DIY Boot Wax & Leather Conditioner (works for ALL leather: shoes, purses, wallets, & car seats!)
Keep your leather boots looking sharp and more water-resistant with this all-natural DIY Boot Wax and Leather Conditioner! This 2-ingredient boot wax is cheap to make, has no chemicals, and works for all types of leather, including shoes, purses, wallets, and car seats!
Fall is one of our busiest times of year. As soon as we feel those crisp, cold mornings, it’s like a race against the clock.
We want to beat the first snow, so we become busy beavers — stacking firewood, winterizing the house, putting snow tires on the cars, tuning up the snowblower and snow plow, and making sure our winter gear is located and ready to wear.
Now that our kids aren’t growing quite as quickly as they used to, we are able to squeeze more than one season out of snow pants, coats, and snow boots. This definitely saves money… but living in the woods and having an active outdoor life, we are admittedly hard on our winter gear.
Especially boots!
We LOVE leather boots!
While we can only hike or do outside winter chores in snow boots, we have all-weather leather boots to wear to town or work or community events indoors.
We have learned the hard way to buy for quality. Like I said, we’re hard on our gear. We are willing to invest more money in higher quality, real leather boots from reputable brands vs. finding cheaper boots from department stores.
We look for real leather, wool linings, and sturdy laces. Over the years, we’ve learned some specific brands to love and to avoid.
So, when you’re forking over $150 or more for a pair of boots, you want them to last as long as possible!
After a season of traipsing through ice and snow (often mixed with salt), the boots themselves are usually in great condition as far as keeping toes warm. Their looks, though?
The leather is dried, often stained by the salty ice/snow, and generally tired-looking.
In years past, my husband has ordered boot conditioner/water-proofer online. However, this year, he decided to save some money and get creative instead!
DIY Boot Wax and Leather Conditioner
After scouring Amazon for a product for waxing and conditioning our leather boots, my husband was disappointed with his options.
Either the products were made with chemicals and expensive. Or, they were mostly natural… and still expensive.
The two ingredients in this DIY Boot Wax and Leather Conditioner are the same main ingredients in the all-natural ones: coconut oil and beeswax. These two ingredients — and nothing more! — are perfect for thirsty, tired-looking leather.
He purchased this Craft Oil from Wildly Organic. This is an organic coconut oil that comes from the “bottom of the barrel” so to speak. It’s not ideal for cooking or baking, but it is ideal for crafty things like candles and boot wax! (<– Save 10% on Wildly Organic’s Craft oil with my discount code NOURISHING.)
He purchased these organic beeswax pellets on Amazon. Using only 4 ounces, we still have plenty of beeswax left to make more boot wax and leather conditioner, candles, salves, and more.
With such clean ingredients, you can feel good about using this economical wax and leather conditioner on all your leather items: shoes, purses, wallets, and even car seats!
Supplies You’ll Need for DIY Boot Wax and Leather Conditioner
- at least 4 ounces of Craft Coconut Oil
- at least 4 ounces of organic beeswax pellets
- kitchen scale
- a silicon mold or metal tins
- horsehair brush
Is the kitchen scale necessary?
Yes. This recipe is measured by weight.
The coconut oil and beeswax need to make a 50/50 mixture by weight. This is DIFFERENT than measuring 1/2 cup of coconut oil and 1/2 cup of beeswax.
Should I use a silicon mold for discs or a metal tin?
We went with the silicon mold for discs. Once hardened, the boot wax is, well, hard. In order to apply it to the boots from a tin, you would have to warm a bit in your hands and spread over the boots.
With the discs, we simply rubbed the boots all over with the wax and then used the horsehair brush to work it in.
If you’re planning to store your boot wax for a long time or give it as a gift, a metal tin is a better option.
What is the horsehair brush for?
Ever noticed the brushes shoe-shiners use?
A horsehair brush is a must-have if you plan on having a lot of leather in your life and taking care of it properly.
It’s gentle but firm bristles make cleaning leather without water and soap easier. It can also get dirt and grime out of the natural cracks that often form in leather.
When applying DIY boot wax and leather conditioner, the horsehair brush is your friend. It works the wax into the boots to make them more water-resistant and condition them simultaneously! NOTE: You do NOT want to use a synthetic fiber brush, such as a dish-scrubbing brush, on your leather as it may scratch or rub the leather in such a way that cannot be repaired.
Before & After + How often to wax and condition leather?
We took several before and after photos for you to see how well this DIY Boot Wax and Leather Conditioner really works. Not only are our boots more water-resistant, they’re more resistant to the salt/ice/snow mix.
And, they look much darker and richer!
How often to condition your leather goods?
Well, that totally depends on how much use they get.
For boots or shoes you plan to wear daily or very regularly, it’s a good idea to give them a once-over before the season begins and maybe condition/wax them once a month or every couple of months.
For purses, wax and condition according to use. The more you use it, the more it needs waxing and conditioning.
A wallet that’s used daily might need conditioning and waxing once a month.
It’s always a good idea to wax and condition any boots or shoes that will be stored away when not in use.
DIY Boot Wax & Leather Conditioner
Keep your leather boots looking sharp and more water-resistant with this all-natural DIY Boot Wax and Leather Conditioner! This 2-ingredient boot wax is cheap to make, has no chemicals, and works for all types of leather, including shoes, purses, wallets, and car seats!
Ingredients
- 4ouncescoconut oil (Craft Oil preferred)save 10% with my discount code NOURISHING
- 4ouncesbeeswax
Instructions
The coconut oil and beeswax should be weighed so that there are 4 ounces (or more if desired) of each. This creates a 50/50 mix by weight. Weigh out the beeswax.
Weigh out an equal amount of coconut oil.
I melted them together in my Instant Pot, using the "Keep Warm" feature. If you prefer, you can melt in a glass bowl sitting on top of a pot of boiling water (double boiler)
Once melted, pour into silicon molds or a metal tin. Let the mixture harden. You can speed this up by placing it into the freezer or fridge.
To use, warm the wax disc or a little bit of wax in your hand. Spread generously over your boots.
Use a horsehair brush to scrub and work the wax into leather. Continue brushing the boots until the wax is worked into the leather. No need to wait. Wear them right away!
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How do you take care of your leather shoes and boots? Will you make some boot wax and get more life out of your expensive leather boots?
Hello! Can this be used on white leather shoes? Can I scrub white leather with a horsehair brush like you do here?
That’s a great question! We don’t have any white leather, so I can’t say from experience that this will work or not. I would try it on a small spot on your shoes and see what happens.
This is awesome! I have a pair of shoes that needs this. Do I need to use the craft oil or can I use regular coconut oil? Thanks!
You can use regular coconut oil. We went with the craft oil because it’s cheaper. 🙂