In the past decade corporations and the advertisers who propagate their brands have trained us to believe in this phenomena called “fast fashion.” Many businesses have built their brands around cheap and disposable things. After all, if fashions change every year why commit to anything you want to wear longer than one trip around the sun?
There are lots of good reasons to not follow the herd on this one. More garbage in landfills, more money out of your wallet (long term), and missing out on the joy of owning something of quality.
I found my first pair of Redwing boots in 2011. I was looking for a way to reward myself for surviving years of working excessive overtime at my shitty job. I settled on a pair of chukkas in cigar featherstone leather with stacked leather sole (which they no longer make.) They didn't make me feel better about my job but I liked them so much I’ve bought two more pairs in the eight years that followed (Beckman in cigar featherstone leather and the Iron Ranger in gray).
I still own that original pair of chukkas, I just dropped them off to be resoled yesterday. All three pairs of these boots have become a part of me. Every few months I condition and polish them and, when I do, I relive our adventures. I’ve worn them on the stages of SteemFests 1 and 2 (in Amsterdam and Lisbon), Columbus, Montreal, France, Sintra, New York City, and lots of short stops in between. Each scratch and every imperfection on the leather tell a story and spark a memory. In fact, I was wearing the Beckman's when I nearly fell down a flight of stairs at the Tobacco Theatre after giving my presentation at SteemFest 1. Yes, life is always an adventure.
This past weekend my wife, son, and I took a road trip to Redwing, Minnesota, and visited the home of Redwing Shoes. Our son is going to school to be a plumber and it was an honor to be able to buy him his first pair of quality work boots. He doesn’t like us to buy him anything so I had to stealthily purchase a gift card in the store and then surprise him with it before we left. The plan worked. Now he’ll have the experience of learning the true value of quality. If we're lucky, this will become a lifelong tradition for him as well.
Attached below are a few pictures from our visit.
The World’s Biggest Boot
Norman Rockwell Did Many of Redwing’s Ad Campaigns In the 40’s and 50’s. Who knew?
The First Pair of Boots Redwing Made in 1905
World War 2 Paratrooper Boot
Thank you for reading,
Eric
(All photos are original.)
*I am an American novelist, poet, traveler, and crypto-enthusiast. If you’ve enjoyed my work please sign up for my author newsletter at my website. Newsletter subscribers will receive exclusive updates and special offers and your information will never be sold or shared.
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