Children's sock sizes

[SweetApril]

Tried posting this thread in Style and Beauty but I don't think it's stylish or beautiful enough! Maybe someone here can help...

I just bought new socks for my 3.3yo DD. She has outgrown size 6-8 (tall girl, huge feet) so I went for 9-12 (from Next). They are MASSIVE. They are meant to be ankle socks and they come up to her knees and the heel bit is up to her calf. Then I checked online and kids socks size 9-12 are meant to go from age 3.5-7 which just seems like a weirdly enormous age range.

So, does anyone know of anywhere that sells socks in a narrower age range? Seems that all the major stores do this 9-12 thing. The 6-8s that we currently have just won't stretch enough and the heel part ends up well under the sole of her foot by the end of the day which can't be very comfortable or very good for her feet probably.

I'm looking for thinnish cottony socks suitable for summer and preferably jolly rainbow colours not just pink and/or white. She is size 9, BTW. TIA.

Shops vary in sizes humongously. Have you washed them yet? (they always shrink and then stretch)

I buy most of my socks from Penneys (Primark to you probably) They seem to come up on the smaller size once you wash them.

When they wash, they do shrink, which is why they seem so huge.

I had planned to wash them but they'd really have to shrink a lot. So I've taken a special trip today to buy the same ones in the smaller size with a view to keeping them well stretched after washing by putting them on my own size 7s - well, as far as is possible I managed to make DDs woolly winter hat serve her for two years by wearing it myself for a bit when it came out of the washing machine so I figure it may work with socks too...

Thanks, everyone.