leotards

Leotard Rankings: Week 11

Leotards
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The final weekend of the regular season saw a handful of new leos, including a beauty from George Washington, a classic look from Missouri and…an…interesting honorable mention from the Illinois men from last week. The criteria is the same as always: up to three points for design; two points for fabric, sparkle, etc.; and two points for school spirit; three points for overall appearance. This week’s guest judge is Emily HF, our MPSF editor and star photographer!

Oregon State: 8.133

OSU @ Sac State-62

Design Fabric/

Sparkle

 School

Spirit

 Overall

Appearance

 Total
Christina 2.5/3 1.7/2 1.0/2 2.4/3 7.6/10
Elizabeth 2.3/3 1.6/2 1.3/2 2.4/3 7.6/10
Emily HF 3/3 1.8/2 1.5/2 2.9/3 9.2/10

Christina: This is an interesting look and almost doesn’t look like a gymnastics leo. I like it a lot, especially with the leafy swirls that look like an oil painting and the white to black ombre. I also very much like the subtle sweetheart neckline although it is hard to see. I am kind of obsessed with the pointy sleeve cuffs, and I think it works so well with the entire feel of the leo; it creates a nice line. I do wish the swirls on the back weren’t cut so abruptly from the deep V and that it blended better just like on the front. Also, I need more school spirit!

Elizabeth: If you just look at this leo or see it in motion, I think it can’t be appreciated as much because it’s the little details that make it a nice one. I like the back and white look—sometimes it’s ok to do that and not incorporate all the school colors. I also like the sparkly white V on the back paired with the muted white paired with the swirly design. I do love the pointy sleeves, though, but with there was more school spirit.

Emily HF: Love love love love. This is sooooo pretty. I almost don’t even care about the lack of school spirit on it. For sure my favorite leo of the week. I do wish the line in the back was a little different and went more at a diagonal across the shoulders or something. But overall I’m obsessed with this.

TWU: 8.067

Design Fabric/

Sparkle

 School

Spirit

 Overall

Appearance

 Total
Christina 2.2/3 1.6/2 1.7/2 2.1/3 7.6/10
Elizabeth 2.6/3 1.6/2 1.7/2 2.7/3 8.6/10
Emily HF 2.2/3 1.5/2 1.7/2 2.6/3 8.0/10

Christina: These are lovely! I love the sweetheart neckline with all the sparkles going down, and this shade of red is beautiful. The back looks almost unfinished, and I wish it matched the beauty of the front. I need more glitter! The “Pioneers” is a nice touch for school spirit though.

Elizabeth: When TWU came out with these on, I immediately liked them. The color is beautiful and shiny, and I love the little patch of shimmery silver/crimson on the front, creating the sweetheart look. I also appreciate the hip TWU, as well as the :Pioneers” on the back. Plus the amount of sparkles and placement brings it all together.

Emily HF: These are super pretty! The crimson has a really pretty silvery shimmer to it too! The sparkles and placement are gorgeous; I just wish they continued onto the back a little bit? It feels a little plain compared to the front.

George Washington: 7.400

https://twitter.com/cyddcrasa23/status/974742982862745600

Design Fabric/

Sparkle

 School

Spirit

 Overall

Appearance

 Total
Christina 2.3/3 1.6/2 2.0/2 2.4/3 8.3/10
Elizabeth 2.6/3 1.7/2 1.9/2 2.7/3 8.9/10
Emily HF 1.0/3 1.5/2 1.5/2 1.0/3 5.0/10

Christina: Of course these are GW. I think I like these although there is a lot going on. I love the ombre and the different colors of sparkles. I also like the faux sweetheart neckline with the thin blue bands, but I could have done without the glitter “necklace” at the top. My comments are similar for the back—that’s also a bit too busy for me.

Elizabeth: I love thisss!!!! The yellow and blue work really well together and aren’t too bright or clashy. I love the overlaying design and all the sparkle and rhinestones. I don’t love the faint white swirly design as I think it’s one step too far, but overall this is gorgeous and am obsessed.

Emily HF: There are just too many things happening here for me. I like the individual ideas but not all on one leo. Pick one or two please. I’m all for creative ombres and really like the blue to yellow and the fabric sheen. I like the sleeves, as they kept it fairly simple there. But the rest makes it too busy. I think I would have loved this with the sleeves as is and just the blue to yellow ombre body.

