I love my new boots. I've had them about a week and, after some in-home breaking in of the boots, have found a way to wear them about every day.

I was completely torn about what size to buy. I have a wide toe box area, but not wide feet or wide ankles. I have a hugely high instep. I hate things that are clunky and too big, but I want to be able to wear the boots. I'm a 7.0 in most shoes, and a 7.5 in my other Frye boots and cowboy boots. I settled on a 7.5. When I first got them, I was worried that I actually needed an 8. The instep was crazy tight for me (as reviewers have mentioned), but the toes also felt tight. Ultimately, I think the 7.5 was the right choice for the thickness of socks I wear (medium), but only with a complicated breaking-in process. An 8 probably wouldn't have been too big, but I'm glad I stayed with the 7.5 now that they're loosening up.

My last Frye boots (Maxine shorties) didn't require much break-in and certainly no stretching (nor did either pair of my non-Frye cowboy boots). The leather is a lot softer, though on all of them. These did require breaking in, for sure, at least for me. I did a lot of wearing them with big socks until they warmed up (one of my feet actually fell asleep this way), conditioning them with good boot conditioner, stuffing them crazy with packing paper until they bowed, then leaving them overnight. I repeated this for a couple days. Amazingly enough, after the second night, they fit great. My toes are comfortable in them, they don't slip up and down too much in the heel, and the leather is softening up nicely. They're still hard to step into, but they should be (that's what keeps your foot back in the boot properly). They still don't feel totally broken-in. I think it'll probably take some more wearing and conditioning for this to happen, but I haven't had a single blister, and I wore them for an 8+ hour shift on my feet. Another couple of weeks, and I bet they'll be perfect.

They look much less "clunky" than I thought they would, even with the substantial heel. They're a more slender boot than they appeared from the pictures, but I like that. They're comfortable (now). They look okay at work under boot-cut work pants (strangely enough). They're awesome with skinny jeans tucked in. I'm really happy with my purchase.