Sharing my honest review of The Toujours Boot from Poppy Barley.
A few keen eyes spotted these boots on my Instagram Stories recently and reached out – so I’m thrilled to pop in and share my full review of this striking style today!
It has been a minute since I added a dressy, heeled boot to my wardrobe, and to say my closet was ready for an update is an understatement.
This review of The Toujours Boot is sponsored by Poppy Barley, but as always, all opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links.
To correct this misstep, I turned to a brand from our northern neighbor, one I’ve long admired for their timeless styles and commitment to sustainability: Poppy Barley.
ABOUT POPPY BARLEY
Like so many other small businesses, Edmonton, Alberta’s Poppy Barley got its start after its founders couldn’t find what they were looking for on the market. After searching for luxury lifestyle essentials that reflected their values of community, sisters Justine and Kendall Barber launched Poppy Barley in 2012, drawing inspiration from… medieval shoe sizing.
In medieval England, cobblers used poppy seeds and barleycorns as the units of measurement for their products – and we still use this as the basis of our shoe measurements today (one barleycorn equals ⅓-inch and four poppy seeds equals one barleycorn – the more you know!).
Today the brand’s values of people, planet, and a better future, are evident in the choices made for production. As a Certified B Corporation, Poppy Barley partners with family-owned factories to create their sustainably made footwear and accessories. Despite the added costs of responsible sourcing, the brand manages to maintain a line of luxury products without the traditional markups. You can read more about the brand and their pricing model here.
ABOUT THE TOUJOURS BOOT
The Toujours Boot is a chic ankle boot with a 5.5″ shaft and 2.5″ slanted heel, and it currently is available in black leather, creme leather, and ash brown suede. All versions are made from in Juanjo and Pablo’s Footwear Factory in Petrer, Spain, which sources its leather from Leather Working Group-certified tanneries.
The boot features a memory foam insole and a leather outsole with a rubber toe pad and heel cap for additional grip. The profile is slim thanks to a smooth zipper and a center seam, and the soft leather molds to your foot with wear. Prefer some extra height? There’s an equally stunning tall version.
MY REVIEW OF THE TOUJOURS BOOT
In some ways choosing the right shoe size is easier than choosing the right clothing size – but for some reason, boots always feel like a gamble. Poppy Barley recommends sizing up a half-size if you’re between sizes, but I’m a pretty solid size 7.5 and stuck with it here.
The Toujours Boot is designed to fit a little snugly at first, but the leather will soften and relax with a little wear. As always, you should spend at least a few hours wearing a new pair of shoes around the house (preferably on carpet or rugs!) before venturing outside. Returns and exchanges are easy (you should always check the policy before placing an order!), but the shoes can’t have any signs of wear to be accepted.
I popped on a pair of socks and trodded about the house, finding the pair snug and questioning if I should have sized up. After a few hours, though, I’m glad I didn’t. The boots have molded to my feet and ankles as if they were custom-fit.
Since then, I’ve been reaching for this pair more than any others for my errands and outings. I like to wear them with a thin cotton sock that matches the height of the boot shaft to keep the profile slim. After a few wears, I noticed that they wrinkle slightly in a way that adds a little casual-cool vibe. I’m here for it, but if you’re looking for something a bit more classically sleek, the suede version might be a better match.
Looking for more honest style reviews? Check out my index of reviews, sorted by brand
But are they comfortable? I admit I was nervous about the heel – would the slanted heel feel natural, or would it change my gait? I can honestly say that I’ve worn these for hours on end while walking at a comfortable clip with no blisters or rubbing. It’s clear the ultra-supple leather has been carefully considered for the style, and the is heel molded at a precise height and angle for safe wear.
If you’ve been reading the blog for a long time, you know that I almost never travel with anything heeled. So, to answer your burning question of whether or not I would travel with The Toujours Boot: Honestly, yes. I can see myself wearing these for an easy day of grabbing brunch and strolling museum galleries, although I likely wouldn’t pack them as my only pair of shoes or on a trip where I expect to take 30,000 steps per day (or to a city heavily paved with cobblestones!). But I can definitely see myself bringing these along in the fall or during a mild winter, and can even imagine dashing through the airport to my gate in them to save on luggage space.
STYLING THE TOUJOURS BOOT
This pair of boots has proven to be a wildly versatile choice – I’ve worn them with distressed denim and polished dresses alike. But my favorite way to wear The Toujours Boot is in a middle-of-the-road outfit like this one, which reads as effortlessly chic but still quite relaxed.
I know that pairing denim with shoes these days can feel a bit confusing (I totally get it!). Lately, I’ve been drawn to wearing boots with a higher shaft like this with straight and relaxed denim at a length that covers the bulk of the shaft. It feels very contemporary and of the moment, but that’s not to say I’ll always style them this way. At the rate fashion trends are cycling, we’ll be pairing these with short skinny jeans again in no time…
FINAL THOUGHTS ON POPPY BARLEY BOOTS
This may be my first pair of Poppy Barley boots, but I can’t imagine it’ll be the last. With quality craftsmanship at a price that feels perfectly reasonable and styles that will stand the test of time, I’m keeping a watchful eye on their new arrivals page. A few things that caught my eye for down the line: a bold pump, a classic loafer, rugged-chic boots, non-twee Mary Janes, and boots with the most unique heel I’ve seen in recent memory. Perhaps you’ll spot them in a future review!
Oh! And if, like me, you’re thinking of ordering your first pair of Poppy Barley boots, you can save CAD 25 off your first order when you sign up for the brand’s newsletter. We love an easy way to save!
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Questions for you
Do you have a go-to dressy boot?
Before today, did you know where our shoe sizing system came from? (I didn’t!).
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