Editor column: Can I wear socks with Crocs?

By Mike Bollinger

As the weather has gotten warmer, I have begun to wear my Crocs again. I have pretty much stopped wearing what used to be a warm weather staple for me, flip-flops. I find Crocs to be much more comfortable.

I’ve heard a lot that you don’t wear socks with sandals. I’ve seen that described as the “German on vacation” look.

But are Crocs considered sandals? Or, are they shoes? According to Wikipedia, they are neither, but instead are clogs.

According to footwearnews. com, Crocs were inspired by Dutch clogs and were originally intended to be boating shoes. And, as you might guess from the name, they are indeed named after the crocodile. The name was chosen since they were originally designed to perform on both land and in water.

The first Crocs model, called the “Beach,” was introduced at the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show in 2002. Each pair of Crocs, no matter what size, has 13 holes. The holes serve as ventilation and let out excess moisture to keep the shoes smelling fresh.

Since their inception, there have been more than 200 million pairs of Crocs sold worldwide. They are available in more than 90 countries.

In addition, there is a Crocs rain boot that goes above the ankle and doesn’t have the signature holes.

Want to decorate your Crocs? There is also a collection of charms called Jibbitz that will attach to them. These can be purchased in themes such as Hello Kitty, Minecraft, NBA teams, Winnie the Pooh, Looney Tunes and many others.

Celebrities who wear Crocs include John Cena, Whoopi Goldberg, Prince George (son of William and Catherine), Justin Bieber, Al Pacino and Bad Bunny. Athletes who wear them include hockey player

Sidney Crosby, football player Tom Brady, retired basketball player Dirk Nowitzki and basketball player C.J. McCollum.

A quick survey in which six people responded reveals four people saying I should wear socks with them if I want and two saying absolutely not.

Crocs.com offers a “starter pack” which consists of a pair of Crocs and three pairs of socks. They also offer the “ultimate Crocs pack” which has a pair of Crocs, a pair of socks and a container of Crocs Shine to keep the Crocs looking spiffy. Who knew there was such a thing as Crocs Shine?

Since they offer socks, I’m going to say the people at Crocs believe it’s OK to wear them with their clogs. In fact, they offer socks in many different colors. Crocs.com says “The debate goes on about wearing Crocs with socks, but we want you to come as you are.”

Bustle.com says the roomy design of Crocs will accommodate various sock thicknesses that will allow them to be worn in cold weather as well as warm. Quora.com answers the question by saying Crocs are designed to be comfortable with or without socks.

Wearablyweird.com says the best way to wear socks with Crocs is to wear quarter-length or half-length socks. They say it looks “goofy” to wear full-length socks with Crocs.

Socksadviser.com says it is more fashionable to wear them without socks. However, this same website says the trend now is to wear them with socks.

I have worn them both ways, and find them to be more comfortable with socks. And thus, this is what I will do most of the time. I’ve never been really fashionable anyway.