50 Shades

It’s easy to get. The weather is gloomy, the wind is howling, and you’ve just had your first week of exams. You’re starting to realize that easy semester you hoped for was nothing more than a mirage.

I’m going to be real and confess, that I’ve joined you in this faux pas. As I looked around campus this week, I realized just how far the epidemic had spread.

No, I’m not talking about the flu that’s taking out classmates by the dozens. I’m referring to the death of color.

It’s simple to go to your closet, pick out neutral colored leggings or sweats, add a matching shirt, and head out the door. As we’re stuck in the middle of winter, let’s remember there are other colors besides gray, navy and black.

Let’s be real. You’re already pale. You don’t need to drape yourself in black and imitate Dracula as you attend classes.

As an IU student, crimson is a school color. You own at least one red shirt. Whether you were robbed at the bookstore by paying $20 for a basic T-shirt, or you kept the free shirts from freshman year, you have no excuse.

Want a simpler way to incorporate color into your outfit? Colored scarves, gloves, and hats serve dual purposes.
Into shoes? Colorful laces are a small investment with a big payoff.

Take it from someone who had a three-credit-hour course about texture and color; there is a shade out there for everybody and it doesn’t have to be gray.

­— johnsbri@indiana.edu