All this sun and April’s showers have made our world bright and green (and brought some of those May flowers too!). Which makes May’s gemstone very appropriate. Emeralds are green beryl, ranging from yellow-green to blue-green, but always green! And though we use the word “emerald” on only a couple of green styles, we have quite a wide representation of greens!

Clockwise from top: Opaque Solid Nylon Trouser Socks, O Basics, Harajuku Scrunchy Socks, N40s, Socklings, Kimi Wool Blend OTKs.

May’s flower, the lily of the valley, is like the shy cousin of the flamboyant lilies that dominate bouquets and their little bell shapes could easily be confused for any other sleepy-looking wildflower. The fleur-de-lis, on the other hand, is very recognisable. So we’ll let this stylised lily take center stage.

• Paris Trouser Socks •
• Snappy Fleur-de-Lis Garters •
• Paris Fleur-de-Lis Pantyhose •

Like Aries last month, the May’s constellation of Taurus isn’t as dignified in sock form as it is in star form. But dang is it adorable! Both of these cow socks even have grippy bottoms to help keep you stable.

• Moo Toes •
• Tubular Cow Socks •

As May moves on, spring will soon be over and, on the flip side, winter is coming for folks in the Southern hemisphere. So embrace these transitional days of spring and autumn while you can!

In the spirit of this article, we have decided that we would do a GIVEAWAY in conjunction. All you brides and grooms to be, get out your pens and your box o’ Kleenex, ’cause our giveaway will be an essay on “How I met and chose my bridal party.”

We want to know all the messy, hilarious, tear-jerking ways that you picked the folks who will stand up with you on your special day. Extra points if you have a cross-gendered wedding party, which I was a part of last summer, or something else totally nontraditional.

Our first place winner will receive a $150.00 gift card to Sock Dreams, which can be used to purchase bridal party socks or broken up in any way to use as gifts for your party… or you could just keep it all to yourself.

There is no minimum word count to enter and all entries will be judged by the folks here at Sock Dreams.

To enter, please send your essay to info@sock-dreams.com by May 23rd 2013, and be sure to include all the important information such as your name and email. The contest ends and will be judged by May 24th, 2013, so the prize will be awarded just in time for all those June weddings.

Good luck! And good life!

We’ve got a Mother’s Day Favourites section, but most of those styles are the ones our moms like, and if your moms are like ours, they keep their fancy stuff pretty basic. They like comfy crews, cozy bedsocks, maybe a ‘crazy’ splurge on some hand-printed trouser socks.

• Meg Unconstricted Top Crew •
• New Zealand Bed Socks •
• Polonova Flower Trouser Socks •

But, the best gifts are the ones that you know the giftee would never think to get themselves. Something fancy, maybe a little more than they like to spend on themselves. Our Indulgences section is a good place to go for just that sort of thing. I’m going to be honest, these are our pricier styles. But they earn their price, with fabulous fibers, fit and construction. This is where the luxurious stuff lives.

That doesn’t mean you have to go wild picking something out for your moms. There are some great options under $25 that feel fantastic and look gorgeous. Plus, they’re practically basics, so you won’t get chided for going overboard.

• Multi-Lines Knee Highs •
• Orkney Angora Wrist Warmers •
• Philippe Matignon Silk Anklets •

Of course, if you can and do want to spoil your mom, we can help you there! Check out three sweet indulgences after the jump!

Probably one of the most luxe knee highs we carry are the B.Ella Ginger Ribbed Knee Highs. They’re 81% cashmere. That’s a lot of cashmere! Soft, cushy and feeling like they’re made of clouds, these knee highs are a favourite of folks who want to really treat someone they love.

The next step up are the St. Petersburg Gloves. Don’t worry, that’s not real fur they’re trimmed with, but the gloves are 100% wool, crazy cozy and amazingly classic in line. Plus, they have a fabulous little pocket hidden in their cuff. Moms need to feel fancy too, and dang if these gloves won’t help them feel like an old-time movie star who is also a spy, using films as their cover.

For the ultimate indulgence I present the Orkney Angora Over The Knees. 50% angora, 50% lambswool, made by a family-run business in the Orkney Isles, these socks are like hugs. Which you should give your mom, by the way (and not just cuddly, fuzzy, high-end sock hugs). What is great about the Orkney Angora Over The Knees is that they are comfy and wonderful, but they’re also tall socks. So your mom can feel kind of foxy too.

Of course, you might not be able to indulge your awesome mom with luxurious gifts. But if you’ve got a marvellous mother, let them know, however you can.

Diamonds are, according to popular song, a girl’s best friend, but they’re also clear so they’re not easily represented via sock. If only there was a pattern or something that was diamond-y . . .

