The Edit: Seven Penelope Chilvers Boots for a City-to-Country Autumn
Nineteen boots went into the End of Season Sale and eight have already gone. The seven still standing that are worth your money, from £75.
The royal year has always bent towards the country in autumn. Queen Victoria bought Balmoral in 1852, and ever since the family has decamped north each summer and stayed well past the point the rest of us go back to our desks. Most of us cannot manage a Scottish estate, but a Friday train, a pub with a fire in it and a Saturday spent walking somewhere muddy is entirely achievable, and it is the best thing you can do with an English October.
This is part two of two: part one makes the case for the autumn escape itself, and why this particular boot-maker suits it.
The only part that genuinely requires thought is what goes on your feet. A country weekend punishes the wrong shoes faster than almost anything else: town boots die in a wet field, and walking boots cannot come to dinner.
Which is where Penelope Chilvers has quietly made its name. Founded in 2002 and still made in Spain by traditional artisan workshops, the boots are Goodyear welted on replaceable commando soles, built on the assumption you will keep them rather than replace them. It is exactly why Catherine, Princess of Wales, first wore her conker-brown Long Tassel boots in 2004 and, by the designer’s own account, has never replaced that original pair.
And the End of Season Boot Sale currently has them at 50 to 80% off, with a further 10% using the code SALE10. Nineteen boots went in; eight had already sold out when we checked. These are the seven still standing that we would actually spend money on, chosen so each earns its place across both halves of a weekend.
Prices shown are the sale price. The figure in brackets is what you pay once SALE10 comes off at checkout.
1. Rein Leather Riding Boot, Dark Oak: £120 (£108), was £399
The buy of the sale, and it is not close. A full-length leather riding boot at 70% off, in the dark oak brown that goes with everything a British autumn throws at you. The brand built it on a genuine equestrian shape, made for actual horseback riding, which is exactly why it holds up on a farm track and still looks right walking into a hotel bar. Leather rather than suede, so rain is an inconvenience rather than a disaster. Sizes 36 to 42.
Best for: the muddy Saturday, and everything after it. Shop the Rein riding boot.
2. Riding Tassel Boot, Slate: £238 (£214.20), was £475
This is the India Hicks one: goddaughter of King Charles, granddaughter of Lord Louis and Edwina Mountbatten, and one of the bridesmaids at the 1981 wedding at St Paul’s. She drew on her grandparents for the collection, and it shows: the tassel signature in a taller, riding-boot cut, with a choice of standard or generous calf width.
Slate is the cleverest colour in the whole sale: softer than black, less expected than brown, quietly flattering with navy, camel and grey.
Best for: the reader who wants the tassel boot but already owns something in black. Shop the Riding Tassel boot.
3. Long Tassel Boot, Black: £243 (£218.70), was £485
The boot. The first design Penelope Chilvers ever made, drawn from the Spanish riding boots she discovered while living in Barcelona, and the one the Princess of Wales has worn for two decades. Goodyear welted on a replaceable commando sole, which is the whole reason Catherine’s original pair is still going. Hers are conker; black is the more versatile choice if this is the only tall boot you own.
One practical note: this style comes in standard and tall heights and two calf widths, and the price moves with the configuration, so check the figure showing in your basket before you commit. Even so, half price on a boot designed to last twenty years is about as good as cost-per-wear gets.
Best for: the one-pair-forever purchase. Shop the Long Tassel boot.
4. Chelsea Suede Boot, Peat: £75 (£67.50), was £249
At 70% off, the easiest yes on this list. Italian oiled suede from a gold-rated tannery, rubber sole, a sensible 3cm heel, made in Spain. Peat is that deep greyish-brown that looks expensive against a camel coat and forgives London grit. It is suede, so give them a protector spray before they leave the house. At £67.50 they will earn that five minutes back within a fortnight.
Best for: Monday to Friday, and the train down on Friday evening. Shop the Chelsea boot.
5. Sinatra Suede Boot, Black: £105 (£94.50), was £349
The dinner boot. Black suede is the one thing that reads as smart after six without tipping into evening-shoe territory, which matters when you are packing a small bag and the pub does actually do a very good Sunday lunch. Seventy per cent off.
Best for: Saturday night, wherever Saturday night turns out to be. Shop the Sinatra boot.
6. Burford Suede Boot, Peat: £105 (£94.50), was £349
Deep, velvety peat suede: the colour of an English wood in November, which is either a coincidence or very good design. Blake welt construction, Leather Working Group gold-rated suede, made in Spain. Worth knowing before you click: the heel is 9cm, so this is the polished half of the weekend rather than the muddy half.
Best for: the train, the restaurant, the walk into the village. Not the field. Shop the Burford boot.
7. Jolene Paloma Suede Boot, Almond: £140 (£126), was £349
The Paloma line descends directly from the Spanish rociera boots that started the whole label: the traditional Andalusian riding boot Chilvers fell for in the first place. This is the refined version, with a Cuban heel and an elongated toe, in a tone-on-tone almond suede that lifts an autumn wardrobe out of its brown-and-black rut. The prettiest thing in the sale.
Best for: the reader who already owns the sensible boots. Shop the Jolene Paloma boot.
Three notes before you buy
Leather for wet, suede for dry. The Rein and the Long Tassel are the ones to trust in genuine weather. Everything in suede wants a protector spray before first wear and a second coat every few weeks through the season.
Sizes are going fast. This is an end-of-season clearance, not a rolling promotion. Eight of the nineteen boots in the sale had already sold out when we checked, including the two deepest cuts of the lot. If your size is showing, that is the whole of the decision.
Don’t forget SALE10. It comes off at checkout, on top of the reduction already showing. On the Rein boot that is another £12; on the Long Tassel, another £24.
For the wider picture of how the royal family actually dresses for a weekend in the shires, see our guide to the British countryside wardrobe, and for the full story of Catherine’s boots, Catherine’s country style.
Frequently asked questions
When does the Penelope Chilvers End of Season Sale end? No end date is published. It is a clearance rather than a rolling promotion, and stock is finite. Eight of the nineteen sale boots had already sold out when we checked.
Is there a Penelope Chilvers discount code? Yes. SALE10 takes a further 10% off sale items at checkout, on top of the reduction already showing.
Which Penelope Chilvers boots does the Princess of Wales wear? The conker-brown Long Tassel Boot. She first wore hers in 2004 and, by the designer’s own account, has never replaced that original pair.
Are Penelope Chilvers boots good for the countryside? The leather styles are. The Rein riding boot and the Long Tassel are Goodyear welted on commando rubber soles and built for genuine weather. The suede styles are better kept for dry days.
Where are Penelope Chilvers boots made? In Spain, by traditional artisan workshops the designer has worked with since founding the label in 2002.
The train to almost anywhere green leaves Paddington, Marylebone or King’s Cross every twenty minutes. Victoria bought an entire Scottish estate to get out of London in the autumn. You need a weekend bag and a decent pair of boots.
