When you can’t see the color of your closet floor because your shoes and boots are in a messy pile, you’ve got issues. A messy closet makes for a messy wardrobe, and when your footwear is strewn all over your floor, you’re not only wasting space, you’re damaging the quality of your boots and shoes and more importantly, you’re shortening their lifespan. If you want your closet to be pristine, and more importantly, your boots and shoes to last for years, you’ll want to keep these six tips in mind.

Closet Storage

If you want to make your boots last longer, you need to store them in your closet the right way. There are tons of boot storage products out there that claim to save space and organize your closet, but they’re not necessarily the best product for maintaining the overall health and shape of your boots. Boot Butler is the perfect solution for boot-storage that both organizes and fits into any closet, as well as maintains the original shape of your boots to ensure they look the way they did when you first bought them years later.

Weather-proof

The elements are inevitable, and the main cause of why your boots look dull, rough and dingy. Whether you’re trudging through six inches of snow or trying to hop over a giant rain puddle on your way to work, there are ways to prevent the effects that harsh weather has on your favorite pair of boots. The best way is to waterproof your boots with a water-proofing spray or wax. A silicone-based spray is especially good at keeping your boots dry to preserve the quality of the boots.

Condition

If you want to make your boots last, it’s important to condition them. Similar to the conditioner you put in your hair, conditioner for your boots can prevent them from becoming rough, dry, and cracked. This is especially critical in taking care of leather boots. There are a variety of boot and shoe conditioning products out there, it’s just a matter of finding which formula works best for you.

Daily Care

You brush your teeth every day, so why not do this with your boots? Of course, your boots aren’t a part of your body, but if you care about making them last, it’s important to tend to them more than just at the end of every season. Buying a brush for your boots is a great idea. At the end of every day brush your boots to assure that any dirt or dust from outside doesn’t seep into their material and damage its quality. You don’t have to spend 30 minutes every day cleaning your boots, just a quick brush will improve their overall health and make them last longer.

Proper stain treatment

Accidents happen. Spilling your morning coffee on your favorite pair of boots doesn’t have to be the end of the world. Be prepared for the worst and protect your boots from potential stains with stain repellent. Look for a stain repellent that’s safe for the material of boot you want to protect. When the worst does inevitably happen and there’s a giant coffee stain on your new leather boots, use the right stain removal to treat them. Again, consider the material of the boot when you’re deciding which stain removal treatment to buy.

Replace soles

Outer beauty shouldn’t be your only concern when it comes to taking proper care of your boots. What’s on the inside counts, and all metaphors aside, the soles of your shoe matter. Whether you decide to take your boots to a trusted cobbler, or you buy a more temporary fix with a sole that you can insert yourself, replacing the soles of your boots will prevent you from wearing down their heel. When you take care of your boots’ inside, you take care of their outside too.