ICE STYLE.....2018 Costumes Recap: Figure Skating COSTUMES 2018 PAIRS!

Pairs Fashion--(L to R) USA's Ashley Cain and Timothy LeDuc, Russia's Natalie Zabiiako and Alexander Enbert and Russia's Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov

In Part 2 of my 2018 Figure Skating Costumes Recap, it is now time for the PAIRS! I have already blog'ed about the LADIES HERE, the MEN HERE, in case you missed it...Now, in terms of the PAIRS, there have been lots of exciting and, dare I say, fun costumes seen this season...

Fringe, Sparkle and Unitard Fab--(L to R) USA's Ashley Cain and Timothy LeDuc, Italy's Nicole Della Monica and Matteo Guarise, France's Vanessa James and Morgan Cipres

From Medieval Warriors to  Sassy Fringe to Unitard Queens...there has been enough Fashion Eye Candy for fans to indulge in. Let's take a look at some of the Top Pairs Teams--divided by their respective countries--and their Grand Prix Season 2018-2019 costumes:

USA:

Ashley Cain and Timothy LeDuc Short Program to Bella Belle by The Electric Swing Circus--For their fun and Electro Swing-inspired Short Program, Cain and LeDuc looked fab in these costumes. Timothy wore a super slim white shirt and pinstripe pants held up by suspenders; he looked like a sexy Speakeasy bartender. To contrast his masculine outfit, Ashley went "Pretty in Pink" wearing a pink fringed design with a "plunging" neckline accented by a faux beaded necklace down the front. Her center parted hairstyle continued the 20's flapper-like aesthetic very well. Above all, I especially liked how the fringe of her costume really highlighted her spins in the air. These were great costumes, perfect for the program.

Ashley Cain and Timothy LeDuc Free Skate to W.E. (soundtrack) Abel Korzeniowski--You wouldn't know it by looking at these costumes but they skated to the "W.E." film soundtrack about Wallis Simpson and England's Edward VIII...

Obviously these were more of a modern/figure skating costume take on the glorious clothes worn by those two iconic fashionistas of the time ("W.E." costumes by Costume Designer Arianne Phillips above). I can see some inspiration in the silver color as well as sequined applique placed in the front of Ashley's unitard, which was an obvious nod to the Schiaparelli-inspired gown in the above photo. I thought that Cain and LeDuc's looks were sleek but I felt that Timothy's could have benefited from a super-fitted vest with the beaded applique. 

Alexa Scimeca Knierim and Chris Knierim Short Program to Castle by Halsey--If you are wondering where these armor-like costumes come from...look no further than...

"The Huntsman: Winter's War" (above costumes). I liked these black and gold costumes worn by Alexa and Chris. As you can see, she's continuing the Unitard Costume Trend that we've seen in the last few years in her outfit, and I especially admired all the metallic-like panels interspersed with the iridescent nude color. While they were slightly "Tron"-like, I did get the "Evil Queen" Medieval Fantasy inspiration.

Alexa Scimeca Knierim and Chris Knierim Free Skate to Wicked Game by Chris Isaak, covered by James Vincent McMorrow--For their Free Skate to "Wicked Game", they went softer and more "Classic" Figure Skating Pairs Costumes with their looks. Alexa looked ethereal in her lilac colored costume featuring tie-dye-like coloring with an effect of "splattered paint" plus crystals strewn throughout. Chris, on the other hand went clean and male-basic with a deep purple turtleneck and black pants. 

ITALY:

Nicole Della Monica and Matteo Guarise Short Program to Never Tear Us Apart by Joe Cocker--Hello Unitard! Yes kids, the Unitard is BAAACK! And this time on Italian Pairs skater Nicole Della Monica who pretty much never met a Unitard she didn't like. Along with her Pairs partner, the sexy-licious Matteo Guarise, these two skated their Short Program in these black with silver crystal embellished costumes, looking quite sensuous, lithe and passionate. I really loved the asymmetry of Nicole's costume, the silver bandeau, and skin-revealing panels as well as oversized jeweled sequins. 

Nicole Della Monica and Matteo Guarise Free Skate to Tristan and Isolde by Maxime Rodriguez--For their Free Skate to "Tristan and Isolde"--a 12th century story involving an adulterous love affair between a Cornish knight and Irish princess. These costumes definitely went along with the story and theme, using Costume Period details such as the criss-cross ties, gold scroll-like applique, armor-like accents. I thought it was interesting to pretend to show skin on Matteo with those side panels and "nude" sleeves and in addition I liked the lilac-and-wine color story between the two.

CANADA:

Kirsten Moore-Towers and Michael Marinaro Short Program to The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face by Leona Lewis--For their Short Program, Kirsten and Michael went with a classic figure skating costume style. For her, this involved a lilac colored look featuring a sheer center front panel encircled by silver sequins and watercolor-like printed bottom skirt section. It was pretty and romantic, like the musical theme. Michael's outfit was on par with a male pair's typical and safe long sleeve stretch top and matching colored pants.  

Kirsten Moore-Towers and Michael Marinaro Free Skate to Shine On You Crazy Diamond by Pink Floyd, The Happiest Days Of Our Lives by Pink Floyd, Another Brick In The Wall by Pink Floyd--For their Free Skate, their costumes got slightly more elaborate (Thank goodness!) being that the music involved the words "Shine" and "Diamond". The costumes shone with diamond-like crystal sequin details, nice criss-cross accents on her torso and even some sparkles on HIM (Yeay!).