• Diamond Jester Knee Highs •
• Dreamer Harlequin Diamond OTKs •
• Harlequin Diamond & Stripe Tights •

Right! “Diamond” is a pattern/texture you can check off in our Advanced Search. It’s a gorgeous, simple pattern that goes with everything, kind of like the gemstone, even.

Top row, from left: Diamants Lace Topped Knee High, Sheer Pattern Knee High, Vienna Trouser Socks.
Bottom row, from left: Sheer Pattern Crew, Five Toed Sheer Knee High, B.Ella Gigia Microfiber Crew.

Sweet peas are pretty little pastel flowers. They have a distinct shape and don’t seem to be a popular choice to decorate socks with. Daisies too! Other than the flowers the Sock It To Me Elephants are holding, there isn’t single daisy on the socks we currently carry. I suppose I’ll just have to make my own. Let’s see, we need some solid white styles for the outside and some solid yellow for the middle:

Clockwise from top: Bobby Socklings, Ribbed M Stockings, Socklings, Opaque Thigh High with Bows, Taller Tabis, Harajuku Arm Warmers.
Center: Arm Warmer w/Thumb.

Did you know the daisy is a compound flower? Each petal and each cluster of yellow in the middle is an individual flower. Nature! So crazy and awesome.

The constellation that makes up most of April is Aries, the ram. I know the ram is kind of like, this noble symbol, but even the most dignified ram is still as fluffy as the sheep on the Sleepy Sheep bedsocks (though I’m sure the facial expression would be more stern). Sheep provide a lot of wonderful wool, with merino being a popular choice when luxurious softness is sought. We have a nice selection of merino styles to pamper your toes, but here are a couple that I consider the fluffiest, thanks to the amazing combo of soft wool and boucle yarn:

• B.Ella Katy Striped Wool Socks •
• Alpino Merino Mousse Crew •
• Franco Wool Boucle Stripe Midcalf •

April! Fluffy flowers, sparkling sheep! Spring all of its wackiness in full force.

The aptly named “water of the sea” Aquamarine is turquoise beryl (its deeper green cousins are emeralds!). Now, we’ve got a lot of things that are turquoise, it’s a very popular colour (although, I will confess, it’s a real bear to colour correct!)

Clockwise from top: Opaque Solid Nylon Trouser Socks, Nuova Baby Ribbed Wool Socks, Harajuku Arm Warmer, Classic ToeToe Socks, Harajuku Scrunchy Socks, Layered Tulle Petticoat.

But March gets two birthstones! The second is Bloodstone, also known as Heliotrope, even though it is totally a different colour than the Heliotrope flower. Deep, dark green with flecks of red, it’s sort of the perfect counterpoint to the clear blues of Aquamarine. Green and red don’t appear together on socks very often, but I think we can capture the ideals of Bloodstone pretty easily.

• Dreamy Striped Tubes •
• New Zealand Bedsocks with Stripes •
• N Stripes •

I always forget that March’s flower, the Daffodil, is properly called the Narcissus. Frilly and yellow and already flowering in my yard, they’re harbingers of spring, reminding us that sun is around the corner. I was a little worried about picking styles to represent these flowers. Yellow, despite the recent popularity of mustard as a colour, isn’t a common shade of sock, but lo and behold I found a couple of shots where we used the Narcissus to bring out the best of lemony shades!

• White Knees •
• Sock It To Me Bumble Bees •
• Vertically Inclined Knee Highs •

Properly following February’s Aquarius sign, March’s constellation is mostly Pisces, symbolised by two fish. And we’ve got two-by-two options for you, both straight up fish:

• Sock It To Me Koi Fish •
• Mouthy Fish 3-D Socks •

And more symbolic scales (maybe your feet are the fish!):

• Lola Knee High •
• Mermaid Armor Over the Knee •

March marches on, bringing us the start of spring and sneak peeks of sunshine. Are you a March birthday? Do you pick Aquamarine or Bloodstone?

Amethyst is a super fascinating stone, used for protection in battle, as a ward against drunkenness and for intaglio carving, its soft purple hue lends a calm beauty to goblets, amulets and jewellery. Found in a range of purple (one of the definitions of Amethyst is “purple” qualified by “any purple”), some of amethyst’s more common shades are rose, mauve and lavender.

• Wrinkle Press Knee High •
• Check Pattern Footies •
• Harajuku Scrunchy Socks •

The most valuable amethyst, however, is deep purple, with tinges of violet. I think what we and our suppliers tend to call “plum” is a good match.

• Super Ms •
• Soft & Dreamy Knee Highs •
• Boy’s Socks •

Because people have always loved to coordinate, violets (more properly, “violas”) are February’s flower. Tiny and purple with a distinctive five-petal shape; their larger, hybrid form is called a “pansy.”

