Proper boots, and their place in the vintage wardrobe

[DeaconKC]

KN, I sympathize 12 EEE here. Isn't it weird how we get excited to find something in our size on a sale rack?

 

[Fifty150]

Why mess with those swims? Simply purchase a couple of pairs of great vintage pebble or scotch grain shoes (Florsheim, Hanover, etc) and wear them in that rainy weather with no fear... as long as you use shoe trees and allow them to dry properly.

Because I don't want to get my shoes wet.

 

[Undertow]

Oh for goodness sake - if anyone finds them in 14D let me know!

 

[Edward]

While I could see them as part of a vintage workwear look (with Dickies, plaid workshirt, flat cap etc), I was wondering if there was anyway to wear such footwear with a three piece suit and fed?

The only solution I could come up with would be to wear plus fours and long socks, a kind of military look.

Thoughts?

I think it's that type of sole that makes them look very "modern" to my eye. Vintage "work boots" look much closer to something we'd think of as 'dressier' nowadays, even when they had a rubber sole. For a boot that I could wear either with workwear or, for less formal occasions, with a suit, I'd be looking more to something like a RedWing Iron Ranger, an Alden Indy or, more affordably, a reproduction of a US Army Service Shoe (the shiny, mid-war (early-war, I think, in US terminology) type, not the roughouts). FWIW, I did once when I had an ingrown toenail and didn't have anything else that sat high enough off my toe wear a pair of contemporary British Army comat boots with a suit to the office. These:

They worked okay, though they did look a little odd to those who noticed them. On a practical level, I'd be wary of that padded top of the style of boot in your link. Unlike a leather which sits flat against your leg, could that cause the suit trousers to bunch up a bit? (Depends on leg with, I suppose).

Bottom line is that they're a modern style boot, so won't give you the vintage look, but you can probably get away with it just fine these days, assuming your office isn't very formal and you're not going somewhere with a very formal dress code.