Fashion Gears Up In Sochi

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Just as Fashion Week gets underway in New York the majority of the worlds eyes are turned to an even bigger fashion runway, the 2014 Winter Olympics.

During the Opening Ceremony U.S. athletes donned red, white and blue cardigans designed by Ralph Lauren as part of his new Made in America apparel line.

At the 2012 Summer Olympics, the U.S. team found themselves under heaps of criticism for wearing Olympic clothing made in China (also designed by Ralph Lauren but crafted in China) to the opening ceremonies.

For the 2014 Winter Games, designer Ralph Lauren used American materials. The yarn for the sweaters and hats that were worn in the opening and will be worn in the closing ceremonies at the Winter Olympics in Sochi was spun in East Jordan, Michigan.

Lauren said the company used materials from 40 different sources across the U.S., while the clothing was actually sewn in New York’s Garment District.

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The Opening Ceremony Uniform  consists of a chunky, patchwork knit wool cardigan emblazoned with stars, stripes and patriotic graphics paired with a cream turtleneck sweater and slim-fitting fleece sweatpants, finished off with sporty black leather mountaineer-type boots with red laces.

 

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The Closing Ceremony Uniforms consist of a reindeer motif Nordic-inspired knitted sweater,  a navy peacoat with a bright color-blocking red stripe, cream slim-fit fleece athletic pants, a tasseled earflap knit hat and hard-wearing black boots with red laces— all of which were created on US soil.

And for the first time, 100% of the purchase price of the Limited Edition Team USA Opening Ceremony Cardigan will be donated to the U.S. Olympic Committee.  Most of the pieces are sold out already but you can still purchase a few at TeamUSA.RalpLauren.com 

 

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Another Olympic Uniform that is already garnering slopes of attention is the US Snowboarding Team Uniforms.  

X Games fans around the globe are tuning in to the Sochi games to get a historic look as Slopestyle makes is first ever appearance at an Olympic games!

If you haven’t seen Slopestyle before make sure to check it out..it’s a fast paced, trick filled, high flying obstacle filled ride down the mountain. Including quarterpipes, rails and ramps it gets its roots from skateboarding and is all about doing the unexpected with style.

The team uniforms made by Burton marks the third consecutive Olympics where Burton has partnered with U.S. Ski & Snowboard Association to create one-of-a-kind uniforms designed for riders, by riders.

The uniform is inspired by two classic pieces of Americana: handcrafted patchwork quilts and the American flag.

After a long hunt, Burton designers found the perfect vintage quilt at an antique fair. Then, they brought it home to Vermont where it was deconstructed and re-constructed by a veteran Vermont quilt maker in order to get it ready to replicate onto the outerwear fabrics. Burton then developed a method to print exact replicas of both the quilt and a vintage American flag onto the fabric of the jackets resulting in a quilt pattern on the jackets looks like it was hand-stitched with patchwork squares – just like the original. And an exact duplicate of the vintage American flag is proudly featured on the jacket’s sleeve.

The Burton Olympic Competition Pants were also designed with considerable care and attention to detail. Corduroy was chosen as the inspiration for the pant fabric since it has been a staple of American clothing for generations. The pants are made of khaki polyester and designed to resemble corduroy.

To ensure the highest level of performance, Burton sourced a highly technical corduroy fabric (also featured on the shoulders of the Competition Jacket), which is weatherproofed with Burton’s new DRYRIDE Nanoshell laminate that features a waterproof/breathable membrane to keep the riders warm and dry. To round out the outerwear, Burton also designed all items that will be worn under the jacket and pants, including first-layer bottoms and tops, three different beanies, gloves/mitts and a cozy wool/silk blend competition pull-over fleece

“We’re really proud that the 2014 uniform builds on Burton’s legacy of creating fun, unconventional designs that stray from the formal, traditional look of most uniforms,” said Greg Dacyshyn, Chief Creative Officer at Burton Snowboards. “The vintage quilt and flag print of the jacket combined with the corduroy pants give the uniform a ‘heirloom hippy’ vibe that lines up with snowboarding’s laid-back culture while paying respect to America’s longstanding creative heritage. It will stand out in Sochi for sure.”

Although you can’t purchase the exact uniform Burton does offer a limited-edition capsule collection of hoodies, T-shirts, and accessories on their website including the uniforms beanie and gloves.

What do you think of the 2014 Winter Olympic fashion’s so far?  What team is winning the gold medal of style?

 

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