• Polonova Flower Trouser Socks •
• Bunch of Pansies Over the Knee •
• Tibetan Flower Crews •

February’s dominant constellation is Aquarius, the water bearer. Symbolised by layered waves, it’s also part of a song title I bet you’re trying not to get stuck in your head. I think Nouvella’s Space Ocean colourway is kind of a perfect match—and the wee baby sock version way more fun (and cozy!) for little folks born this month than rocks and flowers.

• Dreamer Jacquard Ripple OTK •
• Space Dyed Terry Baby Booties •
• Dreamer Diamond Wave OTK •

So far February hasn’t tricked me with a sneaky nice day that pretends spring is around the corner, but we’re only about at the halfway mark of this short little month. There is plenty of time for one surprisingly warm day to make me think I don’t have to work so hard to stay cozy.

January’s gemstone is garnet, which is normally a gorgeous deep burgundy (though also happens in yellow and a startling green!). Philippe Matignon’s red is called “garnet” (or actually, “rosso granata”) and I couldn’t think of a better name for this shade.

• Multi-Lines Knee Highs •
• Lily Lace-Topped Knee High •

It’s thought that the word “garnet” came from “pomegranate” and even if that’s not true, it totally could be. Our Dreamer Socks’ deep red shade is called Pomegranate, and we like it so much we’ve even got the 100 Inch Super Ruched done in the same delicious colour.

• Extraordinary Striped Thigh Highs •
• 100 Inch Super Ruched Socks •
• Dreamer Jacquard Ripple OTK •

Each month has a couple of flowers to choose from, it all depends on where you are, really. But mostly it seems like January’s flower is the carnation. The original colour of the carnation is pink, but thanks to flower science and careful cultivation, they now come in a whole tonne of shades. But one thing makes a carnation what it is and that’s the layers of ruffle-y petals. Hmm, what do we have that has layers of ruffles?

• Micromesh Lace Ruffle Tanga Short •
• Layered Tulle Petticoat •

Of course, you don’t need straight up lotsa ruffles to get a ruffle-y look. Sometimes a textured sock and a good scrunch is all that’s necessary.

• Dreamer Ruffled Stripe OTK •
• Textured Stripe Knee High •
• Keri Dimensional Stripe Crew •

The constellation associated with most of January is Capricornus (more commonly known as Capricorn). It’s a fish-goat. Or a sea-goat, if you want to be proper. Since we don’t have anything that has mohair in it right now (mohair comes from Angora goats), I think Capricorn will have to be represented by things that don’t go together, yet totally do make one awesome whole.

Stance always offers some cool mixed packs of mixable, matchable socks. Maybe those Trilogy Midcalves are more like a chimera, since that’s made up of three different things instead of two.

• Trilogy Midcalves •
• Mariner Midcalves •

These Sock It To Me Toddler & Kids Two Packs are fun because they pair up some unexpected and adorable designs. You know that monkeys and dinos would hang out or that ninjas like robots. But did you know that ninjas also love cupcakes?

There’s still over half of January to go and a long way until spring up here in the Northern hemisphere, so keep warm! Unless you’re in the Southern hemisphere, in which case may I offer you some lightweight sock styles, if you don’t mind my totally shivering while I do.

Of course, we have lots of skeletal delights . . .

Clockwise from top: Infant & Toddler Bone Socks, Hand Bone Arm Warmers, Bones Tube Socks, Black Magic Super Stretch Socks, Little Bones Sox.

For a more subtle look, Sock It To Me’s Dia De Los Muertos Knee Highs are perfect.

Whether you call it Day of the Dead or Dia de los Muertos, or if you celebrated All Souls’ Day yesterday, it is a time for celebrating and remembering. And we have just the socks for the festivities.

Comics

We’ve got some solid comics fans here, most notably Zaffie at our Tumblr. She’s already pointed out that Kate Bishop in Hawkeye #2 (story by Matt Fraction, art by David Aja) is wearing what looks like the Extraordinarily Longer Thigh Highs in Plum & Black.

Spiderman is a classic. And it takes some layering, but one of our Shop Dreamers dressed up one of the manequinns at our brick and mortar store in Opaque Tights in Royal, Opaque Solid Nylon Trouser Socks in Red and the Spider Lace Pantyhose for a webtacular Spidey look.

Super heroes (and villians) are easy game when looking for good use of legwear. They have to wear something under the leotards, right? Another Dreamer reminded me of one of my favourites—Poison Ivy, specifically her character design by Bruce Timm for Batman: The Animated Series. Her simple look is all pulled together by simple lime green tights.

Of course, you don’t have to keep it simple. We’ve had (amazing!) customers pull unique, stunning looks together too (like this fabulous steampunk Poison Ivy).

TV

I know a lot of you are into My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic (if only because of all the drawing requests!) so you know that there are a ton of rainbow options to accessorise your Rainbow Dash costume. But one Dreamer suggests that the Furry Rainbow Leg Warmers might be just the thing. You’d be like a My Little Clydesdale!

