Mens Socks In The Summer

If you’re a kean follower of Mens Fashion Magazine, you’ll know that we’re a huge believer that it’s th detailing that counts. With the amount of resources to men right now, tailoring a look together is now often seen as an easy thing to do. But what really makes a stylish man stand out from someone who’s imitated a look from a manual, is the finer details and the individual touches. In today’s article, we’re going to be talking about a common problem most men face. Should us gents, wear socks in the summer?

Socks Are Boring

Everyone thinks that socks are probably the most boring item of clothing you can own. They tend to be seen as an unwanted present, or something you just put on your feet, but your choice of socks can in fact add a real touch of style to you look. It’s important to note at this stage that I’m not talking about socks and sandals, white socks and trainer shoes, or in fact… white socks as a whole. I’m talking about using socks to add colour, print, and even texture to your look when it might be lacking.

The safer option in the summer obviously tends to be the sockless route, making your loafers, brogues, boat shoes and moccasins stench because of your sockless ways and smelly feet. Don’t get me wrong, we’re a huge fan of sockless looks and with a range of invisible socks hitting the market today it’s a viable option, but sometimes the addition of a sock can make your look stand out against the rest. If you’re going to show your socks, opt for something with length and think carefully about how you’re wearing them.

Socks also give us the ability to add an influence from current trends into our look, within a subtle way. For example this season we’ve seen the camo trend become popular, but a lot of guys wouldn’t dare to go there. Therefore the small addition of some camo socks, slightly showing with your summer look, will add influence from a trend but won’t create too much of a statement. Also if your look is quite monochromatic and you need to add a touch of colour, a colourful or printed sock can again add this to a look.

The Best Way To Wear

We all learnt how to put socks on at a young age (well we hope you do) so we’re not going to spend anytime at all explaining the basics of putting cotton on your feet. The main reason for this paragraph is that wearing socks in the summer takes a touch of craftsmanship, and if you get it wrong can leave you looking like you dressed yourself half asleep.

The main thing you want to think about is adding to your look. If your look lacks colour, think about implementing a colourful pair of socks in to your look. If your choice of footwear is bright and needs toning down, look to implement a neutral toned sock to tone down the brightness of your chosen footwear. Want to implement a trend subtly into your look? Then again, socks can be a viable option. But there’s too many ways to wear them.

As A Statement

This isn’t for the faint hearted, but if you want to use socks in the summer to create a statement opt for a bright design or a heavy print. Contrast the socks against your choice of footwear and focus on the length of your socks. If we’re creating a statement, we want to show as much sock as possible. So pulling the socks up to a reasonable length will draw attention towards them creating that needed statement.

In A Subtle Manner

If you’re not feeling brave, go for a lighter tone or a lighter print that compliments your footwear. What works really well is if you take the colour of your footwear, and opt for a lighter tone. So if your loafers were dark brown, you could opt for a beige sock. You also want to again focus on the length but this time make sure only a slight bit of sock is showing. You want to make sure it still compliments the look and people can see it, but it isn’t the first thing they look at when they’re judging your outfit.

Here’s some images for inspiration:

You might think we’re crazy… writing a whole article on socks? But in today’s market, the choice of sock plays a huge part in catwalks, collections, lookbooks and more. There are even designated brands and designers that focus solely on the production and design of men’s socks. They shouldn’t be an unwanted gift anymore, and here’s some top picks for this coming season.

Let us know what you think in the comments below.