ICE STYLE.....2018 European Figure Skating Championships COSTUMES: ICE DANCE & PAIRS!

 Glorious Gold--Guillaume Cizeron and Gabriella Papadakis of France during their Free Dance at the 2018 European Figure Skating Championships. Moscow Russia

To wrap up my 2018 European Figure Skating Championships COSTUMES "Ice Style" blogs, I have discussed the LADIES HERE and the MEN HERE so now, it' time for  PAIRS and ICE DANCE! Let's begin with PAIRS: 

Nicole Della Monica and Matteo Guarise of Italy:Free Skate to The Tree Of Life by Roberto Cacciapagua: Plain and simple, these were two fabulous costumes from the Italians. The colors were vibrant and ice-impacting and they looked like a wonderful and sexy sea/earth flora-and-fauna God and Goddess in these. I especially loved the silver, turquoise, aqua and baby blue crystals throughout their costumes. And it bears mentioning how HOT Matteo looked in his turquoise and navy blue jumpsuit...even with that questionable hipster topknot hair!

Vanessa James and Morgan Cipres of France Short Program to Make It Rain by Ed Sheeran arranged by Maxime Rodriguez : Leave it to Vanessa and Morgan to get me excited about Pairs Costumes: They always BRING IT! And this season is no exception. For their Short Program Vanessa wore this (almost) painted-on silver unitard/bodysuit. The costume had a gorgeously sequined bodice and...SERIOUSLY, it was A SECOND SKIN: She looked AMAZING. Morgan was not left behind--costume-wise--with his matching silver top and gray skin-tight pants. His top was quite nicely designed with the solid/nude illusion panels, side slits, super tight fit, and slim sleeves. I love how the costume designer made BOTH of them SO SUPER SEXY. I especially liked the back nude/solid detail of his top.

**NEW COSTUMES ALERT** Ksenia Stolbova and Fedor Klimov of Russia Free Skate to Carmen Suite: Russians Stolbova and Klimov wore these NEW costumes above for their Free Skate to Bizet's iconic music. She wore a fire-red mini-dress "Carmen" costume with black and red sequin applique at the bust, as well as nude illusion neckline/yoke. Klimov donned a "Matador"-like ensemble consisting of black pants and a Toreador-inspired shirt. I liked the lace appliques on his shirt that mimicked a bullfighter's iconic jacket. While these costumes were nice and they were chosen to be part of the Russian Olympic team, it was a little sad to hear that Ksenia had been banned by the IOC. No word on whether she tested positive for "illegal substances" but one can only assume. So say Adios to these "Carmen" costumes and to Stolbova and Klimov. For now. In case you are wondering....below is what they wore earlier in the season:

Ksenia Stolbova and Fedor Klimov: Rostelecom Cup of Russia 2017

Evgenia Tarasova and Vladimir Morozov of Russia Free Skate to Candyman by Christina Aguilera: For their Free Skate, they decided to go Kooky! While I guess there were hints of the WWII 40's Milk Shake Diner Style to these looks, they were still more "The Mask" than "Candyman". I don't know but these costumes just seem a little too "comical", especially for an Olympic year skate. Well, at least they haven't been banned #JustSaying .

ICE DANCE:

**NEW COSTUMES ALERT** Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte of Italy Free Dance to Biongiorno Principessa (from "La Vita e Bella" soundtrack), Life Is Beautiful (from "La Vita e Bella" soundtrack) by Nicola Piovani, arranged & performed by Mi Loco Tango, and La Vita e Bella (from "La Vita e Bella" soundtrack) by Nicola Piovani arranged by Claudio Mandonico--Cappellini and Lanotte are known for their very Italy-centric Ice Dances and this Olympic Season was no exception for their Free Dance. The costume she wore at this past weekend's 2018 European Figure Skating Championships was a NEW COSTUME...yet his stayed the same. Her new costume was a red dress featuring a gathered torso, satin underbust band, 3/4-length sleeves and a gored skirt. This was much improved from what she previously had been wearing: a sad, yawn-inducing ivory lace-top dress:

I'm glad she changed! 

Penny Coomes and Nicholas Buckland of Great Britain Short Dance to Rhumba: Rhumba d'Amour; Samba: Batucada performed DJ Dero--I really love this British Ice Dance pair and I liked these sassy costumes for the Latin-inspired Short Dance. Penny wore a black with silver sequined applique design that was impacting and almost very "Chicago"-esque (Hello fringe!). And Nicholas looked sexy in his black costume, also featuring sequin applique on his top. 

Free Dance to Exogenesis Symphony Part I and Part II by Muse; Butterflies and Hurricanes by Muse; Butterflies and Hurricanes performed by William Joseph--For their Free Dance, Penny wore a butterfly-inspired costume in purple, lilac and black which I liked and Nicholas wore a black costume comprised of pants and a dress shirt with beautiful silver sequin detail. These were nice designs but part of me wished there were slight purple/lilac details on him, to make them look more like a pair.

Sara Hurtado and Kirill Khaliavin of Spain Free Dance to Don Quijote by Leon Minkus--Spain's Ice Dance pair of Hurtado and Khaliavin (he's from Russia, naturally!), wore these sexy "Viva España" costumes for their "Don Quijote" Free Dance. I thought that these design certainly evoked the Spanish spirit; Hurtado looking like a Sevillana Diva and Khaliavin giving me Hot Toreador. These should go down well when they represent Spain at the Olympics next month!

Alexandra Stepanova and Ivan Bukin of Russia Free Dance to Love Story Theme, Love's Dream by Rick Wakeman, Liebestraum No. 3 in A-Flat Minor, S. 541 by Franz Lizst, performed by Martin Jones: These costumes were pretty, and right for the music. The delicate blush pink color story hinted at love. At first I was worried that the color should have been stronger since their own skin color isn't too far away from that blush muted pink but, surprisingly it worked on them. I also loved the intricate, yet beautiful sequined flower applique on her torso which, once again, gave a nod to romance. His soft blouson-sleeve shirt (with a DEEP plunging neckline!) also gave a feel of Romanticism and Love. Their Free Dance was so intense that I was like "Y'all need to get a hotel suite!". They may have time since, it was just announced that Ivan, unfortunately WILL NOT BE going to the Pyongchang Winter Olympics (illegal substance perhaps?). 

Gabrielle Papadakis and Guillaume Cizeron of France Free Skate to Piano Sonata N. 14 in C sharp minor, Op. 27, No 2. "Moonlight Sonata", Adagio Sostenuto, by Ludwig van Beethoven performed by Steve Anderson--I LOVE LOVE LOVE these costumes worn by the fabulous French Ice Dance pair of Papadakis and Cizeron. These costumes are subtle, beautiful, elegant, and PERFECT. Her softly flowing chiffon dress with Lycra bodysuit was sublime and fluttered with the dance like a gorgeous bird flying through the wind. And Guillaume...huney, where do I begin? That side cowl drape top was FIGURE SKATING COUTURE Fab; sexy, elegant, draped. I love that for the Free Dance, HIS costume was actually THE STAR. 

Get a Room Kids: Papadakis and Cizeron of France during their Free Dance at the 2018 European Figure Skating Championships, Moscow Russia