When you’re looking to find casual shoes, canvas shoes come to mind, more often than not. Their simplistic and minimalistic design suits perfectly for people who don’t like to dress fancy. Moreover, there are a lot of unique canvas shoes with fancy and cute designs, drawn by artists and designers all over the world. But this time, I’m going to focus solely on white canvas shoes. 

Owning white canvas shoes might be a cool idea due to their simplistic and elegant design, but cleaning and taking care of them might be harder than you imagine. White canvas shoes tend to get dirty or turn yellow easily, which is why you need to know how to clean white canvas shoes quickly and properly. Stick around to know the answer!

WHAT’S A GOOD CLEANER FOR CANVAS SHOES?

There are a lot of cleaning items, both professional and homemade, that you can use to clean your canvas shoes. You can use bleach, hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, and even shoe detergent to clean your white canvas shoes that turned yellow. But for me, the most effective cleaner for canvas shoes would be to use vinegar.

I have tried using lots of stuff to clean canvas shoes, and they worked so well. However, vinegar always seems to be the perfect item that cleans off stains and marks on your white canvas shoes. Besides vinegar, you will need to provide a gallon of warm water and dish soap as well. Follow this step that I’ve been using for some time to get the best out of them:

• Combine all the ingredients together in a bucket
• Prepare a soft brush
• Soak the brush inside the mixture that you have made
• Scrub the surface of your canvas shoes. Make sure to do it softly and carefully in order to prevent any damages
• Once you’re done with the scrubbing, soak the shoes with running water
• Dry your shoes by gently tapping them with a microfiber cloth
• Leave them in front of a fan to let them dry before storing them in your closet (or wherever you store your shoes)

HOW DO YOU CLEAN DIRTY WHITE CANVAS?

So, how do you clean white canvas shoes? There are a lot of ways to approach this, but I’m going to show a method that I occasionally used. This trick will most definitely get your dirty white canvas shoes clean again, so make sure to consider it. If you’re not into the idea, there are still more methods that you can try, which can be found down below. 

1. CLEANING KITS NEEDED AND THEIR FUNCTION

2. PARTS OF YOUR CANVAS SHOES AS WELL AS FUNCTION OF EACH SECTION

• Midsole: The side sole section of Your White Canvas Shoes. To clean the midsole, I suggest you use Medium Brush, as midsoles can often get damaged and dirty due to usage.

• Outsole, or the lower part of Your White Canvas Shoes: To clean canvas shoes’ outsole, you can use a standard brush that is strong and sturdy. This way, dirt and stains from your outsole might be cleaned easily. 

• Insole: The inner part of your White Canvas Shoes that also acts as a cushion to make your foot more comfortable. It’s better to remove the insoles from your white canvas shoes before cleaning them. However, don’t force it if it’s not possible. To clean the insole, you can use a premium brush as well as a toothbrush, as they can reach parts that are harder to clean

3. HOW TO CLEAN WHITE CANVAS SHOES

• Prepare your white canvas shoes that are ready to be cleaned:

A pair of white canvas shoes that need to be freshened up. 

• Prepare the cleaning kits needed to clean your white canvas shoes:

Prepare the Shoe Cleaner, apron, Premium Brush, Medium Brush, Standard Brush, Small Brush, Microfiber Cloth, 2 pieces of Shoe Tree, and a container to store water and Shoe Perfume. 

• Remove the laces from your white canvas shoes

It’s essential to remove the laces from your white canvas shoes before starting the cleaning process. Laces need to be cleaned separately. You can do this by soaking them inside a bucket of water that has been mixed with the shoe cleaner detergent.  

This is an essential step, as a Shoetree will be important to maintain the shape of your canvas shoes when they’re being washed. However, make sure to remove the insole before inserting a shoe tree. Don’t force it if the insole can’t be removed, though. 

• Dry Clean Your Canvas Shoes

Before proceeding to clean your canvas shoes with water, you really need to dry clean your shoes first. To do this, you can use a Premium Brush or small brush to get rid of loose dust or dirt. I love to do this step before cleaning my shoes with water, as it can help reduce the dirt before deep-cleaning them.  

