ICE STYLE.....Grand Prix 2013 Figure Skating Costume Trend Alert: Gloves!

Glove Happy: Russian figure skater Elena Radionova Hilton HHonors Skate America 2013 and Peter Liebers of Germany at Cup of China 2013

This past season of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2013-2014 was an exciting one, especially in regards to the costumes. If you've been keeping up with my blog here, you know I LOVE Figure Skating and yes, more importantly, discussing the Figure Skating Costumes. I've talked about all the Grand Prix--Hilton HHonors Skate America, Skate Canada, NHK Trophy, Lexus Cup of China, Trophée Eric Bompard and the Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia and the Finals are coming up this week/weekend in Fukuaka Japan.



In advance of the Grand Prix Finals, I wanted to discuss a certain costume trend I noticed this season: It was all about gloves as THE accessory DE RIGUEUR for Figure Skating Costumes, more so than ever it seemed. Whether it was just to keep your hands warm or as some skaters have mentioned, to keep them from cutting their hands on their blades, gloves were "featured" as part of the costumes in all the disciplines but primarily in the Ladies, Men, and Ice Dance. So, with that in mind, I wanted to do a Trend Alert for GLOVES in the Grand Prix 2013-2014. I am sure that I missed some skaters that also wore gloves (besides the ones below) but I could only fit so many in one posting so my apologies if I didn't include any that you--the faithful NICKVERREOS.COM reader--might have also remembered...



Let's begin with The Ladies:

Viktoria Helgesson of Sweden, Short Program: Viktoria skated her Short Program Mystery Waltz by D. Shostakovich--seen in photo above at the Hilton HHonors Skate America 2013--wearing this pink and black applique costume and black gloves with a bit of bling bling added for fun.

Elizaveta Tuktamysheva of Russia, Short Program: Elizabeta skated her Short Program to a Latin Medley this season in this "one-shoulder" black and silver crystal costume (seen in photo above from the Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia 2013) with...black gloves. To me, this "glove addition", didn't work so well. It cuts the line of her arms and makes her look a bit cartoony.

Kanako Murakami of Japan, Short Program: In the photo above--from her Short Program skate at the Rostelecom Cup 2013 to "Catgroove," "Libella Swing" and "Swing Bop", she wore this black and white costume with diamante crystals as well as black and crystal-encrusted gloves. These work a bit better than Tuktamysheva because they seem to go better with the "theme" of the costume.

Anna Pogorilaya of Russia, Free Skate: For her Free Skate to "Mermaids" from the Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides soundtrack by Hans Zimmer (in the photo above from the Lexus Cup of China 2013), she wore this sea-inspired blue costume which featured one glove. I actually like this!

Anna Pogorilaya of Russia, Short Program: Anna skated her Short Program to "El Choclo" (Kiss of Fire) performed by Ikuko Kawai in this neon coral colored costumes with matching long gloves. Wow! That is a LOT of glove! I do appreciate how it gives her a complete look.

Kaetlyn Osmond of Canada, Short Program: Kaetlyn wore long white ones for her Short Program to "Big Spender" and "Rich Man's Frug" as seen above at Skate Canada 2013. In contrast to Pogorilaya, this takes away from her look and is distracting. I feel the costume is too basic for such formal gloves.

Julia Lipnitskaia of Russia, Free Skate: For her Free Skate to Schindler's List by John Williams, Julia, wore this red costume "hinting" at the famous red coat in the film. And yes, she also donned black gloves.





Julia Lipnitskaia of Russia, Short Program: For Julia's Short Program to "You Don't Give Up on Love" by Mark Minkov this season, at Skate Canada 2013, Julia wore this blue costume above with matching gloves. This look didn't last long, however, since she changed her costume for the Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia 2013 later. And there were no gloves in that costume look, which I think works much better.

