You must have owned Converse Chuck Taylor All-Stars at least once in your life. A classic and, at the same time, a casual sneaker, this pair has been a friend to your everyday jeans-and-tee to fashionable OOTDs.
With its common appearance in schoolwork or even weddings, another thing common to these is them getting dirty at one point.
To make sure that your favorite pair of Converse and its color, pattern, and style is maintained well, this article will teach you how to clean Converse shoes and more. Let’s take a look at the step-by-step guides and all your pressing questions below.
How To Clean Converse Shoes?
This is a 4-Tip guide on Cleaning your Converse shoes. These have been mentioned below:
- When you start cleaning your Converse with a cleaning product for the first time, it is always wise that you test a small portion of the cleaning agent onto the shoes before you clean the entirety. As a part of it, if your cleaner or cleaning method is not compatible with the shoe, you can change one or both. On their website, Converse always suggests that you test the cleaning methods on a particular area of the sneaker that is less visible.
- While cleaning your Converse, you should never throw your sneakers into the washing machine. It is better if you use a concoction of mild soap or detergent and some lukewarm water to clean the canvas sneakers. You can use a lightly dampened cloth if you want to rub the shoes off excess dirt. However, you need to keep in mind not to be too rough. A toothbrush for the toecap and the rubber base is always a good idea.
- Never put your shoes in a dryer, even for a quick fix. You should always let them air-dry after cleansing. The usage of a hair-dryer is also not a good match for your Converse unless you want to cut down on its life.
- A great and favorite tip when air-drying the shoes is to use paper. Papers can allow your shoes to be reshaped Before you leave them out to dry, fill the shoes with paper to reshape, but you will need to change the paper filler throughout the drying process when it gets damp.
How Do You Clean White Converse Shoes?
You should always clean your white Converse shoes by hand; let’s start there. If you have successfully avoided using the machine, here are the steps you can follow:
- First, remove the laces of your sneaker. Now, using a soft-bristle toothbrush, brush off any loose debris, dust, or dirt. Do this on the surfaces, grooves, and crevices on the shoe, and don’t forget the rubber trim and tongue while you are at it.
- Next, you will mix some dish liquid in a cup of warm water, dip a microfiber cloth in it and go in circular motions over the surface of the shoe, its outsole, and exterior toe box.
- Now, you will need to drop the laces in the solution that you just created for a deep soak. Make sure that your use of the soapy water is complete before you drop the laces in this solution.
- Then you will take another clean cloth which should be dampened in clear water, and use it to wipe down the soaped shoes from Step 2.
- Now, rinse the sneakers well and stuff them with paper or paper towels to take in the remaining moisture and reshape them while they dry. You should let them air-dry at room temperature away from direct sunlight. Don’t forget the laces! Just lay them flat and dry them in the same process.
How Can I Get Tough Stains Out Of My White Sneakers?
Getting tough marks and stains out of your Converses depends on if it is made of canvas or leather. So, according to the material of construction, you will reach for different cleaning agents, such as hydrogen peroxide or baking soda.
If you have canvas shoes, you will perform step 1 mentioned above and then dip a new brush in hydrogen peroxide and use it to scrub the shoe one more time. After that, you will continue steps 2-5.
If you own a leather Converse, then you will complete step 1, and then dip a wet brush in plain baking soda and instead of scrubbing (as opposed to the canvas-made Converse), rub the stained areas gently. Then you will carry on with the rest of the steps.
Can I Put Converse In The Washing Machine?
No, you cannot put Converse shoes in the washing machine.
The website of Converse cautions against anyone putting their shoes in the washing machine owing to the aggressiveness of the washer.
How Do You Clean Converse Shoes With Toothpaste?
If you have neither hydrogen peroxide or baking soda, and especially if you own canvas sneakers, you can clean your White Converse shoes or the white sections of your colored Converse shoes with toothpaste.
Only make sure that it is a non-gel white toothpaste.
You have to cover the stained area with a little blob of toothpaste and let it sit for 10-15 minutes, use a wet towel to wipe the dried paste off, and cleanse normally. You can also use it in the reinforced toe boxes and the edges of the shoes.
How Do You Get Yellow Stains Out Of Converse?
To get yellow stains out of your Converse, you can use the regular cleansing method, the toothpaste method, or another new one: The OxiClean gel stick method.
Here, in the same manner as the toothpaste process, you need to use the OxiClean gel stick on the shoes, let it sit for 5 minutes to a couple of days (depending on the directions in the product). On average, letting the gel stick for a couple of hours does the trick.
After that, clean your shoes normally following steps 2 to 5 above.
How Do You Clean Dirty Black Converse?
To clean your dirty black Converse shoes, you need not follow any extra steps. All you have to do is go along the same steps as cleaning your white or other colored converses, and you will be good to go!
Can you wash Converse All-Stars?
Yes, you can wash Converse All-Stars.
For this, you have to follow the steps below:
Clean
Depending on a thorough cleanse or just getting rid of the stain, you need to get your cleaning supplies. You will need some stain remover, a mild laundry detergent, a solution of 3% hydrogen peroxide, and one Magic Eraser or OxiClean stick for the easy removal of dirt and stains.
You can use towels or rags to scrub your shoes. However, make sure that they are new and free of traces of bleach to prevent the discoloration of your All-Star shoes.
If you have had any recent game from which your shoes caught dirt or mud, let it dry before you begin cleaning them. This makes it easier for you to brush off the dry mud.
If you directly soak such shoes with dirt instead of drying and dry-brushing them, it will smear the mud into the material of the canvas, and it may be harder to remove the stains then.
Soak
Start by getting yourself a clean towel along with a solution of soapy water. Fill your desired bucket with lukewarm water and mix liquid soap to form suds. You can do it in your bathroom sink or bathtub too. In the soapy water solution, you can also add some hydrogen peroxide for a deeper cleanse.
Now is the time to soak your All-Stars. Let them sit for 5 minutes for the hydrogen peroxide and soapy water to sink into the material of the shoe aka the canvas fabric. Now lay the drenched sneakers on top of a towel.
Side note: If you happen to have bike grease attached to your shoes, you should avoid soaking them into the soapy water and peroxide solution unless you have dusted them with baby powder beforehand.
Dip
Dip an item of clothing or cleaning rag into your soapy water and peroxide mixture. Use it to scrub the fabric to remove any light marks off your shoes.
If you need a stronger medium for cleaning, you can also use a toothbrush. While cleansing, you can also use a stain remover stick or a Magic Eraser to get rid of the stains.
Scrub
Now it is time to scrub the rubbery areas of your sneakers. If you have soaked and brushed it for a long time so far, meaning that the dirt has been deeper, you might not clean the rubber areas completely as scrubbing it for a long time while it is drenched is not a good idea.
So be careful while you clean the rubber strips, as being too harsh may break the rubber and cause them to peel off.
Dry
You will finally dry your All-Stars. The indoor environment and room temperature are best for drying your sneakers as they prevent overexposure of the shoes from directing sunlight. Reshaping while drying is always a good idea.
Also, laying your shoes on a clean towel flatly instead of making them sit slanted on a wall is a better way to dry them.
For the Laces
Take a water bottle and drop the sneaker laces in its bottle of stain remover. However, there’s a catch. Often soaking the laces risks the usability of the plastic tips.
To let you thread the sneaker again with uptight tips, you will soak the laces while keeping the tip out of the bottled concoction by letting them hang out from the mouth of it.
After taking the laces out of the bottle, you will need to wipe them down and lay them on a clothing rag to dry.
Read also: Can I Put Shoes In The Dryer?
