To wonder why so many in London are wearing Wellies!

[StarlightMcKenzie]

I've lived in London all my life and only once as a child owned a pair of Wellies for a trip to the a Lakes.

Is the Thames Barrier in danger of falling apart? Are there flash floods forecast?

Or is space such a premium people of a London who can afford to remortgage their homes, do so to get in a few extra stories under their house?

Actually living in the countryside, wellies get dirty looks in town because people assume you have been somewhere muddy, horsy or dog shitty and don't want your boots in their shop.

Clean designer wellies are not seen here.

Out here, way past the M25, NOBODY wears Hunters anymore, unless they're old ones. Everyone knows they went right downhill after the glitterati took to wearing them ostentatiously.

The correct footwear is Aigle, Muckboots, Dubarrys (or Dubarry copies). Le Chameau is perceived as a bit too much like Hunter to be comfortable.

You will also get peculiar looks if there isn't thick mud on your 4x4.

Don't live in London, but I'm glad/surprised to hear my 4 year old Hunter wellies are still fashionable. I thought they were passé about a minute after I bought them TBH- d'oh. Aigle wellies are much more in, surely? I don't know what mine cost but it definitely wasn't anywhere near £100 - maybe £50. Mine are green and mostly worn for wading through mud to feed the chickens in the garden at the moment though they do come out on the school run and a lot in the snow.

Also it snows in London these days. And what if you/the kids want to splash in muddy puddles? And it's only about 2C warmer than where I live in the 'sticks'.

And Barbour jackets are pretty good for the shitty cold AND wet at the same time weather we get for much of the year. Perhaps not quite as good as my 3/4 length waterproof down jacket.

People buying practical clothing that lasts- who knew? It might be fashionable, but the fashion seems to be lasting a long time if so, surely this stuff has been in for five years at least. Good thing if fashion crosses over with practicality. No-one wants to shiver in this weather.

I admit though it does make me laugh when I see people out walking locally, in nice weather, kitted up as if they are going up Everest. And I run past in shorts and t-shirt.

My sons been wearing his snow boots for the past month with shorts!! Not in London though but we are down south. It is normally wells but they have been sidelined for the snow boots

DamwDeepRedBetty - my brother who knows as thing or two bought me mine and they are Aigle's. He dismissed Hunters outright and that was about eight years ago. They are filthy. I live in London but go to Highgate Woods/Hampstead Heath all the time, and used to be in and out of boats all the time too and enjoy gardening so they are well used. I have another pair up in Scotland which I share with my SIL, it's fine so long as we don't both go up there at the same time.

I like barbours but not these fashiony ones you get now, also what's the deal with all this branding? I have never owned plus-twos or plus-fours and don't think I'd be tempted but I reckon they might be ripe for the fashion treatment.

Hunter wellies are for townies. As are new-looking Barbours. Out here in the country you look like an idiot if you wear either.

I enjoyed working to work in the rain this morning, sorry should I say the 'special' rain we have in London. It stops just above ankle level and never hits the floor so our feet always stay dry don't you know

I live in London and there are several commons near us, they do get muddy so I can understand why people wear them there. I wouldn't wear them just to walk orund the streets though. My girls wear wellies sometimes so they can splash in puddles.

I don't get the hunter thing. Surely they are just welly boots? I brought my navy blue hunters about 5 years ago from a local fishing shop. They were the only ones they sold. Cost about £45. Look as new today despite being warm every winter for months. The last pair before that were cheap from the market and hurt feet as so flat compared to hunters

I wear wellies in heavy rain because all my shoes/trainers leak. Can't afford decent ones at the moment. My wellies were cheap.
Yabu.

I don't get the wellies as fashion item thing, it's all Kate Moss at Glastonbury's fault. I live in London.

I wear mine if I'm going somewhere I know will be really muddy. Was pelting it down with rain on school run this morning and now hailstones but my regular boots are just fine (although my favourite trainers did die in the rain last week ).

Oh but YANBU for wondering!

I wore Hunter wellies to Wembley Stadium last night.

The real reason behind it was that I was running majorly late, went to get my horse in from the field (very muddy) and completely forgot to bring a change of shoes.

Coincidentally, I thought they looked good with my outfit. Although I did feel a bit pretentious.

On another note, I have just got back from a weekend away in Barcelona, where it rained constantly. Both mine and my OH's shoes got soaked through every day, he ended up having sores on all of his toes from the wet shoe rubbing his foot. I wish I had my wellies with me then!

I was about to agree with you OP but then I fell on my arse taking a short cut across clapham common.

To be fair I am in ballet flats so pretty much the opposite of Wellies and clearly a very silly idea.

Well my (croc) wellies came in very useful today when I was caught in a terrible London hailstorm. Then I was showered with water from passing lorries.

I have 4 dds, the oldest two had silver hunter wellies that were £20 each.i can really recommend them, they are being worn by dd 3&4 now. So they have had at least three children using them. They still have a lot of life left in the. In comparison, £15 clarks boots didn't even last one child....

I took a dog for a walk around the edge of the Forest today, wish I had worn wellies as although I was still in London it was too muddy to even go across the plains to the Forest proper. It was just a huge mud puddle. I will have to be more organised next time.

I hate the snobbery of country folk looking down on those in a city for wearing 'country' clothes. Why does it matter what the clothes were originally designed for? Apparently uggs were meant to be slippers!

People in cities sometimes wear wellies, get over it. Sometimes people in the country drive smart cars.

And as for cheap wellies- I had a pair and they broke after a few days wear, I found hunter boots online for £50 and several years later I've never had a problem with them. They live in my car and have been used for blackberry picking in London (but let's not go there again!) I wear them regularly as I camp up in Suffolk and I don't wear them in town as they aren't as comfy as my emu boots!

No-one wants to shiver in this weather.
But Duck, I used to have a waxed jacket and didn't find it was warm at all, and wellies are freezing if it's cold, no matter how many pairs of socks you have on. Nope, you can't beat wellies for dry feet but if you want warm ones it has to be snow boots however deeply unflattering they are.

YANBU. The weather here being what it is today, we should all be in hip waders.

Edendance, I'd love to spend out and have some 'posh' wellies that will last as I'm forever forking out for new 'cheap' ones. Unfortunately they just aren't comfortable .
I did have some Hunters years ago (actually they called the womens' ones Huntresses then iirc) but they crippled me so I gave them away.
I do now have some Joules ones which seem to be ok but I've read some reviews where people have said they don't last long so we shall see.

I live in the countryside and no one wears Hunters anymore. Everyone has Le Chameau, Aigle, Muck Boot, Dubarrys, Ariat, Toggi etc. My fashionista friends in London love their Hunters though!

Wellies in the rain is entirely reasonable. I went to a festival this summer, it was hot and the ground was bone dry - and every other girl on the site was in Hunter wellies and hotpants/shorts, or Hunter wellies and a floaty dress. Surely if you are putting on shorts or a floaty dress you know it must not be welly weather? I don't want to think about how many fungal infections were festering away in those boots.

Oh yes, girls at Hickstead on an absolutely scorching day in July wearing wellies and strapless sundresses .