Do you secretly long for the days when you lived in your running shoes? This season, designers have tweaked the black-and-white Adidas and Pumas from your school days and are selling them for hundreds of dollars a pair. We say: Accept no substitutes – the originals will get you on the fast track for a fraction of the price.
The season’s best styles come in fierce black and white and match almost anything in your wardrobe. For kicks – of the Italian minimalist kind – we suggest Puma’s Avantis ($70 at Rugged Sole, 7 W. 8th St., or puma.com), which are almost identical to the $200 style the company made for Jil Sander. Or pick up a pair of Adidas’ Sambas ($40 at Modell’s stores), the model for a similar style by Yohji Yamamoto that sold out the second it hit stores. For a spring in your step – and a flashback to junior high – you can’t beat Reebok’s Classic Ballistic ($40 at Raspberry stores or reebok.com) mesh-and-suede style. And if you want a look that will pass muster at Morgan’s bar and at the Meadowlands, Nike’s sharp suede-accented Cortez II ($40 at Niketown or nike.com) is your ticket.