Welcome back to the Gentleman's Gazette!
In today's video, we discuss how to prevent dress socks or socks of any kind from sliding
down your calves.
In another recent video, we discussed how to prevent shirts from coming untucked and
another really popular question we get asked all the time is "How do I stop my socks from
bunching up on my ankles or in my shoes?" and "Why do my socks slide down and how can
I stop that?"
In today's video, we'll give you a definitive answer, and we'll explain to you what you
should look for and what you should avoid, so you always have socks that stay up and
look dapper.
First of all, why do you want socks that don't slide down?
Reason number 1, and I always hated that myself is when socks slide down and they bunch up
in your shoe, it's extremely uncomfortable especially when you walk and that usually
happens when you are at a trade show when you walk a lot and then you constantly have
to stop, pull up your socks, open your shoes, get them back down, so it's a hassle, and
it's just really uncomfortable and your feet hurt at the end of the day.
Reason number 2 is no one wants to see your hairy calves.
It's unprofessional, and traditionally, dapper gentlemen would always have over the calf
socks that would not expose any kind of skin.
Now, even if you shave your legs, you still don't want to expose skin unless it's maybe
a hot summer day and you are wearing a pair of seersucker pants with boat shoes or driving
mocs, but that's a whole different game.
When in a professional setting, an office setting, in a business meeting, or even on
a date, keep it over the calf or keep your ankles not exposed.
How do socks stay up?
Basically, there are three main characteristics to consider.
The most important thing in keeping your socks up is length.
If you compare these two socks, they are both over the calf but one is actually three inches
longer than the other, and they are actually the same size.
Now, obviously, over the calf is not over the calf.
Unfortunately, most men's dress socks are only mid calf or shorter, and those socks
will always slide down no matter what you do with them unless you go to a different
solution like shirt suspenders and we talk about them in a second.
You cannot beat gravity with anything other than a sock that reaches just below your knee
and over your calf because what you want to achieve is that your sock hugs your leg at
the thinnest point, so your calf below it gets wider.
If your socks are below it, it has that kind of shape and it goes down and will help gravity,
and the socks will slide down.
The second most important reason is elastics.
You can get cheap elastics, you can get more high-quality elastics, and the amount differs
as well.
For example, here you have a relatively short amount of elastic.
On this sock here, your elastic goes all the way from the top down to here, and it helps
keep the sock together, so they stay up better.
At the same time, you want a sock that is not constricting.
Cheaper socks usually come with a cheaper, stronger elastic but it's actually so strong
that it pulls down your sock because it's not perfectly sized for your foot.
At Fort Belvedere, we really like natural materials, and we always try to stay away
from nylons or polyesters or anything artificial, however, with socks, you need them to stay
up.
What we did though is that we used a nylon and we covered it in cotton, so your skin
will only be in touch with cotton and never touch the elastic.
That way, you get the feel of natural fibers and the benefit of elastics, so your socks
stay up all day long.
It actually took me quite a while to come up with this solution because a few years
ago, I was fed up with all over the calf socks I wore and they would still slide down and
so it took a little while to really perfect the solution but the socks that we have now,
we have tested for over three years, and they haven't failed me, and I know they won't fail
you either.
The third reason why socks slide down is having the wrong size.
Most socks today come either in small, medium, or large, or sometimes you find dress socks
such as this pair which comes in size 8-12, that's just a range that is way too big and
as such, they need more elastics, more nylon, so it pulls harder.
It will feel less comfortable on your foot, and it also has that tendency to pull your
sock down especially on the foot area where you walk a lot, and that causes it to slide
down.
Just look at the difference of my size 11 foot.
Here we have size 8-12, and here we have a properly sized 11 sock that is exactly made
for my foot, and it won't slide down.So the more sizes you can have, the better because
it really works for your foot.
So whenever you see dress socks that are less than four sizes, skip them and go with something
that has more sizes because otherwise, it won't fit you and you will have problems with
the socks sliding down.
So in conclusion, if you want socks that don't slide down, you have to buy quality over the
calf dress socks with the right amount of elastic in the right size.
Now, if you already have a lot of short socks in your wardrobe and you don't want to replace
all of them or if you are a vintage lover, you should consider sock garters.
They are also sometimes called shirt or socks suspenders, and there are different variations.
Some of them are actually held in place over your knee or sometimes under your knee, and
it's basically a little clip mechanism such as with a clip on pair of braces or suspenders.
Other models actually attach to the bottom of your shirt and connect to your socks however,
I personally find it extremely uncomfortable to wear them also, they show if you have a
thinner fabric for your pants and overall, I'm a very minimalistic person so I try to
get the best stuff I can without having to overload my outfit and what is underneath
of it because comfort is important and the way you look and feel.
Just like with "menswear innovations" oftentimes, they fix a problem that you would not have
if you buy quality items, to begin with.
Remember the video about how to get a shirt that stays tucked in?
Please watch it, and it says the exact same thing.
Sometimes, you'll also find tie dimples in all kinds of shirt stays; you won't need those
if you simply have a proper piece of clothing in the first place.
And that's what we're here to tell you about because we teach you about quality so you
can distinguish crap from good stuff without looking at the label.
So at the end of the day, it's up to you whether you want sock suspenders that definitely work.
However, they feel not so well on your skin, and I find them extremely uncomfortable, or
you go with a quality pair of socks, you skip the suspenders and also just imagine you're
on a date and you go home feeling like James Bond.
You want to prevent the situation where you actually look like an old grandpa with sock
suspenders.
Chances are, she won't be impressed.
if you want to learn more about socks, please head over and check out our in-depth dress
sock guide as well as our colorful, crazy sock guide here.
For a selection of quality over the calf socks in 4 different sizes with elastics that won't
slide down, please have a look at our shop where you can find our Fort Belvedere socks.
They come in different shades which make it very easy to combine them with your pants.
if you want to learn how to pair shoes, pants, and socks, please check out this video, here.
Also, we have an entire guide about that which you can find in our shop which comes free
with a purchase of three pairs of socks simply add it to the cart.