text: I really wanted to love these boots, but they weren't quite right for me. I have several other pairs of Ariat cowboy boots and they are generally true to size. These were the right size in width, but the top part of the boot where it's supposed to be snug across the instep barely touched my foot, and I have a very high instep. Normally I have to fight to get my foot into a boot because of my instep, even if they fit well once my feet are inside. But these didn't even have a &#34;thud&#34; sound when I put my foot in, like cowboy boots are supposed to - my foot just slid right in and out. If I kept them and let the leather break in a bit my foot would probably come straight out of them. I couldn't even go down a size because I'm a 5.5 and a 5 doesn't exist in this style. This is an issue that must be specific to the shape of this particular boot because it seemed to be the right size length- and width-wise and I've never had this happen with Ariats before. Very weird.<br /><br />On top of that, the color wasn't what I expected. It's certainly pretty, but the first thing I noticed when I took them out of the box was that they were not as blue as I hoped (I purchased them in Waterfall) - I realize images on monitors can look different from real life, but every image I've seen of these boots on various websites was very clearly blue. When I pulled them out of the box, they immediately struck me as being much greener than expected. They are still blue, but they're a kind of teal that looks green when you hold it against something blue and blue when you hold it against something green. I really was hoping for true blue boots. Don't get me wrong, it's still a gorgeous color and very unique, just not quite what I was looking for. If the color had been the only issue, I probably would keep them. But the fact that they didn't fit well either means they're going back, despite the awesome sale price.