Written by Anna Trammell
In December of 1961, the University of Illinois was the birth place of an odd fashion trend that spread across the campus and through universities all over the country. It began when Charlene Levine, a sophomore in Education, received a knitting lesson from her roommate in Busey Hall. After completing a small square, she realized she could wear the material over her nose in the cold weather. She added elastic loops and a tassel and named her invention “the Snoot Boot.”[1] To Charlene’s surprise, the trend caught on. After seeing Busey girls sporting Snoot Boots around campus, a News-Gazette reporter suggested the girls sell their winter wares.[2]
