Category Archives: Common Questions

Common Questions, Cowboy Boots

Tips on visiting a custom bootshop

1. Always make an appointment! Many bootmakers have their shops at home. Business hours vary greatly…for good and for bad.

2. Ask if there are photos or cowboy boots in the shop for you to see. When bootmakers know you’re coming sometimes they can hold on to a finished pair for a little while before shipping them out. I’ve been places where the only boots in the shop were the ones on the bootmaker’s feet.

3. Don’t do too much drinkin’ or dancin’ the night before your visit. If your feet are unusually swollen it will interfere with your measurements. (This can go for long airplane rides as well.) Most people like afternoon appointments because it’s often a “happy medium” for boot fit.

4. Bring your checkbook. Relatively few bootmakers take credit cards. Most often when you buy a pair of custom cowboy boots you’ll be asked to pay half the amount at the time of the order, and the rest when your boots are finished.

5. Wear clean socks. Pick a pair similar to the ones you are planning on wearing with your boots. Your foot measurements will be taken with your pant legs pulled up and your socks on.

6. Put the bootmaker’s phone number on your cell phone’s speed dial …some boot shops are really “off the beaten path.”

7. Be honest with the bootmaker and respectful of their time. In one-person shops all bootmaking stops when you walk in the door. If you are just stopping by to say “howdy” and look at their work…make it a short visit. Bootmakers will gladly take your measurements if you’re a serious customer, but staying two hours, getting fitting and planning out a pair of boot that you never order …just isn’t cool.

PHOTO: After 15 years of bootmaking, Brian Thomas has just opened his shop in Abilene, Texas. Better act fast before his waitlist gets too long! Contact Mr. Thomas at B17CREWDOG@aol.com (…or phone 325-672-2344.)

Common Questions, Cowboy Boots

Adding character to your cowboy boots

WARNING!! This posting is not for the faint-o-heart. It may leave some of you custom boot owners feelin’ …well, a little queasy.

Few things are cooler than a pair of well worn cowboy boots…but what about folks who need to look cool by Saturday night?

Not to worry. You’ve got plenty of options.

  1. Go find a vintage cowboy boots with a well worn look you already know and love.
  2. Buy a brand new pair that fits you right…then put your boots on the feet of a seven year old, give ’em a box of chalk and tell ’em to go draw on the sidewalk. Anyone feelin’ queasy yet? …there’s more.
  3. If you want to take matters into your own hands, you can rub a piece of sandpaper along the boots “bumpers”…this includes the top of your boot toes, the boot leather right above the heel, and along the outside of your boot near your little toe. Sometimes you’ll find wear marks on the top and inside of your foot (the vamp) if your foot’s in a stirrup…or the back of your boot heel if your foot rests on a gas pedal.

Be creative! …try dance floors, car repair…tell your barista she can keep the lid. It’s alright to run your car over your boot tops, but not the foot of your boot. Almost always you’ll end up crushing the toe box.