...or reconcile myself to their status.

As many of you know, I enjoy wearing skirts and dresses. But I wasn't wearing them in winter for several years. I was convinced -- convinced -- that this was because I had no knee high dressy boots. In my climate, it's simply too cold to wear dresses without boots in winter.

I am rather hard to fit in knee high boots. My calves are both shorter than average, and a bit slimmer than average. Plus, I wanted to avoid black boots if possible, since I find black is a rather harsh neutral for me in larger doses. And it requires "bookending" with darker items on top since I don't have dark hair.

Knee high non-black dressy boots were thus a HEWI for me.

Well, last year, I found a pair. High quality, perfect and I mean perfect fit. Comfortable, dressy, and grey. Needless to say, I snatched them up -- despite their considerable expense -- and had lots of fun imagining all the great outfits I would soon create with them. I tried Angie's 3 outfit test and they passed with flying colours. Does this sound like a no brainer or what?

HA!

Guess what? It turns out I only wore them three times. You can see two of the outfits below. Gee, those look similar, don't they? And, guess what else? I did not feel fab. I felt like a lady who lunches.

It turns out that my reason for not wearing skirts and dresses had almost nothing to do with my lack of dressy boots. It was all about needing more casual dresses and skirts. A heeled, dressy boot is hardly going to solve that. DUH.

So, now I have these gorgeous La Canadienne boots. Warm. Perfectly fitting. Sturdy and well balanced. And I never, ever wear the things. They have not been out of the closet once this year.

What to do?

Here I am trying a few options and showing you why these don't work well for me. If you have any bright ideas about how to address this, please let me know.

#1-4: Last year's outfits. Worn to give a workshop and go to the dentist, I think. Note the plum seamed skirt -- yet another orphan. These were the only times I wore that, too.

#5: This shows you another problem with the boots. They are slightly warmer toned than many of my other grey items, and in particular, they're warmer toned than all the non-sheer grey hose I am able to find, anywhere. This limits ease of wear.

#6/7 Okay. Well. On a rare cold but not slushy day, I might be able to wear these with my flares. I kind of like the 70s vibe of this. But how many suitable days will arise? (Hint: fewer than 3).

#8-10 This skirt is not exactly an orphan, but it's not much worn, either. That is okay; I knew I'd mostly use it as a special occasion piece. But I'd been hoping that the boots might allow me to take it on a few more outings. Unfortunately, I think the length is wrong for the height of the boots. Urgh. Trying a few outfit options with them, but not loving any of them.

#11 I can wear them with a pencil skirt, sure. But. I never wear a pencil skirt. And, this is kind of silly with sheer hose. Not warm enough.

#12/13 How about a more casual pencil skirt? Well...no. Because I feel too ...how can I say it... tarty ... in heels and a pencil this short. Not to mention all the cutting horizontal lines.

In fact, given the choice, I would always wear a flatter boot or a more casual one with this kind of outfit. (14/15)

So, why not tuck skinnies into them. The reviews of the boots all claimed this worked like a charm. Well, not for me. I feel too "bombshell" or tarty in this kind of look. Plus, these skinnies are on the loose side so I can barely get the boots zipped. (16/17)

The tarty effect is only slightly mitigated by a long sweater. (18/19)

Is there hope for these boots? And if not, what should I do? Gnash my teeth and consign them (for a pittance of their worth); hang onto them and wear them if I get invited to a winter funeral; offer them to a friend -- what?