The transition from fall into winter can be tricky.  Do you wear your warmer boots or not?  Do you need a heavier jacket around this time of year or should you just opt for a thicker sweater? Should you throw on a hat on if it’s slightly chillier out or not?

Personally, I find footwear to be one of the trickiest areas, especially when I start thinking about weekend wear (sweat pants and running shoes won’t do people).

Enter the lace up ankle boot – my Friday Find for you this week.

For the ladies

Route of the Matter Boot- Jeffery Campbell (@ Modcloth.com)

For the gents

Cooper Square Longwing Boot- Cole Haan (@ nordstrom.com)

This boot is the perfect weekend footwear for this time of year. Why? Because they are:

• warm and cozy (go ahead and add warmer socks if you need to)
• easy to pair with most items in your weekend wardrobe…. especially if you go with a shade of brown as shown here
• quite stylish, in an understated way
• going to last you a long time (especially if you take care of them)

Here’s my quick tip on these boots:

• Many lace up boots have a leather sole and aren’t really that practial once there’s snow and ice on the ground. To wear them throughout fall AND winter, I suggest you take your boots to a shoe maker to get a rubber sole added on the bottom.  Yes, I know some people would gasp (intensely) at this suggestion but it’s a great way to add time to the “boot wearing” season.  Also, it will prevent you from slipping if there’s a light dusting of snow or a sheet of black ice.

Happy Friday!