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Mid-Calf. Ankle. Knee-High.
We Fix All Your Fall and Winter Favorites
Our absolute favorite time of the year is when the weather cools off and we can finally bring out our stash of boots and booties! So many delectable styles to love, and our skillful cobblers can repair, weatherproof, and refresh all of them. Sock Boots. Chelsea Boots. Lace-up boots. Sheepskin boots. Custom boots. Bring it on, sister.
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It’s a fact that boots and booties are the greatest, and we know you have least one pair (if not several!) that you couldn’t imagine being without.
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When your favorite pair of boots are perfectly broken-in, it can be crushing when the heels and soles wear down, the elastic stretches, the toes get scuffed, the leather or skin becomes worn and dull, or worse!
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Don’t fret! Houston Shoe Hospital can repair your boots and booties! Entrust them to our expert cobblers and you’ll never have to let any beloved pair of boots go again.
"Repairs are our passion. We fix all brands, all styles, all shapes, and all colors. If you can wear it, we can repair it!"
Via Spiga
and so many more...
The Anatomy of a Fashion Boot
When we approach a boot repair project at Houston Shoe Hospital, we focus on structural preservation. There are 5 primary areas of concern when we evaluate any damage:​
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The Upper is the top of the boot.
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The shoe Insole is the part your foot actually sits on.
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The Heel Base lies in between the heel cap and the sole. Similar to the welt, the heel base is attached directly to the sole and serves as the foundation for the heel caps to attach to.
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The Sole and Heel Cap are the components of the boot that make contact with the ground and give you the traction and support you need while walking. The majority of your wear and tear occurs here, and basic repairs can be maintained. However, if you wait too long and wear through these layers, you risk damaging the insole and/or upper, which will result in more extensive repair needs.
Replacing heel caps is actually the most common and simple boot repair job we complete. It’s also the most unknown and misunderstood repair job. Why? Most of us ladies think our boots must be thrown away when the metal pin on the heel has been exposed, but as you have learned, this is simply not true!
For flat boot heel repair, we’ll replace and install new, protective rubber heel caps in order to preserve the heel base shape and integrity. These rubber caps also provide extra comfort, durability, and traction.
Bring all your boots in need of new heels to Houston Shoe Hospital and we’ll make sure you can keep enjoying them for years and years to come.
Boot & Bootie Heel Cap Repair
If you love wearing high-heeled fashion boots and booties, you’ll know there are two different styles of heels. There are the thin high heels (similar to a high-heeled pump), and then the larger—what are called “flat”—heels. We can repair both styles of fashion boot and bootie heels.
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The tiny plastic heel caps are in place to protect the base-end of the boot heel. These plastic heel caps are attached to a metal pin that sits inside the heel to keep them in place. When the heel cap is worn down (or completely off!), it needs to be replaced stat.
If you’ve ever experienced the dreaded “clicking” sound while you walk, it surely means your heel caps have been worn down to the metal pin. DON’T THROW AWAY YOUR BOOTS! 99% of the time they can be rescued by our skilled cobblers.
Sole Repair and Sole Protection
Many women’s fashion boots and booties—especially designer brands—are made with delicately thin soles. These thin soles are gorgeous, but they can be problematic if you want to wear the boots or booties outside of your bedroom! Inevitably, the soles will get worn down—and fast!
If your sole gets worn or pulls apart, please don’t worry. We can fix those boots and booties! Our Houston Shoe Hospital cobblers will either re-glue the existing rubber or leather soles back down if they are still in good condition, or we will completely replace your soles and get them back on your feet in no time.
For all leather sole repairs, we will replace the soles using the finest quality leather in the U.S.
Before wearing a new pair of boots or booties (or after light wear!), we can install our micro thin soles that we custom design, called SolePros®, on top of the original leather or rubber sole. These soles are designed to be stylish and thin and are available in over a dozen color choices.
SolePros do not take away from the cosmetic look of the fashion boot or bootie, but will give you 5 times the use of the original sole, which means you can wear that boot out and about and not worry about sole wear for a long, long time. As a bonus, they provide excellent traction and extra soft comfort while you’re walking.
