Revivex Nubuck, Suede & Fabric Boot Care Kit

The Gear Aid Revivex Nubuck, Suede and Fabric Boot Care Kit is everything you need to bring tired suede and fabric boots back: a concentrated cleaner, a PFAS-free water repellent spray, a stiff brush and a scuff eraser, in one pouch. Clean them, proof them, and they shed water and mud again without losing the soft nap that makes suede worth wearing.

What it is

A complete clean-and-proof kit for napped leather and fabric footwear. The kit holds 236 ml of product in two 118 ml bottles, plus the tools to use it.

Who it's for

Anyone with suede or nubuck hiking boots, fabric trail shoes, GORE-TEX lined boots or suede winter boots that have gone dull, stained or started wetting out. After a muddy week on the Australian Alps Walking Track or a wet winter of weekend walks, this is the kit that gets them ready for the next trip. It suits sneakers and casual suede shoes just as well.

The cleaner also handles smooth full-grain leather. The repellent is made for suede, nubuck, canvas and fabric uppers, where it adds water repellency and keeps the nap soft.

Key details

• Revivex Boot and Shoe Cleaner, 118 ml: concentrated and low-sudsing, so a little goes a long way. It lifts dirt and body oil out of the upper without leaving detergent residue in waterproof-breathable linings.
• Revivex Suede and Fabric Water Repellent, 118 ml: a spray-on treatment that keeps out water, snow, mud, dust, stains and oil, and conditions and softens suede. It is PFAS-free with zero fluorocarbons, and it lets GORE-TEX, eVent and NeoShell footwear keep breathing.
• Brush: for knocking off dried dirt and working the cleaner in.
• Scuff eraser block: rubs out scuffs and marks on suede and nubuck.

How to use it

1. Let muddy boots dry first, then brush off the loose dirt. Wet mud only gets pushed further into the nap.
2. Rinse the uppers to wet them, put a little cleaner on the brush and scrub gently. Rinse until the water runs clear.
3. Work over any scuffs with the eraser block.
4. Spray the repellent generously onto the clean uppers until they are fully wet, paying extra attention to the flex points where the boot bends.
5. Stuff the boots with newspaper and leave them to air dry overnight.

The whole job takes about 30 minutes of work, plus the overnight dry. Where the boot maker gives its own care steps, follow those.

Looking after it

A quick brush after each walk keeps grit from grinding away at the upper, and a clean-and-proof whenever water stops beading on the surface keeps suede boots going for many more seasons. Keep the caps on tight and the kit together, so the brush and eraser are there when you need them.