How to Stop Leather Shoes from Staining Your Socks? – 4 Simple Tricks!

You’ve just bought a pair of beautiful Italian leather shoes that you can’t wait to take out for a walk, only to find out that they’ve dyed your favorite socks! What do you do now? Is it possible to prevent this from happening? The short answer is YES! Here’s how to stop leather shoes from staining your socks for good!

How to Stop Leather Shoes from Staining Your Socks?

If you’ve never worn genuine leather shoes before, especially ones that are closed, you may feel confused at first when you slip your foot out of them and see the brown stains on your socks. Why does this happen? If there is no lining on the inside of the shoe, when your foot sweats or the shoe comes in contact with water, some of the paint that’s been applied when tanning the leather comes off. With some pairs, this issue disappears over time, while others may require some extra treatment to prevent this from happening. Here are some useful methods you can apply:

Hairspray

A really simple hack you can try is to spray the inside of your shoes with a strong hold hairspray. This will prevent the leather from bleeding color onto your socks in dry conditions. However, this is only a quick and temporary fix, which won’t be very effective if you’re planning to wear the shoes in the rain.

Moisture Control

Probably the most effective way to stop your leather shoes from staining your feet is to make them moisture-proof (as much as possible). For the exterior, you can use a leather conditioner, waterproofing spray, or plain Vaseline. For the interior, apply baby powder or any foot powder you can find in stores.

Read also: How to Remove Creases from Leather Shoes? – A 3-Step Guide for Instant Results!

Pick the Right Socks

Having leather shoe stains on your feet is a very common issue, however, not everyone experiences it and there’s a very simple reason why. If you wear socks made of natural materials such as bamboo, merino wool, or pure cotton, you’ve probably never encountered such inconvenience, because these materials absorb dye much harder.

White Vinegar

This multipurpose household product comes in handy once again! Apart from its proven cleaning and disinfecting properties, white vinegar can also be used to stop your shoes from leaving nasty marks on your socks. All you have to do is take a clean cloth and soak it in the liquid. Use it to thoroughly wipe the interior and exterior of the shoes until there is no dye coming off, and you’re good to go!

Read also: How to Clean 100% Leather Shoes – Full Guide to Make Them Look New Again!