In Review: The Express Suede Boot

EXPRESS Brown Suede Lace Up Boot – $71.60 w/ 1042 ($138)

Code is good for $25 off every $75 you spend. Hat tip to Bhavik V for sending in the heads up about how these boots went on sale for $96.60 over night. Add the code, & they drop to $71.60.

You wouldn’t think to look for shoes at Express. And if you did stumble across shoes there, you’d half-expect them to have an enormous lion logo plastered on the heel.

Or hell, the toe.

But surprisingly enough, what few shoe options they have all seem to be visible-logo free. And even more surprising, some of their designs can be pretty attractive. And subtle. Express doesn’t always do subtle. Yet their chocolate brown suede lace-up boots are a fine cold-weather example of this rarity. And with codes and sales, they’ll dip into the $70-$90 range.

Surprisingly nice suede. Classic shape.

$138 is awfully steep, but it’s Express. There’s always another promo-train a comin’ (and they’re on sale plus there’s an applicable code today). In terms of construction and materials, they’re not as good as the now sold out Stafford Deacon. But they’re close. Super close? No. Not super close. But close. And with sales & promos, they could make for a comfortable, great for bad weather, beater pair.

The suede is on these is unusually pliable. Towards the top of the lacing, where there’s normally less structure, it’s almost floppy. Nice and soft but still well formed through the toe, so these look less relaxed than a desert boot. Sole is a man made crepe-like material, so grip on slippery sidewalks shouldn’t be too much of an issue.

Notice the burnishing at the toe. Especially at left.

Shape could be sleeker through the toe, but they work plenty fine with jeans. The reinforced brass eyelets stand out against the brown suede, and won’t be to everyone’s taste, but they work fine for under a hundred bucks. That, and they look better than some crummy, frayed punch job you’d see on super-cheap shoes like these.

There was one, slightly disappointing in-person surprise compared to what the images showed online: They’ve got some burnishing at the toe. Y’know, where the suede has been slightly ground down to make them look like they’ve been worn a bit?  It’s not that noticeable in person, and you have to be looking for it. But you’d think manufacturers would give that stuff a rest. It has to cost a bit more to do during the manufacturing process, and the end result is rarely an improvement.

Toe shape compared to JCP’s 2013 Stafford Camlin

No half sizes on these things, and you’ll want to size UP if you’re in between. An 11 fit my normally 10.5 D feet… like a 10.5. Maybe a 10.75 if there was ever such a thing to exist, but they were quite comfortable right out of the box. Made in China.

Also available in a light tan. One day, Aldens in a light suede. For now? The Express option should do just fine.

Code 1042 should be running through January 19th. Seems to exclude clearance items ending in $.99.