Just In From Europe
Plus ...
Arriving in November
Luxury For You - Great Gifts Too! |
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Just In From Europe ...
ZIMMERLI of SWITZERLAND LIMITED EDITION
A very special exclusive Zimmerli Limited Edition Boxer Brief available as individual colors or as a discounted 3-Pack containing one of each color at a reduced price.
By Italy's Bresciani 1970 EXCLUSIVELY OURS
Our exclusive Joelle Kelly Design ExtraFine Merino Thigh-Highs in six fashionable color combinations made for us by Bresciani.
New From Zimmerli for 2012
SILK BOXER DESIGNS
New patterns ... and for the first time, four stunning solid colors, in Zimmerli's soft, lustrous, Swiss Silk boxers.
From Italy's Alpo Guanti
CAN'T HELP BUT LOVE
MY LAMBSKIN GLOVES!
The superb quality of Italy's Alpo Guanti in a variety of mens' and womens' lambskin gloves available with cashmere, silk, or fur lining.
Custom Colors by Kabbaz-Kelly
IMPERIAL PURPLE
Perfect With Bresciani's Amethyst
CASH-SILK THIGH-HIGHS
A first: There has never been a thigh-high sock so soft, warm, and lustrous as our new, exclusive Cashmere & Silk creations from Bresciani 1970 shown here in Amethyst with our Custom Colors Collection Richelieu Cotton Ribbed in Imperial Purple.
New From Zimmerli for 2012
PURENESS LONGS!!!
Just premiered this month: Zimmerli Pureness Micromodal in a Long Sleeve Crew Neck and Leggings available in Black or White. Our first shipment already sold out. Thankfully, we received a second shipment yesterday. A perfect cold weather layer.
Scott & Charters' Best: 12-Ply
CASHMERE CARDIGAN
CUSTOM MADE FOR YOU!
Nothing even comes close to our Custom Made Scott & Charters 12-Ply Cashmere Cardigan available for Men and Women
Arriving This Month
In Time for Holiday Delivery
Beautiful Wine or Bordeaux muted paisley jacquards in soft Swiss Cotton highlight Zimmerli's new Limited Edition pajamas with solid color pants.
This Duet of the Fabulous features Gerbe-Paris Plumetis stay-ups in Noir ... topped by our HOT Limited Edition Zimmerli MicroModal & Silk MiniDress in Black.
And the winner is: Bresciani's Limited Edition Cashmere and Deerskin slipper available for Men and Women.
Winter evenings by the fireplace
were never so warm!
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Greetings!
Many new clients first question is, "Which socks are right for me?" My answer? "Do you prefer cotton or merino?" The invariable reply is "What's the difference?"
Given the wide array of variables - warmth, cushion, durability, softness, appropriateness - I've penned a short tome explaining the virtues and detriments of the various fibers used to make top-quality socks. The article appears below ... and my phone is always open for further questions.
Spectacular New Additions:
Dissatisfied with the quality of generally available offerings, Joelle and I decided to seek out Europe's best maker of swimwear. Next month we shall proudly premiere the best of Janine Robin, France's premier swimwear house.
A family business similar in many respects to our own, the helm of J.R. is lovingly guided by the grandson of the firm's founder. Unlike most "French" lines, Janine Robin is actually made in France under the watchful eyes of the owner. You'll presently find only a few photos on the site, but rest assured that this top-quality line will be available in time for Winter vacations and the Caribbean cruise season.
And not to forget the guys, we've just received our advance samples from Italy's Villa Delmitia. Created entirely to our specifications, this incomparable mens' swimwear is made of 100% pure cotton - including the interior linings! Starting in late November, you can kiss that nylon mesh "sticky feeling" goodbye forever.
Going live this month, after almost a year of in-house testing, will be the magnificent womens' hosiery of Gerbe-Paris, top French luxe hosiery house since 1904. We're ecstatic to have finally found hosiery equal to the quality of our sock collection.
Finally, our exciting Fall concludes with the debut of our first exclusive offerings from the venerable Welsh sock makers, Corgi. Slated to be available later this week, Corgi's repertoire includes a brilliant, bold palette of cottons and cashmere-cotton blends.
Best regards,
Joelle Kelly & Alexander Kabbaz
In Response: Due to the number
of requests, we have now
made all the Sartorial Excellence News
articles
available on our web site. Click here and choose Option 8.
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Comfort Down Under:
Which Sock Is Best For You? |
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Natural Fibers for
Every Occasion
- - - by Alexander Kabbaz
Cotton ... Merino ... Cashmere
Linen ... Cashmere & Silk ... Silk
Even Baby Camel Hair! ...
