SUEDE IS NOT A COMPROMISE
ON SUEDE LEATHER SNEAKERS, WHY SERIOUS MAKERS CHOOSE IT DELIBERATELY, AND HOW TO CARE FOR SUEDE SNEAKERS CORRECTLY
SUEDE HAS A REPUTATION IT DOES NOT DESERVE. IT IS THOUGHT OF AS DELICATE. AS A MATERIAL THAT REQUIRES CONSTANT MANAGEMENT, THAT SHOWS EVERY MARK, THAT WAS CHOSEN FOR APPEARANCE RATHER THAN SUBSTANCE. THIS REPUTATION BELONGS TO BAD SUEDE. TO THE THIN, LOOSELY NAPPED, HEAVILY TREATED MATERIAL USED IN SHOES PRODUCED TO A PRICE. GOOD SUEDE IS SOMETHING ELSE ENTIRELY.
WHAT SUEDE ACTUALLY IS
SUEDE IS THE INNER SURFACE OF A HIDE, SPLIT FROM THE SMOOTH GRAIN SIDE AND BUFFED TO RAISE A CONSISTENT NAP. THE QUALITY OF SUEDE DEPENDS ENTIRELY ON THE QUALITY OF THE HIDE FROM WHICH IT COMES AND THE SKILL WITH WHICH IT IS PREPARED. FROM A PREMIUM HIDE, CORRECTLY SPLIT AND FINISHED, SUEDE HAS PROPERTIES THAT SMOOTH LEATHER DOES NOT. A PARTICULAR SOFTNESS OF SURFACE. A WAY OF HOLDING COLOUR THAT IS DEEPER AND MORE COMPLEX THAN ANYTHING ACHIEVABLE ON THE GRAIN SIDE. A TEXTURE THAT CHANGES WITH THE ANGLE OF LIGHT AND REWARDS ATTENTION. THE FINEST SUEDE COMES FROM THE SAME TANNERIES AS THE FINEST SMOOTH LEATHER. IT IS NOT A LESSER MATERIAL. IT IS A DIFFERENT ONE.
WHY SERIOUS MAKERS CHOOSE SUEDE
THE DECISION TO USE SUEDE IN A LUXURY SNEAKER IS A DELIBERATE ONE. IT CHANGES THE CHARACTER OF THE SHOE. A SUEDE SNEAKER IS LESS FORMAL THAN ITS SMOOTH LEATHER EQUIVALENT, MORE TEXTURAL, MORE PRESENT IN ITS SURFACE. THE NAP COMPRESSES WITH WEAR AT AREAS OF CONTACT, CREATING A SUBTLE RECORD OF USE THAT IS SPECIFIC TO SUEDE AND NOT REPLICATED BY ANY OTHER MATERIAL. FOR A MAKER INTERESTED IN THE CHARACTER OF THE SHOE OVER TIME, THIS IS NOT A QUALITY TO BE MANAGED AWAY. IT IS THE POINT.
HOW TO CARE FOR SUEDE LEATHER SNEAKERS
SUEDE REQUIRES DIFFERENT MAINTENANCE THAN SMOOTH LEATHER. NOT MORE. DIFFERENT. THE NAP NEEDS TO BE KEPT RAISED. A SUEDE BRUSH, USED REGULARLY IN THE DIRECTION OF THE NAP, PREVENTS THE SURFACE FROM MATTING AT POINTS OF HEAVY CONTACT. TWO MINUTES. IT MATTERS.
A SPECIALIST SUEDE PROTECTOR SPRAY, APPLIED BEFORE FIRST WEAR AND PERIODICALLY THEREAFTER, CREATES A BARRIER AGAINST MOISTURE. MARKS AND STAINS RESPOND TO A SUEDE ERASER APPLIED CAREFULLY BEFORE THE STAIN HAS SET. MOST SUEDE DAMAGE THAT APPEARS PERMANENT IS NOT. IT HAS BEEN ALLOWED TO SET WHEN IT COULD HAVE BEEN ADDRESSED.
SUEDE MAINTAINED CORRECTLY IS NOT A DELICATE MATERIAL. IT IS A RESILIENT ONE. THE REPUTATION IS WRONG. THE MATERIAL IS EXCEPTIONAL. 1812 ENGLAND WORKS WITH PREMIUM SUEDE FROM WORLD-CLASS TANNERIES. SELECTED DELIBERATELY, FOR WHAT IT IS RATHER THAN WHAT IT APPEARS TO BE.
