Blacksocks.com: An infinite supply of black socks

http://www.crunchgear.com/2009/05/15/blacksockscom-an-infinite-supply-of-black-socks/

by vaksel • 17 years ago

21 17 17 years ago

stcredzero• 17 years ago

Reminds me of the Amazon efficiency expert who "optimized" her family's laundry by creating a common pool of white socks. Most females would not pick white socks.

vaksel2• 17 years ago

the prices seem a little big high, sure they are probably some good material, but still. And sure you get to save money if you get a subscription, but its not much. I mean sure its convenient, but its just socks/underwear/tshirts, its not something people splurge on

  Calf Socks - $10/pair
  Knee Socks - $13/pair
  Sneaker Socks - $10/pair
  Silk Socks - $27/pair
  Boxers 1st type - $45/pair
  Boxers 2nd type - $39/pair
  Briefs 1st type - $32/pair
  Briefs 2nd type - $24/pair
  Tshirts 1st type - $47/pair
  Tshirts 2nd type - $55/pair

blhack2• 17 years ago

I don't get this either...I seems like the most they send you is 3 pairs of socks every 14 days? Something seems a bit off there.

This is why this sort of thing would never work for me...My routine when I get home is:

Come in the door, pet the dog. Set the laptop down on the table, grab a beer from the refrigerator, walk out to the back yard, sit on the patio, kick my socks off, and start playing fetch with the dog. My socks end up in a pile on the patio and end up getting thrown away. If this place was 7 socks for 7 dollars delivered weekly I would sign up today.

It is tough to justify the cost for this, especially when i can go to walmart and get ~10 pairs of black socks for $4.

Maybe this is not aimed at nerds? (I'm thinking not).

Cool idea though. I'm with the person below here that says they get their shirts from woot. So do I. Woot is so amazingly perfect, I wish they did dress clothes as well...there are no choices to make, yes, or no. That is it. You say yes and you have a shirt at your door (or in my case, my office) the next day.

mattmichielsen• 17 years ago

I can't ever see myself spending more than $1/pair of socks. That just seems ridiculously frivolous.

nop2• 17 years ago

I wish there was this for regular clothes. I virtually never go out and buy clothes (lack of time, interest etc.) until my old ones starts to wear, it's pretty much a maintenance thing for me. I'd just like to put in my measurements, maybe rate a few clothes I so it knows what I like and then have stuff magically appear every now and again. I'm sure a random fashionable person would improve my looks by actually having taste. :P

http://shirt.woot.com is nice for T's at least but I don't think it would work well for anything more expensive or less expressive than that.

vaksel2• 17 years ago

Threadless does it for tshirts:

http://www.threadless.com/12club

ibsulon• 17 years ago

You should be sending any clothes you buy to a tailor regardless of how you buy the clothes. Further, you can't buy clothes off the rack without trying them on! Skin tones are different and you really need to try the clothes on.

biohacker42• 17 years ago

I and the grandparent know this, but we're cheap lazy and hate shopping.

(Apologies to the grandparent if it's just me.)

nop2• 17 years ago

I'm a student so going to a tailor is out of the question although I'm not so sure I'd even think of that on my own if I had bundles of money. I guess I should try that sometime.

I've been fairly happy with the clothes I've bought by mail order though, there's been a few snags sure but you can send them back and it tends to be cheaper. I do go to the store sometimes, especially for jeans as it's hard to find pairs that fit me since I've got skinny long legs.

As for the skin color thing, I can honestly say that I have no idea whatsoever on how to judge that.

teuobk• 17 years ago

I have a similar problem.

When I decide that my old clothes are worn/stained/horribly unfashionable and set out to refresh the wardrobe a bit, I set out to buy a few new ones. After settling on which store to patronize (Am I too old for AE et al.? Am I too young for Brooks Brothers? Would I be just as happy with something from Target?), I go to that store. At that point, I browse around for a bit, get overwhelmed by the number of options, become unsure about what would look good (or even what's in style), and leave without buying anything.

I'd really like to see some sort of online or in-store system with a super-simple way of finding new clothes. Maybe three variables: age, desired style (hipster? MBA? stereotypical engineer?), and body type. The output could be something like, "OK, buy this, this, and that. You'll look good."

rms• 17 years ago

I think this is an idea that enough people that have had that I'm surprised nothing like it has come out. A few months ago some people launched a site like this for interior decorating. I asked if they were going to do it for clothing and they said it wasn't a focus because the margins/affiliate payments for interior decorating are so much better.

rdouble2• 17 years ago

This is difficult for a number of reasons. As I mentioned in a previous post, the big reason is that sizes are not standardized. A size 32 waisted pant can be a true size 32, or really a size 38. Also, people's sizes fluctuate, usually increasing.

The 2nd part of your question, simply defining what style of clothing to wear is even more difficult and probably impossible to automate. However, there are professionals you can hire which will solve the problem for you. It's not cheap, but if you're single and make a good programming salary it may be a better investment than the latest digital camera or gaming system.

rdouble2• 17 years ago

I actually worked on a site that did this way back in 1999.

It's hard because people get fatter and skinnier all the time (usually just fatter) thus, the clothing "refill" doesn't work. Especially for pants. In fact, most men only bought new pants because of a size change, not because their old ones wore out. It works for socks because people's feet don't change.

Another problem is that even for men, standard sizes aren't standard at all. A size 32 waist pants from Old Navy is about a size 38 in Levi's 501. Athletic cut dress shirts are much larger than slim cut dress shirts in the exact same size. For women, you can multiply this situation by the number of retail stores and brands in the world. Sizes even change in the same line from season to season. Finally, people lie about their waist size, even to their computer.

nike• 17 years ago

Blacksocks had come up earlier on HN, with some interesting comments. http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=534330

k0n2ad• 17 years ago

This site is both ridiculous and awesome

Blacksocks.com: An infinite supply of black socks

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