New suede shoes
Jan. 1st, 2010 03:07 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
captpackratFinally got around to buying new shoes. I've been wearing my old boots for at least 7 or 8 years and the soles were almost completely smooth. It was getting dangerous to walk on ice, snow or mud because I had no traction at all. They're also terribly scuffed, there's a rather large gash across the toe of one, and the lining is starting to wear out. I'm a hard person to buy shoes for, so I just kept putting it off.
I'm a firm believer in steel safety shoes. They saved my grandfather's feet when a 50 gallon drum fell on his foot, and they saved my foot from a poorly aimed axe. But that requirement severely limits my choices. I also prefer leather; no other material can hold up to abrasion and sharp objects. I prefer black, but a dark, dark brown is acceptable. I also need shoes that provide electrical protection. Steel-toe + leather + black + EH = damn few options.
I've tried several places. I bought a pair of shoes at WalMart, but they ended up hurting my feet and I couldn't take them back. None of the other shoes or boots at WalMart seemed to fit any better. I found a single pair that fit well and looked nice at a local boot shop, but it fell apart within a day of purchase. Payless, Target, Sears and most other stores don't carry steel-toed boots at all. I'd just about resigned myself to never finding a decent pair of boots and had considered trying to have my old boots resoled.
Someone suggested I try Tractor Supply Co., so I went there today. I found two shoes that interested me, a pair of low-ankle shoes with a very aggressive sole pattern which would be great on ice and snow and a pair of Georgia Boot Renegade work boots with a 6" ankle. I tried on the shoes first and they fit adequately, but low cut shoes just feel weird after at least a decade of wearing boots. Then I tried on the boots. It was like sliding my feet into butter. I've never felt a pair of boots that fit so well right off the bat.
Those were the absolute last pair they had, in any size, and it fit me perfectly. And just as I finished trying them on, they started closing the store early for New Years Eve.
They cost a bit more than I'd like, and they're "tumbled chocolate" instead of black, but I'm just glad to have a decent pair of shoes again.
I'm a firm believer in steel safety shoes. They saved my grandfather's feet when a 50 gallon drum fell on his foot, and they saved my foot from a poorly aimed axe. But that requirement severely limits my choices. I also prefer leather; no other material can hold up to abrasion and sharp objects. I prefer black, but a dark, dark brown is acceptable. I also need shoes that provide electrical protection. Steel-toe + leather + black + EH = damn few options.
I've tried several places. I bought a pair of shoes at WalMart, but they ended up hurting my feet and I couldn't take them back. None of the other shoes or boots at WalMart seemed to fit any better. I found a single pair that fit well and looked nice at a local boot shop, but it fell apart within a day of purchase. Payless, Target, Sears and most other stores don't carry steel-toed boots at all. I'd just about resigned myself to never finding a decent pair of boots and had considered trying to have my old boots resoled.
Someone suggested I try Tractor Supply Co., so I went there today. I found two shoes that interested me, a pair of low-ankle shoes with a very aggressive sole pattern which would be great on ice and snow and a pair of Georgia Boot Renegade work boots with a 6" ankle. I tried on the shoes first and they fit adequately, but low cut shoes just feel weird after at least a decade of wearing boots. Then I tried on the boots. It was like sliding my feet into butter. I've never felt a pair of boots that fit so well right off the bat.
Those were the absolute last pair they had, in any size, and it fit me perfectly. And just as I finished trying them on, they started closing the store early for New Years Eve.
They cost a bit more than I'd like, and they're "tumbled chocolate" instead of black, but I'm just glad to have a decent pair of shoes again.
