How to store felt boots - methods and rules

How to store felt boots in summer

• Before you hide your shoes for the summer, you need to dry them thoroughly . In hot weather, you can expose them to the sun for several days. It is important to dry your shoes on all sides.
• Then clean off all the dirt and brush over the entire surface.
• Pack according to all rules to protect against moths.
• Place in a dry and warm place . You can easily store felt boots in your apartment. A pantry or dressing room is perfect for such purposes. You can store them on the balcony, but avoid direct exposure to direct sunlight. If you have a spacious hallway, you can put your shoes there.
• Dampness and humidity are unacceptable . The felt boots will become damp and lose their shape.

We clean felt boots in different ways

Despite all precautions, any shoes get wet and dirty. Methods used for leather and other products are not suitable for cleaning felt boots. First, they must be dried in a dry and warm place, but not on radiators or pipes. It is recommended to stuff them more tightly with newspapers. The fact is that, when drying, the felt boot shrinks, its shape is lost, the material hardens and becomes rougher.

If this happens, it is difficult or even impossible to restore the felt boots. A simple drying technique makes it possible to keep them in good condition and in excellent shape for a long time. Tightly compacted paper allows you to:

• save dimensions;
• absorb excess moisture;
• speed up the drying process.

To clean wool, use regular laundry detergent and carpet cleaner, diluted with plain water in a ratio of one to two. Apply the resulting mixture to the brush and thoroughly wipe all contaminated areas. Then rinse off the foam with cold water and dry the felt boots thoroughly again. You can also use soap foam, which is used to treat felt boots, after which it is also washed off with cold water.

There are dry cleaning methods: with a rubber brush or Velcro for shoes. As for the ancient, but still used methods, you need a dry piece of black bread (crust is best), which you need to thoroughly wipe all the stains. This returns the felt boots to their previous condition, and the method itself is the most gentle for such shoes. In addition to bread, people also used other materials: flour, starch, semolina, tooth powder, chalk, and so on. The last 2 products are best used for white or light-colored shoes.

How to store felt boots in winter

• In snowy weather, after going outside, you must first remove the snow from your shoes . This will prevent the boots from getting wet and swelling under the influence of moisture.
• Place to dry naturally next to heat sources - radiator, stove. But it is forbidden to place felt boots on heating devices, radiators, or directly next to the fire. The shoes will lose their shape.
• When drying, you need to put newspaper or paper inside . They will absorb all the moisture and facilitate quick drying.
• In damp and humid weather outside, you should wear rubber galoshes . They protect against getting wet, dirty, and damp.
• Galoshes can severely rub the heel of shoes until holes form. To avoid this, you need to sew rubber or leather linings , which will prevent the material from deteriorating.
• If galoshes are unacceptable for you, then you should attach a thick felt pad or rubber sole . They will protect felt boots from dampness, moisture, water and dirt.

How to properly clean felt boots before storing them

For this you will need:

• rubber brush; • foam sponge (sponge); • liquid laundry soap or powder for hand washing. The boots are made of felt, which is very easy to damage, so they should only be cleaned with a rubber brush. The latter is soft, but at the same time perfectly cleans the surface.

1. Dilute powder or liquid soap in water until foam forms. 2. Apply foam with a sponge to felt boots and gently rub with a rubber brush. 3. If felt boots are very dirty, they can be soaked in this solution for several hours, after which the solution is drained. 4. Then make a new soap solution and clean the felt using a foam sponge. 5. To prevent felt boots from shrinking and losing their shape, they must be completely dried. To do this, stuff them tightly with newspaper or crumpled paper. It is strictly forbidden to dry them between battery compartments; it is permissible to place them exclusively under the battery. It is also not recommended to dry felt boots in electric dryers.

How to protect felt boots from moths

These insects are very fond of woolen products. Felt boots are no exception. It is necessary to protect shoes from moths during the spring and summer. Otherwise, by winter you will receive a damaged product.

1. It is recommended to dry the boots thoroughly and remove dirt and dust.
2. Put moth repellent . You can use store-bought or folk remedies. A sprig of wormwood, lavender, bay leaf, mint will do - they repel these insects.
3. Then carefully wrap each boot in newspaper or paper . You can use a more modern way - buy shoe covers. There are special storage cases made from natural materials impregnated against insects. This is very convenient and reduces the time it takes to prepare shoes for storage.
4. Periodically remove and check for insects . If necessary, you can dry it again and change the paper.
5. Should be stored in a dry place , avoiding dark and damp areas. Moths do not like bright sunlight.
6. If moths or their larvae are found during regular checks, you should remove them, expose them to frost or sun for several days, depending on the time of year, and repack them in new paper.

It is important to detect insects and their larvae in time, because they can cause irreparable harm. The material will be damaged and cannot be restored.

