It’s practically proverbial that sandals with socks are a Bad Thing. and I cannot for the life of me figure out why.
I have very heat-sensitive feet, so I can’t wear closed-toed shoes except in extremely cold weather. Thus my options the rest of the time are sandals, sandals with socks, or sandals with two layers of socks. No one yet has ever taken a look at me and shrieked, “Dear heavens! She has socks on!”
Do people really pay that much attention to other people’s feet?
I would notice, but not care. It’s your feet. I wouldn’t ever wear socks with sandals, but then I don’t have your condition. To me, if you’re going to wear socks with sandals you might as well wear shoes!
Probably the same reason they hate mullets, short shorts on men, Nehru jackets and any other tacky fashion, it’s ugly.
Ok, I have two serious questions.
If you have very heat sensitive feet what is the real difference between two pair of socks and sandals vs light cloth tennis shoes and no socks?
Do you not think any fashion is tacky? Do like, say, old men in speedos? If you do find some fashion ugly then you have the answer to your OP, personal tastes.
I don’t know why it feels different. For that matter, if I absolutely have to wear close-toed shoes, I can tolerate it if I don’t wear socks. But something about socks + shoes is extremely uncomfortable for me at normal temperature.
If it’s personal taste, I just find it odd that so many people have the same seemingly-random personal taste, and feel so strongly about it.
Come to think of it, my reaction to other people’s clothing is mostly along the lines of “I love that color!” and “Ooh, shiny!” and “I love that shiny color!”. Otherwise, I don’t usually notice.
Yes, people pay attention to other people’s feet. Because for one, they look at other people (“head to toe”), for another, as my late father used to say, “A man is judged by the state of his shoes,” (well-heeled), and third, people want other people to look at their feet (that’s one reason sandals are so fashionable, and one reason women paint their toenails – so they can look attractive).
Robert Klein had a bit where he said if you see a man wearing sandals and socks, he’s going to have a foreign accent. That used to be true in the 60s and 70s, not so today. But I think what we can say about that is that for one thing, sandals and socks looks “old,” as in old men used to wear them. While younger people didn’t see that sort of thing, that mentality is going away.
Today, I think people hate them because fashionably, they don’t go together. It’s like wearing a tuxedo and Converse tennis shoes. It just doesn’t look right.
I hate sandals and socks, but I also keep that opinion to myself.
I don’t wear sandals or flip flops or anything like that. But if your 10 toes point in 37 different directions at once, either put socks on or wear shoes. I think feet are the ugliest part of the body, so I’m not exactly unbiased.
Sure, fashion is an arbitrary thing. But even arbitrary things have certain conventions and rules. Socks & sandals being a violation of said rules.
It looks sloppy and incongruent. Sandals are worn presumably to protect feet in hot climates or conditions. Adding socks seems to violate the intended premise of a sandal.
I’m of the belief that sandals are almost never appropriate attire for male adults, unless you’re at the beach. Women have far more leeway as far as open shoes go. That’s probably because women who wear open shoes take better care of their feet and their feet aren’t giant and hairy. Again, completely arbitrary convention, but convention nonetheless.
I think it is considered much more of a fashion crime with men versus women. It may be sexist, but there ya go. And especially if the socks are white and the sandals are black or brown. It turns the contrast up to 11. I think if they are sort of the same color it looks better and is fine.
I personally love socks and shoes, it feels cozy. But I also love tights and panty hose and despise going barelegged, as I usually find myself in some freezing office or store. I have perpetually cold feet, so I rarely wear open shoes or flip flops unless I am at the beach. Being a female I feel I can get away with the socks and shoes look easier than a man.
The thing I hate is shoes with no socks. Ewwww! Feels gross and rubs blisters.
And yes, I was one of those chicks in the 80s who wore socks with my flats and pumps and rocked that shit in my 20s. I am starting to do so again now, although in a much more subdued way as it seems that look is coming back into style.
I personally don’t care what you wear at all. Go completely naked, or wear a wool one-piece bear suit, or tin-foil gaiters with suspenders, polyester chaps and a fake tuxedo t-shirt. Wear a lizard costume. Whatever. Knock yourself out.
But I personally won’t wear socks with sandals because it defeats the purpose of sandals. Sandals are open to expose your feet to the elements, to keep them cool or get some sun. If you’re going to put socks on, might as well wear shoes too. And actually, I haven’t worn sandals for a couple of years now, as I rarely swim or go to the beach and I see no other reason to wear them. But if I did, I wouldn’t wear socks.
Well, not to your face maybe.
Dare I ask, do you go out in public like this?
Socks with flip-flops is my thing.
I dunno, I’ve seen the younger set wearing them more and more.
People hate socks and sandals because people spend way to much damn time worrying about stuff that has absolutely zero effect on them or society in general.
Fucking hipsters.
I’m not sure anyone is particularly worried about it. People can have an opinion about something without actually becoming emotionally invested in it.
I wear socks and sandals (not flip flops) around my apartment.
Why? Because I put my socks on in the morning and take them off when I go to bed. In between, when I’m in my apartment, I wear sandals because I have two cats and half the universe’s supply of cat toys. Wearing the sandals means I don’t get hurt stepping on toys or pick up kitty litter that, as cat owners know, tends to migrate.
When I leave the apartment to go out somewhere, pop off the sandals, put on real shoes. When I come home, pop off the shoes, put the sandals back on.
Really don’t care what anyone thinks of it.
But then, I always wear black socks, with maybe a couple of very dark blue pairs. With brown sandals, there’s not that high contrast, horrifyingly white socks with dark sandals thing going on.
It’s not only personal taste; it’s personal taste by some People, who influence the majority of Society.
That’s why what’s accepted by Fashion changes over decades, and varies from culture to culture.
So one should never wear neon colored Nickelback socks while wearing Kardashian branded sandals. Got it. 
Aside from personal Problems/ preferences, there are certain situations where socks and sandals do make sense:
you’re around water, so you want sandals, not open shoes, because getting shoes wet (even Cotton summer shoes) is more hassle than (usually plastic) sandals.
(If a thunderstorm with rain is likely in the afternoon, wearing plastic sandals without socks while it’s hot, and a pair of socks + small towel in bag is a more practical solution than shoes: once the rain has stopped, the air is much cooler, but drying off bare feet and then putting on socks keeps you warm, unlike wearing soaked-through shoes with socks.)
you leave the house in the morning, when it’s still cool, but you know it’s going to get hot during the day. Starting with socks + sandals Keeps your feet warm in the morning (+ evening), during the day, you take the socks off.
Many sandals are plastic. So if you worry about Hygiene, or don’t like the feel of plastic directly on your Skin, socks help, but it’s still a more “open” Feeling/ more breathing Ventilation than in thin shoes.
Some sandals are leather, but if you don’t know how the leather was treated, wearing them barefoot while sweating can release chemicals/ heavy metals which are absorbed through your feet. Socks stop that a bit, along with the corrosion of your sweat on the leather.