• Wash the Outsole and Midsole of Your Canvas Shoes

During this cleaning stage, you can use a Standard Brush. Make sure to use all your strength when cleaning the outsole, as it’s naturally the dirtiest part of a shoe.

As soon as you have finished cleaning the outsole, you can proceed by cleaning the midsole with a Medium Brush. This time, patience and diligence are needed, as there will be a lot of dirty spots that are hard to clean. Never resist from repeating the cleaning process if your suede shoes are still dirty.

• Wash the Upper Part of Your Canvas Shoes

To clean the upper part of your canvas shoes, I will definitely use a Premium Brush, as it’ll be soft enough to not damage your shoes. Canvas are quite sensitive, and that’s the reason why you shouldn’t use a standard brush to clean the upper part of your shoes. If you detect any stains left, make sure to repeat the process until you achieve a satisfactory result.

• Wash the Inner Part of Your Canvas Shoes

Use a small brush to clean the inner part of your shoes that is narrow and small. Shortly after, clean it with a microfiber cloth. You can actually use a Premium Brush to clean this section. But if you have a large hand like me, a small brush or toothbrush would be a better option. 

Use a microfiber cloth to clean the details on your shoes that are still dirty. As an alternative, wet tissue can also be used. However, I personally love to use a cloth better than a tissue, as it’s more effective to absorb dirt and water. 

Leave your shoes in front of a fan and leave them for around 1-2 hours. 

Once the shoes are completely dry, you can remove the shoe tree. Then, put the dry laces back on your suede shoes. Now, your suede shoes are all ready to be used!

4. DOS AND DON’TS

Do’s

Make sure to be careful when cleaning the stains on your shoes. Try your best to spot any yellow stains or dirt

Use a soft brush to clean your white canvas shoes

You can use baking soda, mild detergent, and vinegar

Clean your white canvas shoes regularly

Don’ts

Don’t let your shoes become too moist after you clean them. Make sure to immediately dry them after the cleaning process

Don’t dry your shoes under direct contact with the sunlight, as it can damage the color of your shoes and make it look brownish

Don’t use white canvas shoes when the weather isn’t great

5. SHOECARE

• Don’t store them inside a moist area 
• Never stack your shoes without using their boxes 
• Never leave your shoes under direct contact with the sunlight. If you want to dry them, simply leave them in front of a fan

HOW TO CLEAN WHITE CANVAS SHOES WITH TOOTHPASTE?

If you’re creative enough, you can use many things to clean your white canvas shoes, even with toothpaste! However, I recommend non-gel toothpaste (white would be fine, as we’re cleaning white canvas shoes this time around). Make sure to prepare a soft toothbrush as well. 

After all the items are ready, you can start to put the toothpaste on your old toothbrush. Then, brush your shoes in a circular motion. You can focus on the part with stains or sections that turned yellow, but I personally love cleaning all parts of my shoes. After all the necessary sections are covered with toothpaste, you can leave your shoes for about 10 minutes before rinsing them with clean water. This cleaning process might take a while, so it might not be the best method for those of you who’re looking to clean your white canvas shoes quickly. 

CLEANING WHITE CANVAS SHOES WITH A WASHING MACHINE

Some shoes aren’t compatible to be washed inside a washing machine, but you shouldn’t worry about that when you have a pair of canvas shoes. They are usually made from strong material that can withstand any cleaning machine. If you own a washing machine (or would like to go rent one in a nearby), you might want to follow these simple steps that I have made, just for you:

• Remove the laces from your white canvas shoes, then insert them inside a mesh bag. If you have spare time, I suggest you clean your laces manually.
• Insert your white canvas shoes inside another mesh bag, then place it inside the washing machine. 
• Set your washing machine correctly. Make sure to use slow mode and use cold water.
• Wait until the washing machine finishes its job.
• If your white canvas shoes are still wet, leave them for a while before inserting your laces back on

HOW TO CLEAN WHITE CANVAS SHOES WITH HYDROGEN PEROXIDE?

