Welcome My New Hunter Boots!
Used Armor All on left boot. Right boot has 'blooming.'
I’m happy to report I bought my first pair of Hunter rubber boots yesterday! I really wanted a ‘fun’ color (like lime green), but ended up buying black. I just can’t help it.
I’ve been looking online for a pair of black Hunter boots in size 8 but they’re always out of stock. I guess this is another reason I should’ve picked a different color. Anyway. I finally found a pair at the Bellevue Nordstrom — the last one.
When I called about the boots they explained to me the boots had a white film or ‘blooming’ all over them. Apparently a natural aging effect. This wasn’t discouraging to me since Nordstrom has a fair return policy and they mentioned Armor All would clean up the ‘blooming.’
Since I’m impatient and always a sucker for something that needs to be fixed, I bought the boots. And guess what, Armor All works great!
10/13/2010 Update:
I was on the Hunter Boots Web site and found their recommendation to fix the blooming:
Every Hunter rubber wellington boot is made from 100% natural ingredients and small amounts of wax are included in the rubber compound during the vulcanization process that is used to make each pair. When exposed to certain environmental factors, this wax can “bloom” to the surface and appear as white marks.
This is not a defect with the boots, and is completely natural. If this does happen, you can wipe this blooming clean with a warm, damp cloth. We also recommend UV Tech* Spray which can be found at boating, hunting or fishing stores.
Gardening in My Rubber Boots 
I have worn Hunter boots for years, but at Chelsea flower show last year I discovered Dubarry. They are wonderful, once you try them there will be no going back. Their stand was just up from our Bulldog Tools stand in Eastern Avenue. Well worth a try.
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Stuart, All I can say is “Wow.” I just found Dubarry boots online (http://www.dubarry.us/catalogue/4) and they are amazing! Fortunately, they’re out of my price range or I’d be in real trouble. Let’s hope I forget about these boots and move on.
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Enjoy! I’ve had my navy blue Hunter Boots for about 15 years. Someday I’m going to try the fleece liners they have on the website. I feel so Brit in them (good enough for the Queen, good enough for me).
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I thought about the fleece liners but wasn’t sure how they’d fit. They sure look cozy.
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If it’s the name of the blog, can it be considered a tax write off?
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Brilliant! Except I don’t make any money off my blog. Hmmm.
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I have had my Hunter wellies for 5 years and they are great. I recently bought a pair for my girlfriend at a place in Spitalfields Market, East London called Marsh-Mellow (http://www.marsh-mellow.co.uk) They have a massive range and are always well stocked… cool website as well :-)
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James, we’re taking a trip to London this summer. I’ll have to check out Marsh-Mellow if we can fit it in our schedule. Thanks for the tip!
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They are great boots… I love mine… but geeze what a chore to get them on and off! Please let me know if you come up with any ideas for making this easier… long shoe horns? Happy gardening! When that time comes! ;>)
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May I ask if over time the blooming came back??
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Rick, It’s been two weeks and the boots still look great! I imagine that over time I’ll need to apply the Armor All again since the blooming is natural for rubber. Maybe if I apply it every couple months the boots will stay shiny and they’ll last longer? I’ll let you know how this goes.
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Garden Shoes Online sells Muck boots. I have apair and I love them. They are the mucksters. I also love their daily gardenshoes. We also have realy cute rain boots and we will have more bos soon. Just a friendly fyi. I enjoyed reasing your post and your blog.
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ArmorAll degrades rubber.
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Carguy, Thank you for your comment. It wouldn’t surprise me that Armor All degrades rubber since the air, water and sunshine also degrades rubber. I don’t have a problem with that since eventually, many many many years down the road, I’ll want these boots to degrade when they’re sitting in a landfill. ;) But you bring up an interesting point. Since Armor All isn’t natural, I may try to condition my boots with olive oil next time around. Or maybe I’ll just learn to enjoy the “bloom.” Thanks again.
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I’ve had Hunters for years (one pair for ten). Simply, I wash with tepid water and dry off with a cotton cloth. This removes dirt, brings up a shine and makes ’em last longer. Cheaper and better than chemicals :-)
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saw some hunter boots on sale here at women’s black boots as well.
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Recently studded boots have become extremely popular once again because of the versatility that they provide to the owner. Such footwear can be matched with almost every sort of fashion look or image.
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Thanks for the post. This was very helpful information and great comparison picture. I’m going to Armor All my new black boots tonight. =)
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I like to keep things in order but just like you, I am also short tempered. Wellies with light colors easily gets dirty and the stains are hard to take off. So choosing the clack wellies is a great pick.
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I love hunter boots because they have so much colors and to keep them in shape I use boot buffer http://bit.ly/qTr1h9
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I think you made the right choice with black…. they can go with anything really. Lime green, not so much!
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Bonsoir les gens comment trouvez-vous de mon nouveau site sur l’immobilier?
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