Figure Skating Costume Minute--Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia 2012--Pairs

Figure Skating Costume Minute--Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia 2012--Pairs

The Pairs--Some Fab, Some Blah...Some 80s...Some 90s...and Much More:

Top Pairs: (left to right) Silver Medalists from Russia Vera Bazarova and Yuri Larionov, Gold Medalists from
Russia Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov, and Bronze Medalists from USA
Caydee Denney and John Coughlin, ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia 2012, Megasport Sports
Center Moscow, Russia

Continuing with my Costume Recaps of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia 2012, I've discussed the MEN and then the LADIES and now, it's time for the PAIRS. Some of these costumes I have already talked about in my Skate America, Skate Canada and Cup of China blog postings but I'll still give you a quick recap of what I said of these 2012-2013 Season costumes...

Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov of Russia: Once again, these two won the Gold Medal for Pairs (they won the Gold at Skate America 2012) and in my Skate America 2012 posting, I discussed both their Short and Free Skate costumes. For their Short Program, they skated to "Love Theme from The Godfather" (top) and for their Free Skate, they skated to "Violin Muse, Partita for Violin No. 2 and Chaconne" (below
photo). Their Free Skate costumes were far more interesting. Although I
did like her Short Program deep violet halter costume with neck chains.

Illusion-less? Tatiana Volosozhar at Rostelecom Cup 2012

I also thought that her high-low dress was especially interesting because if I am not mistaken her back features little or no illusion and instead is held by a very strong elastic nude strap. I will discuss the Illusion vs. No Illusion Dilemma in Figure Skating Costumes on another posting soon!

I liked their Free Skate costumes. I felt they were much more ethereal,
exploratory--costume-wise--than their Short Program. His was especially ultra feminine. PS: it bears repeating that Maxim is a MAJOR Hottie McHottie. Seriously. Can someone tell me how you say that in Russian??

Caydee Denney and John Coughlin of USA: I also commented on Denney and Coughlin's costumes in my Skate America 2012 post HERE. Essentially, I liked both of their Short and Free Skate costumes, even though they were a bit "old school" in terms of styling, silhouettes. Nothing really modern or directional about them, but still OK. For their Short Program though, they made a slight change. Previously his costume was solid black and a SOLID bore, but....they decided to spice it up a bit and add some sequin applique across his chest. I LOVE how some of her sequins "spilled" onto his blouse-y top.Great update!

For their Free Skate, they skated to "Phantom of the Opera". Very old-school figure skating pairs costumes for sure. Safe, cute...and very "American". PS Part 2: John is another Hottie McHottie. Sorry, but...just had to add that.



Speaking of Safe...

Tiffany Vise and Don Baldwin of USA: Vise and Baldwin skated their Short Program to "Open Arms" ( the famous Journey song) by Piano Classic Players. I really love these two skaters and think they are a beatiful pair to watch. However, I am beyond bored by these costumes. This is past the point of SAFE. Her halter-neck tie-dye costume is so uninspiring. the fabric looks like it came from the End-of-the-Year fabric sale at JoAnn's. The only saving grace are the little bits of crystals but even those look like a ten year old glued them on. And handsome Don. A tuxedo. How original. Not.

Now, I know that the Journey song they skated to is a staple of weddings, especially 1980s weddings...and proms...and Jr. proms...but does that mean they need to look as if it's Last Call at someone's wedding in 1981? I guess, that's probably what they were going for, but my suggestion is to take it even further...more campy, more 80s...just Go For It!



Now, moving on to the next decade: the 90s

Nicole Della Monica (R) and Matteo Guarise of Italy: Mamma Mia Rock-and-Roll! They skated to the early 90's power ballad "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica.

Maybe I need to retract my above comment about going "campy", because these two did and it did not work AT ALL!  Here shiny black spandex tights mixed with a checked 90's leotard is just not working. Add in his vest and T-Shirt combo and it is a bad night at the Italian Disco all the way around.

