Shoegazing recently published the second half of its rundown of all the competition boots, which means we finally got to see Zissou sitting there at number 13 alongside some seriously good shoemakers from around the world.

still wear the very first pair of Winnfields we ever made.

They were prototypes, built long before the Winnfield became the boot we sell today. I’ve worn them almost daily ever since, and I haven’t been particularly kind to them. I’ve worn through the soles, scuffed the leather, nearly worn a hole through the tongue, and even managed to rip out an eyelet.

Zero drop boots DO NOT have to be barefoot boots. This is something I find myself correcting all the time when customers ask me about our “barefoot boots.”

At Naang, we don’t make barefoot boots. We make heritage boots built around an anatomical toe box, with zero drop as an option for customers who want it. We still use thick leather insoles and midsoles, traditional welted construction, and all the things that make a heritage boot a heritage boot.

Zero drop and barefoot are not the same thing, and we need to stop using the terms interchangeably.

At first glance, a kiltie can look like it’s there mostly for style, especially the traditional versions with the long fringe hanging over the front of the boot. But kilties actually started with a very practical job to do, and they can still be pretty useful today.

They can protect the tongue, help with lace pressure, keep some of the crud you encounter on the trail out of your boots, and even change the way a boot fits around your instep.

If your toes hurt in boots, it’s usually because your toes don’t have enough room to move naturally.

Whatever the cause, toe pain is a sign that something isn’t working the way it should.

The good news is that toe pain is often preventable. Once you understand what’s causing the problem, the solution is usually straightforward.

Premium boots use multiple types of leather within the same boot. A bootmaker may choose one leather for flexibility and weather resistance, another for structure and support, and another for comfort.

Finding comfortable boots for leg length discrepancy isn’t always easy. Most boots are built as identical pairs, but when one leg is longer than the other, that standard approach doesn’t always work.

If you want to understand the Monkey Boot, you have to look at Czechoslovakia in the late 1940s and early 50s. We aren’t talking about the "aesthetic" heritage you see in a glossy magazine. We’re talking about Eastern Bloc utility