I can’t seem to run out of ideas to answer the question of how to clean white canvas shoes. Another creative way in cleaning your precious shoes is by using hydrogen peroxide. As a matter of fact, hydrogen peroxide can act as more than a cleaner. In addition to removing stains on the surface of your shoes, it will disinfect your shoes from bacteria and viruses as well! For white canvas shoes, hydrogen peroxide is quite effective in making your shoes look bright once more. I really love using hydrogen peroxide to clean my white canvas shoes that turned yellow. If you want to use this item, then read these steps carefully:

• While hydrogen peroxide is effective in cleaning white canvas shoes, it can’t do the job by itself. Therefore, you’ll need to mix it with baking soda. 
• Prepare an old toothbrush or a soft brush that won’t damage your shoes
• Apply the mixture on your brush and start scrubbing
• Don’t rinse the mixture immediately. Make sure to wait for around 30 minutes to let the mixture do their job
• Rinse your shoes and dry them!

HOW TO CLEAN WHITE CANVAS SHOES THAT TURNED YELLOW?

When you own a pair of white shoes, stains aren’t the only problem that you’ll be dealing with. As a matter of fact, there are many cases in which your white canvas shoes will turn yellow. That’s the reason why you should learn tricks to deal with it. Fortunately, homemade products can be used to clean white canvas shoes that turned yellow, like bleach, baking soda, and hydrogen peroxide. But from my experience, bleach is probably the best product to clean your white shoes that turned yellow. I really love using bleach, but I need to warn you that it must be used carefully in order to prevent any damages (both to your shoes and to your hands). 

HOW TO CLEAN WHITE CANVAS SHOES WITH BAKING SODA?

Previously, I have mentioned a trick to clean white canvas shoes with hydrogen peroxide that involves mixing it with baking soda. But if you don’t own hydrogen peroxide, you might be glad to learn that baking soda can be used to clean white canvas shoes on its own without its assistance (although using them as a combination would do wonders for your dirty white canvas shoes). Here’s how to clean them properly!

• Make a mixture of baking soda inside a bucket of warm water. You might need to stir it until a paste is formed 
• Apply the paste on a soft brush
• Gently scrub the mixture in a circular motion. Make sure to cover the stains and dirty sections of your shoes. I personally love to cover the whole part of the shoes, but it’s down to a matter of preference. 
• Leave your shoes for around 30 minutes before rinsing them with water to get rid of the paste and stains. I love to use a soft sponge to help absorb water quickly
• Leave your shoes once more to air-dry them. 

HOW TO CLEAN WHITE CANVAS SHOES WITH BLEACH?

Now let’s get into the juicy part: how to clean white canvas shoes with bleach? As I’ve mentioned before, bleach might be the most effective product to clean your white canvas shoes that turned yellow. I love using bleach, but attention to detail is the most important thing here, as bleach can damage your arms and shoes at the same time. Before you proceed to clean your white canvas shoes with bleach, make sure to use gloves.

• Use a small amount of bleach. I learned from my own experience that too much bleach can damage your shoes instead of cleaning them. Mix it inside a bucket of water in a five to one ratio of water to bleach. 
• On a previous occasion, I suggested the use of a soft brush. However, bleach works better when applied to a microfiber cloth. So, dip the cloth inside the mixture and start cleaning!
• After all the necessary parts are covered, you’ll need to wait for a while before removing the mixture and stains at the same time. 
• Dry your shoes before storing or using them once more. 

HOW TO CLEAN WHITE CANVAS SHOES QUICKLY

Cleaning a dirty pair of white canvas shoes might require some time and effort, especially when you have a pair that turned yellow or has tough stains. There’s no guarantee that cleaning your white canvas shoes quickly might get rid of all the dirt and stains. But sometimes, time is of the essence. Therefore, I recommend you use a Magic Eraser. If you own one, all you need to do is to get your shoes wet by wiping them with wet tissues. Then, apply the Magic Eraser to get rid of the dirt and stains! From my own experience, it might work when you’re dealing with light stains, but I’ve no guarantee that it can clean a pair of really dirty white canvas shoes. 

CAN YOU GET STAINS OUT OF CANVAS SHOES?

