Hi Joe,
There is variation in leathers from batch to batch and sometimes a left boot is made from one and the right boot from another. Because of this I really cannot say if over time they’ll become the same color. They’ll both lighten over time and you could treat the lighter one first, which will make it darker in color, but I’m not sure how effective that would be since you’ll really want to treat them both. Alternatively, you could return them and say that there is a quality control issue. Some people approach this by saying that these are fairly inexpensive boots and you cannot expect great quality control at this price. I disagree with that sentiment, since you paid for what was pictured, and I’m sure the boots in the photo matched. General advice, which will probably be fairly meaningless since I haven’t seen a photo of the boots, would be to just wear them for a bit and with wear and dirt and differences will likely become less noticeable. Then you can clean them and treat them as mentioned in this post and maybe they’ll both end up a similar dark brown color. Good luck!

Hi Gary,
Clarks beeswax desert boots come new with a waxy sheen. It’s not a polish and isn’t polishable, since it’s wax. In my photos in this post, you can see that after treatment mine aren’t polished, and rather have a dull sheen, similar to what it sounds like you’ve accomplished. Since these aren’t aren’t dress shoes, they aren’t meant to be polished. That said, you could try polishing them the next time your boots need treatment. The leather isn’t what you’d normally polish, but it could be a unique look.
Best of luck, Jon

I used the weather treatment wax that Clarks provide in store.

I got rid of all my other stuff when I gave my red wings to my step dad… Should of kept my good wax.

Thank you for this very helpful breakdown of the different products’ effects. I have both saddle soap and coconut oil at home, so I’m ready to treat my beeswax low tops!

Hi Furzan,

Yes, the leather darkens when it’s oiled, see the bottom photo above. It’s very similar to a cutting board that dries out over time and lightens in color, but turns dark when wet or oiled. And, just like a cutting board, if unoiled for too long, the leather will dry out and crack.

To answer your question, yes after you’ve oiled them they’ll continuously lighten, after some time returning to the color at purchase, and then lightening to the color they were yesterday…and then it’ll be time to oil them again!

Hi Mity,

You are correct, the photos are of the Beeswax Desert Boots and the colors are correct. The leather lightens with wear and then darkens and gains a depth with the Olbenauf’s LP. The crepe soles have a tackiness that attracts dirt to the extent that they almost turn black.

Hi Akil,

You might not have worked the mink oil fully into the leather or maybe it was cold out when you were applying the mink oil? With the Obenauf’s leather preservative you’ll need to work it into the leather with your fingers get it to melt and penetrate.
As for your bag, I can’t say, since I don’t know the leather’s details/finish. I’ve seen theoretically “nice” all-leather Brooks Brothers bags that have a plastic coating on the leather that prevents any product from penetrating and conditioning the leather, it also begins to peel and delaminate as it ages in a non-reversible way. Of course, not all companies use coated leather, and the higher-end brands generally do not, in which case it would be possible to condition it with leather care products. If you’ve had the bag for a while, it should be pretty easy to look at the leather surface where it has been scratched to see if it has a plastic coating or is just leather. Also note that, as with all leathers, the bag will darken when you apply any kind of conditioning, so test in a hidden location. Best of luck!