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Leather is a beautiful product, whether for clothes, shoes or accessories. It is sturdy and durable as well, but great care must be taken in order to maintain its sheen and impressive appearance.

One of the most critical areas of leather is cleaning it. Using the wrong type of cleaning material can absolutely ruin that leather jacket. For example, never use solvents or abrasives, not even saddle soap or household soaps or cleansers. They may effectively clean the material but some of them are just incompatible with today's water-based leather finishes. They may cause severe damage to the leather such as cracking. Like skin, leather also suffers when it comes in direct exposure to sunlight or other heat sources.

Leather care experts recommend gently dusting leather surfaces weekly to remove all traces of dirt and soil. It is recommended that you apply a leather conditioner or a leather protector at least once a year.

If someone has spilled a drink on your leather pants, immediately blot out the wet spots with a soft absorbent cloth. You can remove residual stains by soaking the cloth in a solution of water and a mild, non-detergent soap. Dab at it gently because rubbing vigorously can remove the leather's color or leave uneven marks. It is important to let the leather air and dry after cleaning.

For ink stains, the best results can be achieved by working to remove the stain early. It is important to have some type of ink or stain remover on hand, followed by a leather cleaning product. And don't forget to dab gently.

It takes an entirely different approach if you're trying to remove bubble gum. The trick is to gently heat the gum with a hair dryer until it dries. Take a clean white cloth and rub the gum from the leather surface into the cloth. If there are residual marks, quickly apply grease on them.

In the case of nubuck or suede shoes, routinely brush these on a regular basis to remove topical soil Spills are to be blotted immediately with an absorbent cloth.