Missouri: 7.200

Design Fabric/

Sparkle

 School

Spirit

 Overall

Appearance

 Total
Christina 1.7/3 1.5/2 1.7/2 1.8/3 6.7/10
Elizabeth 2.2/3 1.5/2 1.9/2 2.3/3 7.9/10
Emily HF 1.6/3 1.5/2 1.9/2 2.0/3 7.0/10

Christina: Oooh these are kind of intense. I am obsessed with the Tiger stripes on the sleeves, but I wish the front was less… overwhelming. The school logo is just ginormous. It would have been nice smaller and with a different neckline, as I don’t find this one flattering. I also would have loved to see more hints of gold on there.

Elizabeth: I’m loving the tiger stripes on this one! What a cool way to bring in school spirit. However, unlike Christina, I like the Missouri Tiger logo and think the way it wraps around the side makes it not so big and in-your-face. I don’t mind the neckline but agree that I would have liked some gold somewhere—maybe in sparkle or an ombre sleeve?

Emily HF: I actually surprisingly like the tiger stripes on the sleeves here. If you’d described it to me, I wouldn’t have thought I would, but the the stripes and tiger are just understated enough. I’m not a big fan of the neckline though—I don’t find it flattering.

Illinois State: 6.700

Design Fabric/

Sparkle

 School

Spirit

 Overall

Appearance

 Total
Christina 2.0/3 1.5/2 1.5/2 2.2/3 7.2/10
Elizabeth 2.0/3 1.4/2 1.4/2 2.1/3 6.9/10
Emily HF 1.5/3 1.5/2 1.0/2 2.0/3 6.0/10

Christina: This is a sweet look—simple yet elegant. I love the sweetheart neckline with the red bodice and the white mesh sleeves. The sparkles on the front look great as well. I wish it incorporated a bit more school spirit, but a nice one from Illinois State.

Elizabeth: I like the simplicity of this one as well. The red and white combo with the sweetheart neckline works, and there’s just enough sparkle. I, too, wish there was just a touch more school spirit—maybe a Redbird in rhinestones on the sleeve or something?

Emily HF: Eh? It’s pretty but there’s nothing that makes it stand out to me. It feels like the same leo that a lot of teams have in a variety of colors? Just…a little more…something.

Oklahoma: 6.633

https://instagram.com/p/BgZ2m8Xhf-I/

Design Fabric/

Sparkle

 School

Spirit

 Overall

Appearance

 Total
Christina 1.8/3 1.6/2 1.6/2 2.0/3 7.0/10
Elizabeth 1.7/3 1.4/2 1.6/2 1.8/3 6.5/10
Emily HF 1.6/3 1.4/2 1.6/2 1.8/3 6.4/10

Christina: This is not my favorite OU leo, but it’s still lovely. I love the back with the deep V mesh full of sparkles and the circles all along it. The sweetheart neckline on the front is nice, and I like the shade of crimson; but it’s just too bland and simple… Especially with every other leo OU has in store—this one falls a bit flat.

Elizabeth: These definitely stray from OU’s old formula of crimson body with white sleeves, but I don’t know if I like it more or less. The front is rather blah—but I do appreciate the neckline and sparkle—but they look much better in motion than in a still image. The back is nice and bling-y, but I gave take or leave the circle design.

Emily HF: It’s pretty? And I do agree that it looks significantly better in motion than in stills, but I want something a little more. Maybe if the front ombre-d down into a black or something?

North Carolina: 6.433

https://twitter.com/NCAAGymNews/status/975072019330076672

Design Fabric/

Sparkle

 School

Spirit

 Overall

Appearance

 Total
Christina 1.6/3 1.4/2 1.8/2 1.7/3 6.5/10
Elizabeth 1.5/3 1.3/2 1.8/2 1.6/3 6.2/10
Emily HF 1.5/3 1.7/2 1.8/2 1.6/3 6.6/10

Christina: This does feel very old school. It’s a bit simple, but it does the job. I love the Carolina blue on the sleeves, and the school logo on the front is a nice touch. There is just nothing that makes me good “yay” or “nay” about this one.  

