The Decora Chant is a stylish looking mid-calf women’s boot aimed at women who want every-day comfort, warmth and water-proofing through the harshest of winters on all terrain.
Topped with a faux fur collar which keeps out the draughts as well as looking cute, the majority of the uppers are made of waterproof full grain and pig suede leather.
There’s a clever use of materials for both style and performance here, with just the right amount of rubber grip at ground level, giving way to tan-coloured rand, then full-grain leather and finally suede a good inch and a half off the ground out of harm’s way. On the back, the stiff leather rises to form a stout, supportive heel cup with decorative straps and buckles above.
On the inside, an M-Select Dry lining keeps out moisture admirably – even when the leather outers are drenched from splashing through snow slush and puddles. Equally impressive, given that we have also been wearing them on long, warm country walks in both autumn and spring, is that breathability is good enough that we have never got hot, swollen, sweaty feet.
This was despite impressive warmth, no doubt thanks to Merrell’s lightweight, low-bulk M-Select Warm insulation, even in the depths of winter and on skiing holidays.
Underfoot, a heel air cushion helps tame heel strike shocks and Merrell’s claimed grip prowess is hard to fault on either wet stone or icy ski-resort paths.
Our only quibble is that after six months of day-in-day-out winter abuse, the rubber rand appears to be very slightly coming unstuck on either side of the boot where the foot articulates. Given how attached we’ve become to these boots, this is something that we’ll happily get fixed for no doubt several more years of warm, dry comfort.