The choices seem endlessly confusing. "What sock fiber should I buy?" is one of the most frequent questions we are asked and answering usually involves a long discussion. If you want to skip the rest of the article, 70% of the time the final answer is "Merino Wool Over-the-Calf/Knee-High".
Interested to know more? Let's sort through the options. Below I'll discuss each fiber, its characteristics, advantages, and disadvantages. The most common two fibers are Cotton and ExtraFine Merino Wool. In no particular order, other readily available fibers include Cashmere, Cashmere & Silk Blend, Silk, Linen, and Baby Camelhair.
ExtraFine Merino Wool
Let's start with the basics. Merino Wool is not "scratchy" which feeling most people associate with wool. Merino wool is softer than generic or "virgin" wool as it comes from the specially bred Merino sheep. The finer merino fibers are Australian & New Zealand in origin and range from 16 to 20 microns in diameter and 2.4 - 4" in length. Without going into great detail, suffice it to say that ExtraFine Merino and a World War II wool Army blanket have absolutely nothing in common.
< 100% Merinos in Marinella Red
Merino's greatest advantages are:
1] It wicks moisture away(as the word is used in common parlance). Wicking moisture away from the skin is important because fiber which keeps the moisture touching the foot will make one feel cold in winter and clammy in hot weather.
2] It is soft and provides a cushion. For those who spend time on their feet, the cushioning effect of merino can mean the difference between end-of-day tender tootsies and a comfortable evening jog. Even when wet, merino has the ability to contain moisture without losing its shock-absorbing qualities.
3] It regulates temperature and can keep the wearer warmer than cotton. Merino wool can absorb 30% or more of its weight in perspiration without feeling wet. Additionally, wet merino, unlike wet cotton, does not lose the ability to keep the wearer warm and comfortable.
If merino wool does have a disadvantage it is this: Wearing most merino socks on hot days will make the foot perspire and feel hot. Some merino socks are made of extremely fine, thin yarns which eliminates this problem. However, by using the thin yarns most of the cushion and wicking properties decrease to almost nothing as does durability.
Merino is available in a variety of blends as well as 100% pure. The 80% Merino/20% Nylon blend is the most popular and retains most of the 100% Merino characteristics while offering somewhat more "stay-up" power as well as the greater longevity offered by the nylon. 100% Merino, usually with a smidgen of nylon in top, heel, and toe, offers the greatest "cushion" and strongest wicking ability.
Cotton and Sea Island Cotton
Cotton comes in a variety of grades. Those most commonly used for top-quality socks are Egyptian Mako and American Pima, both of which are excellent extra-long-staple (E.L.S.) cottons. The best quality cotton socks are made from the extremely expensive Sea Island cotton.
Cotton's main advantages are that it breathes well, does not hold in warmth, and thus is cooler to wear on warm Summer days.
Pure Sea Island in Brown >
Cotton's main disadvantage is that when made wet by perspiration, it will remain wet and begin to feel slimy/clammy as the day progresses. When cotton dries, it can become hard and lose elasticity.
Top-quality cotton socks are available as 75% Cotton Lisle/35% Nylon and the slightly softer 80% Pima Cotton/20% Nylon. Sea Island cotton is available in the 80/20 blend as well as 100% Pure Sea Island which I consider the best cotton sock ... by far. The pure Sea Island is a very thin sock offering great coolness and extremely soft hand. The blends are a bit thicker and offer greater longevity.
Cotton terry used for athletic socks is an exception to the slimy/clammy caveat. Athletic socks are generally worn for a shorter period of time and the terry helps keep the foot dry. Additionally, the terry does a wonderful job of absorbing a considerable amount of foot shock. Cotton terry athletic socks are vastly superior to the widely touted acrylic and other synthetic "modern" crew socks. Reasons for this include the fact that the synthetic socks are not only extremely odor-retentive but also nowhere near as soft and comfortable as natural cotton.
Cashmere
There is nothing like a cashmere sock for softness, warmth, and color beauty. Possessing the best qualities of merino - wicking, warmth, and cushion - but ever-so-much softer, cashmere is regarded as the most noble of fibers. Its main advantage is extreme warmth, for no other sock will keep the wearer as comfortable on cold days.
A Variety of Cashmere for Men and Women
Cashmere's downside is that it lacks strength. To be more specific, know this: Most cashmere is from the Himalayas. While reknowned for it's softness this is also the weakest cashmere. Other cashmeres originating in Afghanistan and New Zealand offer ever-so-slightly less in softness but are much superior in strength. Our 75-80% Cashmere/20-25% Nylon Marcoliani cashmere socks use this special blend and can comfortably offer 35-50 proper launderings. Contrast this with our 100% cashmere socks from Bresciani and Zimmerli which will begin to wear around the 20-25 launderings range. In this arena you need to make your decision based on softness vs. economics although, frankly, when ordering cashmere, economics is not near the top of anyone's list except for this caveat:
The vast majority of "cashmere" socks available on today's market are blends containing from 8% to 30% cashmere. Any cashmere sock containing less than 55% cashmere has lost most of the advantages of this luxury fibre and should be disregarded.
