The materials your boot laces are made out of play a big role here. Everything depends on what the laces are made out of, ranging from their durability to the way they fit on your boots. The wrong choice means a weak fit, difficulty to tie the laces properly, or horrible style which is something none of us want! Laces used to be made out of plant matter, and of course, leather. Today they are usually made out of polyester or leather, which has remained popular for ages.

Polyester is one of the most popular material choices today, be it for fashion, furniture or design. But, what exactly is polyester? Many people fear this material and overlook it because it is manmade, subpar to silk, leather and other premium materials. But it’s been used so much and so often, so it surely has to have redeeming qualities! Polyester is a generalized term for any fabric that is made out of polyester threads. This material is manmade and is most commonly referred to as polyethylene terephthalate, or PET. We’ve all heard of PET before, and it is used literally everywhere these days. This versatile material is created by blending ethylene glycol and terephthalic acid. These big words do sound very confusing, but it’s just a fancy way to say that polyester is a variety of plastic. It was invented in 1941 and had an interesting advertisement. It was marketed as a material that can be worn for 2 months straight without the need to iron, and still look like the day you first wore it! Its popularity boomed in the 1970s, thanks to the flashing colors and crazy patterns that could be worked into it, but this is also the period when people started to notice the flaws that came with it. Polyester is worked into many clothes we wear today, but it’s usually mixed with other materials, such as cotton since it would do a bad job by itself. This material is extremely durable and is resistant to a huge variety of chemicals. The fibers are also very lightweight and can be easily colored, so don’t be surprised when you are presented with a million choices. It can be washed easily, without shrinking, and it wicks away moisture, drying very fast. But, polyester is slippery, prone to static, it doesn’t breathe well, and it will melt, instead of burning, when exposed to fire, and it is highly flammable. Lucky for you, you will be only wearing them on your boots, so the only thing you have to worry about are flames!

Now we come to leather. This super hardy material is natural, and it comes from the hide of many different animals, most namely cows, and goats. Snakes, crocs and other exotic variants exist as well, but they are pricey and don’t go into the creation of laces. Leather is also quite versatile, as it can be seen gracing furniture, shoes, different clothing pieces, bags and so on and so forth. It looks polished, mature and serious, and it can improve your style in a matter of seconds. The leather is also quite stiff and heavy, but this is also something you shouldn’t worry about when buying leather laces since it won’t affect you directly. Leather laces can be waxed, so they can fit through eyelets with ease, and this way they also look refined and don’t tend to get untied that much. These types of laces usually grace the more stylish variants of boots, like oxford boots, chukka boots, and many more. They don’t come in a lot of color varieties though since leather doesn’t take onto color that well.

You’ve probably already heard about kevlar, but have you heard about kevlar laces? Kevlar is an extremely tough material that was created by man. Simply said, kevlar is super-tough plastic. But, it’s not your regular, everyday plastic. This material is only made by the Du Pont chemical company and can be acquired only through them. They know the secret to its creation and are the only ones who can make it reliably, so it holds up to its name. Kevlar has all the properties plastic has, good and bad, yet the bad parts are almost completely diminished. While regular plastic is highly flammable and melts, kevlar won’t melt and burn, as long as you remove the source of the flames it will stop burning. It’s resistant to moisture, and very low temperatures won’t affect it, so you won’t end up with sticks instead of laces. Kevlar is not stylish though, so it’s only truly fit for work boots and hiking boots!

Let’s face the truth here - boot laces are a vital part of our lives, something we all rely on to make our lives easier. When a child first learns how to tie their laces, we consider that a major breakthrough and celebrate it like some kind of big event. We even invented helpful rhymes to help kids understand the process better and faster. When a runner sets out to own the tracks, he or she must first tighten their laces and secure the fit, otherwise they risk injuries and a poor performance. When we head out to complete our daily routine, be it school or work, we must tighten our laces to head on for the day. They are such an integrated part of our lives that we barely even stop to think how truly helpful and effective they are.

We can even say that laces have helped push the world towards modern times. Humans have always traveled by foot, and it was the only type of transportation we had before a wheel was invented, or before the first horse was tamed. We quickly realized that our feet are susceptible to the harsh surface of the ground, and that we needed to protect ourselves. As soon as the shoe was invented, laces followed, since they were the most reliable way to secure the shoe onto our feet. And this design has not changed for eons, showing us just how adaptable and amazing this effective invention truly is!

