If you live in wet, icy and snowy Autumn and Winter weather, and you’re not wearing snow boots yet, you might like to weatherproof your leather and suede footwear. I do this by spraying new footwear thoroughly with weather proofing spray outside before I wear it. The spray does not change the colour of the leather and suede once it has dried an hour later. The odour is quite strong, so I leave the shoes outside to dry. I will respray old footwear once a year with the same spray. If you’re wearing footwear from brands like Aquatalia and Blondo, the footwear is weatherproofed already, and there is no need to use a spray.

The spray helps keep your feet dry (or drier), and your shoes looking pristine for longer. Scuffs and marks are minimized, especially if you wipe down the footwear regularly. The spray does not create a 100% waterproof shoe, so avoid walking into deep puddles like you would with rubber rain boots.

There are many, many types of weather proofing spray on the market, so go with what looks good to you. I use separate sprays for leather and suede because suede is quite delicate. But I’m not convinced there is a difference.

These are the most recent footwear additions to my wardrobe that I’ve effectively weatherproofed with spray. I live in rainy Seattle and I’m on foot most of the time. The shoes are barely scuffed because they are protected. I don’t usually spray my sneakers, but metallic leather scuffs very easily, so I’ve protected them too. I haven’t sprayed my assortment of leather hi-top sneakers, and Summer suede footwear, and wonder if I should do that too.