Eastwood
Chelsea Boot Black Suede

Black suede chelsea boot

Chelsea boots were originally invented in England as riding boots before becoming world famous in the 1960s, worn by the Beatles and getting their name from the fashionable Kings Road in Chelsea. Eastwood is an ankle boot as compared with our Manhattan Chelsea which is a mid calf boot. Read more about chelsea boots for men in our chelsea boot style guide.

Quality Italian black suede

This Eastwood chelsea boot is in a very nice, hand finished oxblood patina. Oxblood looks fantastic with blue or black jeans, also chinos, and even a suit. We also have them in other colours, including oxblood, brown, blue and black, also suede including grey and tan. The colour is very rich and deep. It has been built up in layers and then waxed and polished to protect and enhance the finish.

Full grain calf leather

They are hand crafted in Italy, using the finest, full grain calf leather. They have an elegant, clean, sophisticated pattern, very nice lines. It's a beautiful piece of leather. The toe is slightly longer than some other brands, which is typically Italian, and is nicely rounded. For many the convenience of chelsea boots is that there are no laces. They're the boot version of a step in loafer. There is an attractive sweeping line from the toe to the ankle We achieve this with our special blocking process, a very skilful process, using a roller to smooth and shape the leather. The result is a clean, sweeping line with no creases.

Craftsmanship/attention to detail

There is a twin elastic gusset, with a nice shape, not square or rectangular. We use a high quality elastic which should keep its elasticity for many years. There is a leather strip from the heel all the way up. It incorporates a strong nylon pull loop, that adds strength, which is important when you pull the boots on. The shaft height which us from the top of the heel to the top of the boot is about 15cm or 6 inches. So if you are sitting, your socks won't normally be visible. The boots provide excellent support around the ankle. It's important to have a carefully shaped last. We based this design on a lot of testing and feedback - so it's generally seen as a very great fitting boot.

There is a nicely rounded top line, with no raw edges, as we taper or ‘skyve’ the edge, then fold the leather and stitch it. Looking inside, we see the Thomas Bird branding, embossed into a piece of calf leather, foam backed for added comfort. The boot has a full calf leather lining. This helps absorb moisture and prolong the life of the boot. And we use a genuine full leather insole. Inside the heel, we use suede to stop your heel slipping. What you can’t see are the stiffeners between the calf upper and lining. There is one in the toe and another at the back, around the heel. These are important to keep the shoe looking good as it ages, and we use longer, high quality stiffeners to achieve this.

Stitched leather sole

The sole is stitched onto the upper with a traditional Italian method called blake stitching. Th is an in-channel, lock stitching technique, so even if one stitch was worn the others will still be locked securely in place. And being stitched the sole can be replaced when it eventually wears. But to extend the sole’s life, we use a rubber insert for added wear and better grip.

Stacked leather heel

There is a 25mm genuine leather stacked, heel, with 4 brass pins, and a rubber piece, again for better wear and grip, that can be easily replaced. Our Eastwood oxblood chelsea boot has a classic cut with an elegant line. It's a beautifully Italian made high quality boot, that with care should give you many years of enjoyment.