cleaning hush puppies

[esteban68]

I just snagged a pair of 1960's? hush puppies in vgc, however after brushing them with a soft toothbrush I have noticed two things...one of the toes has a drop of something on it that looks like food...gravy or similar and one of the shoes has dried out a little not much but definately not as soft as the other.......
A .how can I get the small mark out
B. can I use leather conditioner on suede/pigskin???

I'll post pics soon, they are the chicago model but have the darker brown leather edging. strip around the collar? and not the later padded collar.

 

[LoveMyHats2]

Hello. Two things you can do with these shoes. You can use some leather conditioner on the inside of the shoe, so turn the shoe upside down, and rub in some leather conditioner to help keep the leather from getting dried out. BUT first, you can use saddle soap to wash the outside of the shoe just like washing your hands, use a wash clothe and do not be afraid to really scrub the surface of the shoe. Rinse the saddle soap really well off the leather. Look at the stain, if it is still there do it again. When they are clean, let them dry, then use a suede brush on them and work on the nap of the leather to bring it back up. You can use a suede eraser on them also, but in my opinion, washing the shoe is easier on the suede. A suede eraser is actually "sawing" off the top layer of the suede to bring in new suede under it to make it appear clean....which if you are too aggressive with it, can make a hole in the leather. After you get the shoes clean, and they are dry, use the leather condition on the inside of the shoes, it will keep the leather last longer, and yes, it may soak into the very top of the outside of the suede and make it be darker. If that does happen, rub the suede with a clean and dry white wash clothe and then use the suede brush on the leather. I have several old vintage hush puppies and know how they get really dirty. I do this with the shoes and it works better than anything else I have tried.