How to stop my blue jeans from blue-ing my white shoes?

May 29, 2007 10:03 AM

I just bought a pair of sneakers that are made with white leather that has an unfinished feel to it (not glossy, but not suede either). My jeans are leaving blue marks all over them! How to remove the blue stuff, and how to prevent it in the future? Must I absolutely avoid wearing these shoes with jeans, or is there something I could treat them with, perhaps?
posted by freudenschade to clothing, beauty, & fashion (8 comments total)

It's not the shoes, it's the jeans. Your jeans have a type of dye that rubs off on stuff. Most jeans don't have that type of dye.
posted by The World Famous at 10:42 AM on May 29, 2007

Hair Spray!! Try putting it on your shoes. Test an area that you cannot see all the time, maybe part of the tongue.
posted by dnthomps at 10:53 AM on May 29, 2007

Hair Spray!!

I dunno...the dye may just stick to the hairspray. That stuff never dries completely non-stick.

(Long-time hairspray user who has seen a lot of dust anc crap stick to walls/floor/clothing/furniture near which hairspray was applied.)
posted by limeonaire at 11:00 AM on May 29, 2007

Spray the shoes with Scotchguard (outside. it's not good to breathe that stuff).
posted by jamaro at 11:33 AM on May 29, 2007

Your jeans have a type of dye that rubs off on stuff. Most jeans don't have that type of dye.

No, that type of dye is indigo, and that's what makes blue denim blue. The difference is that dark jeans have more indigo left in them than faded jeans. And the indigo is meant to wear off; that's what makes dark jeans break in. All of the whiskering and sandblasting of "distressed" jeans just simulates years of natural wear.

Have you washed the jeans yet? If you're not purposely avoiding washing them (raw denim, for instance) then that might get rid of a bunch of indigo. If the jeans are long enough, you can turn them up, since the inside of the jeans will have more of the undyed weft exposed.

You may end up stuck with an eraser and leather cleaner -- although I know a lot of people who wear white shoes with dark jeans and want the blue marks.

I definitely wouldn't apply hairspray to leather, and I'd be cautious about Scotchgard, which would work well on, say, canvas, but isn't meant for leather.

(Here's a discussion about the problem over on Styleforum's denim forum.)
posted by mendel at 11:39 AM on May 29, 2007

The generic leather protection spray doesn't necessarily prevent this type of damage either. I sprayed some (made by Totes I think) on my taupe suede Pumas and I might as well have bought blue shoes.

Granted, I should've known better than to wear them with new, barely-washed dark denim, but I thought I was in the clear. The guy at the Puma store later told me I should use a spray specifically for suede. Sounds like your shoes might be some special type of finish that would also require a special treatment. Either way, don't spray them with generic leather protectant and assume you're A-OK.
posted by awegz at 11:50 AM on May 29, 2007

You guys are awesome. I'm gonna try the eraser thing right now to get rid of the few blue marks that got on there, and then see what else works from there. I think it's just one pair of jeans in particular that does it, and they are definitely that overdyed style, but I've washed 'em probably five times already. They are a bit long, so I might try turning them up a bit. Scotchguard might be a decent idea, although I heard that stuff had been banned or something because of the horrible fumes...? Hmm. More suggestions would be most welcome...
posted by freudenschade at 3:36 PM on May 29, 2007

I used to use Mr. Clean magic eraser to keep the white parts of my Chucks clean all the time. Not sure how it works with leather, but it may help too.
posted by nakedsushi at 4:46 PM on May 29, 2007