One of the most important things you can do is to take care of the possessions that you have.

This can come in many different forms such as sweeping and vacuuming floors regularly so that dirt does not get ground into the floor-covering or washing clothes using the appropriate method such as handwashing woollenknits.  Another is keeping your shoes in good condition.  You can extend the life of them significantly and keep them looking good with a few simple tips.

• If they get wet, stuff the toes with some scrunched up newspaper while they dry so that the shape is maintained.
• Polish your shoes regularly.  This reduces scuffing and maintains the suppleness of the leather.
• Have heels and soles repaired or replaced before they get too worn.

This is our shoe cleaning kit which we keep in a lidded container in the cupboard under the laundry sink.  There is an assortment of brushes, rags and different coloured polish for our various shoes.  We also keep a couple of sets of spare shoelaces so that we have some on hand if we break a lace.

Here are my shoes and boots to be polished.  I always remove any laces before polishing so that I can effectively polish the whole shoe, including the tongue, without getting polish on the laces.

Polishing my shoes regularly is a routine which we were taught as young children.  Every weekend our school shoes had to be polished ready for the week ahead.  Some things never change.