Contrast cashmere with ...
Cashmere & Silk Blend
Silk is one of the strongest natural fibers. Properly blending silk with cashmere counteracts the inherent weakness of the cashmere fiber and yields one of the most durable luxury socks available while sacrificing only a small amount of cashmere's warmth.
Mens Over-the-Calf and Womens Knee-High Cashmere & Silk Argyles of 60% Cashmere/24% Silk/14% Nylon >
Silk takes dye colors better than any other natural fiber and its lustre is unlike any other. The cashmere/silk blend yarns are usually slightly thinner than the plain cashmere yarns. This makes possible patterns with much greater definition and clarity than in solely cashmere renditions. The result is a vibrant, lustrous, highly defined sock of great longevity and a high degree of warmth.
Silk
Silk holds dye colors more willingly than any other fiber yielding the most vibrant, strongest colors. Silk has a lustre unlike any other natural fiber. To repeat from above, silk is a very strong fiber in terms of tensile strength. However, it is also subject to abrasion with poorly fitting shoes. For this reason, most "one-size" silk socks are heavily infused with nylon to retain durability. Blends of 50% Silk/50% Nylon are common. Additionally, be aware that the thinness of the silk yarns make them susceptible to fingernail snags.
Though pure silk socks are extremely rare, you may have noticed that we have quite large selection of 100% Silk socks. This is because we are "sock nuts" and have commissioned an inordinate number of these in lengths ranging from mens' mid-calf to womens' luscious thigh-highs. They are all sized socks. This enables the wearer to achieve proper fit thereby reducing the occurrence of abrasion by shoe slippage and sock stress.
Silk's main advantages include unparalleled beauty, brilliant lustre, buttery soft feel, and its performance as a great temperature regulator keeping the wearer cooler on warm days and warmer on colder days.
Linen
Flax is the strongest of natural fibers offering unequaled longevity. That said, durability is not one of the oft-touted reasons for wearing linen socks. Their appearance simply exudes "essence of Summer". They are extraordinarily breathable and cool to wear. Finally, when worn with linen trousers, they offer a cohesive appearance unattainable with any other sock fiber.
Linen dyes strongly and yields bright colors well although it is equally favored for beautiful heathered shades.
Linen in a strong Brandy and
a subdued Heather Blue >
If linen has a disadvantage it would be less of an ability to stay in place than other socks. This is due primarily to the slickness of the fiber's surface.
Baby Camel Hair
Although esoteric and rare, baby camel hair offers all of the same attractive qualities of merino wool. Slightly heavier and usually used for a somewhat thicker sock, this natural fiber is quite durable. The fibers are slightly harder than merino and therefore not quite as soft-feeling. We have ours blended with a slight touch of silk for lustre and color. The main downside of this fiber is its scarcity. Some years it is simply not available for love nor money.
Personally speaking
My personal picks, season by season ... and why:
For general wear in Spring and Fall I am a devotee of over-the-calf extrafine merino for dress wear. I like the warmth, the cushion, the wicking ability, and the wide variety of beautiful designs available in this wonderful fiber. Weekends or more casual dress may cause a switch to mid-calf merinos in brighter bolder designs and colors.
When not wearing a suit colder Winter days merit cashmere. Mid-calf length with jeans and polos, over-the-calf with cords or khakis and in the evening with woolen trousers and collared shirts. For Winter dress wear the cashmere & silk blend - a slightly thinner and more elegant sock - is my preferred choice both for appearance as well as warmth and comfort.
Summer heat brings the switch to cool cottons. For business, over-the-calf is essential and a variety of patterns abound. Casual wear shorts and jeans mandate the switch to mid-calf length. Summer whites demand over-the-calf. Linens wear best with mid-calf length in heathers for paler dress and bolder solids for more colorful attire.
Special occasions:
Formal wear demands Over-the-Calf Silk or specially designed Silk and Cotton blends. Nothing else is proper. Accepted colors are Red, Burgundy, Midnight, soft White and, of course, Black.
For athletics in all but the coldest weather, cotton terry is my personal favorite. Skiing or similar and I'll bring out our heavyweight merino boot socks.
NEXT WEEK
Watch Your E-mail for the
Online Debut of Gerbe-Paris
Top Quality Luxury Hosiery From France
From Gerbe-Paris:
Beautiful Colors Tights in a fashionably trendy array of hot colors
... also available in Capris.
Be sure not to miss the Private Sneak Peek at our
Brand New Swimwear Collection
from France and Italy.
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