Useful tips

To ensure that felt boots need washing as little as possible, and that wearing them is comfortable and enjoyable, you need to follow some simple recommendations. This will allow you to spend less time caring for your shoes and will significantly extend their service life:

1. When buying felt boots, you need to pay attention to what kind of sole they have. If they are ordinary, then you should buy shoes close to size, that is, true to size, and if the sole is rubber, then you need to take a size larger. These shoes are more prone to shrinkage after a wet wash, so even if they shrink slightly, you will not feel discomfort.
2. When you come home, you need to shake off any remaining snow from the material and dry your shoes well. Constantly remaining moisture can damage the appearance of the shoes, and a large amount of water from melted snow can even reduce the size of the boots or disrupt their shape.
3. You cannot dry such shoes on a radiator, even if you first stuff newspapers or bags inside. Due to the aggressive effects of high temperature, felt boots may shrink or lose their shape. You can dry them only close to a heating device or in a draft, then they will retain their original appearance.
4. Even if you do not see obvious dirt, you must clean your felt boots several times during the winter using a brush with stiff or metal bristles. This will remove hidden particles of dirt, and any washing after this will require much less time and effort.
5. Felt boots can be vacuumed, this is important if large lumps of dirt have formed on them. If after this procedure there are still contaminants, you need to remove them using a wet method.
6. If you know that it is dirty but cold outside, the best option would be to wear galoshes over your felt boots. This will protect the matted wool from dirt and save a lot of your time.
7. To spend less time cleaning, you can purchase a special water-repellent shoe cleaner. It not only keeps the material dry, but also creates an invisible barrier against dirt. You can purchase this product at any store; use the solution according to the instructions.
8. If it is not possible to remove the stains in any way, it is better to take the felt boots to the dry cleaner. Professionals will select the appropriate method, and not a trace will remain of the stains.
9. Designer felt boots that have stripes, decorations or embroidery on them have become very popular lately, making them quite problematic to wash. If any compositions are sewn onto the material, you can tear them off, clean the surface, and sew the decorations on again. If decorative embroidery is made on the material, it is recommended to clean it only in a dry way so that the colored threads do not discolor and stain the surface.

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Rules for caring for felt boots. Any thing, if you take care of it and monitor it in a timely manner, will last us longer. For example, let's take shoes. If we do not clean it from dirt and dry it after rainy weather, if we do not wash off the salt in winter and clean it with cream, then it will quickly wear out and lose its quality and original appearance. It’s the same with felt boots. What attitude we have towards them will determine the return from them. Therefore, in order for them to please us longer and protect us from the cold, we need to be able to properly care for and store them. In winter time. 1. Use galoshes. There is no need to wear felt boots in warm and damp weather without galoshes. They will quickly get wet and will have to dry for a long time, after which they can shrink significantly. It is better to wear galoshes at temperatures above minus 7 degrees, when it is already getting damp outside. 2. Hem the heel. When wearing felt boots, galoshes will rub the heel and cut it. And after a while a hole forms there. Therefore, to protect yourself from this, try to hem it with leather. 3. Hem the sole. If you are not going to wear galoshes, then you can strengthen the sole of the felt boot by sewing a layer of felt from the top of an old felt boot to it, using strong threads. It is advisable to take a thicker layer in order to better protect the sole from moisture and cold. 4. Before drying, remove snow. When you bring your felt boots to dry, be sure to clean them of snow so that they do not get wet. 5. Dry in a warm place. Before putting them out to dry, take off your galoshes and put your felt boots in a warm place. You can use it on warm radiators or a warm stove, but not on a hot surface. Because a damp sole can harden and shrink greatly. It won’t be superfluous if you stuff the felt boots with newspaper so that it absorbs the dampness. Galoshes should also be placed in a warm place so that the moisture inside evaporates. 6. Wear nylon stockings. If you are going to do some work in felt boots in a dirty place and they can get very dirty, then wear old nylon stockings on them. This is usually done in villages and towns so as not to spoil the appearance of felt boots. 7. Do not wash or wash felt boots. When the felt boots get dirty, do not wash them or wash them in water - they will definitely shrink in size and you will not be able to put them on until you refill the pads. It's best not to touch or smear the dirt. Let the felt boots dry, and then brush them with a brush and everything will come off. I myself have white felt boots. When they get dirty, I always clean them this way. Of course, it happens that the dirt is already very ingrained and you can’t just clean it with a brush. In this case, other methods are used. And this is another topic for conversation. In summer time. 1. Clean and dry. In summer, felt boots should be placed in the sun and, periodically turning over and changing their position, dry thoroughly. Then clean from dirt and dust. 2. Put it in storage. The main enemy of felt boots in summer is moths. They leave small holes behind. If you don’t look for a long time, they even corrode the walls of your felt boots. Therefore, to protect yourself from them, you can put moth repellents into felt boots, then put them in a plastic bag and seal them tightly. Place all this in a warm or dry place. A good option is the attic, where it is very hot and dry under the roof. Personally, I store wool and felt boots there. 3. Check periodically and set to dry. During storage, it is advisable to check felt boots for moths and dampness. If necessary, you can put them out in the sun to dry and then put them back again. Here are the recommendations for care and storage. I hope they will help you preserve your felt boots for as long as possible.

Series of messages “Useful tips”:
Part 1 - LED lamps. Advantages and disadvantages. Part 2 - HOW TO CARE FOR FELT FEET