Snow Boots

 Sometimes I wonder if my fashion compass is set to a different magnetic north to other people's. The success of a company like ASOS, originally built on your average person's desire to have clothes like their favourite star is a mystery to me. I have absolutely nothing against their clothes (in fact I don't own any so can't really comment) but it's the famous person bit I don't get. Once I find out that some item I like the look of is loved by celebrities I just go right off it.

So it is with Sorel boots. I first became aware of these beautiful yet amazingly practical things about a year ago when I saw a woman in the departure lounge at Gatwick Airport waiting to go to a snowy Berlin wearing a pair. They seemed like the perfect combination of rubber and leather and I was so enamoured I actually took a surreptitious photo of them on my phone so I could look them up later.

Fast-forward a year to our current snow and ice-fest and I find myself thinking of these Canadian beauties again. OK so £150 seems like a lot to pay for a pair of boots that are unlikely to get more than a few weeks' wear a year but I'd almost be prepared to go for it; that is until I start seeing the word Brangelina on accompanying blurb. Suddenly that £150 just seems ridiculous and all my enthusiasm has slipped away. I realise this is a somewhat crazy position but it's honestly not conscious - I think it's the thought that anyone would think I'd purchase something just because it's fashionable that immediately puts me right off.

But that doesn't help me with my snow boot problem. So I decided to throw fashion to the wind and purchase a pair of Karrimor boots from Amazon (if that doesn't sound unsexy I'm not sure what does). They haven't yet arrived but I am hoping they'll be just the thing to help me traverse the icy pavements of London and Berlin over the coming months (and at less than £35 it won't be the end of the world if I don't love them). OK, I have to admit that a wave of desire swept over me when I saw a bloke in the office wearing a pair of Sorels the other day (for the boots not him you understand) but at least I can comfort myself that I am no slave to fashion or celebrity. Let's face it, I don't think we're about to see Angelina Jolie kitted out in Karrimor anytime soon. Well I certainly hope not - I'm not sure of the returns policy.

Images from top Sorel Carribou, Sorel 1964 Premium, Sorel Joan of Arctic, Karrimor Snow Boots