talcum powder onto the stain and leave overnight for the powder to absorb the oil. In the morning, simply brush off the powder with a soft brush and the mark should be gone.”
And a final word of caution: “Remember, we want gentle and light cleaning only. Don’t go submerging your sandals in water as that can lead to irreversible damage.”
Of course, many of these white sandal styles are timelessly chic, so if you’re hoping to wear the same pair year-in, year-out, then it’s worth considering how you store them during the winter months, too. “If you regularly leave your favourite pair of white sandals in pride of place in direct sunlight, you may actually be contributing to fading and deterioration of the material, especially with leather shoes,” shares Fairfax Fountaine. “In the winter months, we would suggest investing in storing your footwear in a dedicated shoe storage cabinet or keeping pairs of sandals in individual boxes in a cool, dark space to prevent light and heat from damaging the material – storing footwear this way also ensures you can select your shoes with ease every time.”