Off Season Fun 2014-2015: Fashion Review - Short Program

It's time! This marks the 4th straight year of my Off Season Fun Series of posts.  It's my absolute favorite way to waste time until the new season starts.  It's always fun to revisit some of the best outfits, programs and moments from the past season.  As usual, I'll start with my Fashion Review.  First up, my top 5 Short Program looks from last season!

5.  Maria Artemieva: "Coco Chanel"

Essentially, this is a black dress with a white stripe across the top and shoulder...but I absolutely love it!  This dress was perfect for Maria's "Coco Chanel" SP.  Chanel is known for clean, simple elegance and this dress captured that feel perfectly. The white shoulder piece is fully bedazzled but other than some minimal crystals at the very top of the dress, that was it.  They went with a plain single layered asymmetrical skirt, though they did spice it up with a small split up the side.  Maria went very subtle with natural makeup and a nice bun.  The look was perfection.  For me, the beauty and elegance of this dress lies in its simplicity.  I loved it!

4. Zijun Li: "Waltz of the Flowers"

Zijun tends to have really nice dresses that complement not only her body but her delicate style of skating.  I thought this dark pink dress looked amazing on her.  The sweetheart neckline was lovely and I really liked all of the silver trimming along the bust as well as all of the sparkly elements along the bodice and the skirt.  Good job to whoever did the flesh toned mesh; it was on point. The necklace effect around the collar of the dress was very pretty and I also liked the jewels along the hands and wrists too.  The three-layered skirt flowed very well and I loved how the dress shimmered when Zijun moved.  Her classic bun and natural makeup were understated and lovely and worked perfectly with this dress.

3.  Elena Radionova: "J.Lo/Flamenco"

I really liked this little red number on Elena.  In terms of helping her look more mature on the ice, I think this was a step in the right direction.  I liked the sweetheart neckline combined with the off-the-shoulder straps and open back look for this dress.  Elena tends to lose her neck when she skates, so leaving more of the top of her chest and shoulders exposed helped to combat that. The design across the front of the dress was elaborate but not overdone, and the scalloped edge asymmetrical skirt looked great.  I'm not a fan of gloves but even those seemed to work with this outfit.  I loved what she did with her hair and her lovely makeup tied everything together. ¡Olè!

2. Hae Jin Kim: "Porgy and Bess"

The first time I saw this dress I fell in love.  I don't know what it is about it that I love so much but this is gorgeous!  I really love the color.  The dark purple with all of the glittering embellishments really made this dress sparkle like crazy under the light.  I loved the open back and the lacy designs around the edges.  The asymmetrical skirt worked perfectly with the simple design of the dress.  The top layer of the skirt was black and lacy, and the bottom layer was a solid shade of purple that was lighter than the rest of the dress.  All together it looked beautiful and Hae Jin looked lovely wearing it.

1.  Ashley Cain: "Mission: Impossible"

This is a unitard/catsuit done right!  Ashley has gorgeous long lines and this costume accentuated all of them beautifully.  I loved the cluster of bedazzle jewels around the neck and down the torso as well as the open back of this costume.  The black sheer fabric on the arms helped to break up the look so it wasn't just a solid black suit.  Again, I'm not usually a fan of gloves but the sheer gloves really worked here.  The low bun was sleek and complemented the overall look and the red lip added just the right pop of color.  Ashley looked amazeballs!  If her goal with this costume was to create a striking and commanding presence on the ice...Mission: Accomplished!

Honorable Mention

Alena Leonova: "Charlie Chaplin"

It's always a bit of a risk to go with a literal translation of a character when it comes to picking a costume.  That's what Alena did here and, surprisingly, she pulled it off very well.  The button-down shirt with a jacket look ended up working nicely.  Even the collar around the neck made sense.  The costume tied in really well with the choreography and overall theme of the program.  I was shocked but I gotta hand it to Alena...she really pulled this one off and I really liked it.

Which skater had your favorite SP look of the 2014-2015 season?  Don't forget to vote on the poll! 

Off Season Fun is just getting started!  Next up: my top 5 favorite Free Skate looks.  Check back soon!