Rossignol Winter Booties Chalet Shoe Overview

Fashion and performance can coexist with an expert-level product. Rossignol made no exception with the Chalet Footwear, a collection of winter down booties with the help of a tennis shoe and the plushness of a home slipper.

Whereas Rossignol is famously identified for extremely engineered skis, it additionally designs stable attire and footwear, the Chalet included. With a excessive platform that retains your toes elevated above the chilly floor and plush artificial insulation, these sneakers have an opulent really feel.

What I cherished? The Chalet may be simply transformed from an enclosed shoe to a slip-on just by folding the heel flat. Moreover, the inside is lined with fake fur that feels comfortable with out additional bulk.

In brief: The ladies’s Rossignol Chalet Footwear ($99) are a fashion-forward, insulated winter “down” bootie for informal indoor use. Moderately than conventional down feathers, this bootie is filled with artificial fill. They are often worn outside in the best wintry circumstances — like packed snow and with socks masking the ankles in freezing circumstances — and really feel nice to throw on after snowboarding or whereas enjoyable at a campsite. I cherished the thick outsole, cushioned footbed, and general aesthetic. With a DWR-treated exterior, the Chalet retains your toes comparatively heat and dry in gentle winter climates. It’s additionally obtainable in a males’s model.

Take a look at the Finest Down Booties purchaser’s information to see how this shoe stacks up.

• Insulation
  Artificial insulation
• Weight
  N/A
• Tread
  30% recycled rubber waffle-style tread
• Midsole
  100% artificial rubber
• Waterproof
  No. DWR handled higher
• Footbed
  Swappable sensor3 inserts
• Liner
  Artificial fur (40% Tencel lyocell, 30% nylon, 20% cotton, 10% mohair)
• Higher
  100% nylon
• Hook & loop
  80% cotton, 20% Spandex

• 
  Elevated midsole and tread helps maintain toes away from moisture
• 
  Convertible model is flexible
• 
  Detachable insoles for customized match and help

• 
  Toebox isn’t moisture-resistant
• 
  Insoles naturally come out when the shoe is eliminated
• 
  Artificial insulation doesn’t boast as a lot heat as pure down booties

Rossignol Ladies’s Chalet Shoe Overview

At first look, the Chalet Shoe jogs my memory of trainers fairly than winter down booties, as a result of thicker midsole and rugged tread. Nevertheless, as soon as slipped on, these sneakers really feel extra like a slipper than anything. The fuzzy liner offers a way of luxurious. The platform outsole, which jogs my memory of a HOKA operating shoe, makes for excellent help and further shock absorption.

I examined these Rossignol winter booties over the course of a chilly, moist Colorado winter close to Aspen. These booties accompanied me to and from the ski hill and on numerous canine walks round city. I additionally took them on a number of excursions to my buddy’s cabin in a distant mining city.

First Takeaways

The Chalet is available in a number of totally different shade choices, together with navy, grey, black, inexperienced and dusty pink. Nevertheless, the pink choice is the one one accented with a white sole, whereas the remaining are monochromatic. Whereas I like the stylish pink-and-white combo, the darker outsole can be extra conducive to hiding grime or mud. The white is well stained.

When it comes to the dimensions run, I admire that Rossignol launched these in half sizes, so you will get a extra good match. Typically, down booties and slippers are solely obtainable in complete sizes or common tiers — small, medium, or massive — so the variability right here is admirable. People can discover sizes obtainable from 5 to 9.5 for the ladies’s model, and seven.5 to 13 for the lads’s.

Heat & Artificial Insulation: Winter ‘Down’ Booties

Now on to the nitty-gritty of these sneakers: Are they really heat? My general reply is sure. Whereas these sneakers use artificial insulation, I nonetheless discovered them to be good and heat after I wore them round 30 levels Fahrenheit or above.

The higher (the place a sneaker’s tongue would usually be) makes use of a quilt sample that helps maintain your toes and toes heat. I discovered this to be efficient, particularly on walks at night time when the temps dropped drastically and the snow started to fall. Moreover, the thicker midsole helped maintain my toes elevated from the chilly and frozen floor or extra moisture.