FRANCE:

Vanessa James and Morgan Cipres Short Program to Uninvited by Alanis Morisette (from "City of Angels" soundtrack)--Vanessa and Morgan skated their Short Program wearing these costumes above. For Vanessa, it involved a gold and jeweled sequined top and red ombre shaded draped skirt. She looked like a Middle Eastern Sheikha in an Hollywood film set. Morgan looked the part of the sexy male counterpart with a fitted top featuring sheer-and-solid details (especially loved the SHEER shoulders!) and black pants. The movie the music is from involves an angel falling in love with a mortal. In these costumes, I can't tell which one is which...which is OK by me!

Vanessa James and Morgan Cipres Free Skate to Wicked Game by Chris Isaak, performed by Ursine Vulpine ft. Annaca, The Last Feeling by Maxime Rodriguez--Vanessa is another skater who never met a Unitard she didn't like and for their Free Skate, she wore a super sexy one in this deep gray costume with front torso draping and low waist sequin detail. The top section was Couture-worthy but I just wasn't sure if I liked how the pants extended way down to the skates. For Morgan, I absolutely loved his look, especially the top. Look at the photo above and how the lose panels twist while he spins: Fabulous!

In addition, I also appreciated how the deep gray colors in the costumes mirrored the sepia-toned black & white video with Chris Isaak and supermodel Helena Christensen (above photos).

CHINA:

Cheng Peng and Yang Jin Short Program to Ophelia by The Lumineers--These costumes worn by Peng and Jin were pretty with hers being the (literal) Star of the two. I loved the fireworks-and-stars-like beaded details in her costume making her look like a beautiful star in the night sky. Not to leave out her partner Yang Jin; his costume is a perfect example where designers can actually GIVE the GUY something in terms of detail as opposed to the same old/same old black top and black pants: I really liked that subtle gorgeous beading on his top.

Cheng Peng and Yang Jin Free Skate to La Vie en Rose--For their Free Skate, China's Peng and Jin skated in these costumes above. I liked her magenta colored look featuring a sheer crystal embellished front panel and off-the-shoulder design. I thought the use of the spaghetti straps/ties added nice interest in her costume. And once again, I appreciated that his black top had some subtle crystal accents so it would at least look as if someone cared about him, costume-wise. Although it would have been costume-perfection if his beading included some magenta and silver stones to really unify their look.

RUSSIA:

Alisa Efimova and Alexander Korovin Short Program to Human by Rag'n Bone Man--I really liked these costumes worn by Russia's Efimova and Korovin for their Short Program to "Human". They looked chic, modern and skate-stylish. I loved the asymmetrical panels, the silver sequins accenting the seams and I especially appreciated how his costume was a nice match to hers.

Alisa Efimova and Alexander Korovin Free Skate to La Strada by Nino Rota--The minute I saw her bold striped costume, I just knew they were skating to "La Strada". I actually liked the black, white and red costumes overall, since they were right for the music, and stood out on the ice "stage". There is a fine line between flashy figure skating costumes that work and ones that just look like cheap Cirque du Soleil ones. here, they worked.

Natalia Zabiiako and Alexander Enbert Short Program to Alexander Nevski by Sergei Prokofiev--In case you are wondering why Zabiiako and Enbert are looking like 13th century Knights, it's because the music is based on a movie score Prokofiev did for a film about...Knights, a Russian Prince and victory over crusaders in the 1200's. While it was great that the costumes were so closely related to the story of the music, I still thought they were a bit too "costume'y" and looked a bit more "Medieval Times Dinner Theater" rather than appropriate for the world stage of international figure skating.

Natalia Zabiiako and Alexander Enbert Free Skate to Toi et Moi by Igor Krutoi--Zabiiako and Enbert redeemed themselves--in terms of costumes--with these elegant Free Skate looks. I thought the designs were elevated, chic and more stylish (and less Halloween costume'y) than their "Knights of the Round Table" Short Program ones.

Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov Short Program to I Got You (I Feel Good) by James Brown--Tarasova and Morozov skated their Short Program to James Brown in the costumes above which included a shimmering red dress for Evgenia and black outfit for Vladimir. At the start of the 2018-2019 Grand Prix season at 2018 Skate America (photos above) , he wore this oh-so-boring, unexciting and non-costume of a black t-shirt, black pants and a "Ross Dress-For-Less" black belt. I get that they were trying to give a "Soulful"-Dancing-at-the-Club vibe but I just wished they gave him something...

Costume Change Alert: My wish was granted later in the season (at the 2018 Grand Prix Finals, photos above) when they finally gave him a bright, shiny iridescent red lame shirt to better compliment her red dress. But....did they go TOO far? All that red with his red hair might just be a bit "Too Muchee" for my taste.

Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov Free Skate to The Winter by Balmorhea--Evgenia and Vladimir wore these beautiful costumes above for their Free Skate. I loved her white with light silver ombre dyed costume featuring a gathered draped top with beautiful jeweled sequin embellishment at the neck and back. She looked angelic and like a fashionable "Queen of the Winter". In terms of Vladimir, it was nice to see a touch of silver in his costume which included a sheer-and-solid stretch chiffon top and black pants. 

**UP NEXT: My Final 2018 Figure Skating Costumes Recap BLOG...THE ICE DANCE costumes!!