OK, I'm frugal. I spend as little as possible on things for myself.

[Paper Roses]

Sometimes it becomes necessary to outfit this body with something that didn't come from a thrift store. Yesterday I wend shopping for wool or wool blend socks. My feet are cold and you fine folks at DU suggested I should not be wearing cotton socks in the winter.

Off to our local discount store. I went to Marshall's, T.J Maxx and then headed for a store that sells job lots, overruns etc.

Please tell me why it is so hard to find mid-leg length socks? Fancy brands abound but I just need socks, not labels.

It is December! Why are all the stores I went to showing racks and walls of what I used to call tennis socks. To the ankle or just to the back of the heel? This is winter and there were thousands of cute little white or print tennis socks. The choices for what I want were very limited. You could also find tons of fleece socks. Fine for an evening reading a book. Won't fit into your shoes. Boots, maybe.
Mens socks were a better selection but they are really too big for my feet.

I finally found 5 pair at a very fair price at the job lot store. The sock wall, probably 8' high and 12'long was filled with fleece and tennis stuff.

Scrounging within the wide area at the base(it was a mess), I was able to pick up some wool blends that fit the bill.

Seems to me this is bad seasonal merchandising on the parts of all the stores I went to. Sure Macy's or Nordstrom's would have what I want but I paid $11.00 for 5 pair. At those stores, it would probably be that price for one pair.

[LiberalEsto]

1. Go for men's work socks

I bought several pairs at the long-gone Ames department store maybe 10 years ago, and I'm still wearing a pair today. They are not wool (I'm allergic to wool), they're some kind of cotton blend with the thickness and texture of a sweatshirt, and they come maybe 1/3 of the way up my calf. I can't believe they've lasted as long as they have.

Another stay-warm suggestion: almost 30 years ago I spent part of a winter shivering in Oxford, Massachusetts. While waiting for a bus one day, I learned a tip from some factory workers. The guys confessed that they all wore pantyhose under their work pants and socks because that thin extra layer kept them amazingly warm in bitter cold weather. They got old, worn out pantyhose from their wives.

Ever since then, I've been doing the same thing when it's extremely cold -- wearing old pantyhose under my jeans. My daughters and my husband do it too when necessary.

[Paper Roses]

2. Thanks for the tips. I have many pair of the knee high pantyhose

and can easily wear those under my new socks. I put the cotton socks in the attic for the winter.
Oxford, MA. I grew up in Sutton, well my family lived there for many years. I left at 18 for college and never moved back. The area was a little too suburban for me.

[NMDemDist2]

3. get a hat

if your feet are cold, wear a hat

it helps! I have a nice fleece bucket hat I wear around the house when the temps dip and along with my slippers, my feet stay toasty. and if you're at all handy, sewing your own is a breeze, just google it. you can get fabric at most thrift stores

:hi:

[Warpy]

4. You can find wool socks at sporting goods and camping outfitters

They will not be things of beauty, but they can help in winter.

Even pricier but better, IMO, are the polarfleece socks from Acorn. Amazon has them, as well as several other places. They do fit in running shoes.

Or you can learn to knit. Socks aren't that hard, really, and hand knit ones are ten times as warm as the commercial jobs.

[Lars39]

5. I came across a warm solution yesterday...

I wore a pair of knee-high trouser socks over a pair of cotton socks. The polyester of the trouser socks kept the warmth in, and the cotton absorbed the moisture. The trouser socks I have are like really thick hose, and cheap. I think they were just a few bucks for 3 pairs.

[Paper Roses]

6. Update re: cold feet.

Since I first posted about cold feet, I first tried the knee high stockings with wool blend socks over them. My intention was to try any remedy offered.

No need for me to do any other experimenting. Bingo on first option. My feet have been warm for these 2 weeks plus.

How could I have missed something so simple. This is incredible thing for me. I have the heat way down and throw on a fleece over my sweatshirt. Pretty comfortable, especially so with heating oil here at $3.25 a gallon.

[NMDemDist2]

7. well done and just in time for the blizzard eh?

another trick I just started was I found a 100% cashmere shawl on ebay for about $5 that's 72x23" and it's just the perfect weight to toss around my shoulders and spread over my legs for that extra little cozy when the drafts are bad

[trud]

8. I can see I'm late to the party

Footlocker used to have what you're looking for, but they discontinued them. Stop & Shop tends to have something like this tucked away in corners, but they are a bit thin and too stretchy-grabby for my taste.

I've been reading a lot of farm blogs lately and people, esp. the sheepie raisers, knit socks. Quite nifty looking, and you choose your own colors and length. I don't know the cost, but some erratic web grubbing makes me guess $2 a pair.