We love shoes at Ped—no surprise there!—but we’re also crazy about accessorizing them with socks! Sure, Ped’s shoes are comfortable barefoot, but pairing them with the fun funkiness of a pair of Antipast or Mia Zia socks gives a whole new twist to their personalities! And socks aren’t just for chilly days anymore—wearing a cute pair with sandals is all the rage on the runways this year!

Think how sassy any of the following would look with, say, Fiorentini + Baker’s Eliza Oxford, Vialis’s Eloisa, or even Chie Mihara’s Yoisho (for those of you who like to go bold with your style)!

It’s always a party at Ped HQ when we get a shipment from Antipast! Mother-daughter team, Emiko and Junko take such a playful approach to design. One of our Antipast favorites this season is the La Vie en Rose ankle sock:

A garden of flowers bloom across this sweet number, but what makes it really special is the sheer area just below elastic ruching at the top! Innovative and eye-catching!

Another dazzler, which looks particularly great with a knee-length or shorter skirt, is Antipast’s Spangle Knee High:

Fun and bubbly! We smile every time we look at the way the looping part of the pattern combines with the ruffly top! (We also have Antipast’s Spangle goodness in a trouser-length sock.)

An even more colorful, bubbly style is Antipast’s Puzzle Dots Sock:

There’s an ongoing debate in the warehouse about whether this trouser-length sock looks more like lollipops or a colorful honeycomb. One thing we all agree on, though, is how fab it is! (Ped also has the Puzzle Dots pattern in a knee-high.)

Everyone knows how much we go gaga for stripes. Happily, both Antipast and Mia Zia have satisfied our stripe craving this spring! First, Antipast’s Beach Chair Knee High:

This zesty knee high is perfectly named because its stripes recall those great canvas chairs we love to lounge in by the sea! If you like your socks on the shorter side, though, the Beach Chair stripes are also available in trouser-length.

Mia Zia also has stripes galore for adding zing to your spring and summer:

For stripe lovers, it doesn’t get any better than Mia Zia’s cottony-wonderful Mini Stripe socks! (They also come in a knee-high version.) Here’s an idea for a modern look:

That’s Mia Zia’s Mini-Stripe sock in Olive paired with the Vialis Eloisa.

For sheer, unabashed fun, though, the hands-down (feet-down?) sock winner is Antipast’s Jungle Check Sock:

Only Antipast would think to mix a cheetah print with a gingham pattern in summer colors! We are smitten! (Want even more? There’s a Jungle Check Knee High!)  If you feel like pulling the stops out on your style, then how about this combo:

That’s Antipast’s Jungle Check in purple paired with Chie Mihara’s Yoisho! We admit it’s a “lot of look,” as Tim Gunn would say, but it’s also crazy, flirty fun!

Whenever an outfit needs a colorful pick-me-up, our best advice is to rock the socks!

(By the way, this week’s Sweet Treat is Coclico’s sizzling Lucifer heeled sandal! Just click “be sweet to your feet” in the upper right corner of any Ped page and be transported to the Lucifer with the magic check-out code that will let you set the world on fire for 20% off!)
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As much as we enjoy our winter woolens, we also enjoy putting them away when spring sails in with warmer weather! Nevertheless, we still need a little coziness in the early morning and after the sun goes down. Plus, it’s nice to to spice up a summer outfit with an extra dash of color and pattern. Just in time to fulfill both needs are the latest scarves from Epice and Sophie Digard!

Designed in Denmark and handcrafted by master weavers in India, Epice‘s gorgeous scarves are meticulously loomed from fine cotton and linen. Each is also wide enough to wear as a shawl when your shoulders get chilly. Meanwhile, Sophie Digard, the inimitable Parisian queen of crochet, always wows us with her linen creations that are light and soft wearable works of art!

Below is a sampling of our warm-weather favorites from Epice and Sophie!

Epice is famous for their imaginative use of color, exemplified by the bold, tropical palette of this new Casablanca Scarf:

Carmine, turquoise, yellow and khaki look so lively—it’s impossible to be in a bad mood when you have this fun linen and cotton scarf wound around your neck!

But if you prefer to make a quieter style statement, see what you think of Epice’s 100% linen Parisian Spring Scarf:

Graceful arabesques in cream dance across a warm gray background, perfectly accented with a patterned aqua border. So pretty!

Another Epice style that makes us sigh with delight is the Indian Summer Scarf:

A stylized floral pattern is interpreted in three different color combinations: cream and blue, grey and citron, and brown and turquoise. The ultralight fabric is 70% linen and 30% cotton, yielding a drop-dead gorgeous scarf that’s an ideal summer weight!

Of course, Sophie Digard knows to how thrill with flowers, too! Check out the sweetness of her new Love & Chance Scarf:

Handmade velvet posies scatter across this grass green linen scarf—the very essence of summer!!! As you know, I have a weakness for anything green, but Ped also offers the Love & Chance scarf in ecru for those of you who love all things cream.

Needless to say, Sophie  has created a slue of new crocheted designs in lovely linen. One of the loveliest is the Confetti Scarf!

