These boots definitely need to be broken in. My foot is 26 cm which is a size 10 at LC but I ordered an 11 and they were a bit too tight, even though they were too big. Eventually they loosened up and are now slightly too big, well 1 of them is. In fact, the left boot is way easier to get into and appears to be larger than the right boot which is harder to put on. I wish the shearling was thicker in the footbed as it wore down alot. after 1 year.
My calves are 14.5 inches and these were a bit hard to zip up at first even though they were 1.25 inches too big and have an elastic. Eventually they loosen up, almost too much and now I can definitely feel they are a bit too large in the calf which makes them sag a bit. The stitching is pretty good but mine did fray at the top of the boot which is strange as my calves don't put pressure on the stitching. I tried the Zena from Brown's and they were 1.5 inches bigger than my calf and I still couldn't zip those up sadly even they also have an elastic. The shearling was black in the Zena and might have been a bit less soft from the dye so I would actually love to see more light shearling options.
I replaced the insole with a thick sheepskin one and to see the quality. They are glued down and weren't too hard to remove But the nails are hammered upwards so the sharp side actually pierced thru the sole and into the foamlayer of the insole which can be dangerous. I almost cut myself a few times and I had to hammer them down. The nails from Blondo are hammered the other way so the flat top doesn't pierce into the insole, at least on the older ones.
I would've gotten the Helen as they were taller but another reviewer said they were smaller in the toebox but these were tight at first anyway. The Helen is also taller which might make them fit better on the calf even though the calf size is even larger on those. I would love to see the Tamy or another over the knee boot in leather with a higher heel.
Overall a solid boot and its awesome to see a full shearling lining and shearling insole. Also nice to see that the shearling goes to the top of the boot. Boots with leather at the top crack over time.
