Washing leather shoes?

[Angelina]

:shuffle: Do you...wash the kids LEATHER shoes in the washing mashine? Or just their keds?

My son's shoes (ECCO's) are just extra dirty and I really want to refresh them, I've never ever washed any shoes in the washing mashine before and I just tried to wash my own slippers (fleece) and his keds (rubber+cloth material), and they turned out just amazingly clean! :scratchch

And it got me thinking...will it really hurt the leather shoes if I put them in a washer? I sort of washed Robeez before, but yes, they were little bit not so soft afterwards...But it's just Robeez leather, you know, Ecco seem to be harder anyway. Should I try?

[Angelina]

Well, these are sort of sneakers, not real dressy shiny thingys

I was...googling the topic, here we go http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20060912060955AAGX70Z

Seems like it is possible. Hmmmm. :scratchch Not that I am THAT lazy, the shoes are just THAT dirty.

[Angelina]

Hey! It's a shoe selling site...tells ya that you should change the sneakers every 3-4 MONTHS! :bowdown:

Replacement

Shoes are subject to wear and tear. Most experts say that you should replace heavily used athletic shoes (regular runners, joggers, and basketball players this means you) every three to four months. Replace less regularly worn shoes every six months to a year. So when the end has come, your shoes have reached their golden years, and you're ready to retire them to the collection or consign them to the trash, come back to Sneakerhead.com for a replacement of your Nikes, Puma, Adidas, or Jordan shoes. Let one of our experts help you choose your next great pair of shoes.

http://www.sneakerhead.com/sneaker-care.html

[Melissa in Italy]

Angelina I have washed athletic-type shoes in the machine with good results. I just wouldn't dry them in the dryer. Yeah, DD's Bobux came out a little 'crispy' after I washed them but they softened back up after a couple of wearings.

[Suzi]

I have thrown my Doc Marten slides in the washer...they come out practically GOOD AS NEW!! Here's the thing...the Docs were soworn and dirty that they were going to be thrown out so I figured I had nothing to lose. I literally tossed them in the washer with towels and they came out spic and span clean. I air-dried them and they were perfect.

I also washed Julia's Robeez/Bobux and although they dried a little rougher than they were, they softened right up once she wore them.