I am finding lots of pretty things in the Sochi Winter Games so far. There were SO MANY beautiful stranded knits in the parade of nations and now I just want to knit all the Fair Isle and Nordic patterns! And have you noticed that Finland's snowboarding team has been knitting a scarf? Read the story
here.
1. Andorra. 2. Latvia. 3. Estonia. 4. Belarus. 5. Poland. 6. Serbia.
1. Slovakia. 2. Sweden. 3. Awesome Canadian mittens. 4. Lithuania. (Unfortunately, I had a hard time finding a decent picture of them.)
Of course, not all the knitwear was fabulous. #Murica
And the knitwear was not all the Opening Ceremony had to offer by way of inspiration:
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| Check out this awesome print on Ukraine's coats. |
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Russia's ribbon-trimmed fur coats.
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Then we got the actually ceremony, which was full of beautiful things. Sochi definitely outdid London and Vancouver in my book.
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| Bright, vibrant colors and whatever you call those cool Hersey's Kiss-shaped towers. |
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| These black and white drawings were gorgeous! |
Yay, beautiful ballroom and ballet dancing! I couldn't find a great video, but I love the arm work in this style of ballroom . I admired it in Anna Karenina, but I wasn't sure if it was a traditional style or just the choreography for that movie. I want to learn how to do it!
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| We got some nice Modern dance too. |
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| Apparently they had their own version of Hairspray in Soviet Russia? I can never get enough of early 1960's art, clothes, hair, and cars. |
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| I might have preferred it if they stuck with Swan Lake as a traditional ballet, but these glowing jellyfish dancers were pretty cool too. I wish there had been more variety in the choreography. |
I've been pleasantly surprised at some of the ice skating. It's sort of a weird fusion of art and sports. As a dancer, it's hard for me to watch the routines with the the most grace and artistry that lose to more technical pieces. For the most part this year, the routines that have scored well are also the most beautiful.
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| I loved this costume on Japan's Mao Asada. Her routine was one of my favorites. |
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| These Russian ice dancers used Swan Lake and I loved how her skirt looked like a tutu when she spun. |
I'll be keeping my eyes open for more inspiration over the rest of the Olympics.
Bonus: A fun article I came across while looking for pictures for this post.
The Evolution of Winter Sports Told Through GIFs.
What's your creative inspiration right now? What has caught your eye at the Olympics?
Those "whatever you call those cool Hersey's Kiss-shaped towers" were representations of the beautiful, historic, architectural onion domes of St. Basil's Cathedral in Red Square, Moscow.
ReplyDeleteI do believe Ralph Lauren hit it out of the park with the U.S. Olympic team cardigans and hats. The effect, as a whole, was brilliant as the team strolled through the stadium at night all together, like a moveable feast of starry skies and Americana, splashes of bold color and cheery, recognizable shapes. The sweaters are reminiscent of our country's folk art and, to me, were perfectly designed representatives of that beautiful art form. Sometimes the symphony is more beautiful than the soloist. I believe that is what Lauren was going for, and for me, it was breathtaking. Sorry more people didn't catch his vision, happy that so many of us did. C'est la vie.
I loved the Santa coats as well.
Hope you're enjoying watching the amazing athletes performing their best for all of us. I sure am.
Yes, I always admire St Basil's! I wasn't sure if the ones in the Ceremony were specifically modeled after it, or just that style of tower in general. I've seen other Russian buildings that are similar, (though none are quite as pretty) and I wondered if there is a name for them.
DeleteI think we'll have to agree to disagree on the sweaters. ;) I'm not a big fan of Americana art in general; it's just not really my style. I found the patterns overwhelming, especially in such a large group.
And I've certainly been enjoying these Olympics. There have been so many close, tense competitions!
If you Google St. Basil's Cathedral you'll see that its particular onion domes were the inspiration for the Olympics as the designs/colors are the same.
ReplyDeleteYes, we can agree to disagree about the U.S. team's ensemble and Ralph Lauren's vision. To quote David Hume, "Beauty in things exists merely in the mind which contemplates them." Art - including fashion - is a very subjective medium.
The Olympics do testify to what a human body can achieve. Astounding and inspiring, to be sure! Yes, many close and tense competitions. I always feel so sad for those who don't win medals, especially when it's close. But alas, there can be only three medal winners and only one gets the gold.