Alena Leonova of Russia, Short Program: Alena skated her Short Program to Music from the Pirates of the Caribbean soundtrack by Hans Zimmer and Klaus Badelt in this costume above (at NHK Trophy 2013), which she had worn in a previous season to the same music. And naturally, you can't "give" a Pirates of the Caribbean look without gloves, so the gloves are there! Funny how these gloves are a mix of dish-cleaning gloves and ones that would come with a "Pirates" costumes from a Hollywood Costume Shop!

Natalia Popova of Ukraine, Short Program: Natalia skated her Short Program to "Concierto de Aranjuez" by Joaquin Rodrigo performed by Edvin Marton (seen at Skate Canada 2013 in photo above) in this black and silver crystals with nude illusion costume above. The look also featured sheer black gloves. I like the costume and the gloves. Very Chic!

Elena Radionova of Russia, Free Skate: Elena skated to Music from the Frida soundtrack in this red, white costume above that had long red gloves. She wore this at Hilton HHonors Skate Amercia 2013 but at the NHK Trophy 2013 we see that she was able to make them fingerless for the medal presentation:

The Men:

Misha Ge of Uzbekistan, Short Program: Misha skated his Short Program at the Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia 2013 to I Still Got Blues, Still Got Rock by Gary Moore in this "Blades of Glory"-looking costume above that featured finger-less, and studded, black gloves.

Misha Ge of Uzbekistan, Free Skate: For his Free Skate to World Dance Collection including Neo Tango; Rhumba; Electro; Jive; Rock'n'Roll (seen in the photo above from the Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia 2013), Misha wore another eye-catching costume that included black gloves. The looks are both Cray-Cray, but the gloves certainly add to the entire ensemble.

Konstantin Menshov of Russia, Short Program: Skating his Short Program to "Coultergeist" by Phil Coulter, Konstantin wore this Michelangelo-inspired printed top and black pants costume with white/sheer gloves. Just a note: the gloves are a bit "clinical" looking.

Sergei Voronov of Russia, Short Program: Voronov skated his Short Program to "Two Guitars"--at NHK Trophy 2013 above--in this white and black costume, with black gloves. These gloves actually work quite well and are quite stylish.

Max Aaron of the USA, Free Skate: Max skated his Free Skate to Music from Carmen performed by Rodion Shchedrin and the Boston Pops Orchestra (photo above from Hilton HHonors Skate America 2013) in this plunging neckline black costume with...black gloves. These make him look a bit like a Cat Burglar to me.

Florent Amodio of France, Short Program: Florent skated his Season 2013-2014 Short Program to "La Cumparsita," arranged by Sebastien Damiani and Faf Larage in the black costume above (from Lexus Cup of China 2013). He also donned black gloves.


 

Peter Liebers of Germany, Short Program: For his Short program to "Clocks" by Coldpay, performed by 2Cellos featuring Lang Lang, Peter wore this costume above (from his skate at the Lexus Cup of China 2013) with gloves (one of which was color-blocked to blend harmoniously with the rest of the costume).

Maxim Kovtun of Russia, Short Program: Maxim Kovtun wore this costume for his Short Program to Flamenco by Pepe Romero (photo from the Lexus Cup of China 2013) that featured fingerless sleeve-gloves that went with the rest of the España-inspired costume. I like this unique take on the glove/sleeve.



Ice Dance:



Madison Chock and Evan Bates of the USA, Short Dance: US dance team of Chock and Bates skated their Short Dance this season to "Hollywood" by Puppini Sisters, "There's No Business Like Show Business" by Irving Berlin (photo above from the Lexus Cup of China 2013). The beautiful Madison wore long white gloves with her shimmering and fringed costume. Fantastic!

Elena Ilinykh and Nikita Katsalapov of Russia: Elena and Nikita skated their Free Dance to Music from Swan Lake by Tchaikovsky. For their skate at NHK Trophy Japan she wore the black gloves but those were gone, however, at their next skate--at Trophée Eric Bompard 2013. I'm still undecided whether I like the costume with or without gloves? What do you think...

Ksenia Monko and Kirill Khavalian of Russia, Short Dance: For their Short Dance this season to Quickstep by Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, "L-O-V-E-" by Nat King Cole, Monko and Khavalian skated to these costumes above. Ksenia wore royal blue gloves that perfectly color-matched her costume.



