What’s the deal with socks now?

[DC555]

I’m your standard mid 30s millennial. I wouldn’t consider myself ‘fashionable’ but I like clothes and enjoy looking well put together in any given situation.

As spring arrives, we’re about to hit the yearly moment when I move from boots worn with everything, to white trainers worn with everything - usually fairly plain, slim, low rise lace ups.

I’ve finally got my head around jeans (I still love my skinnies but am embracing wide leg, barrel and boyfriend) but I’ve heard trainer socks are now the height of uncool??

So what DOES look acceptable when your trousers/dress leave your ankle exposed?

I am tall with big feet so things that look cute on dainty feet make me look like a clown, so I fear the wrong socks will add to this issue.

Photos and links of acceptable socks greatly appreciated!

I’ve noticed teenagers wearing trainer socks recently and this made me wonder if they’re coming back?!

I cannot abide trainer socks and have never worn them. I judge people who do. No socks or buy jazzy ones.

I really don't understand the angst about wearing socks. No socks and bare ankles looks daft unless it's the height of summer and looks particularly daft when the ankles are blue with cold.

I wear ankle socks with skirts and dresses. I'm 5'3" and 66.

It's funny how different we are. I judge people with no socks. Imagine sweating straight into your shoes!

As a sock refuser, I’m lucky in that my feet don’t sweat much, and as a child I liked the way being sockless felt: my parents told me that my shoes would walk away without me. In the 90s, lots of us teenagers wore trainers without socks - it was our equivalent of the now teenage uniform of socks and sliders.

My feet don’t sweat. My friends all teased me when Mountbatten Windsor said he didn’t. “Oh look, there’s someone else who doesn’t sweat”. I never have.

Imagine having feet that are not foetid! I rotate my shoes daily (usually more than once a day depending on what I’m doing.)
Trainer socks are like weird adult booties - ‘got to put something cotton between my feet and shoe but not such that it’s visible (beyond a weird 1cm tide mark of towelling peeping out’)

I don't wear socks or tights from May to September. I have once or twice tried those sockette things that are ballerina sized. Whatever I have spent on them, thwy have wriggled down to sit under my arches. Bastard little things.

I've no need of trainer socks because I don't wear trainers - never have, never will.

The thought of socks and sandals makes me want to disinfect the vision from my eyes.

My feet don't smell and don't get sweaty, therefore my shoes are all fine.

I'm getting loads of sock averys now. This couod get expensive!

I don’t feel anxious about socks with dresses or cropped trousers!
I just don’t like how it looks, in the same way I don’t like scrunch bum leggings, the Louis Vuitton Neverfull or those matching shorts, t-shirt and zip up top sets that lots of men and boys seem to wear at the moment.

By angst I mean the regular threads asking if it's OK to wear socks, and if so when and how. Generally I think bare ankles look really odd, especially with more formal clothes and shoes.

My feet are not foetid, but they do sweat a normal amount in the summer. I don't like trainer socks though, I must admit.

I feel the opposite. A strip of material around the ankle that stands out and detracts from the rest of the outfit.
If it’s cold enough that you need to warm your ankles it’s probably too cold to be wearing a dress or cropped trousers. I think people would think gloves and a t-shirt or vest looks daft, socks and a skirt or cropped trousers is the equivalent.

Do you really think fairisle socks look better with more formal wear?

I wear barrel legged and cropped trousers with visible socks and either trainers, loafers, docs or Birkenstock clogs. Nice socks. Jazzy ones even.

These look exactly like the socks my brother wore as a child, mid 70s!

If it’s cold enough that you need to warm your ankles it’s probably too cold to be wearing a dress or cropped trousers.

Unless you have Raynaud's, in which case you can have a sweaty hot torso and cold feet and hands at the same time, and be wearing a cotton t-shirt with wool armwarmers and fingerless gloves.

I love socks. I’m so glad they are having a moment. I’m a fan of PCI’s with trainers or chunky loafers. I wear th with cropped trousers, but the socks are long enough to cover my legs. Very chunky calves mean that for me, legs on show above the socks just doesn’t work. So I won’t be wearing with dresses or alirts unless it’s a full maxi length.

That wouldn't look good with crew socks either, though - if anything you'd be best with either no socks or opaque coloured tights. Or different shoes.

Anyway, the youngest Gen Z'ers are already 15 or so, WAY too old to be dictating style. You've got to talk with a toddler (or in a pinch a tween) to get ahead of the latest trends.

Not what I said. With formal wear I'd wear good quality sheer tights if it was too warm for opaque tights.

If it’s cold enough that you need to warm your ankles it’s probably too cold to be wearing a dress or cropped trousers

What an odd comment. I wear dresses and skirts year round. Opaque tights when it"s cold, sheer tights if it's something formal, ankle socks, if it's not.

I hate tights even more than socks! They are neither use nor ornament, I forget people wear them tbh. Under cropped trousers though?

I do slightly colour match my socks to my top half or shoes. So If wearing a chunky oatmeal knitwear I'll choose chunky oatmeal socks. If wearing a soft burgundy jumper I'll wear burgundy socks or maybe socks in a complementary colour like sage green, with a sage green scarf. I also try to get them to fit texturally wiht the trousers - so if wearing chunky jeans or cords, quite thick socks, if wearing cotton chinos or linen trousers, something thinner.

Or I just wear socks that say: look at me. Lace socks, embroidered socks, fancy patterned socks from Nordic sock company etc.

Ideally you want the top of your trousers to cover the top of your sock. I wouldn't do a sock with a skirt, personally. But then I wouldn't really wear a trainer with a skirt.

I'm gen DGAFF and love the fact that crew socks keep my ankles nice and warm, so happily been embracing this trend. With wide or boyfriend jeans and, horror of horrors, over leggings. Not sure would work with cropped jeans in the summer, though. In central London the other day saw lots of young girls, teens to early 20s, wearing knee high or over the knee socks with tiny shorts. Was bloody cold but guess you don't feel it at that age!

If you don’t mind me asking, what do you wear with a skirt? I work in a fairly casual but professional office job but have a lot of walking as part of my commute so sandals are a no go (I don’t like my toes out in the office either!).

Trainers, trainer socks and skirt/dress was pretty standard in past summers but I’ve been on mat leave so maybe I’m out of the loop on shoes too!