All mentioned, the Chalet isn’t as heat as pure down booties, that are loftier and waterproof however have ample insulation for a gentle winter local weather. Should you stay within the Southwest Area — like close to Taos Ski Valley or Angel Fireplace Resort — that experiences chilly temperatures through the winter, these would in all probability be an ideal accent. They aren’t essentially made to be used in heavy, deep snow or wild mud just like the car parking zone at Revelstoke Mountain Resort.

Supplies & Sustainability

What I admire in regards to the Chalet Footwear is Rossignol’s transparency in relation to the supplies and every product’s sustainability rating.

Rossignol’s “Traceability Data” summarizes the nation of origin for the textiles and manufacturing, any recycled supplies which can be used, transport distance, and the product’s sustainability scale.

The Chalet Footwear are largely made with 100% nylon, plus elastic and Spandex for the hook and loop. The outsole is 100% pure rubber. And the inside liner is an artificial mix with some cotton.

These sneakers solely rating 1 out of 5 stars for recyclability and three out of 5 stars for traceability. People on the lookout for a extra eco-friendly down bootie might wish to scope out different choices. On the flip aspect, these sneakers are durably made and can final by many seasons, based mostly on how my area testing went over the winter season.

Outsole: Grippy Traction

The underside tread of those winter “down” booties is 100% pure rubber, technical, and sticky for out of doors use.

Once I walked throughout ice in these puppies, I used to be far much less terrified than strolling in different down booties. Many different fashions don’t include this stage of reasonably aggressive tread. Positive, it’s not a winter mountain climbing boot with deep lugs — however this comfortable shoe is surprisingly stout!

Mixed with a dense outsole and comfortable midsole, these sneakers are tailor-made for strolling, tenting, touring, and hanging exterior — not simply hanging across the desk or kitchen.

Water Resistance

These winter “down” booties have a DWR (Sturdy Water Repellent) handled higher that helps maintain moisture out and heat in. For essentially the most half, I felt that this water resistance was adequate. However, I discovered that the toebox was much less impervious than the remainder of the shoe.

After just some minutes of standing in some powdery snow, I felt that dreaded sensation encroach on my toes — chilly and wetness. This was positively a bummer. I stay in an setting that sees quite a lot of snow and moisture every winter.

As I mentioned earlier, these sneakers are incredible for après drinks, taking off ski boots on the trailhead or car parking zone, and strolls, simply not in blustery climate or a number of inches of contemporary snow. People needing a extra technical down bootie would possibly wish to snag one thing else extra moisture-hardy.

That mentioned, the stacked outsole and midsole do assist maintain toes away from publicity to shallower puddles or a number of centimeters of snow.

In Conclusion: Winter Booties With Fashion

After pulling these plush winter “down” booties on all winter, I discovered that the Rossignol Chalet Footwear are perfect for post-ski lounging, walks to and from the lodge, and canine walks or different indoor journey.

This winter shoe-meets-sliip-on is a nice-looking, well-made pair of “down” booties. The swappable insole is nice for folk needing a customized match. That sturdy tread offers sufficient grip for strolling over slick surfaces, together with moist sidewalks and ice. I admire that these are available in a beneficiant quantity of colours and dimension choices with males’s and girls’s variations.

My most important qualm with these sneakers was the dearth of water resistance within the toebox. The remainder of the bootie warded off moisture effectively. However after feeling my toes grow to be moist following a couple of minutes in a few inches of snow, I used to be a bit disenchanted.

Nevertheless, these booties are nonetheless a adequate software in wintry cities that aren’t as vulnerable to excessive moisture or deep powder. You may also cherry-pick while you pull them on. They’re a terrific choice for utilizing post-ski or scorching yoga class on the drive residence. These slippers have a contemporary, glossy model that can be timeless with out trying home.

Additionally, I actually like how straightforward these are to tug on, and that they will convert from a slipper to a shoe in mere seconds. Should you’re on the lookout for a sturdy synthetic-filled bootie that’s light-weight and offers respectable heat with out sacrificing model, try the Rossignol Chalet Footwear.