The Twofer: Frye Boots and Shabby-Chic Cadillac DeVille
Age is beauty.
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This year, the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance was a quiet riot of flawless chrome and paint so heavily polished that glare from the California sun traveled as far away as Reno. Which would be very special, if the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance wasn’t that way every year.* The show honors cars whose blemishes have been fixed past perfection. During Pebble week, the cars of Monterey—like the people of Orange County—betray no signs of exposure to elements or the passage of time.
Not to get too hipster about things but… really, something’s only genuine once. Enough money can restore a rust bucket to perfection; all the world’s wealth can’t buy originality. A restored car is valuable. An original, of the right model, invaluable. Also, patina is sexy.
With that in mind, why not slip into a pair of Frye’s James Chelsea boots? The toe-caps are highly-buffed, lighter-toned leather, and the result is beautiful. Here, the aging process has already been started. Now you take the reins and wear them in properly.
Recommended process: Stomping the pedal of this 1966 Cadillac Sedan DeVille. Sure, the exterior (orange, slab-sided, very Miami) is magnificent, but the interior is supreme. Honey, caramel, toasted oats—use whatever froyo topping you want to describe this color. None will evoke the true burnished richness of these baseball glove hides.
*Yes, there’s a preservation class of unrestored cars at Pebble, but they live on the periphery. Nobody on The Links seems to notice these one-eyed ponies alongside the show horses. Present, but not celebrated.
