The main colors of the winter landscape in upstate New York are the black of barren trees and the bright white of piled snow. Cornell is all grey stone and red brick against the black and white landscape. This student took on a winter camoflauge with her sleek black leggings and black boots topped with a waterfall of a white poplin tunic from AllSaints. Eschewing seasonal color rules makes for a fresh winter style. I have also noticed crisp white skinny jeans on campus in the dead of winter, which looked great tucked into black Air Force Ones for the snow.
This sophomore design management student wore several modern silver bracelets and armbands that worked perfectly with her clean look. Among them was a silver ankh armband her boyfriend brought back for her from Egypt that matches her tattoo of the same ancient Egyptian symbol for the key of life. The ankh is a fascinating icon in Egyptian history because it recurs throughout the ages, even in draped goddess dress sculptures from the Greek Empire found in Alexandria. It was a poignant touch on the day she wore it, when the riots were heating up in Cairo.
Finishing off her look was a vintage leopard coat in a large-scale repeat. Although it has prowled off the runways, the leopard-print trend is still going strong in retail for this spring. Case in point, Givenchy has a great video for their spring line, featuring model Mariacarla Boscono breaking it down in leopard gowns.
From the ankh to the leopard spots, these eccentricities were kept in check by a clean palette of bark black and snow white.