We keep picking up this scarf because its pattern of small diamonds interspersed among larger concentric circles—each with a tufted velvet center—is so mesmerizing. The variation in colors is delicious against a background of pale blue. (Use the “zoom” tool to fully appreciate this beauty!)

But perhaps our favorite of all the wonderful scarves this season is Sophie Digard’s super-super-super-cool Ecouter Summer Scarf:

The design of this scarf is so innovative!!! Sophie crochets an open honeycomb in a juicy summer palette of pink, turquoise, red, mustard, blue, and more on one half of the Ecouter’s length; on the other half, she uses the same palette to create tiny parallel stripes that separate and twist into fantastic fringe at the end! Did I mention the Ecouter is super cool? It’s SUPER COOL! (We also have the Ecouter Scarf in a springy pastel palette.)

And there are more designs from both Epice and Sophie Digard to dazzle you at Ped’s main site. Whether you’re looking for a light wrap or a beautiful and unique accessory to enliven your wardrobe, Epice and Sophie Digard have you covered!

(Psst, you have just one more day to enjoy a 20% discount on Chie Mihara’s Lorensa as this week’s sweet treat. Click “be sweet to your feet” in the top right corner of any Ped page to reach the Lorensa with the discount code that makes the price extra nice at checkout.)

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Spring has arrived in Ped-land, and although we love how the leaves are leafing and the buds are budding, the daily variations in the mercury make getting dressed a challenge. The forecast may call for a warm afternoon, but, brrr, that first step out the door in the morning can be brisk. Which is why at this time of year, a scarf is our constant companion! Not only does it keep us cozy, but it also spices up outfits with a little extra zing. Once the temperature rises, we can either loosen it or take it off and tie it around our handbag’s strap (that way, we keep the zest).

Luckily, Ped has new scarves from both Mia Zia and Sophie Digard, ideal for navigating the transitional season. Here are just a few of our favorites:

We are wild about dots here at Ped, so Mia Zia’s Dotti Scarf is high on our list! It’s such an instant pick-me-up. Loomed from ultra-soft cotton, it feels so good against your skin.

You say you’d like a little texture  with your dots, thank you? Then say hello to Sophie Digard’s Gumdrop Scarf! Ms. Digard, our favorite Parisian textile artist, wows with this playful design that charms with multicolored velvet hemispheres hand-sewn to the prettiest colored linen (it also comes in grass green).

Speaking of green, the Mia Zia Willow Scarf received an invitation to join the Ped family the instant we saw it:

Doesn’t the color make you think of sunny days in the garden? Mia Zia’s woven fabrics are so exquisite that they have to be touched and seen in person to be fully appreciated! And if green isn’t your scene, the Willow also comes in go-with-everything grey.

Another grey beauty is Sophie Digard’s Bauble Scarf, created in linen for warm-weather wear:

Every tiny sphere adorning this crocheted masterpiece is a world unto itself—no two baubles are the same. Truly, Sophie’s creations are labor-intensive works of art!

Plus, we admire how she’s always changing things up and venturing in new directions! One of the most innovative scarves this season is Sophie’s Serendipity Scarf:

This striped wonder incorporates an organic-shaped curve in its design that makes it especially easy to twine around your neck or drape across your shoulders. And the colors? They make us daydream about beach cabanas under a Mediterranean sun by an azure sea.

Of course, if you long for a classic Sophie Digard scarf that expresses her unique approach to crochet-work and color, the linen Maccaron will make you smile:

In a word, tasty!

More wonderful scarves await at the Ped site! Settling on one may be hard, but, luckily, there’s absolutely no way to go wrong. So, wrap up and rock out!

Dayna may be off having high tea in Singapore and riding elephants in Thailand, but Ped’s blog must go on! Laura, here, standing in for our fearless leader and bringing you great news: the latest shipment of Mia Zia loveliness has just arrived at Ped! Inspired by all things Moroccan, Mia Zia  is renowned for its way with tassels, stripes, and wonderfully woven textiles. Everything the company produces treasures is a delight to see and touch!

Here are a few of Mia Zia’s latest things that have everyone at Ped HQ swooning:

It’s as if Mia Zia took everything that’s good about summer and infused it into this fresh and playful Fiji scarf! The hand-printed stripes and tassels are so zesty! They make us want to kick up our heels and dance down the beach! (Maybe that’s what Dayna’s doing…)

MIa Zia’s crinkled silk scarf is luxurious and sophisticated without sacrificing its sense of fun. Silk is one of those wonderful fabrics that offers warmth in winter but remains airy and breathable in summer. Pretty as a scarf. Pretty as a shawl. Pretty as a sash wrapped around your waist!

Of all of Ped’s Mia Zia treasures, the Parisian Market basket, modeled on traditional baskets women take to bazaars throughout Morocco, may just be our favorite! This tightly woven raffia beauty is HUGE, which means it’s ideal for a day at the beach or a trip to the farmer’s market—or for catching everything you forgot to pack in your main suitcase when you’re bolting out the door to catch your plane. No matter what kind of a rush we’re in, those Mia Zia tassels never fail to make us smile!

So, why not add a little Moroccan spice to your life with Mia Zia?