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Let’s Talk About Blundstones
What’s up, Snailiens? Michael here. Today, I’m going to teach you how to clean Blundstone boots. So here’s the thing – I don’t know if you’ve read the article that I made on Blundstones, specifically the one that I’ve got, but I made a point in that article that it’s pretty cool that they distressed those Blundstones, and they look old, and they look kind of dry-ish, but they’re not water resistant.
Now, looking into that, it looks like that is wrong, and what’s really interesting is the fact that I wasn’t really sure if they were treated at all. Assuming you can kind of assume that they were, I mean, they’re touted as waterproof boots. I love these boots, but the biggest thing is that they are not all made the same, which isn’t technically bad. It’s just something else that you need to know.
What I Found Out About Blundstone’s Waterproofing
Here’s what I mean: so if you Google “Are my Blundstone boots waterproof?”, you’re met with a Canadian frequently asked questions version of the Blundstone website. The US version doesn’t have this, but it says basically most Blundstones are pretreated – the key word right there is “most” – and now, as a result, they do not recommend treating them out of the box, basically because they’re treated. If you do try and treat them again, something’s just gonna roll off, and it’s not really gonna work.
However, the exception to this rule would be styles that are manufactured with rustic brown, Crazy Horse brown, or rustic black leather. These leathers are treated in such a way as to present a distressed appearance and, as such, do not carry the same pretreatments as finished and oiled leather.
So here’s where it’s a little weird – it says you may treat these leathers but do not have to with a natural leather conditioner such as mink oil, Otter Wax, or Blundstone waxy oil conditioner to provide additional weatherproofing. In general, leather conditioning is going to darken these leathers.
Why Some Blundstones Break Down Faster Than Others
Now, that’s what I find really interesting because that pretty much confirms that not all Blundstones are made the same, and some will deteriorate faster than others. And what’s interesting is a lot of people say quality control on them sucks, but what I’m thinking now is that it’s not that the quality control sucks, but it’s just the fact that we assume all the leather boots are gonna hold up the same when most likely they’re not.
As you may know, if you don’t treat leather, it cracks, it dries out, and eventually, it breaks down. But to really, really extend the life of your leather, you have to treat it. So these boots are treated with something waterproof. I don’t know what Blundstone does exactly; it probably waxes them or puts some oil on them, anything that makes them hydrophobic, which just means water kind of beads off.
The boots I’m working on today look pretty dry out of the box, and originally, I thought, “Oh, that’s cool. I don’t know how they do that and keep it oiled and conditioned.” Maybe they re-oil it, but it looks like they don’t.
Here’s a note: if you love this style of boots where it looks all distressed, chances are it’s only gonna keep some of that distressed look if you oil it, which we’re gonna do today. But just know that if you want to keep it like it is out of the box and not oil it, chances are it’s gonna break down sooner than an oiled pair.
My Boot Care Setup
I know you’re probably thinking, “Michael, you were supposed to teach us how to clean Blundstone boots,” and I’m just yapping away, so let’s get to it. What I’m using today is a basic horsehair brush that I got from Kiwi.
Basically, I got this at Target – it’s not anything fancy, it’s not really that tough of a brush, and it’s really, really light for brushing stuff off, so nothing that crazy. I definitely recommend some other brushes if you really, really have dirty boots.
These boots are so new there are really not a lot of marks on them yet, although crazily enough, there are some scuffs, and I’ve only worn them like five times, so who knows. But what’s also nice is that if you reach really, really deep down into your Blundstones, you’ll notice that there is some saddle soap in there – still Kiwi. I’m not gonna use this. I just had this for a different pair of boots that I was cleaning.
I don’t know if Kiwi’s the best ’cause you can find it at Target and stuff, but it’s definitely better than using dish soap. Don’t use dish soap – there’s a video of this guy using dish soap on his Red Wings 811s or whatever, and basically, if you think about that, there’s a reason we humans don’t really shower with dish soap or use dish soap, and that’s because it’s so strong it basically just strips all the oils right out of your skin and really, really, really harshly.
