Rainy Season Hacks for Shoes

    As summer approaches and the rain takes over the forecast, our wardrobes can really take a hit. The high humidity means everything can get moldy in Japan, and while most clothing worn outdoors can be thrown in the washing machine and dried , this is not always the case for shoes. Maintaining even just a pair of decent athletic shoes can be tricky, especially when everything is damp and humid for a few months on end. Here are some hacks I know for keeping your shoes in good working condition during rainy season.

Dry Them Out

    When your shoes get wet, you have to make them dry. This is something I had to learn, because where I come from, this is not a problem. Walking home in a sudden thunderstorm only means leaving your sneakers outside to dry the next day, when the hot Texas sun will make it all better. This is just not as much the case during rainy season in Japan. If you happen to catch a sunny day right after a rainy one, leaving your shoes on the balcony to dry would be fine, as long as you keep an eye on the weather and rush home to take them in before they are soaked again in the event of an afternoon downpour. You can also dry your shoes in the shower room if your shower room has a clothes-drying function. Do remember to put the shoes on top of a plastic bag or similar so as not to get the germs from the bottoms of the shoes all over the house. If you have shoes that can be washed in the machine, you can hand them to dry. If not, place the shoes on a bag as close to the drying filter as you safely can.

Use Moisture and Bug Repellent

    Just because your shoes are dry and being stored away in a shoe closet does not mean the humidity and dampness won't lead to mold and bug issues. These little purple things are great for keeping your shoe storage area smelling great and free of bugs and mold. Like their bigger closet-based counterparts, they are also good for sucking away some of the moisture that tends to collect in this wet season.

Silica Packets

    I may have seen this on Japanese TV or read it online somewhere at one point years ago, but the same packets of inedible material that keep mold out of clothes, food and other goods before you buy them can be repurposed as shoe deodorizers. Just pop the little satchel into your shoes and they should keep fresh, dry, and mold free for some time. This is best for less frequently used shoes unless you can remember to check for silica packets before putting your shoes on.

Antibacteria Febreeze

    I found this at CostCo a while back and it has been a life saver. While just covering the smell of something unpleasant can lead to trouble if the unpleasant thing isn't properly dealt with, this is meant to kill the bacteria that causes such smells. It won't be replacing my hand sanitizer, but I am happy to use a light spray of it over shoes that have acquired a bit of a light stink to them. If the offending shoes have insoles that cannot be washed, spraying this on them and letting it dry is likely better than nothing for combating both smell and bacteria growth.