Shoe polish
From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.
Shoe polish is a polish that is used to make shoes shine. Usually, it is the same colour as the shoes it will be used to shine (ie, black shoe polish for black shoes). It is also known as boot polish and (colloquially in the UK) as dubbin. A basic form of shoe polish, along with a polishing cloth was used by shoeshine boys in the 19th century to shine peoples shoes - hence, 'shoe shine'.
In India, shoeshine boys are known as boot polish boys, and can still be found in operation today, particularly at railway platforms.
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Chemistry
Shoe polish is usually made from ingredients including naphtha, lanolin, wax (often Carnauba wax), gum arabic and (if required) a colourant.
It has a specific gravity of 0.8, is negligibly soluble in water, and is made of between 65 and 77 percent volatiles. The burning of shoe polish will result in the yielding of carbon dioxide and/or carbon monoxide and traces of oxides of nitrogen.
Brands / packaging / sales
The dominant shoe polish brand in most of the world is Kiwi, which was invented in 1906 by Scotsman William Ramsey whilst in Australia, and is sold in over 180 countries, with a 53% market share worldwide.
Other brands include Shinola (where the common colloquialism 'He doesn't know shit from Shinola' comes from), Lincoln Shoe Polish (available in 11 colours, and made with Carnauba wax) and Cherry Blossom. Many store's generic own brands are also available.
Shoe polish traditionally comes in 60g (2.125 oz) tins, usually with an easy open facility. Shoe polish products are low-value items, infrequently purchased, and demand is largely insensitive to price. Sales volumes are low.
Post-war increase in popularity of shoe polish
At the end of the nineteenth century, shoes and boots became affordable to the masses and with the start of the First World War in 1914, the demand for large numbers of polished army boots rapidly increased the sales of shoe and boot polish. Soldiers returning from the War continued to use the product, leading to a surge in its popularity.
Alternate uses of shoe polish
Shoe polish can be used for camoflage at a pinch, and was also often used to blacken people's faces (such as with the controversial Blackfaces in Minstrel Shows - now seen as racist).
Shoe polish is extremely toxic to birds, particularly Budgerigars.
Shoe polish sandwiches
In the former Soviet Union, during the worst shortages of the 1980s, shoe polish sandwiches were used as a cheap way to get intoxicated, due to the shortage of alcohol. Cheap shoe polish would be spread on a slice of bread and allowed to remain on there overnight. The next day, the polish would be scraped off, but the bread would have absorbed much of the alcohol and toxins in the bread. This would then be eaten. Three slices would produce a very intoxicating effect that would take the person's mind off the stark realities of life in the twilight hours of Communism.
Home-made shoe polish
Neutral Colour Shoe Polish
To make a neutral colour home-made shoe polish, you will need:
- Soap flakes 30g (1 oz)
- Potassium carbonate 15g (0.5 oz) (Obtain from chemist/pharmacist)
- Beeswax 150g (5oz)
- Gum arabic powder 15g (0.5 oz)
- Icing sugar 45g (1.5 oz)
Slice the beeswax, and add to 568 ml (a pint) of water. Stir in the soap flakes and potassium carbonate. Boil until a smooth paste. Whilst the mixture is still hot (turn off the heat, but act quickly), add and stir the gum arabic powder and icing sugar. For a specifically black polish, 280g (10 oz) of charcoal powder from the chemist may be added at this stage.
In recent history the black colour comes from an aniline dye. The next recipe indicates that nigrosene (generically, a black dye made from oxidised aniline) was domestically procurable in the 1940s.
Note that the above recipe uses Potassium Carbonate - potash - whereas the following recipe uses Potassium Bicarbonate, which is not potash. Imperial Measures are in brackets.
Black Shoe Polish
- 120g (1/4 lb) beeswax
- 284ml (1/2 pint) turpentine
- 22g (3/4 oz) bicarbonate of potassium
- 30g (1 oz) nigrosene
- 4.5l (8 pints) boiling water
Melt wax in boiling water and stir in the potassium, using a large pot to allow for the mixture foaming up. Dissolve the nigrosene in a little cold water and stir it in thoroughly, bring to the boil, and simmer gently for some minutes, stirring it until it creams. Take mixture off the fire, and stir in the turpentine. Put away in small tins, tightly closed.
[ ... p194: ] N.B.- In following recipes which contain kerosene, methylated spirit, turpentine, petrol, benzine or any other inflammable ingredient, great care must be observed to avoid making preparation near a lighted stove or naked flame of any kind.
[p192,194 The New P.W.M.U. Cookery Book, 1941, Presbyterian Women's Missionary Union of Victoria (Australia)]
External links
- Translations of 'Shoe Polish' in the Wiktionary (http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Shoe_polish)
- DIY Waxes, Stain Removal and Polishes (http://www.diydoctor.org.uk/projects/diy_waxes.htm)
- Chemical make-up of shoe polish (http://www.herc.org/library/msds/shoepolish.htm)
- Competition Commission report on Sara Lee (owners of Kiwi shoe polish) and the shoe polish market in general (http://www.competition-commission.org.uk/rep_pub/reports/1992/326saralee.htm)
