Nothing keeps your feet warmer in the winter than a pair of wool socks and your favorite boots. While this is easy to pull of with your casual wear, some guys are hesitant to wear the winter staples with suits when it’s time for work.

The easiest way to mess up pairing boots with suits is to have the wrong style of boot. Stay away from utilitarian and instead opt for sleek styles. Both The Dean Chelsea Boot and The Newman Chukka Boot fall into the sleek category, so they’re both great choices for pairing with suits. All you need to know is how to pair the right color leather shoes with your suit.

Beautiful as they are, our handcrafted Italian leather boots aren’t exactly perfect for winter. Their leather soles mean quality, but they don’t function well on frozen sidewalks. To keep your soles safe and feet warm, consider adding rubber sole protectors. They add grip to keep you from planting ass on the pavement while insulating the shoe from the outside for additional warmth.

While adding sole protectors may not be the most attractive thing, they do help preserve your soles through the winter months. If you really want to go back to pure-leather soles when the winter thaws, a cobbler can replace them (which you’re going to have to get done eventually).

The good news is adding protective rubber soles at home is both easy and cost-efficient. You can find rubber half soles and all the tools necessary online, so you don’t even have to leave the house to get the task done.

First, prepare the soles of your shoes by roughing them up with sandpaper. If it hurts to do this, just think about how the sidewalks would be doing if for you and without the end protecting product. There’s no need to rough up any part of the boot that won’t be covered by the half soles, so mark where the toe protector ends at the arch and don’t sand past there. After sanding, clean the surface and prepare for bondage.

Apply a thin, uniform layer of rubber cement on the areas where the half soles will be placed and leave to dry for 5-10 minutes. Apply a second coat (just as evenly!) and let it dry for about 10 minutes. When the glue is tacky but not wet, it is ready. Position the half soles over the rubber cement and press onto the sole of the shoe. Be careful to have all surfaces touching so no air is caught between the layers.

Now would be a good time to place shoetrees in your boots to keep the toes from bending. You’re going to pound the half sole to the shoe with a hammer before binding it up with string. Wrap the boot with a soft cloth to protect the leather from the string before binding. Let it sit for a few hours before unwrapping. Trim the excess half sole material from the edges of the boot and let them dry overnight. The next day your boots are winter-ready while still being suit appropriate.

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Check out all the boots and Italian leather shoes Paul Evans has to offer for all seasons here.