Elizabeth: I love the Carolina blue used on the sleeves and the classic, almost throwback look of the design and logo on the front. However, I’m not loving the neckline or how the sleeves are cut off so severely from the body.

Emily HF: I’m literally obsessed with the color on the sleeves of this leo. The Carolina blue is absolutely gorgeous. The school logo on the front is really nice too, but the way the sleeve line cuts off at the shoulder isn’t my favorite. But please use this color from the sleeves on more things.

HONORARY MENTION – Illinois Men: 6.367

Design Fabric/

Sparkle

 School

Spirit

 Overall

Appearance

 Total
Christina 1.6/3 1.5/2 1.9/2 1.8/3 6.8/10
Elizabeth 1.5/3 1.2/2 1.9/2 1.5/3 6.1/10
Emily HF 1.4/3 1.3/2 1.9/2 1.6/3 6.2/10

Christina: Omg these are too much it’s hilarious! They remind me a lot of Bryan Raschilla’s pants fashion. The front is fine, I actually don’t mind the pants that much. The back is just laughable, and I really dislike the football/basketball jersey look with bright orange. It’s however pretty neat to have their names back there.

Elizabeth: Umm… It almost looks like Illinois rolled out of bed, left their pajama pants on and went straight into the competition. It’s too much for me to handle. It’s almost so hideous that it works? Apart from the pants, I really like the upper body portion. The design is nice, and I’d even buy/wear a tank top like it.

Emily HF: Haha! This is amazing—so bad it’s almost good. Mostly I’m just amused. And it really does look like pajama pants.

Utah State: 5.533

Design Fabric/

Sparkle

 School

Spirit

 Overall

Appearance

 Total
Christina 1.5/3 1.0/2 1.6/2 1.6/3 5.7/10
Elizabeth 1.2/3 0.8/2 1.7/2 1.3/3 5.0/10
Emily HF 1.4/3 1.5/2 1.8/2 1.0/3 5.9/10

Christina: Blah. It’s going for the sporty look, which could work, but I don’t like it here. I greatly dislike the grey bands on the side that just create a very clunky figure on the front. The deep shade of blue is lovely however, and the back is okay with the big sparkly school logo. Overall though, the design of the entire look just doesn’t work for me.

Elizabeth: Not my cup of tea. I don’t really get the random dark grey patches, and the use of muted fabric doesn’t work for me. The big logo on the back is fine, but maybe a touch too big. This just isn’t my favorite.

Emily HF: Without the grey patches I would love this. Really like the deep blue colors, the slightly lighter sleeves and the big sparkly school logo on the back. But I just can’t get past the grey patches and their kind of odd placement.

Boise State: 5.300

https://twitter.com/BroncoSportsGYM/status/974804604188729344

Design Fabric/

Sparkle

 School

Spirit

 Overall

Appearance

 Total
Christina 1.2/3 1.0/2 1.5/2 1.4/3 5.1/10
Elizabeth 1.4/3 1.2/2 1.5/2 1.5/3 5.6/10
Emily HF 1.2/3 1.0/2 1.5/2 1.5/3 5.2/10

Christina: Oy… Nope. I know Boise State has some rough colors to deal with—and we’ve seen a lot worse from it (that all-orange leo!)—but I am very meh on this one. The random orange squiggles on a plain blue fabric don’t do it for me. It also was very much clashing with the all-purple arena at UW.

Elizabeth: Eh, I’ve seen better from Boise. These are fine but nothing special. I like the blue color used but don’t really like the orange or the random design. I kept trying to see a Bronco before deciding it wasn’t supposed to be anything in particular.

Emily HF: Ugh… I think I’m biased here because I really wanted good photos of Boise State, and this just wasn’t working with all of the purple at UW. So it’s made me grouchy at the leo. Clearly I can’t rate based on that but… Overall I wish the orange had been clearly a bronco or clearly not. I spent way too long staring at the side trying to figure out if it was. I don’t actually mind these two shades together, but it would have been interesting to see them blended in some way.

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Article by Elizabeth Grimsley, Christina Marmet and Emily Howell-Forbes

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2 comments

  1. UNC leotards were a throwback!! We asked the seniors what leotards they wanted to wear for their senior meet and they wanted to honor our alum by wearing this throwback leotard!

    Reply

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