Russian Socks

I was born in faraway Kyrgyzstan, but moved to the heart of Russia at an early age and believe me; I know what it’s like to have cold feet. A long time ago, I was also on the market in my mother’s stall with clothes and woolen stuff. When I came to the west a few years ago, my suitcase was full of super warm woolen stuff, including of course Russian socks!

In the meantime I have built a whole new life here. My new Dutch and Belgian friends really wanted to know where I got those beautiful woolen things. So they asked me every time I went back to Russia on a family visit, to bring them those lovely warm woolen Russian socks.

One thing led to another and Russian Socks is the result! My family, brother, mom and babushka already had a small clothing store in Russia and they help me find the best addresses for my collection. Like that, I buy the most beautiful products directly from artisan workshops. I hope there is something for you too!

Are you curious about the charm and benefits of handcrafted wool products such as Russian socks? I hope I can warm you with this website! For the past five years I have been making serious work of my shop and collecting the finest woolen items in Russia. I was especially surprised that everyone here was so amazed at the quality of my Russian socks. After all, that was quite normal in my eyes? However, nobody had seen them in the shops so warm, thick and soft!

It soon became clear that people here in the west are mainly used to mass production. And with mass production, quantity comes at the expense of quality. Just look at what comes from China these days. That certainly applies to natural products such as beautiful sheep’s wool and goat’s wool. You can’t make them in a big factory and still keep the luscious quality! The decision was quickly made. We went to get beautiful woolen things like our Russian socks. I put my husband to build and soon the Russian Socks webshop was a fact! We have already made a lot of people happy over the years!

The region where our Russian socks come from has been known in Russia for its wool for centuries. Until the late 19th century it was inhabited by itinerant tribes who mainly lived from sheep and goat farming. After all, plenty of space! That is why there is still a strong wool culture in that area, which you can see in many local markets. The wool products are transported from there to all corners of Russia.

In Russia people used to not know socks, but they wrapped their feet in bandages. Those were canvases called Portyanki. They were made of wool or cotton, depending on the temperature. The cloth was wrapped around the foot. The boot or shoe followed. I should not think about it! An anecdote tells that many Russian soldiers even wore Portyanki until 2013. And you know what’s funnier? The idea was taken over from the Dutch army by Tsar Peter the Great in the 17th century!