The Fashionable Man’s Guide to Wearing Socks

French lawyer Jean Anthelme Brillat-Savarin once said, "Tell me what you eat and I will tell you what you are." You can take this a step further; tell me what socks you wear -- and when -- and I will tell you whether you are in desperate need of this men's fashion guide to footwear.

The 3 Cardinal Sins of Wearing Socks (or: Don't do it!)

1. You wear sandals and pair them with socks. (Subtract extra demerit points if the socks are ankle length or black.) This is a common sight during the summer. Either commit to the well-ventilated warmth of the sandal or retreat to the relative warmth of the tennis shoe.
2. You wear socks until they fall apart. Another common mistake is the assumption that nobody will notice the hole in your sock; should you find yourself at a Japanese restaurant for a work-related lunch, your shredded footwear will become common knowledge.
3. Socks are too short for the occasion. As you sit down, your pants ride up and your socks and fish-belly white legs show. Ouch!

If you commit any one of these three footwear faux pas, it is time to read on.

Choosing the Right Color (Bonus: It can make you look taller or shorter, too!)

It has been said that a gentleman always matches his socks to complement his trousers' color. Although sage advice, throw in your lot with The Mitchelli, who advises to wear socks that either clearly contrast or complement the color of your pants. Just do not be in the middle; decisively come down on one side of the equation or the other.

By the way, if you are uncomfortable with your height, consider matching the sock color to your shoes; this will visually make you appear a bit shorter. If you would like to add an inch via optical illusion, match the color to the pants.

Choosing the Right Type

The white tube sock is to be worn only during sports activities. You can probably get away with pairing the socks with your jeans, but this is about the extent of white-sock wear. Never wear white sports socks with a business suit. In his work "The Story of Men's Underwear," author Shaun Cole quotes fashion editor Luke Day, who believed in the 1980s that wearing white socks with suits was an "anti-conventionalist approach" that had merit, was "more real" and therefore an individualist's approach. This trend died out about as quickly as the big-hair fad of the 1980s.

While white socks are for sports activities, a black-tie event calls for knee-high socks with sheen. Obviously, the color matches the trousers or the shoes. A more relaxed setting at the office calls for argyle or flannel. In these settings, knee-length socks are always better than low-cut versions or ankle-length footwear. If you want to be more formal than business-casual at the office but not quite so formal as to demand a black suit and tie, go for cashmere or silk socks.