 Hi there, how are you going? I'm breaking my own process here because today, I'm doing an initial impressions video. If you're new here, I'm Tech, this is my channel Boot Lossophy, and usually I only review boots after I've worn them for a few months. But just after one month, I'm already in love with this, the Parkhurst Richmond Boot in Seidel's Natural Veg Retain. So I've had these Parkhurst Richmond boots for about a month. You can watch my unboxing video up here. I am so impressed by them that I thought I'd break with my own process and bring you my initial impressions after only a month's wear. Usually, I'll review my boots after I've worn them over a few months, even up to a year. I want to make sure that when I review boots, I bring you some pretty genuine impressions gathered over some real wear over some length of time. That way I hope I'm giving you some good information about how they look and wear instead of just out of the box. But these are different. I usually wear or break in new boots by wearing them every day for two weeks solid first. Then I put them into a frequent rotation, maybe two or three times a week for the next two to four weeks, before I put them into my regular rotation of over 50 boots. On some of these 50 plus pairs of boots, that might take as long as once a month. Then there are some favorites where I put them on almost every week. These are going to be favorites. They're actually factory seconds discounted from 362 US dollars to 238 dollars. To be honest, the defects are so minor as to be completely inconsequential. There was a small mark on the toe cap here. I can hardly see it now and there was some stuff up in the stitching inside the boot, sewn over a couple of times. You can't really see it. From past experience, I know that Parkhurst's quality control is pretty good. For those of you who don't know, Parkhurst is a small batch manufacturer started by founder Andrew Savisco in 2018. He really is very much a one-man bang. He focuses on unique rugged letters on rugged but sleek looking, almost vibrant like styles. Once that batch of highs is done, that makeup may be retired or put aside for a while until a fresh supply can be secured. Because of this unique need to almost hunt for a model and the very personal service from Andrew, Parkhurst attracts a very enthusiastic and loyal following. The Parkhurst Richmond boot is a cap-toe service boot. As you can see, it follows the six inch block heel design of a World War II military style boot, particularly worn by the US military. This is one of my favorite boot styles because you can mix it up. Depending on the materials used, it's a style that suits casual wear from rugged styles to smart and even business casual. Anything from jeans and chinos, and if it's a dressy enough leather, dress pads. In the Parkhurst 602 last, the foot-shaped mould that the boot is built around, it's a good cross between a roomy work boot and a sleek dressier casual boot. The 602 is a combination last. It's indeed with the heel and waist opening up to an E-width at the ball of the foot and rounding off at the toe. From the side, it looks pretty sleek, but looks like deceiving. This last volume is sufficiently generous. It doesn't have that bulbous work boot toe box like an Iron Ranger or some Pacific Northwest boots, but there's enough room to wiggle my toes in it. Let's take a look at how they're put together. But before we do a quick reminder, click on the like button to let me know you like this kind of video. If you haven't already, click on subscribe as I intend to put up way more boot reviews and unboxings. I've already made enough videos about Goodyear Well construction that you can catch up on up here, and I'll go into more detail in my longer-term review, of course. But just for now, I'll just recognise that the construction method here is a 360-degree Goodyear Well construction that connects the sole to the uppers. Goodyear Well construction is meant to be more water-resistant than simply sewing the uppers directly through the soles. Those stitch holes would let water directly inside, see? It's also meant to be easy to re-sole when we craft when the soles wear down. The sole is a Ridgway sole made by the same UK company that makes the ubiquitous daylight sole. It's a hard compound rubber made into these wavy lumps that provide commando sole grip without picking up gravel and stuff like a commando sole does. On the side, the way the wavy lumps are placed in-board, the sole doesn't stand up like a commando. Although there is height, it actually looks quite flat and slim like a Daynard sole. These Richmond boots have a Benz leather midsole, a cork filling, a fiberglass shank, a leather insole, and a leather heel pad. Combined with the Rumi Ridgway sole, they feel great on the foot. They're leather lined in the toe-box of the vat, but the shaft itself is unlined. Now, looking at the uppers, the uppers are what gets me. They are Seidel's full-grain, veg, re-tanned leather. My understanding is that in tanning this leather it's first preserved with salts to stop that rotting. And then at the start of the tanning process the salts are removed and it's tan using a variety of vegetable tannins, oils and waxes, hence re-tanned. Now, if you look at the top, it's a combination tan, but it displays all the characteristics of a veg tan leather probably because all the salts got washed away at the start of the tanning process. It has a bright, natural, undyed colour. It smells great. It has quite a firm feel and while supple feels tough it's reasonably thick, two mils, but stands pretty firm unlike other softer chrome tan leather at that thickness. It sounds quite stiff when you first put it on, but like all veg tan leathers it softens with use and becomes more supple and moulds to the shape of your foot. In this case what surprised me is that it softens so quickly after only about a week. Like all veg tan leathers it will also absorb moisture and temporarily darken and spot if you get rain on it, but it dries back to this colour pretty quickly. I put a thin smear boot conditioner in the first week I wore it to hold off and beat the moisture. As soon as I finish this I am going to condition it again with a leather balm. As you can see the leather is a matte full-gram that wears in patinas quite quickly. This is a month and it naturally feels a little dry, almost like newbuck so I think a balm will condition it and protect it without soaking in like a cream or an oil. The toe cap and heels are formed with solastic to give them shape and structure. The heel counter are external and covered by a single piece backstay which covers the heel counter and the stitching of the shaft. The toe cap is not, I think, a real toe cap. I don't think it's a layered leather on top of the leather of the vamp and the toe box but rather it's two pieces of leather that's sewn together at the cap toe stitch. In this version of the Richmond boot it's a triple stitch in a 2 plus 1 pattern. The edge of the collar is rolled and a piece of leather is sewn to back it as it is along the back of the hardware. The hardware is brass, eight big eyelets, no speed hooks, unbacked, just pressed back to hold them. In my opinion it's very nicely proportioned especially with these rounded wax laces like all Parker's boots. The tongue is unlined and semi-gusseted up to the fourth eye. When I first put them on I was quite worried about breaking them in because they felt so stiff. That's the Vagetan leather for you. But by the end of the first day they moulded to my feet and were feeling much better. By the end of the first week they were completely broken in and felt supple and form fitting. Now a month later after two weeks solid wear and about two weeks of wearing them a couple of times a week I cannot describe how supple and comfortable they are yet tough. They feel like lambskin gloves on my feet. The look of the leather and the comfort and fit is why I felt I had to do a quick review to recognise just how comfortably made these are. Even the quick breaking of the Ridgway Soul pretty hard to break into my earlier richmans in Waxy Ray's Reverse Moho they're now super comfortable under foot and absorb shock really well. I'm really taken with the natural colour. The feel of it on foot and under my hands and the way that it's softened how the leather quickly shows wear and character. A couple of years ago new quality boots and character leathers I would have cried to see all these scuffs and shifting around of oils and colours now they're a satisfaction. I can't wait to see how these are going to patina even further I fully intend to wear them as hard as I can. I'm not going to build a house or anything in them but I'm not going to baby them either they're built to be worn hard I think. Okay so that's it guys just a quick record of my initial impressions as usual I'll keep wearing them and I'll bring you a proper catch up review after somewhere maybe a year's way to see how they're holding up. In the meantime of course I'll bring you more boot reviews and unboxings so subscribe to make sure you don't miss any. Until then take care and I'll see you soon.