Socks are important. On an island like Britain, where the weather is always a surprise, a decent pair of socks becomes a vital part of your wardrobe, whatever the season. After all, we Brits invented the socks and sandals look. Smart and practical, right?
Over the past few years, I've become increasingly obsessed with having decent socks. TK Maxx has revealed itself as a good stockist of bamboo items, which are hard-wearing and light. I am a massive advocate of alpaca too, which has anti-bacterial properties meaning that you can wear them for a week without needing to change them.
Well, alright, a few days.
In my dotage, I have also lost patience with the notion of socks needing to match. It's boring, especially if you have an eye for a bright pattern or a bold argyle. Better to mix it up and keep it funky.
I'm glad to see I'm not on my own in this. Marianne Wakerlin, AKA The Socklady, has been knitting for most of her life, after her mum taught her the gentle art at age nine. She decided to have fun with patterns and wild colours, deliberately making sure that the two socks in a pair didn't match. She found she was onto something. Friends and family members couldn't get enough of her crazy creations, and she realised that she had the germs of a business.
Founded in 2000, Solmate Socks now sells across the globe. They're made from recycled cotton (hence the intentional differences in colour) and knitted in a small, family-run mill in Marianne's home state of Vermont, before being hand-finished. The socks are soft and cosy: just the sort of item that draws one's attention now that Autumn is round the corner (sorry, but it is). Grab a pair online, and see just how much simpler your life can be when you don't have to fuss about finding two socks that match in the morning!
For more, check out the Solmate Socks site (link leads to the UK store, or find them on Amazon).
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