Shoe Stretching and Liner Replacement
Our Houston Shoe Hospital cobblers can provide boot stretching if your boots and booties feel too snug. Leather boots can be stretched up to ½ size and are stretched in the width, which helps with length as it allows the toe portion of the foot to spread out, relieving pressure. Vinyl and fabric heels can be stretched, too, just not always as easily as leather.
Need more room in the calf? Even the legs - or shaft - of a fashion boot can be stretched effectively with our specially designed leg stretching machine to increase the size of the boot shaft.
We can also install a brand-new leather sock liner - unwrinkled and fresh - inside your boots or booties that will provide both extra comfort and a clean, refreshing new smell. Additionally, we can replace the heel liner at the back of your boot to ensure you have just the right amount of cushioning.
up to
1/2 size
Boot Shine, Cleaning & Refinishing
We can beautifully shine, clean, and/or completely refinish your boot and bootie uppers whether they're leather, suede, nubuck, or any other fine finish at Houston Shoe Hospital.
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Boot Shine: A boot shine consists of first cleaning off all the dirt, grime, and old polish, and then deep conditioning the leather until its buttery soft. Next, we hand rub a wax or cream polish to provide stain and color, and last, we buff the boot to bring out the highest shine possible. The friction and heat we produce with rigorous buffing activates the boot polish and produces a gorgeous sheen that makes your boots look fresh and new.
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Deep Clean & Refinish: If you want your boots to look like the day you picked them off the shelves (or likewise, if they are made of suede, nubuck or fabric and can’t be “shined”), you’ll want what’s called a Deep Clean & Refinish.
At the time new shoes and boots are manufactured, they receive a special custom finish that is applied at the very end of the process. This provides a beautiful long-term coating. When our Houston Shoe Hospital cobblers complete a refinish on your shoes, we reapply the same gorgeous finish the shoe or boot had when it was made new.
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For a full refinish, we first deep clean to remove any stains. Next, we’ll generously condition the shoe leather with pure lanolin (when needed), and then apply permanent color over worn and damaged areas. Lastly, we put on a new-shoe custom topcoat.
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Suede and nubuck must be dry cleaned or finely sanded when cleaning to ensure dirt and stains can be removed. By using special suede-cleaning stones or our delicate sand-blasting booth, we remove the stains gently without harming the suede or nubuck. After cleaning, the suede or nubuck is lightly brushed and waterproofed for longer protection.
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Voila! Your shoes are like-new, and this process outlasts a regular shoe shine up to 10 times.
Fashion Boot Custom Repairs
Our cobblers can also provide a myriad of custom repair work for any damage that you have on your favorite boots.
In addition to sole and heel repair, we can recover your heel bases in new calfskin, reseat heel bases when needed, complete stitch/patch-work on tears in material, fix damaged toe pieces, replace and repair zippers, do custom leather dyeing, and much more.
We are also experts in fashion boot and bootie weatherproofing! If you spend any time in the rain or snow, we highly recommend waterproofing, especially for suede, nubuck, sheepskin, or fabric boots.
Waterproofing keeps stains from penetrating down into leathers or other material. The stains stay at the surface, and can thus be easily wiped away.
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Here's just a glimpse of some of the things we can do at Houston Shoe Hospital:
- Toe and Heel plates
- Pull straps and loops
- Custom stitching / rips / tears / patchwork
- Zipper repair
- Elastic repair
- Hardware (e.g. rivets, buckles, hooks, rings, etc)
- And so much more...
My Dog Ate My Boots!
So your dog thinks those amazing boots are chew toys, does she? Don’t panic!
You’d be surprised how often we see boots and booties that have been chewed up by dogs come into the Houston Shoe Hospital. Let us take a look.
9 times out of 10 we can fix them right up. No need to be upset at Lady for long.
Houston Shoe Hospital
Boot Repair & Services Re-Cap:
- Heel Cap Replacement
- Sole Repair
- SolePros® Sole Protection
- Stretching
- Sock liner replacement
- Shining
- Factory Refinishing
- Custom Repairs
- Dog & Puppy Damage Repair
We’re looking forward to meeting your favorites in person and getting them fixed up and back to you to enjoy!