help save fuzzy footwear

Do you have a favorite pair of socks?

Striped or spotted?

Cotton or wool?

Knee-high or nipped at the ankle?

Mine are … all of the above, depending on the season and the pair of boots or shoes I’m wearing.

Let’s face it, a good sock is not only a foot’s best friend, it’s a bit of flair that we can hide under pants …

or flaunt and share.

In my mom’s day and long before that, people were loyal to their socks. It wasn’t so much about fashion as practicality, and it didn’t make sense to throw away a perfectly good pair simply because their heels showed wear.

Alas, mending is becoming a thing of the past, and lots of socks end up in the trash.

But sock startup Nice Laundry is making it their mission to save fuzzy footwear from this sad and eco-unfriendly fate.

Phase One: Nice Laundry’s pedi-preneurs are selling socks. Great socks.

“We started by taking what we loved from one of our favorite $38 pair of socks and then obsessed over every detail: the patterns, material composition, cuff height, and more,” explain co-founders Ricky Choi and Phil Moldavski.

But instead of paying premium prices, you can get six pairs of Nice Laundry socks for $39, or replace your whole sock drawer for under $90.

Photo courtesy of NiceLaundry.com

Phase Two: Ricky and Phil are bent on recycling.

Prepaid return shipping labels come with every order. Send back your old socks and Nice Laundry will recycle them. “A significant percentage will be reused and repurposed,” they say, “while the balance will be converted into recycled fibers.”

Fact: the U.S. wastes some 21 billion pounds of textiles annually.

The Nice Laundry guys want to do their part to get that number down to zero, and they’re inviting you to help make it happen.

Head over to their Kickstarter page, where you can pledge $ to boost their business, get a 6-pack (or more) of super-cute socks, and launch a new era of sock-cycling.

Photo courtesy of NiceLaundry.com