Winter is very nearly upon us. No matter where in the UK you live, by now you’ve probably felt the first real chill in the air. All of us will have noticed the evening sunshine disappearing and the mornings getting far colder, darker, and greyer. It’s much more difficult to persuade ourselves out from under the covers when the alarm goes off, because our bodies know it’s going to be cold out there.
One way you can make the winter a touch less grim is to choose the right shoes and boots to keep your toes warm, dry, and toasty until spring comes around again. Every little bit helps, and anything that means you stay warm and comfortable in the winter months is definitely a good thing.
Choosing a model with a closed toe doesn’t guarantee warmth. Trainers are often specially designed to be breathable so that feet don’t feel too sweaty and hot during intense physical exercise. That’s all very well in summer, but in winter chill air circulates through the material and toes will suffer. Go for a leather material over fabric uppers if you have the choice.
Leather will also keep the damp out. Even suede can be treated to make it waterproof (although this will always darken the colour slightly). Full grain leather in good condition is as waterproof as anything, and it’s not difficult to keep it in that state. Shoe polish or wax will do it, and treating with an appropriate product every so often will also keep the leather supple and new-looking.
When buying winter shoes, go slightly bigger than you might normally. This allows space for nice woolly socks for the really cold days and warm socks really do make a big difference. With a little forethought and the right shoes you can forget about cold, wet feet this winter.