Hawt Trendz

There are times in our lives when what the fashion-type people tell you to wear directly conflicts with what your mother always told you about how to wear clothes.

Evidence number one: leggings-as-pants. (Momma said: if you're going to wear tight pants, wear a shirt that covers your tushy.)

Evidence number two: prints layered with prints. (Momma said: prints go with solids; solids go with solids; prints don't go with prints. Unless you want to look like a crazy person.)

Evidence number three: socks with sandals. (Momma said: if you're wearing open-toed shoes, no socks, hose, or tights. Show your toes!)

I've been known to wear socks with closed-toe high heels. I like the look, it keeps my feet warm in the winter-time, and eliminates the likelihood of blisters. I especially like wearing my patchwork-look Betsey Johnson socks with aged-brown T-straps, and black socks (cable-knit with a thick white braid) with cone-heeled patent leather Mary Janes. But I haven't yet been able to wrap my head around wearing socks with sandals.

Maybe it's because I associate socks-with-sandals with a certain, um, type. (Or, as Jake put it when I told him the subject of this blog post, "Socks with sandals aren't anew trend; they've been around for men for years. It's a look that says 'I've got a ham radio and I may be a pervert.'") It's the middle-aged men at my swim club growing up. It's the tourists you see around the Mall. It usually goes with a fishing cap when you're not anywhere near the water.

But now, I'm supposed to wear socks with my strappy sandals? Because the rest of my outfit is summery, but my feet are kinda cold, maybe? I don't get it.

But if you like the look, here's a tutorial on how to do it. I guess.