By Eve O'Neill and Caleb Chin
If you own a pair of shearling boots, they’ve probably been worn to death. Such is the fate of everyday footwear. However, soft suede boots are meant to last through many seasons of wear, so if your Uggs or Emus or Bearpaws are starting to look a little haggard, a quick shampoo will have them looking like new.
What you’ll need
Suede brush: A stiff-bristled brush allows you to lift the nap (the fibers on the suede) to remove debris and to refluff the nap afterward.
Suede/nubuck eraser (or literally an eraser from the back of a drawer): An eraser can rub small scuffs and light stains off suede, as well as help restore its original texture.
Suede shampoo, water, and a small bowl: You can use a dedicated suede cleaner or a small mix of soap and water.
Shoe brush or toothbrush: Not as stiff as a suede brush, this gentler brush can help while you’re applying the suede cleaner.
Towel or rag: Use this to blot away moisture after shampooing.
Newspaper: Stuffing your shoes with paper helps maintain their natural shape and provides light resistance while you’re cleaning more-stubborn stains.
Scissors: If the shearling lining is worn around the top or has collected fabric pills, use these to trim away the ragged pieces.
Waterproofing spray: Applied after cleaning, this spray helps keep leather dry and clean.
How long will this take?
Your shoes will need a day to dry, so this is a 24-hour project. Initial cleaning will take about 20 minutes. They’ll dry overnight, and then the stain treatment will need an hour to dry after application.
The Ugg website recommends that you blot liquid or stains right after they happen, and then reapply a water and stain repellent “every few months” or “each season.” To us, that sounds like they need a deep clean and a reapplication of stain repellent two to four times a year, depending on how dirty you get them.
Remove loose debris, and spot-treat tough stains
Lightly brush the suede, with the grain, using a suede brush, an old toothbrush, or a terry-cloth towel. The aim here is to brush off any surface-level dirt and dust.
You can spot-treat most stains on suede with a suede brush and eraser. But more-serious stains, like grease or food, or stains that have dried and settled in require a good suede shampoo (like this one) or a mix of soap and water, to really penetrate the soiled areas.
Wash your boots
Add some suede shampoo to a small bowl of water—about a 2:1 ratio of water to shampoo—and mix with a shoe brush or an old toothbrush. Work the shampoo all over the shoe with the brush, using circular motions and firm pressure. The suede will turn darker as it saturates, which is perfectly okay and normal.
Rinse, brush, and dry
Rinse all the shampoo off with clean water, and rub the shoe brush over the shoe again until there are no more suds. Then shake the shoe to remove excess water.
With a clean towel, blot the shoes to absorb as much moisture as possible. Stuff the suede shoes with paper, and let them dry for at least 24 hours.
Refluff the suede, and trim ragged edges
Brush over each shoe with a suede brush—back and forth over the grain—to refluff the suede. If the top of the shearling is looking haggard, you can snip pills or stringy bits with a pair of scissors. There’s no need for major surgery or to remove big pieces of the shearling. All you’re doing is removing some of the material that’s balled up, similar to using a pill remover on a sweater.
Apply a waterproofing spray
Finally, apply a layer of waterproofing spray—like this one—over your suede shoes, and give them an hour to dry.
Meet your guides
Eve O'Neill is a former senior staff writer reporting on travel and outdoors at Wirecutter. She can remember the titles on her childhood bookshelf that set her in this direction: Into Thin Air, On The Road, The Call of the Wild. She has always been drawn to ideas about how to relate to, and play in, the wilderness.
Further reading
90(ish) Wirecutter Picks to Clean Just About Anything
by Wirecutter Staff
These are 90(ish) of our favorite Wirecutter picks to help you tackle a deep clean of your home.
How to Clean White Sneakers
by Tim Barribeau
When you have the right tools and supplies to clean your white shoes, they’ll look like new in no time.
How to Clean Crocs
by Ellen Airhart
Crocs tend to be fairly low maintenance but some stains are trickier than others. Here’s how to get an old pair looking like new.
How to Clean Birkenstocks
by Sarah Gannett
With regular cleaning and maintenance, a pair of Birkenstocks can last for decades. Left unattended, they’ll wear down faster and make your feet gross.