u/BigDawg264

NJD. New Jeans 👖 Day! I was counting the minutes until the FedEx truck arrived today. These are the new Naked & Famous #MIJ19 (made in Japan, 19th release).

I’m really loving the color on these. All my other Selvedge denim is either dark indigo or black. I really like those, too, but I’m super stoked to have this new color going into fall. The 11.5oz is a great weight for 3 seasons - spring, summer, and fall. It’s heavy enough for you to feel the quality and comfort without being so heavy that you overheat quickly. Be sure to check out the last picture of this set for a Mother Nature blooper.

One other reason I’m excited for these jeans 👖 is because this is the first pair of size 42’s I’ve fit in since my wedding 18+ years ago. This pair of jeans fits me absolutely perfectly.

I had a milestone weigh-in today. I’m down 160lbs since January 2025!

NJD. New Jeans 👖 Day! I was counting the minutes until the FedEx truck arrived today. These are the new Naked & Famous #MIJ19 (made in Japan, 19th release).

I’m really loving the color on these. All my other Selvedge denim is either dark indigo or black. I really like those, too, but I’m super stoked to have this new color going into fall. The 11.5oz is a great weight for 3 seasons - spring, summer, and fall. It’s heavy enough for you to feel the quality and comfort without being so heavy that you overheat quickly. Be sure to check out the last picture of this set for a Mother Nature blooper.

One other reason I’m excited for these jeans 👖 is because this is the first pair of size 42’s I’ve fit in since my wedding 18+ years ago. This pair of jeans fits me absolutely perfectly.

I had a milestone weigh-in today. I’m down 160lbs since January 2025!

Today’s BOTD is a custom pair of 8” White’s Original Packer in Horween Burgundy Chromexcel Horsehide with toe-bug, double leather soles, and built on the 690 last ordered from Baker's Boots and Clothing. I’ve got boots in a dozen different lasts, but the 690 is my favorite of them all. The 690 has a very aggressive arch with a higher heel than most of my other PNW boots. This last just agrees with my feet and puts a smile on my face every time I wear a pair.

These are a custom 10” LTT White’s Bounty Hunter in Horween Cinnamon Waxed Flesh, leather lined interior, inside Lineman’s Flap, and built on the 55 Last.

I grabbed these a few months back from Baker’s “Final Few” closeout sale. I almost never find an 11.5E in any of these types of sales. This is definitely a boot I would’ve ordered for myself, so it was a no brainer to pull the trigger on this pair for over $200 off regular price.

12” LTT in CF Stead Urban Brown Kudu Leather (leather lined on the inside) on the 55 last with Vibram Commando Half-Soles purchased from Baker’s Boots.

These don’t see much summer wear, but I broke them out today. Can’t wait until we get some cooler weather so I can wear them more frequently.

I want to thank Weston Kay of Rose Anvil for the shoutout on the Rose Anvil 2 YouTube channel yesterday. Apparently he liked the looks and configuration of my Frank’s Boot Company Monkey Boots so much that he got himself a pair just like them. He chose 6” height over the 10” I have, and he went with a Vibram 2021 Sand Wedge Sole whereas I went with the Honey Vibram on my pair.

I think it’s very cool that he chose one of my designs, because another pair of Frank’s I own was completely inspired by his ND boots. I took my favorite parts of the ND1, ND2, and ND3 for inspiration and had Frank’s make me a pair on a high arch last. All of the ND series was built on the HNW last which just doesn’t agree with my feet very well. That pair is the 2nd photo in this post.

To quote Ron Burgundy, “I’m kind of a big deal. People know me. I have many leather-bound boots.” Ok, I took a little creative liberty with the last sentence. 🤣

Link for the video - https://youtu.be/y32iL18LbHQ?is=gnLeXd1O7bTee3zN

Olive 🫒 Waxed Flesh with double leather mid-soles and Honey 🍯 Vibram soles in 11.5E.

Decided to break out these beauties today.

I’m finally having the opportunity to start breaking these beasts in. I had a rough week last week and spent some time in the hospital a couple of days last week (cancer treatment side effects). I’m not doing great this week, but it’s a substantial improvement over last week.

Today was the third opportunity to wear these out of the house. I’ve worn them a few hours around the house several days. When they first arrived they felt like a plaster foot/leg cast. They were extremely stiff. In the last 7 days they’ve started gently yielding to the shape of my feet and ankles. Both of my feet are very different from each other, and that’s one reason I really love lace to toe pattern boots. You can really dial in the fit on each foot. I love seeing people’s initial reaction to them as its pretty wild. My doc this mornjng said, “Those are the most striking boots I’ve ever seen.” I chuckled because i didn’t know if i should take that as a compliment or just him being at a loss of words. LOL 😝

I posted some teaser pics with all the specs of these boots last week. UPS finally got them from the left coast to the right coast. Pictures seriously do them minimal justice. These things are beautiful in person. I get that the leather isn’t for everyone, but I think of these boots like I look at a car/truck builder going to SEMA. They’re supposed to be over the top and wild.

These are a commemorative 250th USA 🇺🇸Anniversary collaboration between Baker’s Boots and Frank’s Boots.

8” Frank’s Monkey Boot with Dress Patches
690 High Arch Packer Last
Packer Heel with Half-Sole and Spur Ledge
Wickett & Craig Baker’s Exclusive Leather

It’s been right at a year that I’ve had this pair. Gave them their first clean and condition earlier this week. I absolutely love the Maryam Toscanello Horsebutt Mister Lou Engineer Boots from Baker’s Boots. These have seen ~40 wears in the last year, and they still look brand new. They’re definitely a dress casual boot for me, so they don’t see any hard use. I’ve got plenty of other cool boots to beat on.

