Merrell Apex Encore Boot

I bought these Merrell Apex Encore boots shortly after realizing that my Solomon Emmy's were not cutting it in the cold. We were up in Ottawa, Canada for the holidays and after about 30 minutes outside, my feet were numb. My sister had purchased these and seemed content so I added them to my collection, waiting for some snow so I could test them out myself. Well, so far, not a ton of snow, and St. Louis doesn't really have the same temperatures as Ottawa, but here are my general thoughts on the boots:

- Style wise: cute- I wanted something that I could wear with skinny jeans as well as bootcut/ flare jeans and these look great with both. They were a tad to furry for me (my sister, on the other hand, loves the fur) so I took some scissors to them shortly after they arrived. Hey, at least now they are "one of a kind"... or I suppose "two of a kind".  There is a drawstring across the front that runs the length of the boot- theoretically, a nice thing to have to adjust the tightness, but when you pull it, the lining underneath puckers and looks strange. Then you also have the long elastic to tuck under so it isn't flopping around. Good idea, but really, I just leave mine alone and think of it as an addition to style, vs. function. 

- Temperature: the insulation feels almost identical to my Emmy's- something called "opti-warm 200 gram insulation". I suspect that if I wore these in single digit temps, I'd have to wear some thick wool socks, possibly from the Survival line by Under Armor. I do get cold feet easily so this may not be a problem for some.

- Water-proof-ness: reports on this online are somewhat conflicting. I have yet to submerge my boots in water or stand for prolonged periods of time in tall snow, but I have to think that like any other porous material, if you are in either snow, slush, etc. for an extended period of time, water will get through. If you live somewhere where this will be the case, brands like Pajar, Sorel, and Baffin may be better ones to consider. Those are made for that, whereas these, I feel, are made more for casual trekking around in the snow- something I can wear to work when it is snowing outside or to play in for a bit with the kids. The Sorels are way too heavy for me to wear to work and the insulation is thick and warm- again something that wouldn't work well for me to wear if I am going to be mostly indoors. 

- Traction: seems fine- but if there is slick snow or ice, I'd recommend using grips over them. Better safe than sorry!

- Overall: a stylish boot to wear in the winter. Not necessarily something to wear in extreme temperatures, but for most of us, it will do the trick:).