Happy Grand Prix of Figure Skating 2013-2014 and...If you can find other Costumes from this Season's Grand Prix of Figure Skating where GLOVES were featured, let me know here!

Rostelecom Cup / Cup of Russia

 Carolina Kostner Debuts Her New Short Program Costume--Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia 2013 Moscow Russia

This weekend was the Rostelecom Cup (or Cup of Russia) 2013--the final of six international competitions of the ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating for Season 2013-2014 all leading up to the Grand Prix Final. Rostelecom Cup was held at the Small Sports Arena of Luzhniki in Moscow Russia. I've discussed a lot of the costumes for the previous Grand Prix of this season and you can find those under the "Categories" section on the right side of this blog entitled "Ice Style". So, for now, it's time to discuss the Costumes Recap of the Rostelecom Cup 2013 and the Ladies and Pairs...



Ladies:

Haruka Imai Japan, Short Program: Haruka skated her SP to "Song Without Words" by Felix Mendelssohn. It was an ombre dyed lilac costume with a nude illusion top section and silver/multi-colored jeweled neckline and bust/torso. It was pretty on her and I especially liked the delicate sleeve hem details and hair accessory as well.

Free Skate: For her FS to Piano Concerto by Saint-Preux, I thought this was an impressive costume. It had a teal and light blue multi-layered handkerchief-hemmed skirt, nude illusion top and one-shoulder sequined applique. Loved the colors and I really liked the jeweled/sequin detail. Two for two, as they say, for Haruka Imai and her 2013/2014 Season costumes.

Kanako Murakami Japan Short Program: Kanako wore this black and white costume for her SP to "Catgroove," "Libella Swing" and "Swing Bop". The costume looked a bit too "Jr. Skater" for me. The diamante vertical detail on the torso seemed cheap and the style uncreative. But, she is on trend with the gloves; LOTS of the Ladies Figure Skaters are donning gloves this season.

Elizaveta Tuktamysheva Russia, Short Program: Speaking of gloves...Russian Ladies Figure Skater Elizaveta Tuktamysheva skated her SP to a Latin Medley wearing this glove-accessorized look: it was a one-shoulder black costume with silver sparkle crystals and nude illusion neck and sleeve section. Once again, I felt this could have been more; it just did not scream "Olympic Costume" but more (yet again!), "Jr. Figure Skater". And, need I add, the messy hair didn't help. It looked as if she just got up and pulled a pony-tail as she was getting ready to head to her nearest Starbucks! Try again darling.

Julia Lipnitskaia Russia, Short Program Costume Change: Little Julia Lipnitskaia skated her SP to "You Don't Give Up on Love" by Mark Minkov at Rostelecom Cup 2013 and she wore a different costume than what she had worn previously at Skate Canada 2013...and I loved it! This was a great costume change! This costume--which was a navy and light blue costume with midnight blue stretch illusion and sequins--was so much more refined and elegant than her "young and cute" look here:

The costume she wore at her last Grand Prix appearance at Skate Canada 2013

Mirai Nagasu USA, Short Program Costume Change--Another skater who had a costume change was USA's Mirai Nagasu. On the left is what she wore to this past weekend's Rostelcom Cup/Cup of Russia 2013 and on the right, is what she last wore at NHK Trophy 2013 during her SP to "The Man I Love" by George Gershwin. There were subtle changes but, generally, it was a nice improvement. I still feel her costume needs to have a little more interesting style; sorry to be so blunt but both look slightly "store bought".

Carolina Kostner Italy, Free Skate Costume Change: There was a rumour (someone on my Twitter told me) that Italian Ladies Figure Skater Carolina Kostner's Free Skate costume that she wore at Cup of China 2013 to "Scheherazade" by Nikoli Rimsky-Korsakov (seen above on the right) wasn't her "real" one. Cut to this past weekend's Rostelecom Cup 2013 and she "debuted" a new look (left photo).  I like this new one much better; it didn't look like a "Russian Folk Song" costume (the one on the right did) and reflected much more the music and theme.I appreciated the intricacy of the beadwork in the upper torso and how it stood out against a skin-colored illusion background. With that being said....IT WAS A LOT OF LOOK! It all could be toned down just a bit and I am definitely not so sure about the beaded crotch section!!!