The Baker Boot - a 250th USA Anniversary commemorative boot - made by Frank's Boot Company for Baker's Boots and Clothing and yours truly. Over the last year Kyle Baker and I have become good friends. I generally talk to him a couple of times per week even when I’m not ordering boots.

I told him about a wild boot idea I had in my head to create a crossover boot of two strange bedfellows. First, I love LTT boots and Monkey Boots. Those two patterns are what drew me to the PNW scene. Once in the scene, I fell in love with Packer Boots. In my late teens and early 20’s I had several pairs of Justin and Red Wing Lacer Ropers that I adored and wore into the ground.

I have seen an LTT Packer, but I’ve never seen one in a Monkey pattern. The 690 last is my favorite PNW last, and unbeknownst to many, ol’ Frank and Michelle have a couple of those lasts at the shop.

Here’s the specs:

Frank’s 8” Monkey Boot with Dress Patches
690 High Arch Packer Last
Packer Heel with Spur Ledge
Vibram Composition Half-Sole
Wickett & Craig Flag Leather
Wickett & Craig Medium Brown Harness

I’m ecstatic and honored to have two great companies like Baker’s and Frank’s put together such a fine specimen of a pair of boots for me. These are special for sure. Thank you, and God Bless.

Full Build Video Here: https://youtu.be/p9qyIPVdJCA?is=AiCo43oWbVpJHtLt

Bob Henderson Handmade Boots understood the assignment and crushed it! When it comes to dress shoes, I’ve been wearing Allen Edmonds for 30+ years now. I understand they’re not quite as good today as they were back in the day.

I haven’t bought a pair of dress shoes since my wife gifted me a pair of AE’s on our honeymoon 18+ years ago. I got a pair of White’s Oxfords as a dressier shoe, but I wouldn’t call it a dress shoe.

This pair is Bob’s Front Street Shoe model. My customizations are the choice of leather, sole, and extra arch support. The leather is Maryam Walnut Horsebutt. The soles are Dr. Soles SuperGrip Half-Soles in speckled cream, and Bob built up the arch support a little more than usual at my request.

I ordered true to Brannock, and the fit is spot on. These are going to take a little breaking in before I can wear them all day. I’ve popped and had surgically repaired both Achilles tendons. The backs of these shoes are still extremely stiff because they’re brand new. That stiffness goes right into my scar tissue and is quite unpleasant. I’m highly confident once the heel counter breaks in and the Horsebutt becomes more pliable, they’ll be a super comfortable wear.

I was fortunate that I found this pair on a deep clearance sale for Father’s Day. These weren’t even on my radar until I found them 55% off and under $250. I really like them. I’m going to add a little conditioner on the vamps and see if I can get them to darken up just a little and have a little sheen to them instead of the dusty, matte look.

New Boot Day! These cutter toe Anderson Bean Hungry Hippo 🦛 cowboy boots arrived today. The vamps are hippo, and the shafts are a very supple sueded kidskin. The boots are extremely comfortable hugging my feet in all the right places and forgiving in the spots I need them to be. Although I’ve got several pairs of wide square toe boots, I much prefer round or cutter toe boots like these.

I want to give a shoutout to The Shoe and Boot Outlet in Tupelo, MS, for their great customer service. They posted in an AB group on Facebook that this exclusive combo was in-stock and ready to ship. Traded a couple of FB messages and then called in to place the order. It was a nice little touch to open the box and find a brand new AB Trucker Hat by Richardson and a small bottle of Bick 4. It’s the little touches that will bring me back as a loyal customer.

I’ve also got to give a shoutout to Skinner American Goods 🇺🇸. These 22oz Japanese Selvedge denim jeans are the best fitting, most comfortable pair of jeans I own. As far as I know, I think he’s a one-man shop who does everything himself. I’ve got another pair of 22oz in production, but that pair is going to be double front.

I received my first pair of Tall Top boots from Olathe last week. We had a ton of rain since they came in, so today is the first time I got to wear them out of the house. These are made from Maryam Tannery in Italy and are their veg-tanned Horsebutt 🐎🍑 Walnut Brown leather. The uppers are 16” tall, and they’re actually Horsebutt as well.

These boots are extremely comfortable. I wish they were E width as I’d find them a little more comfortable, but I’m confident EE would’ve been too wide. Luckily Horsebutt breaks in nicely and should stretch just enough to make the fit perfect over time. The shafts are 16” in height. I’ve got some fairly athletic calves. The shafts are lightly hugging my calves now, but I fully expect them to loosen up over time with some wear.

In the last month or so I’ve really taken a big liking to the whole Rios of Mercedes lineup of boots as I’ve acquired Rios, Anderson Bean, and Olathe during this time. Of the : brands I’m most drawn to my Olathes (possibly just because I prefer cutter or round toe, and lots of AB’s are wide square toe.)

I’ve also been recently finding deals on cowboy boots. I can buy exotics and other fine leathers in cowboy boots substantially cheaper than the PNW boots I’ve predominantly bought over the last year. For Father’s Day I was able to pick up a Rios, AB, and Olathe for the same price the custom White’s Packer I was building. Three pairs for the price of one scratched my new boot itch. Now I’m off to sell a bunch of boots I’ll never wear again since acquiring all these new cowboy boots.