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| | Care For Your Socks | | | It has happened to World bank President Paul Wolfowitz and it can happen to you too. Wearing a pair of socks full of holes….. Wolfowitz was on an official tour of Turkey and had to go to their famous mosque the Hagia Sophia. You are not allowed to wear shoes in a mosque and hence Wolfowitz had to remove his shoes. And well… the world world saw his grey socks riddled with holes Yes . On an average, people keep their socks until they’re raggedy, thin, and worn, and then replace them. Your socks are most probably lasting longer than your shoes, but it shouldn’t be.
And as days go by occasions are increasing when you have to take out your shoes..For example undergoing security checks in airports..You have got to remove your shoes and allow your fellow travelers to find out what sort of socks you are wearing, including the stink quotient. Here comes the necessity to have good, clean, microbiologically protected socks, if you want to avoid the fate of the famous pop singer Britny Spears Recently, she found to her cost, that because of the way her socks stank, she was compelled by her co passengers in the flight, to put back the shoes, which she had taken out to relax inside the aircraft !. Feet perspire about 20-30 gallons in total, per year, even per foot that's a lot of sweat! Where does it go? Well 5-8 gallons of that perspiration gets absorbed by each sock, and shoes get their fair share as well.
The shoes are where the rubber meets the road, the socks are where the skin meets the sole, or something like that. They don't have to be expensive, but they do have to meet the needs of your feet The arch, toe area and heel should fit close to the skin, but not enough to stretch and not loose enough to hang off any part of the foot. As we age, the fat pads on the bottom of our feet deteriorate. It is here that the socks come in. Socks should fit the foot perfectly. If they are too tight, they'll restrict circulation; if they are too loose, they'll increase friction which leads to blisters. Comfortable fitting socks are critical to good foot health and athletic performance. No crowded toes! Toes need room to wiggle and be happy, but not so much room that there's constant rubbing against the sock or foot slipping in the shoe which will also cause blisters.
Usually the socks come in the following materials. and commonly used fibers include cotton, wool, nylon, acrylic, polyester, olefin, and spandex. Occasionally, luxury fibers such as silk, linen, cashmere, or mohair will be blended for softness, but this adds to the cost.
For men, four major types of socks exist—dress, casual, sport and work. Dress socks may be worn with business suits during the day or for special occasions. Casual socks are worn with sports wear and in less formal situations. Support socks have become more popular and acceptable in recent years. Work socks are designed for durability and hard wear. Socks for women are usually for casual or sports activities, in addition to power dressing for the office,
Some tips on buying socks -fabric selection
Synthetic socks dry more quickly. They are best for prevention blisters, last longer, despite higher initial cost. For workouts and games; synthetics like polypropylene, teflon, and [cool max] are preferred. Look out for toe seams that don't rub.
Some people buy shoes too small, this leads to foot problems. Allow finger width between toe and top, so shoe doesn't bind. Sometime synthetics socks require bigger shoes.Avoid cotton socks --unless you just walk around, as cotton allows blisters. Cotton tend to flatten.
Try on new shoes with a thick pair of socks.
Care
On casual wear, match your socks to your shirt. White, black and brown are three colours that go on almost any outfit.
Avoid wearing filmsy decorative, colourful and striped socks to work.
Cut your toenails short. Long and hard toenails will shorten your socks’ life span.
Wear 50 per cent woolen socks. 100 per cent are in effective in soaking sweat. If you’re allergic to wool, try wearing socks made of merino wool.
If you have sweaty feet, wear liner socks. They are very thin, typically made of cotton or silk and provide a layer between your normal socks and your foot, keeping moisture away from your foot.
Red alert: If your feet stink, when you peel off your socks, put them for a wash immediately.
A fashion faux pas for socks wearers is wearing torn socks. Just because they are hidden doesn’t mean, that you pull on a torn pair to work every day. Think about a situation where you have to step out of your shoes in front of your colleagues and your toe is peeping out of the socks.
Keep at least six pairs of socks in your wardrobe. You can write of the worry of washing them daily.
Laundering of socks requires few special precautions other than concern for color. As colors used in socks may run during laundering wash with other dark colored items. Also, wash in warm, not hot, water to reduce color bleeding. Always check labels for colorfastness. This is especially important with white sport socks that feature colorful stripes or designs. Colors may run into the white area if dyes are not colorfast or if water temperatures are too hot.
—Maharaja Features |
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