# taz.de -- The renaissance of socks: Hand-knitted by the Queen
       
       > Gucci socks at 190 euro, Alexander McQueen socks for 245 euro – the sock
       > inflation brought us socks for the 1%. Or actually, they're accessoires.
       
 (IMG) Bild: Street Style at the Paris Fashion Week
       
       I’ve long been a proponent of getting sockaphobics to toe the line of the
       higher powers that be: Miuccia Prada, Marc Jacobs, and Alessandro Michele
       have long shown us the way of how a good pair of socks can make a blasé
       outfit look positively quirky. Leandra Medine (the now multi-millionaire
       fashion blogger Man Repeller) is queen of this look: with loafers and socks
       pulled up high, like she’s channeling her Dad in a mini-skirt.
       
       I can remember going into the Prada store in New York one day in 2008,
       after the Crash, and noticing that the only thing I could actually afford
       was a pair of 30 dollar socks. At the time, I balked.
       
       Today, I’m hot for anything Gucci. Anything! But the [1][Gucci socks for
       190 euro] is where I stop toeing the line and where I begin to draw the
       line. Socks for the 1%? Not in good conscious, no thanks. You’ll find me in
       Footlocker stocking up on crisp new tighty whities. Call it the Tennis Sock
       Rebellion, if you will. Unfortunately, garment workers were probably
       exploited in making a 3-pack for 7 euro? What to do? Are socks Made in
       Italy really the only choice we have?
       
       The froufrou numbers at Alexander McQueen are [2][hand-knitted by the Queen
       of England herself. At 245 euro], a bargain considering new post-Brexit
       export duties.
       
       Seriously, though. I do understand that this is all an indicator of the
       worth of things. I once met a group of grandmas on a train, and I watched
       them knit. How long does it take you to do a sock? Online forums confirmed
       what they told me. They weren’t exaggerating the heroic act. It takes give
       or take 6 to 20 hours per hand-knitted sock vs [3][the 67 dollar factory
       version here.]
       
       Note the cleverness of these socks. They’ve stitched “Sexual Fantasies“ on
       the bottom where no one but you and your loved ones can see them. They’re
       listed as “imported“ so we don’t know where they came from. Vetements
       socks, however, by comparison to Prada, some ten years later, seem to be a
       bargain, it turns out. [4][Here’s a pair of Prada socks that sell for 355
       dollars]. (Should have grabbed those ones for 30 bucks when I could. Missed
       my chance.)
       
       The [5][Little William Gucci socks, for 350 euro], by the way, don’t
       qualify as socks. These are veritable accessoires. Easy to copy and readily
       available at a Zara near you, I predict, within the month.
       
       Made in Spain, or at least we hope.
       
       7 Mar 2017
       
       ## LINKS
       
 (DIR) [1] http://www.matchesfashion.com/intl/products/Gucci-Ruffled-and-striped-cuff-ribbed-cotton-blend-socks-1074264
 (DIR) [2] https://www.net-a-porter.com/de/en/product/808302?resType=single&keywords=alexander%20mcqueen%20socks&termUsed=alexander%20mcqueen%20socks&enableAjaxRequest=false
 (DIR) [3] https://www.net-a-porter.com/us/en/product/757207/vetements/cotton-blend-socks
 (DIR) [4] https://www.net-a-porter.com/us/en/product/743637/Prada/lace-trimmed-ribbed-cotton-knee-socks
 (DIR) [5] https://www.net-a-porter.com/de/en/product/802723/Gucci/little-william-embellished-ribbed-cotton-blend-socks
       
       ## AUTOREN
       
 (DIR) April Lamm
       
       ## TAGS
       
 (DIR) Fashion
 (DIR) taz in English
 (DIR) taz.couture
 (DIR) taz international
 (DIR) taz in English
 (DIR) Fashion
 (DIR) Aldi
 (DIR) taz in English
 (DIR) taz international
 (DIR) Mode
 (DIR) Pakistan
 (DIR) Kriegsfotografie
       
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