Are COWBOY BOOTS business casual outside of Texas?

[Cuttingboard]



These comments presuppose that the cowboy boots in question are significantly flared out from the ankle/calf, which is not the case on properly fitted boots. The boots I pictured above are probably 1/2 inch bigger in circumference than my calf at the top of the shaft, and absolutely do not cause problems with my pants.

But yes, if someone buys boots that have the shaft built like a 2 gallon funnel, then it's going to make all their pants (including jeans) look like **** because they won't drape freely.

 

[DWFII]



It would be nice if DWFII would chime in

I don't know why I should chime in here...most everything being said is nothing more than opinion and a lot of that is informed by ignorance, judgmentalism, parochialism, and self-absorption.

The fact is that cowboy boots, even...maybe especially...the high heeled, box toed versions, are perfectly acceptable in a large part of the US and even some parts of Europe. Certainly more acceptable than the metro-sexual fashions that pass for "Style" among some folks here.

The biggest fashion in shoes among business types on the West Coast is still the wide square toe.

The fact that wide toes are still in vogue in places like LA; the fact that we're even having this discussion in that context is indicative of how trivial some of this is.

The boot is a shoe and often a better made one even in RTW than many top end RTW shoes. At a certain price level it's the kind of quality that most shoe manufacturers only hyperbolize about.

Quality is style. But "style" is not necessarily quality...in fact, in today's world the opposite is more often true than not.

And if the truth were known and boldly spoken, people who are really and truly stylish...who are comfortable with themselves and their successes and their wealth...don't give a rat's a$$ what a bunch of wannabes think about it.

And if it's understated and black, its shape/heel height is one of those petty concerns that people who have nothing better to do with their lives, obsess over.

I build cowboy boots. And have done for over 40 years. I've built boots for people who could buy and sell any ten of us and who wear them for business meetings and even semi-formal affairs on occasions.

Most of that 40+ years I wore my own boots.

These days, I wear black whole cut chelseas and black calf and alligator balmorals....mostly because I'm old and a lighter weight shoe appeals to me.

Just my own opinion.

 

[DWFII]



It would be nice if DWFII would chime in but my understanding is that the modern type of western boots such as those on gentleman in the picture were relatively modern invention. Cowboys in the old days those wore something similar to roper boots but also had laces. Anyways I do not quote me on this. I hope this turns into discussion about historical development of cowboy boots. When you think about it cowboy boots are just like a baseball something distinctively American.

Yes, cowboy boots are uniquely American. I had an explanation all ready to post that discussed the historical antecedents and evolution of the cowboy boot, but lost it through an errant mouse click. Disgusting, frustrating!

Maybe I'll try again later.

 

[DWFII]



It would be nice if DWFII would chime in but my understanding is that the modern type of western boots such as those on gentleman in the picture were relatively modern invention. Cowboys in the old days those wore something similar to roper boots but also had laces. Anyways I do not quote me on this. I hope this turns into discussion about historical development of cowboy boots. When you think about it cowboy boots are just like a baseball something distinctively American.

I suspect that lace-up cowboy boots, initially at least, were never more than a simple cross-over of a commonly available work boot to the ranch environment. Except in modern times I doubt that "dress" versions were made regularly.

As far as the pull-on cowboy boot is concerned, the origins can really be found in the wild spread popularity that came about in the wake of Arthur Wellsley's (the Duke of Wellington) victory at Waterloo in 1815. The side seamed boot was known, but Wellsley's victory made much of what he did and wore fashionable. Military fashions were popular among both men and women.

The two piece, side seamed boot (AKA "full Wellington") that was the forerunner of the cowboy boot was very nearly the man's boot on both sides of the pond until the late 19th century....when it gave way to the backseamed boot (think English riding boot) esp. in Europe.

The full wellington was the regulation boot for cavalry officers on both sides during the late unpleasantness (Am. Civil War) and went West with soldiers mustering out after Appomattox.

With the influx of German immigrants into the hill country of Texas the stage was set for an evolution of the style--from the lower heeled broad square-toed military look, (which persisted even among drovers and wranglers until the turn of the century, although the heel got higher to accommodate the stirrup) to something more specifically designed to meet both the needs and the exuberance of the working cowboy and the frontier.

It is undeniable that there are both European and East European influences that persist in the modern cowboy boot but when the rest of the world more or less abandoned the wellington and the full wellington, the cowboy boot continued to thrive.

What it evolved into is uniquely American not only because it evolved to meet American challenges and American cultural impulses but also because there is no other boot like it the world. In that sense, like it or not, it is iconic. Perhaps moreso than almost any other aspect of American culture.

And my personal opinion...the roper is not a cowboy boot, it is an uncertain watering down; neither the one nor the other; a devolution to the lowest common denominator.

--

 

[SoCal92078]

Do you think a nice pair of slacks along with cowboy boots could be considered business casual?

Not only are your cowboy boots acceptable business casual in SoCal. So are your Wranglers; paired appropriately of course. Not sure who’s saying otherwise but certainly no one who’s spending a lot of time here.

Do you think a nice pair of slacks along with cowboy boots could be considered business casual?