Winter can make styling difficult. The cold tends to cause outfits to be covered up by coats, limiting the wearer’s stylistic options. However, the primary accessories of winter, such as hats, gloves and scarves, can be used to improve even the simplest cold-weather look. Accessories can complement an otherwise plain coat, or stand on their own as distinct pieces. Either way, consider the following items to add personality to a typical winter outfit.
New Era “Dog Ear” Caps
The menswear trend of sporting a snapback never seems to go out of style, even in the colder months. New Era caps offer another way to represent your team while staying warm with its “Dog Ear” caps ($44). These headpieces feature classic New Era caps adorned with fluffy earflaps. The hats are available in a wide range of color combinations and patterns, including a wintry plaid. You can purchase this cap with nearly any sports team’s official logo, with sports ranging from baseball to football.
“Glittens”
One difficulty winter presents is how to keep your hands warm without sacrificing their utility, particularly for texting and other cell phone usage. While some wear regular gloves and accept the inconvenience, the increasingly popular hybrid of the glove and mitten, dubbed the glitten, allows access to fingers when necessary. This accessory is a successful combination of fingerless gloves with attached mittens to cover the fingertips, achieving the functionality the wearer desires. There are several options available on Etsy ranging from 20 to 40 dollars but, for a more reasonably-priced option, Orchid Lane offers a wool, fleece-lined pair in a variety of colors and patterns ($15).
Circle Scarf
Tying scarves and keeping them in the ideal position while walking to class can be a struggle. Fortunately, the circle scarf bypasses these problems by simply draping around the neck with no tying necessary. You can wear this type of scarf long for a stylish look or, to keep warm, the circle scarf can be doubled up for extra protection against the cold. The circle scarf can save time in the morning without detracting from a stylish appearance. There are many options available online, but the American Apparel version provides the widest range of colors ($28).
A version of this article appeared in the Wednesday, Feb. 5 print edition. Sam Del Rowe is a staff writer. Email him at [email protected].