Nicks Handmade Boots have teamed up with Wickett & Craig to make an incredible leather they call double-stuffed.
These are Nicks made-to-order boots in my favorite makeup
HNW moderate arch last, honey Vibram 100-lug sole, and soft toe. But the real story here is that amazing slate double-stuffed leather. Most boots are made of chrome-tanned leather due to its softer hand feel, weather resistance and lower price. Typically, the only vegetable tanned leather in boots is found in the interior components like the footbed, heel counter, and toe stiffener.
While the merits of chrome vs vegetable tanned leather have been debated at length, chrome tanned leather has dominated the footwear space.
Which is why this leather is so special
Wickett and Craig was founded in 1867 in Canada, but now is in Pennsylvania USA. They only produce vegetable tanned leather to the tune of approximately four and a half million square feet annually. The special double-stuffed leather you see here is exclusive to Nicks and is created by impregnating the leather with a mixture of waxes, oils, and tallows in a heated drum. This particular leather returns to these drums a second time at the end of the finishing process for a second dose of hot stuffing, hence the name “double-stuffed.”
The result is a saturated vegetable tanned leather with improved stain resistance and pliability with dramatic pull-up characteristics. Vegetable tanned leather is renowned for its ability to change color as it ages, and this leather is no exception.
The slate leather is chameleon-like in its ability to change color in different lighting. For example, under my studio lights it takes on a blueish hue, but in daylight it can read olive. In fact, when I first posted pictures of these in my Discord and Instagram, people weren’t sure what color they actually were!
Gray boots have gotten quite popular lately, but the variation across the Wickett & Craig slate is dramatic as the fats and oils are displaced. Lighter in the heel counter, darker on the vamp, the natural variation is a thing of beauty. Similarly, my belt in double stuffed natural has a wide range of tones from tan to deep brown. For those of us who love texture and patina, this leather is a dream come true.
The boots themselves are nothing new if you’re used to Nicks
Robust build quality that feels almost indestructible. Even with the leather being slightly lighter weight at 6oz compared to their typical 7-8oz work boot leather, the boots take some time to soften up and break in. I went all-in though and wore these on a recent trip to Michigan. As my only footwear, if I was out of the hotel room these boots were on my feet. By the end of the third day after a visit to the Henry Ford Museum they were feeling surprisingly good, with the support I’ve come to expect from Nicks.
My one complaint is that the stitching on this pair isn’t as good as my other Nicks
There are a few spots where the lines clearly diverge like on the one-piece backstay. PNW boots aren’t typically known for their precision stitching, but with beautiful leather like this it would have been nice to see some clean parallel lines.
One other downside is price
Vegetable tanned leather carries a higher raw material cost than chrome tanned work boot leather. The boots you see here will run …get ready for it… $729. A belt will cost you an additional $120.00
I’m getting close to putting in a made to order pair of the W&C Nicks and was thinking slate would be the best choice for me. Are there any pics of how they’ve been breaking in or patina developing? Hoping those brown teacore undertones start to come out and give it some amazing character. If not not, maybe slate isn’t for me.