Vera Bazarova and Yuri Larionov of Russia: For their Free Skate to Music from the Spartacus soundtrack by Aram Khatchaturian. I thought these costumes were FABULOUS! They were both on-point with the movie reference yet still had "fashion" elements--such as the arm straps, gold and maroon colors and detailing. They somehow combined both the "old" Spartacus:

 Kirk Douglas in "Spartacus" (criss-cross leather harness)

As well as the New:

Australian actor Liam McIntyre of "Spartacus: Vengeance"...although, a little part of me wishes that they (OK, maybe Yuri) did more of the "new"

Paige Lawrence and Rudi Swiegers of Canada: For their Short Program to "Robin and Marian" , the music to the 1976 romantic adventure period film based on the legend of Robin Hood (of course) starring...

Sean Connery and Audrey Hepburn (above)--Lawrence and Swiegers' costumes were a let-down for sure. I wish there was a little more "Period Costume" to them. She looked very "Jr. Skater 2002" and he, was (at least) slightly closer to the music and theme. I LOVED the colors of Paige's costume but the design needs to look a little more "Period Couture". There two costumes were very disjointed and seemed to not be harmonious.



I'll end on Pairs Costume Fab:

Anastasia Martiusheva and Alexei Rogonov of Russia: For their Short Program to "Cornish Rhapsody" by Hubert Bath, they wore these colorful and very "Broadway Dinner Theater Meets Carnival Cruise Figure Skating Show"-like costumes. And I loved it! Anastasia's red and silver sequined costume was very "I'm a Baton Twirler in a James Bond Film" and Alexei looked liked the STAR in the Russian version of "A Chorus Line". Very campy...but I love it! Those two things made me give them a "Nick V. Pairs Costume Star"!



*** Up Next--the final Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia 2012 Costume Recap--The Ice Dancers!

Figure Skating Costume Minute--Illusion or NO Illusion?

Figure Skating Costume Minute--Illusion or NO Illusion?

Illusion or No Illusion?

Backless? Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov of Russia and their Short Program costumes to "Love Theme from The Godfather"

Illusion vs. No Illusion. That is the Figure Skating Costume Question. First, let's get some "fabric schooling" out of the way for the folks that may not be on the "up-and-up" on fabrics and what illusion is. Illusion is a mesh/netting-like fabrication very popular in figure skating costumes (as well as with Wedding Gowns, Beauty Pageants, competitive Ballroom Dancing...). It can come in stretch (usually the most popular) and non-stretch. The content is usually nylon, elastene, Spandex,
polyester and/or maybe some silk in the finer, more expensive versions. It
is most often used in nude-or skin-like colors. It is great for mimicking
skin when you want coverage but the effect of being bare. Of course, it
also comes in other different colors (black being the next most popular
color).

 Illusion back of a wedding/evening gown

Illusion back of a Marchesa wedding gown design

The reason it's used--especially in the Figure Skating world is threefold: the fact that it can replicate the look of nude skin but still being "covered"; it can re-create certain style elements such as a "Strapless", One Shoulder or "backless" look and still make the wearer able to do strenuous sport activities; and because of certain "Costume Guide-rules" within the various elements of Figure Skating (Ice Dance, Ladies, Pairs) which require only a "certain amount of skin" to be showing.



Speaking of Rules, here they are:



Rule 500 Definition of Skate Blade and Clothing: At ISU
Championships, the Olympic Winter Games and International Competitions,
the clothing of the Competitors must be modest, dignified and
appropriate for athletic competition – not garish or theatrical in
design. Clothing may, however, reflect the character of the music
chosen.

a) The clothing must not give the effect of excessive
nudity for athletic sport. Men must wear trousers; no tights are
permitted. Accessories and props are not permitted. The decoration on
costumes must be non-detachable.

b) Clothing not meeting the
foregoing requirements must be penalized by a deduction of 1.0 point
(see Rule 353, paragraph 1.m) ii)).



Now, recently, especially while doing my "Costume Recaps" of this season's ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating series, I've noticed a lot of "backless" looks from the skaters (the female, of course) as well as lots of illusion.



