Bargain Alert: Red Wings

I imagine at least a few of you share my interest in clothes and shoes, so I want to alert you to a particularly good deal available at Orvis online. Orvis has a group of products they call the "Made-in-America Collection" which is pretty self-explanatory. What makes this somewhat interesting is that, like J. Crew, Orvis carries products from other American companies.

In the shoe section they carry items from Alden, Allen Edmonds, the Wolverine boots I bought in New York last fall, and Red Wing Iron Ranger boots. Strangely, they're calling them the "Cannon Valley" boots, but if you look at the picture it's clearly the Iron Ranger in the color Red Wing calls "amber."

These typically sell for close to $300 a pair, but Orvis currently has them on sale for $180, plus they're offering an extra 20% off all sale merchandise through Monday, bringing the price for these down to $144 (plus tax and shipping, if applicable), which qualifies as a steal. That's probably less than you'd pay for a lightly used pair on Style Forum, assuming you could find someone selling a pair in your size.

The only real caveat is that anything smaller than a 10.5 is gone, and these run big by a half size or so. But if you like the Red Wing aesthetic, want a solid, sturdy, American-made pair of boots that will last you decades, and are a larger-footed guy, this deal is calling you.