When in Rome, do as the Romans. So when in Nashville…

Cowboy boot outfitters are all over the place in Nashville–every style, color, bedazzled, and traditional. But, dear readers, would Nashville have vegan cowboy boots? (…suspenseful music…)

As I perused the rainbow of boots, mostly to temporarily bask in the air conditioning and escape the sweltering heat pounding the pavement, it became a quest. “Authentic” cowboy boots from Nashville that were not made of leather? I resisted simply asking store clerks, partly because I had this silly notion that inquiring about such a stray from traditional Americana (the leather cowboy boot) was, er, “Un-American” … but also because I wanted to test my skills at identifying pleather. But I was kind of shocked to see that many of the boots I peered into were, in fact, not American at all. “Made in Mexico,” they said.  In my rules of life, there are certain things you only buy “Made in the U.S.A.” American Flags. Cowboy boots.

I was just about to give up my quest when I tried one more store off of the main strip of Broadway. Trail West, next to the day mayors under the bridge.  Inside, I found a group of sale boots that I was sure were made of synthetic materials. After a quick search on the company’s website I got the confirmation I needed. Durango, who holds their own within Nashville’s downtown styles, offers a whole slew of cowboy boots made with manmade materials. Though the site had the same boot significantly cheaper than the store, I just had to buy them in-person. In Nashville. Vegan cowboy boots.

The store had many that appeared to be synthetic. After some internet clicking: I realized they were all different versions of their Crush style: different colors, stitching colors, etc. There is even a fake alligator skin one.  Though I got no confirmation of this, I am assuming because of its price. Now, these were on sale likely because they were discontinued, as some specific styles I wasn’t able to find on their website.

Now it was time for a motel photoshoot. Here are my “Crush” in the shade Saddle Tan.

And, I must confess, it has been quite some time since I wrote this old report on vegan cowboy boots. And since this time I had been living with a better pair of vegan cowboy boots that I hadn’t blogged about. It’s only fair to include them here, with my new favorite pair of cowboy boots.  Volatile’s Raspy. These vegan boots are comfortable (much more than the boots featured in the old report, whose heels were too high.), more “authentic” looking, and were so much a go-to that I sent the other boots featured in the first review packing. And they are still available in a few colors.

Though there are likely other brands of vegan cowboy boots out there, some from household brand names like Steve Madden, perhaps less so than other products, you only need one tried, true and lived in pair. Black and, ok, brown too. And maybe a kooky red pair with a yellow star. Yes, I forgot I have these red cowboy boots from Mia, too.