How to Remove Salt Stains from Leather Shoes

Rock salt and ice melt, typically a blend of sodium chloride, calcium chloride, and magnesium chloride, are used to melt ice on streets and sidewalks, making them safer to traverse. Unfortunately, road salt causes ugly white-ringed stains on shoes that not only look unsightly but are also drying. This salt is especially damaging to leather, as the material will crack when it's sapped of moisture.

Removing salt stains from leather shoes is a simple task, and one that shouldn't be put off. Salt is highly drying, so allowing salt stains to linger can cause permanent damage, leaving leather shoes dull, dry, and cracked.

Step 1: Prepare Vinegar Solution - in a small bowl, dilute white vinegar with equal parts water, leaving enough space to dip a rag. A scant quarter cup of each is more than enough to clean one to three pairs of salt-stained shoes; double the amount if cleaning more than three pairs of shoes.

Step 2: Dampen Cloth - dip the cloth in the vinegar solution and wring it out so that it is damp but not dripping wet.

Step 3: Buff Out Stains - working vigorously, buff the salt stains out of the leather. Dip the rag in the vinegar solution to rewet it as needed.

Step 4: Remove Vinegar - after buffing out the salt stains, rinse the rag with clean water and go over the shoe several times to remove residue from the vinegar. As with the vinegar solution, the rag should be damp but not dripping wet.