Darth Mule
Sr Member
I posted this mini tutorial already in a project thread, but thought I might offer it up in the main forum for those that might find it useful.
Over the years I've seen more than a few folks post questions about recoloring shoes and leather. Can it be done? The simple answer is "yes". and you shouldn't be intimidated by the process as it's really quite simple.
The first thing you should know is that you can dye most shoes darker depending on what kind of leather they are made from. If they are a vegetable tan, they will take dye. This is always the preferred method as dye soaks into the leather, permanently changing the color. It looks richer and is less prone to scuff. However, what happens if you want to go a lighter color or want to paint a vinyl or soft leather shoe? Well, you paint it silly. Just like that...
Here's what I started out with. something I found in a moldy storage bin and cleaned up. They had been painted brown before as you can tell by the blotchy appearance.
First thing I did was grab a rag and some acetone and go to town cleaning off the mold and breaking down the surface. Trying to get some of the old paint off. This is a key step here. You want to break down anything that's on the surface of your shoe. Even if it's just the existing polish or sealer. Be careful when working with vinyl shoes as sometimes the acetone will eat them. Denatured alcohol, and even a high percentage rubbing alcohol will work as well and are safer for use on vinyl.
Purchased my paint here: Angelus Paints
Best prices I've found and they have all the colors available in 1oz. which is perfect for a small project.
Angelus is my preferred leather and shoe paint. Very easy to use. Fume free as it's an acrylic. And it doesn't crack as bad as most other paints I've used. You can even apply it with a brush while watching TV (you CAN put it on with a sprayer if you prefer). The trick is to go in light layers. Otherwise you'll see the brush strokes in the finished product.
Here you see I've started layering in. First layer you can still see through the paint. This is normal. As you build up, it will go away. You don't want to rush it. The lighter the paint and the darker the undercolor of the boot, the more layers it will take.
I decided to go witha two-tone, pulling colors from the costume. And after about 5 layers of yellow and 3 layers of grey, I finished it off with some neutral show polish and some fun lacing. You MUST finish this with something to seal it. The company sells a acrylic finisher to seal the paint job with, but I find that it yellows really fast and ruins your paint. The neutral shoe polish seals it with wax and you can polish it like a normal shoes and get a nice finish.
Enjoy! Hope the tut is helpful!
Over the years I've seen more than a few folks post questions about recoloring shoes and leather. Can it be done? The simple answer is "yes". and you shouldn't be intimidated by the process as it's really quite simple.
The first thing you should know is that you can dye most shoes darker depending on what kind of leather they are made from. If they are a vegetable tan, they will take dye. This is always the preferred method as dye soaks into the leather, permanently changing the color. It looks richer and is less prone to scuff. However, what happens if you want to go a lighter color or want to paint a vinyl or soft leather shoe? Well, you paint it silly. Just like that...
Here's what I started out with. something I found in a moldy storage bin and cleaned up. They had been painted brown before as you can tell by the blotchy appearance.
First thing I did was grab a rag and some acetone and go to town cleaning off the mold and breaking down the surface. Trying to get some of the old paint off. This is a key step here. You want to break down anything that's on the surface of your shoe. Even if it's just the existing polish or sealer. Be careful when working with vinyl shoes as sometimes the acetone will eat them. Denatured alcohol, and even a high percentage rubbing alcohol will work as well and are safer for use on vinyl.
Purchased my paint here: Angelus Paints
Best prices I've found and they have all the colors available in 1oz. which is perfect for a small project.
Angelus is my preferred leather and shoe paint. Very easy to use. Fume free as it's an acrylic. And it doesn't crack as bad as most other paints I've used. You can even apply it with a brush while watching TV (you CAN put it on with a sprayer if you prefer). The trick is to go in light layers. Otherwise you'll see the brush strokes in the finished product.
Here you see I've started layering in. First layer you can still see through the paint. This is normal. As you build up, it will go away. You don't want to rush it. The lighter the paint and the darker the undercolor of the boot, the more layers it will take.
I decided to go witha two-tone, pulling colors from the costume. And after about 5 layers of yellow and 3 layers of grey, I finished it off with some neutral show polish and some fun lacing. You MUST finish this with something to seal it. The company sells a acrylic finisher to seal the paint job with, but I find that it yellows really fast and ruins your paint. The neutral shoe polish seals it with wax and you can polish it like a normal shoes and get a nice finish.
Enjoy! Hope the tut is helpful!
