I'm a huge fan of Frye and own several of their boots in different styles. These Jaydens? They're really nice. The smooth vintage leather (SMVLE) feels FANTASTIC and smells even better; and I covet the leather intensely. But the color? I had wanted boots in the grey-color family, but the Graphite color is like a muted black with a brown cast, and that's unfortunately a shade too similar to the Slate color I have in a pair of Melissas. I'm returning these for that alone.

Fit-wise, I'm a size 6 in most shoes and occasionally a 6.5 in Frye boots, to accommodate my medium-width feet in Frye's sometimes narrow styles. But size 6 worked the best for me here. The leather is a good bit thicker in this style than in the previous Fryes I've tried, and more glossy, and I think that's a factor of this type of leather. They were very stiff out-of-the-box and I think will take some time to break in. Not a bad thing! Just FYI.

(I definitely want a pair of boots made in that SMVLE type though. Someday. Maybe I'll hold out until I find a style in Cognac.)