Actor Joaquin Phoenix recently caused quite a stir when he insisted on wearing plastic cowboy boots in his upcoming Johnny Cash biopic.

Whether you call them vegetarian, vegan, cruelty-free…or just plain ol’ plastic, finding leather look-alike boots often isn’t easy.

Boy, not like five years ago…back then it was easy. In their die-hard attempts to reduce production costs, nearly all the large-scale boot manufacturers had increased their use of vinyls, plastics, and cardboard. Many popular name brand boots were being made solely from “man-made materials.”

But today there is China…and China changes everything. Now, with cheaper leather supplies and labor costs you can get a Justin brand genuine cow-hide boot for just $59.99.

For faux-leather cowboy boots I recommend you try your local Target store and look for their low-cost Xhilaration® brand…or turn to a dedicated specialty online retailer like Alternative Outfitters or VeganEssentials.com.

For a wider selection of styles …don’t overlook ebay. Try keyword searches like cowboy boots manmade …then narrow your search for women’s or men’s styles. Get creative. Even a search with “cowboy boots leather-like” will bring up different pairs to choose from.

If it is important to you to have absolutely no animal products used in your boots — double check the boot heel, make sure the manufacturer has not used a thin leather vaneer in an attempt to mimic a traditional stacked leather heel.

One more thing to consider in your purchase — make sure you are happy with the fit of your boots, man-made materials do not have the same give or stretch that leather does.