Here are some Photo Examples:

No Illusion Semi-Backless--Alena Leonova of Russia: This is her apple green sequined Bollywood-inspired costume to her Short Program to "Jai Ho! (You Are My Destiny)" by the Pussy Cat Dolls 

Illusion Princess: Above is Gracie Gold of the USA and her red glittering costume to "Hernando's Hideaway" as well as her "strapless" blue sequined costume for her Free Program Costume to Life is Beautiful soundtrack by Nicola Piovan. Both were designed by Brad Griffies and both featured nude illusion that is perfectly dyed to match her skin color.

Too Dark Illusion--Caroline Zhang of the USA and her Short Program Costume to "The Rushing Wings of Dawn" by Tim Janis. Here's another example of a Ladies Skater and her 2012-2013 Grand Prix Series Costume and the use of illusion. Here I think the coloring was too dark for Caroline's skin tone. But, maybe because there are crystals on it, the effect was NOT to make it look as if she was actually strapless or backless and therefore the too-dark illusion was somewhat intentional. What do you guys think?



Now, one particular skater--a Pairs skater--might be bucking the "illusion" unspoken figure skating costume rule: Tatiana Volosozhar of Russia:

Above is Tatiana in her Short Program to "Love Theme From The Godfather" costume for this season--a halter front and plunging back fishtail-hemmed dress with pearl necklace detail. At first glance, I thought "Wait a minute! Is there no illusion back there?" And then, quickly, I thought, "how in the name of the Costume Gods, is she being held up?"



Let's take a closer look:

From these close-ups, it looks as if there's a very strong nude elastic strap holding the front in place. It does not seem as if there is any of that nude-colored stretch-mesh illusion. I thought this was very unusual. Since, most of these figure skaters use illusion.

In this photo above, you can see that elastic across-the-back strap and possibly...only possibly, a hint of maybe...a line of an illusion fabrication---but...I think it's probably just a tan strap line--a remnant from her last Holiday in Ibiza probably.



Another example of the No Illusion is...

Canada's Tessa Virtue of the Gold Medal-winning Ice Dance team of Virtue and Moir--For their "Carmen" by Rodion Shchedrin Free Dance, she wears a plunging front, open back black costume. The front does have illusion fabrication (and a very good one!), while the back...

...Is Bare! (Mon Dieu) If you look closely at the the upper back left side, there is a nude colored elastic strap (being covered by her ponytail) holding the back up, as it were. But the shocking thing is, that yes, there is NO ILLUSION back there. Could this be the Figure Skating Costume Trend?



Could Figure Skating Costumes go the route of Dancing With The Stars?

Emmy Award-winning Costume Designer Randall Christensen creates these fabulous KRAZEE and Ballroom Dancing Perfect costumes for the ABC hit show "Dancing With The Stars" where miraculously there is little illusion used and lots of open backs, open sides and just about open-everything else, held together by double-stick tape, some heavy elastic straps and a Costume Prayer (And I'm sure there is much more inside those costumes that make them stay where they should!)



So, I put these question up to you guys--the Figure Skating Costume Fans? Illusion or No Illusion? What do you think? Let me know!!

Beauty Pageant Minute--Miss Universe 2012 Preliminary Competition Evening Gowns--The Most Improved!

Beauty Pageant Minute--Miss Universe 2012 Preliminary Competition Evening Gowns--The Most Improved!

Different...and Better...Gowns:



First, I talked about my "Nick Top Favoritas" of the Miss Universe 2012 Preliminary Evening Gowns, then I spoke of the "Oh Dear's!" of the bunch, and now...we have arrived at my last Miss Universe 2012 Prelimin Post. This time I decided to highlight the lovely ladies whom I call "Most Improved". Many of the contestants switched their gowns--from what they wore for the Miss Universe "Evening Gown Portraits" to wearing a totally different gown for the Preliminaries. But this particular group of girls here went from being in my "Oh Dear!" group in my Evening Gown Portrait Recap to "Much Better!" during last Thursday night's Preliminaries. So, let's begin:

Miss Ecuador Carolina Aguirre: the very beautiful Carolina went from "Pageant Betty in Purple" in the Evening Gown Portrait (top photo) to modern sexy Lady In Red. Her hair is better, and more importantly, her red shimmery lace over nude and red satin gown is MUCHO better. Definitely one of the Most improved!