Carolina Kostner, Short Program Costume Addition:

Carolina Kostner also added two beaded straps to the back of her Short Program costume (seen above) which she didn't have at her last Grand Prix appearance here:

Without the straps: Carolina Kostner at Cup of China 2013

Pairs:

Julia Antipova and Nodari Maisuradze Russia, Short Program: Russian Figure Skating Pair Antipova and Maisuradze skated their Short Program to "Beethoven's 5 Secrets" by The Piano Guys in these costumes above. I liked these costumes for several reasons: the contrast between the male and the female, in colors. Also, I appreciated that the male's costume details almost mirrored hers, but with additional details. Many times, in Pairs, you're dealing with the guy in a black basic costume and the female in a super-sequined, colored look that has NOTHING to do with his black top and pants. So, I am happy that, at least, these two look as if they belong together!

Free Skate: For their FS to "Money" and "The Great Gig in the Sky" by Pink Floyd, I loved that they went "Period Rocker". She looked delicate, feminine and pretty in her pink cowl neck costume but "toughened" it up with a black diamante studded "harness" vest. And Nodari looked like a 80's Euro Rock Star (in a FAB way!) in his black Lycra with silver studs and sequined look.

Lindsay Davis and Rockne Brubaker USA, Short Program: These costumes above are what US Pairs skaters Davis and Brubaker wore for their SP to "Le Petite Fleur" and "Skokia" by Louis Armstrong. Frankly, I was bored. Lindsay looked like a saloon waitress in the old Wild West. And Rockne, well...it's a black dress shirt, black pants with a "pop" of deep lavender. Not so much to discuss. On a positive note: at least they matched--color-wise. Other than this, these were not creative.

Kristen Moore-Towers and Dylan Moscovitch Canada, Short Program: When I saw this Pairs team's costumes, I thought "Oh, these look familiar!". And I was right. The Canadian Pairs team of Moore-Towers and Moscovitch repeated their Season 2012-2013 Short Program to "A Motley Crew" from the Mic Macs soundtrack by Raphael Beau and Max Steiner for this season. They also did a repeat for their costumes. Here is what I said then about these costumes.

Narumi Takahashi and Ryuichi Kihara Japan, Short Program: Takahashi and Kihara skated their SP to Music from Samson and Delilah by Camille Saint-Saens in these costumes above and I really liked them. I loved the red and black contrast and the fact that they didn't go the predictable Near East costume route. I also loved the "car wash"-like skirt which really looked great as Narumi was tossed and did her jumps/turns.

Ksenia Stolbova and Fedor Klimov Russia, Free Skate: Stolbova and Klimov wore these bright, graphic costumes for their FS to Music from The Addams Family soundtrack by Marc Shaiman. While I appreciated the bold choices, I thought this was a confusing Pairs Costume look. Fedor looked very Gomez Adams "kooky" in his costume yet Ksenia looked as if she was skating to "Carmen". Her costume was so sleek and simple, as compared to his. For once, the MAN stood out more than the female and yet, it didn't work. And to add: there is NOTHING of Morticia Adams in her look.

Vera Bazarova and Yuri Larionov Russia, Free Skate: For their FS costumes at the Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia 2013 skating to "Polovetsian Dances" from Prince Igor by Alexander Borodin, which I have discussed previously HERE --which I liked!), Vera added something that wasn't present at their previous appearance: the headband with red accent. Here's how she looked without it at 2013 Trophée Eric Bompard:

 Do you guys like her better with--or without? Let me know--I'm thinking without.

***NEXT UP: Rostelecom Cup/Cup of Russia 2013 Costumes Recap: The MEN and ICE DANCE!!