Dr Marten Boots Vegan Style!

I have been fascinated with the Dr Marten brand since I was five years old and I first saw the famous Young Ones episode with the legendary Alexei Sayle singing the ‘Dr Marten, Dr Marten, Dr Marten Boots!’I got my first pair of DM.s in 1993, they were black leather ten-hole editions and I wore them proud! I was lucky enough to attend a secondary mixed state school with no uniform and everyone had their own unique style. It was frowned upon in those days of grunge to look anyway the same as someone else so individuality was celebrated.

Back then I never gave a second thought to my purchasing of leather products, my angle was that animals die naturally and we recycle their skin right? I didn’t know then that supply comes from demand and leather goods are yet another product of the animal slave trade incorporated by the ‘machine’.

Anyway last weekend I found myself in Camden having a nosey around the shops with my aunt. After a drink in the pub I got talking to a rather menacing looking man on the street holding up a Dr Martens sign. I asked him if his shop had vegan boots, especially the ones I liked with pink ribbon in the laces. He told me to follow him to the shop which was tucked away from the hustle and bustle of the main street. The shop was the actual original Dr Marten shop where Madness used to live; in the flat above, back in the days of singles such as ‘Our House’. Autographed boots hung from the ceiling but darn those were not for sale! Anyway turns out they didn’t have the boots I wanted and said they were sold out, even on-line. I was drawn to a pair of canvas greeny coloured patterned boots and asked to try them in a size bigger as they didn’t supply half sizes. Anyway I bought them and took them back home and proceeded to attempt to break them in.

I did the usual of putting on my thick socks on and walking around the house in them but alas my feet kept slipping out, they were just too big. I was then on a bit of a downer so whilst doodling on the internet I decided to have a peek onto the Dr Martens website and what did I stumble upon, well the boots I originally wanted with flowers on and pink ribbon! It was no contest, I couldn’t afford it but I had to have them as they were selling out. It was an automated process; I engaged with the capitalist machine at the click of my mouse and the flexing of my debit card. Twenty-Four hours and eighty-six pounds of hard-earned cash later, I received my beautiful boots.

My attentions then turned to the box with the other DM’s in and I recalled the man with the sign telling me I wouldn’t be able to get them and surprisingly I didn’t feel angry. I simply smiled, they were from the original shop after all and something made me buy them, as these days I am a very careful shopper and try my best not to consume irresponsibly- you only have to check out my six-year-old mobile phone for evidence!

So what to do with the oversized boots? Well my Mum would love them, they are in her size and would be great for her feet. It was meant to be, the universe had interacted with me- Mum has achy feet and would look fab in them. In addition I am trying to convert her to veganism; she is a vegetarian….hhhmm perhaps these lovely canvas boots will tempt her my way! Anyway she will definitely approve of her early birthday and Christmas present, that’s one family member sensibly catered for, well two including me!