No matter how well defined and trendy your personal style is, you are bound to be bored of it, sooner or later. So, the only logical way out of this is investing in a new pair of shoes, and that can most of the times be quite an investment. But, is this truly the only way to bring a breath of fresh air to our ensemble? If you are on a budget, you can easily reinvent your style by changing your boot laces! Laces are quite cheap, and there are many various shapes and colors you can find. Also, if by any chance you don’t like the way they look on your boots, then, by all means, you can simply put back your old ones and be done with it. This wouldn’t work if you’ve bought a whole new pair altogether! The only problem here is that it can take us ages to change our laces, and we must use a proper technique in order to have a good fit.

But how can a simple pair of rope change your whole style? It’s simple - contrast. Boot laces that contrast the rest of the upper really bring the attention to the lacing system, standing out like a sore thumb, bringing a whole new dimension to your look. But, if you are not one to experiment with colors and don’t feel like wearing wild hues, you can also change their shape. Exchange flat laces for the round, or the other way around, and you can again look completely different. If you change both shape and color, it’s easy to go over the top, so be mindful here.

But how do you even select the right type of lace for your outfit? If you are buying laces in a different color, buy ones that will match something else in your outfit. If you like to wear silly socks, match the laces to the socks! Or you can match them up with your tie, your jewelry, maybe even your cufflinks. There is a whole world of options here, and the more boots you have, the more options exist!

Laces are quite durable, but that doesn’t mean they are not prone to damage. How can you make your laces last longer, to bring out their maximum potential? One way you can improve the longevity is by checking whether or not you’re guilty of tying your laces with the Granny Knot. But what even is a Granny Knot? This is the simplest knot out there, and we probably all used it at some point in time. Did your knot ever sit on top of your boots all crooked and weird looking? This is the Granny Knot. This knot is the most common reason your laces come undone, and end up getting dragged all around the floor and all torn up. A well-balanced knot is different from the granny knot, but there’s only one thing that sets them apart, and that’s in what direction the stages of the knots are tied in. You have the starting knot, which is the first stage, and the end stage, which is the granny knot or the well-balanced one. If you tie these stages in the opposite direction, you get a well-balanced knot. But if the direction is the same, you end up with a crooked, upturned knot that’s bound to come undone! Besides affecting durability, the granny knot also affects the knot, so you better avoid it!

When you pull on your laces, do you pull outward or upright? If you pull them up, you increase the friction against the eyelets, causing the threads to break, so you should avoid that as well. Don’t tug on the laces! Pull them evenly and steadily. If you’re doing everything right, but your laces still get frayed, the culprit may be your eyelets. Metal eyelets can be rough on the inside, but that can be solved with sandpaper or a Dremel, or you can coat them with nail polish or epoxy glue. If your pair of boots has cheap eyelets, you can easily replace them and save your laces from getting all torn up!

If you’ve got a pair of boots with laces, and the fit is off and troubling you, it’s possible you are not lacing them up right. One simple change depending on the shape of your foot can mean a world of difference and can help you feel better instantly.

Sometimes, our heels tend to slip out from our ankle booties, which can be both annoying and dangerous. To keep your heels anchored in, form a lace lock on the top of your boot. This lace lock also called a runner’s loop can make it easy to tie the laces on the top without actually narrowing the rest of the fit. You can get the runner’s loop by lacing up from the bottom of the next-to-last eyelet. Then, bring the laces over to the top eyelet on the same side to create a bunny ear. Repeat for the other side, and lace through the opposing bunny ears. And that’s it! When you tie your shoes the next time, you can secure your feet at the ankles, and keep your heel in place.

Narrow feet? No problem, the laces can help here as well! If you’ve got two sets of eyelets on each side, just draw the laces through the ones farthest from the tongue, and you will narrow down the boot. If you don’t have this option, however, you can use the lace lock again, but this time it’s going to sit between the second and third eyelet.

Wide feet and high instep? Laces have got you covered! Again, if you’ve got two sets of laces, just use the one closer to the tongue. If you need even more room, use the window lacing technique. This makes a difference, and when you tighten you won’t constrict your feet. When looking from the bottom, pull the laces through the first set of eyelets. Cross them over, and then go through the second eyelets. Now don’t cross them over, and go through the third set. Crossover, and go through the fourth set. You get the gist, just keep doing this until you run out of eyelets!

Narrow heel yet wide forefoot? Let the lovely laces help out! Your solution is to use two sets of laces. Get a shorter and a longer pair, and lace the short one through the first three eyelets on the bottom, and use the longer ones on the rest. The only problem with this solution is that now you’ve got two knots to worry about coming undone! The other solution is to combine the window lacing technique with the narrow heel lace lock. Just do the crossing and not crossing pattern until you reach the top, and form the bunny ears there and you’re good to go!