That’s also why there is body wash and face wash: because you don’t want to be as harsh on your face as you can on your body. Saddle soap does strip the grime and grease and dirt and all that stuff, but it also has some conditioner, so your boots don’t end up drying out and basically being even worse than they were before. So it is very, very important to use leather soap.
Now, if you reach deep into your other boot, you will find – well, you will find Otter Wax leather oil, which is one of the products recommended by Blundstone. Also, there’s mink oil and stuff too, but I looked at otter wax, and they look like they have some good environmental consciousness stuff, so I was like, you know, why not do my part – buy some leather boots, kill an animal, but be concerned about the oil I use.
We’re gonna oil these up and see how it goes. They’ll darken quite a bit, but at the end of the day, I recommend you do this 100%. I don’t recommend you keep it dry. I know you bought them because they look cool, but if you want to extend the life of your product, I highly, highly, highly, highly recommend you consider doing this to your rustic boots.
And if you have some Blundstones or leather boots or really leather anything that you haven’t conditioned in a few months, definitely condition it – it’s gonna last way longer.
The Oiling Process
All right, so the biggest thing that you want to make sure of is that your boot is clean. Mine is obviously very clean – if it’s not, get some saddle soap to clean it off. Then you want to get a brush, really brush off your boots, try to get all that dirt. You want to oil the leather – you don’t want to oil the dirt. It’s actually not that good for the boot, so definitely don’t do that.
Then you have your otter wax leather oil and a rag – a white rag so you can see how dirty it gets. Something with oiling boots is less is more in the beginning. Do little coats instead of just giant goopy balls of it just because it’s easier and you don’t want to over-saturate your boots.
Also, I saw in a video – I don’t know if this is actually true – but people are saying if you’re gonna oil your boots, you might as well put some on the rubber because the rubber can dry out too. Another big thing is that you really want to get it right by the edges.
I would say seams, but this is not a stitched boot on the bottom, so you really want to get it right around where the sole meets the leather, which is gonna be the hardest spot to get it, also the hardest spot to clean, so think of that.
Comparing the Results
It takes the boots a day or two to dry. Right after oiling, they will look super dark and wet. It’s gonna dry and look a little bit more like the original. If you look at a just-oiled boot next to the un-oiled boot, there’s a pretty big difference. It loses some character in the oiling process, but some of that will come back.
The freshly oiled boot also just looks a lot healthier and there’s less scratching. I’d say the un-oiled boot looks cooler, but sometimes you just have to do what’s best regardless of your own personal feelings. Ugh.
Watch This Review
Final Thoughts on Boot Care
Okay, so at the end of the day, the most important thing to remember is that if you want to have these boots last for a long time and become your boots, you need to treat them somehow, some way. Leather that’s dry usually cracks, and it’s a lot more brittle, so oils and conditioners and stuff like that are imperative to keeping your boots not only looking nice but also not breaking so that you can actually wear them.
If you really, really hate the after-look after these boots have dried, I definitely recommend, at the very least, looking into some nano sprays or something like that. They’re at every Target and every CVS.
It’s just a silicone spray that will go over your boot, which prevents them from getting wet and getting stains and stuff like that. You do have to reapply that, too, of course, but it won’t change the look of your boots as much. Oiling them is also more fun, and now my boots look wet and healthy like a live cow.
Anyway, I hope you like this article and you now know how to clean Blundstone boots. Bye bye!
This article was adapted from Michael Kristy’s video on The Iron Snail, with edits from FashionBeans, and was reviewed by Michael to ensure the integrity of his original content. Watch the full video here.
The Iron Snail is a men’s fashion vlog (and now article series!) starring a young man named Michael and featuring a snail no bigger than a quarter. The two are set on taking over the world of fashion by creating a clothing line to end all clothing lines. Until then, we’re here to tell you EVERYTHING you need to know about the best clothing out there, from the highest quality raw denim jeans to the warmest jackets to the sturdiest boots…the Iron Snail has got you covered.