“Mint is the new black,” I heard someone say this sum mer. It was one of my friends as she paraded around in her mint-colored ballet flats. And yes, they were cute flats. Yes, the color was vibrant, fun and trending for both summer and spring, but that changes nothing. Black is and always will be the new black.

To further validate my point, last week’s Wolves in Sharp Clothing article focused on a specific black article of clothing, the little black dress. Made famous by Coco Chanel, everyone should own at least one as it makes any evening instantly classier.

In this article, however, I want to talk about other dark cloth classics such as leather, outerwear, sweaters and ac cessories.

Leather is not only for the bikers; it’s for everyone, adding a punch to his or her everyday style. Recently there have been new develop ments in the world of leather besides the famed vests and jackets — which I might add are always in style — such as skirts, skinny pants and dresses made of leather.

In styling leather you should be careful not to overdo it. Leather can be worn with other blacks but probably shouldn’t be worn with other leather. Too much of it and you’ll look constrained in movement and people might ask where your motorcycle is. There’s nothing wrong with mixing leather with sweet elements such as lace or flowing fab rics — these things balance out the look.

Winter is on its way, so it’ll soon be time to bring out all our trench coats, parkas, pea coats and the like. Though there are various versions of these styles in browns, greys or greens, black is definitely the best option here. It’s more elegant and probably matches with more, including your snow boots if we see a flake or two. Plus, let’s not forget that the color absorbs the suns rays for extra warmth.

Sweaters are also a nice option for black. If you want to mix it up, try a different knit or possibly borrow one of your dad’s big old sweat ers from “back in the day” and throw it on over some leggings.

The finishing touch to an outfit is its accessories and I invite you to try everything from black shoes to scarves to jewelry. Besides, your favorite pair of sunglasses is probably already half black, why not go full tilt? Scarves add both another layer of warmth and flair to any outfit, plus play ing this particular card in black gives you the opportu nity to wear a patterned shirt.

I’ve focused mainly on fall and winter styles, but black is important in the spring and summer too. Whether it be a tank, cardigan or a show-stopping maxi dress, black can be worn in all sea sons. In fact, many design ers’ Spring 2014 collections in the Mercedes-Benz Fashion week in New York featured black, including Vera Wang, Rebecca Minkoff and BCBG Max Arzia.

Black is the epitome of elegance when paired with simplicity and good shape. And let’s also not forget that black is slimming. It’s forever on trend. All in all, even if society judges it’s too much, just remember Michael Kors himself often is dressed head to toe in it — you can never have too much black.