These PIGEON socks are a tribute to the unofficial bird of NYC! I have always had a soft spot for these scrappy, resourceful birds, and I wanted to depict two really elegant pigeons on these socks. (One is looking around, and the other is about to have a bite to eat!)
And THIS NIGHT donates $1/pair of Pigeon socks sold online to the fantastic Wild Bird Fund, NYC's only wildlife and rehabilitation center for birds and small mammals! (If you find an injured bird, you can read instructions on what to do here.)
THIS NIGHT socks are made in the US using US-grown cotton and designed by an artist inspired by the colors and patterns of Japan (as well as NYC and nature). They are what she considers the perfect sock: interesting patterns in an elegant color palette, knit with cotton that is substantial yet thin enough to fit into shoes nicely, a band that is comfortable yet stays up, flat toe seams, and a touch of lycra for a cozy, fresh-pair fit.
I've loved socks since I was a child –– I love that they can be both beautiful and useful –– and I have long dreamed of designing them. My hometown of Reading, PA, was once a thriving hosiery center, and I worked with the wonderful, talented people at the last sock knitting mill left there for about two years to develop what I consider to be the perfect sock: one knit with US-grown ringspun cotton with touch of lycra for a cozy fit, a band that is comfortable yet still stays up, flat toe seams, and interesting designs in elegant colors.
My hometown mill was suddenly shut down by its new corporate owners in 2018, but I will always be indebted to the expertise and kindness of the folks there. Now, I am very grateful to be working with the very talented people at a very well-run mill in North Carolina.
I am inspired by the colors and patterns of Japan, where I lived in Kyoto for a year on a scholarship to study art (I am also an artist and writer), and the name THIS NIGHT comes from a tenth-century Japanese poem I particularly love:
If only I could show them to someone who knows,
this moon, these flowers, this night that should not be wasted.
– Minamoto Nobuakira, Gosenshu
(trans. by Edward G. Seidensticker in The Tale of Genji)
It is important to me to support my hometown where the socks were developed and also the community where my socks are now knit, so THIS NIGHT donates $1/pair sold online split between two great nonprofits that help children: the Olivet Boys & Girls Club of Reading, PA, and the Catawba County Partnership for Children, in Catawba County, NC.