I am going to be honest here and say that I have no idea who this character is (thank goodness for Dreamers filling me in!), but Fishnet Footless Tights and the Lace Anklet with Ruffle seem to be pretty key pieces to dressing as Robin Sparkles from How I Met Your Mother.

Another popular character is Rachel Berry of Glee. She wears a lot of knee highs and a lot of solid colour basics that can be easily matched by the Color Tights and the Opaque Solid Nylon Trouser Socks.

Video Games

One game that a lot of folks I know are playing is Borderlands. Gage the mechromancer has some great black and white wide stripes that are perfectly matched by the Extraordinary Striped Thigh Highs in Black & Natural.

Also in Borderlands (which is looking to be a pretty sock-tastic game) Mad Moxxi rocks some mismatched stripes and Fencenet Thigh Highs. It’s hard to tell what colourway the stripes are, but the Uma Striped Over the Knee looks to be a good match.

Movies

We were pretty big fans of the Joker’s socks in The Dark Knight. Though we don’t have the Joker’s every day chaos-checkered socks, we do have a taller option in the Neon Checkered Chaos OTKs that would look fab for folks going as Nurse Joker.

Our Tumblr caught this one already too, but Sally from Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas wears scrunched black and white stripes. I think maybe the Super Warmers – Short would be a great match (and give you room in your shoes for patchwork tights)!

If you want to be classically classy, one of the Dreamers points out that you can’t go wrong with Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Either the Satin Gloves with Snap Buttons or the Opera Length Satin Gloves with Rhinestone Trim plus the Sheer To Waist Pantyhose in Black with a little black dress and pearls? Perfect.

This one is a little esoteric and you need a friend to really pull it off, but you could totally channel the vibes of 101 Dalmatians with the Contrast Vertical Striped Thigh Highs for Cruella DeVille (maybe over some red tights?) and the Foot Traffic Polka Dot Knee Highs for a Dalmatian.

A far more straightforward approach would be to emulate the original horror stylings of Jaws with a 3-D Shark Bite Sock over some Bloody Zombie Thigh Highs.

Whew. That’s a good one to end on, right? I hope we’ve helped inspire you if you’re still struggling with a costume. Remember, we love when folks share how we’ve helped them make a costume perfect and our Facebook is a great place to do it! How are socks helping your costume come together?

The ultimate classic monster, Dracula, didn’t ever really show socks. I am sure someone as aristocratic as the Count totally rocked classy cashmere midcalves, but nothing you ever saw on screen. Nonetheless, you can wear his vampiric, black tie look a little more campily (because really, Bela Lugosi is a little camp anyway).

• Tuxedo Midcalves •
• Opaque Tights in Red •

As old as vampires are werewolves, and Universal’s Wolfman (and the ground breaking transformation scenes!) is as classic. Transforming into this hirsute beast won’t take much trouble, or a full moon. You just need some appropriate accessories.

• Harajuku Furry Warmers in Brown (we like these as muffs/arm warmers too) •
• Fingerless Arm Cozy in Walnut Brown •

Nerds know you don’t call the big green guy “Frankenstein.” Properly he is “Frankenstein’s monster” or, “THE MONSTER.” And he’s yet another sockless wonder. But I bet big ol’ feet like his would do best with comfy, terry lined styles like the M Bootsocks. Or! I bet he’d like something fun (and colour-coordinated) like the Sock It To Me Monster Midcalves!

The Monster’s lady, on the other hand, wears long fingerless gloves, or bandages that look like it. And you can rock her distinctive hair without breaking out the bleach by rocking those stripes on your legs with a little creative layering.

• Simone’s Sleeves in White •
• Opaque Tights in White •
• Side Stripe Legging •

Some more movie monsters and associated socks after the jump!

Now, the Mummy we’ve straight up got a sock for with the Ashi Dashi Mummy Crew. But what socks would be a less direct homage? Maybe wrap yourself up in the longest socks we’ve got and keep them up with some immortal Egyptian symbology.

• Great Whites •
• Snappy Ankh Sock Garter •

The Creature from the Black Lagoon is tricky. But a black net or crochet-look style layered over green tights should add some subtle scales to your look.

• Eyelash Web Tights •
• Opaque Tights in Olive •

The Invisible Man does rock one distinctive accessory that we carry and that’s a pair of gloves. Other than that? You could say that the Sheer to Waist Pantyhose are practically invisible, but I don’t think that would to the Invisible Man’s transparency justice.

• Classic Satin Gloves •

Some of these homages are subtle, so you could integrate them into everyday wear. I think a day knowing that you’re rocking some Bride of Frankenstein stylings would be fabulous! Do you have a favourite classic movie monster?