How to Clean White Canvas Shoes

How to Clean White Canvas Shoes

No doubt you’ll need to clean your white cotton canvas shoes regularly to help keep dust, dirt and pollen at bay.

• Prepare and pretreat the shoes. Remove any shoe inserts (insoles, gel cushions or other orthotics). Remove laces and pretreat by soaking them in a bath of 1:1 white vinegar and water. Treat the inside of the shoes to reduce smells. Pour a tablespoon of baking soda into each shoe and shake gently to distribute the powder.
• Spot clean. Tackle spots and stains before laundering by soaking them directly with stain-removin g spray.
• Place shoes and laces in a mesh laundry bag for delicates. An old pillowcase is a good substitute if you don't have a mesh bag.
• Place the shoes (in mesh bags) and several old towels into the washing machine. The towels help cushion the shoes during the cycle and prevent the machine from becoming imbalanced.
• Set and run the washer on the most delicate wash cycle. Use liquid detergent, not bleach. Alternatively, you can also pour a cup of white vinegar into the wash after the shoes have submerged and are soaked with water. White vinegar is more delicate than bleach. Adding white vinegar at this stage in the cycle and allowing the cycle to complete will have a bleach-like effect on your whites. Important reminder: Never, ever combine bleach and vinegar for cleaning purposes, even if diluted in the washing machine, as the combination creates highly toxic gasses in the home.
• Allow shoes to air dry. Air drying is an important final step to the washing process. The heat from a dryer can damage the adhesives used in sole construction, so avoid it if possible. Reshape your shoe and leave it in a space to dry.
• Once dry, you can thread the laces and replace the inserts.