Shoes, no matter what model, design, or material that made them, are always prone to dirt, dust, mud, stains, and other things that make them dirty. That’s the reason why we need to come up with effective ways to clean them. Fortunately, it’s absolutely possible to get stains out of canvas shoes. You can use bleach or clean your white canvas shoes with toothpaste or with baking soda. Heck, you can even use a professional tool to assist you in the quest to make your white canvas shoes clean again. I’ve explained different ways to use pretty much any cleaning kit that can be used for white canvas shoes in this article, so make sure to explore it as long as you’d want to. 

CAN YOU USE OXICLEAN ON WHITE CANVAS SNEAKERS?

When it comes to cleaning your dirty shoes, OxiClean may emerge as one of the leading candidates. This product is closely similar to bleach and hydrogen peroxide. Coincidentally, cleaning white canvas shoes with OxiClean has a similar step as cleaning white canvas shoes with bleach or hydrogen peroxide. But if you miss the previous section, you can see this instruction below:

• Mix OxiClean with warm water and store them in a bucket or other item
• Soak your shoes inside the bucket, then scrub them with a brush or a microfiber cloth
• Repeat the process until the shoes are all clean and all the stains are eliminated
• Air dry your white canvas shoes by leaving them in front of a fan
• Store your shoes back where they belong

WILL OXICLEAN TURN WHITE SHOES YELLOW?

There’s an understanding out there that OxiClean might turn your white shoes into yellow. This can never be more wrong! On the contrary, it will remove any yellow stains from your white shoes. I have said to you before that OxiClean has ingredients that make it look similar to bleach and hydrogen peroxide. Therefore, OxiClean also turns white shoes that have become yellow back to white again. As a matter of fact, OxiClean might also make the white shoes become bright again. 

HOW DOES VINEGAR REMOVE YELLOW STAINS FROM WHITE SHOES?

Distilled white vinegars are known as one, if not the most, effective stain remover known on planet Earth. It’s also safer and cheaper than fabric softener and chlorine bleach. Furthermore, it can also be used to clean other things in your house (hence, a really versatile product to own). 

If you want to know how to clean white canvas shoes and remove yellow stains on them with vinegar, you should head back to the top of this article and read an awesome walkthrough that I have made, just for you. Please take a look at that section!

HOW DOES BAKING SODA REMOVE YELLOW STAINS FROM WHITE SHOES?

If you have managed to read every single section of this article, then you might notice that using baking soda might be effective in removing yellow stains from white canvas shoes. Baking soda is able to remove stains due to its composition. Baking soda is a crystalline salt, which will become highly alkaline as soon as it comes into contact with water. Those of you science freaks will know that alkaline is able to neutralize acid. In conclusion, stains and dirt will be no match for the might of baking soda!

WILL BAKING SODA DAMAGE SHOES?

If baking soda is able to clean white canvas shoes, why would it damage them? This notion is completely wrong and off the mark. On the contrary, baking soda will make your shoes look fresh like new once more. If you want to know the secret to cleaning white canvas shoes quickly and properly, make sure to take a step back and read this article from the top!

WHAT CAN I USE TO WHITEN SHOES?

Maintaining a pair of white shoes’ condition is not only to keep them clean and removing stains, but also to whiten shoes that turned yellow. I can say with full confidence that all material that I have brought up in this article can play a part in whitening your canvas shoes. But out of all the options, I personally love to use hydrogen peroxide or bleach! 

DOES TOOTHPASTE WHITEN WHITE SHOES?

Toothpaste is widely known for its ability to whiten one’s teeth, but you might be surprised to learn that it is also able to whiten your white canvas shoes as well. It’s also one of the most effective ways to clean white canvas shoes quickly, as all you need to do is to apply the toothpaste on the surface of your shoes and scrub it with a toothbrush!

SUMMARY OR CONCLUSION

Canvas shoes are one of the most common shoes out there. However, it doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t take care of them! Maintaining the condition of canvas shoes, especially the white ones, is quite challenging. Don’t worry, though! You can use items like bleach and vinegar to help you.