Miss Canada Adwoa Yamoah: Another lovely contestant who went from "Pageant Betty circa 1988" (in her Evening Gown Portrait gown at top photo) to "Fearless and Fab" (in the above photo at the Preliminaries) is Canada's representative, Adwoa. The peach mermaid gown was so typical and looked straight out of a Pageant & prom Shop--in Alabama. Thank goodness she changed to this white sexy fitted gown with an asymmetrical neckline. The white against her skin looked AMAZING and this shape and style definitely put her in the 21st century of Pageant Gowns. Welcome my dear! As Heidi Klum would say "You're In!"

Miss Angola Marcelina Vahekeni: What a difference a DIFFERENT gown--and new styling--makes! In the top photo--from the Miss Universe Website's "Official Evening Gown Portraits", she looked like she was competing in MRS. America 1996. But in the new red sequined lace over nude gown with one long sleeve and side slit...she became one SEXY Hot Miss Angola 2012! This was modern, fresh and yes, sexy-licious!

Miss China Ji Dan Xu: In my "Pageant Betty" posting of the Evening Gown portraits, I suggested that the top photo gown she wore may have been too Pageant Betty typical. And it was. I thought she could do better. And yes, she did when it came to last Thursday's Preliminaries. This time, she changed into a coral-colored sequined lace over nude (a popular choice with these girls!) column-style gown featuring asymmetrical applique cut-out's around the neckline. I thought this choice was softer, prettier, dare I say, younger. If she makes it to the Semi-Finalis during next week's LIVE NBC Telecast, I would still love to see her change...into something more Couture Fab...like this:

Zuhair Murad Couture Fall 2012

Miss Curacao Monifa Jansen: Wow, look at what a change of gown does to one lovely contestant. Here we have Miss Universe Curacao. The top photo shows what she wore for her Evening Gown Portrait in the Miss Universe Website. I thought it was verging on being "Dancing With the Stars" meets Bad Figure Skating Costume. Well, she must have read my posting because now in the above photo (what she wore two nights ago for the Preliminaries), she was almost a completely different person! Her hair was down, her makeup was softer, and yes, she wore a non tacky-licious gown. This golden beige iridescent organza gown had nice fullness and featured a gather bustier top section. it wasn't Couture "earth-shaking" but at least, much improved from before.

Miss Paraguay Egni Eckert: Hello Egni and bienvenida to the ""Most improved" Category! Again: what a (good) change! Before, what she wore--and how her hair was styled--made her look like Adrianne Maloof's (from "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills") doppelganger. She looked like she was 45 years old and getting ready to attend her own wedding in Mullholland Estates Beverly Hills. But thank goodness (once again) someone whispered in her ear and suggested to not do that "Evening Gown Portrait" look and she listened! I love how she looked on Thursday night at the all-important Preliminary Competition in this sea-foam Habotai silk gown with silver sequin over nude illusion top section. Her hair looked A MILLION times better. One of the Most Improved for sure.



Finally...

Miss St. Lucia Tara Edward: For her "Evening Gown Portrait" (top photo), she made the mistake a lot of these girls make (for whatever reasons) in that they wear a gown that is too short on them. And unfortunately, there is no wardrobe stylist or fashion person like moi around them...to tell them that! In that coral-colored dress, she looked like the 10th Runner-Up in a local beauty pageant. We want her to look like THE WINNER! And I have to say, her choice of the purple-colored satin gown with gathered ruffle detail was MUCH IMPROVED (above photo, from the Preliminaries). The color looks much sleeker on her, the cut is more becoming and yes kids, it's the right length! Thank you Miss St. Lucia and Congrats for being one of the "Most Improved"!



***Next Up: The Best of the Miss Universe 2012 National Costume Presentation Show: The Parade of Nations....Here We Come!!