BY STEVE DINNEN
If you want to look your best, from head to toe, look up Tanya Manatt for help in the well-shined shoe department.
Manatt is a consultant to Langel and Woods, custom tailors based in Valley Junction. While working there, she says, she saw more than a few customers come in with shoes that were scuffed up and really didn’t properly work with the custom suit that were getting. She likes to work with her hands, and thought she could bring some value to these worn shoes, so she went online to learn about shoes, leathers and proper ways to care for them.
Manatt got a video tutorial on shoe-shining from a professional on Seville Row in London. She even bought shoe care products he offered, and has now launched a shoe shine service available through Langel and Woods.
First, there is conditioning of a shoe under her care. After a rest of 20 minutes or so, there is a waxing of the shoe. In due time, polishing. All of which Manatt (515-205-4998, or tjmanatt@msn.com), accomplishes within a 24-hour turnaround time.
Manatt specializes in men’s shoes but says she recently took on a pair of women’s boots that were destined for the trash and mollycoddled them sufficiently to extend their life for a few years. You can help your own shoes by deploying shoe trees; they help eliminate moisture and preserve the footwear’s original shape.
Manatt is a consultant to Langel and Woods, custom tailors based in Valley Junction. While working there, she says, she saw more than a few customers come in with shoes that were scuffed up and really didn’t properly work with the custom suit that were getting. She likes to work with her hands, and thought she could bring some value to these worn shoes, so she went online to learn about shoes, leathers and proper ways to care for them.
Manatt got a video tutorial on shoe-shining from a professional on Seville Row in London. She even bought shoe care products he offered, and has now launched a shoe shine service available through Langel and Woods.
First, there is conditioning of a shoe under her care. After a rest of 20 minutes or so, there is a waxing of the shoe. In due time, polishing. All of which Manatt (515-205-4998, or tjmanatt@msn.com), accomplishes within a 24-hour turnaround time.
Manatt specializes in men’s shoes but says she recently took on a pair of women’s boots that were destined for the trash and mollycoddled them sufficiently to extend their life for a few years. You can help your own shoes by deploying shoe trees; they help eliminate moisture and preserve the footwear’s original shape.
