Figure Skating Apparel

Figure skating apparel

Your ultimate guide to buying the right figure skating apparel

Even if you haven’t been into figure skating for very long, the odds are pretty good that you’ve at least noticed that skaters wear different pieces of clothing and apparel when they are out on the ice and that their figure skating apparel changes depending upon what exactly they are doing out there on the ice!

A practice or training uniform for a figure skater is going to be entirely different than a figure skating dress designed specifically for competition, just as both of them are going to be completely different than the apparel that skaters wear when they are off the ice.

And while finding the right ice-skating apparel for your specific needs seems a lot of common sense on the surface, because there are so many different options available to pick and choose from the process usually isn’t quite as straightforward as most people believe it to be.

Thankfully, though, by arming yourself with all of the inside information we outline below, you won’t ever have to worry about struggling to find exactly the right ice skating outfits moving forward.

Breaking down the different types of figure skating apparel options available

The most important thing to realize about finding the best ice skating costumes, ice skating pants, or practice skate clothing is that there is a literal flood of options to choose from. And you’ll have to get crystal-clear about your expectations about these pieces of clothing ahead of time can be you’re going to drown in choices.

You are going to find that there are ice skating costumes made to match virtually every routine imaginable, that are made out of almost every fabric possible, and cut to fit most every body type that will ever strap on a pair of skates.

Trying to find just the right ice-skating costumes without a good idea of what you are hoping to do with these figure skating apparel options is going to be and the impossibility.

But once you begin to get crystal-clear about your expectations you’ll be able to zero in on all of the different choices that make the most sense for you going forward, and after that’s taken care of buying the best ice skating outfits becomes almost effortless.

Choosing the right figure skating outfit becomes very easy after they had a look at all of the different options available on the market.

You’ll have to find the right approach for you. But rest assured that when you outline your expectations and get them down on a piece of paper that you’ll be able to have a much easier time finding top-notch figure skating apparel options than you ever would have before.

Important features to focus on before buying figure skating apparel

Regardless of whether or not you are looking for ice skating pants, ice skating dress options, or a cute ice-skating outfit that you can wear in competition – or something else entirely – you are going to need to focus on purchasing figure skating apparel with some of the features that we are going to outline below.

In the last few decades, textiles and technical fabrics have come quite ways since their earliest introduction into the marketplace. The kinds of figure skating pants and USA figure skating costumes that Olympic athletes used to wear even just 15 years ago are entirely different comparing to the options available for professional and amateur skaters today.

Ice skating dress can be made of one of the most impressive and feature-rich “technical fabric” designed to unlock all of your active potentials, all without having to sacrifice any style or flair along the way.

This is why you have to pay close attention to the first feature that we want to highlight when buying figure skating apparel, the actual fabric that your new buying is taking advantage of.

The best figure skating apparel is going to be manufactured out of fabric that:

Fits very snugly up against your body but allows complete and total range of motion and a freedom of movement thanks to the ability to stretch the fabric itself

Material that has been designed to extend in every  way all at the same time (usual thanks to the particular type of  pattern it utilizes) so that you can nail every one of your movements

Figure skating apparel should also highlight the kinds of aesthetics that you’re shooting for with your routine, as you would like to use your ice-skating costume as a “proper” that accentuates your routine and brings the audience in a while capturing their attention

The fabric should also quick sweat away, compress your muscles to fight back against cramps, and quickly dry out on the ice so that you can focus on your athletic performance without even having to wonder about whether or not your body – or your figure skating apparel – is going to rebel against you

… And that’s just the top of the iceberg (no pun intended)!

Also, you will find out that figure skating apparel (especially the stuff you’ll wear out on the ice while competing) made out of the lightest weight technical fabric you can find.

A lot of ice skating pants, figure skating pants, and ice skating dress options in the past used to be manufactured entirely out of polyester spandex, but today they are usually made out of technical fabrics that breathe without sacrificing the aesthetics of the costume along the way.

Don’t just think of your figure skating apparel – especially your competition apparel – as a dress that you slide into and out of, but instead think of it as your athletic uniform and a piece of clothing that is going to help you accomplish all of your goals out there on the ice.

Of corse, you would like to make sure that you have many different ice-skating clothes available to use at any one particular point in time. For instance, you want to have a set of practice clothes, a set of testing apparel options, and more than a handful of cute ice-skating outfits that you can use in competition – but you also want to make sure that your money is always well spent.

Look for figure skating apparel options from the biggest brands in the business so that you aren’t ever disappointed in their performance.

After all, there is a real reason why some brands that make skate apparel and figure skating costumes can gain global recognition and why others fall by the wayside – it’s because the big brands make the best stuff (outside of the ice-skating clothes you can make yourself, of course).

Mistakes you don’t ever want to make  when purchasing figure skating apparel

Now that we have covered most of the things you should look for when buying skating clothes or searching through all of the different ice-skating dresses for sale, it’s important to highlight a couple of mistakes you can make when you start to add to your skating apparel collection.

For starters, we want to make sure that you never purchase figure skating apparel that is in any way inappropriate.

Certainly one of the most elegant and classy of all the sports out there, there’s a certain refinement to figure skating that may not exist into terribly many other athletic and competitive environments. You have to be sure that your figure skating apparel is very tastefully done, that it complements your routine and that it helps you garner the right kind of attention from the judges with zero distractions along the way.

Always try to be on the side of caution rather than to seek to push the envelope (unless that’s the kind of personality or person that you have cultivated and wanted to showcase to help you stand out from the rest of the pack). Remember that many of the judges responsible for your scores are a lot more conventional and of the older generation that may not be entirely comfortable with “New Age” figure skating apparel.

Secondly, you have to be completely sure that you have always purchased the right size when it comes time to get your hands on ice-skating tights, skating clothes, and ice skating costumes.

The fit and finish of your skating apparel are going to have a significant impact on your performance and your scores. You have to find figure skating apparel that fits like a glove without ever choking or restricting your movements, but you also have to find figure skating apparel and ice dance dress options that will allow you to put forth some pageantry into your routine as well.

This is a bit of a delicate tightrope walk and something that not everyone is going to be able to pull off successfully all the time successfully. But that’s why you have to get your hands on multiple ices skating costume options (including backups) so that you have the ability to tailor your look to your routine.

Finally, you need to try and do everything not to skimp out when it comes time to purchase figure skating apparel.

Sure, ice skating dresses for sale usually aren’t the cheapest thing on the block (and can be almost as expensive as your skates themselves) – but they can be the difference between gold and silver medal in the competition, that’s for sure.

It’s usually a good idea to avoid discount skate wear whenever possible so that you can invest your money more wisely into the peace of figure skating apparel that will pay dividends when it’s time to compete, but this isn’t always the case, either.

Every now and again you’ll come across discount skate wear that has been lowered for entirely legitimate reasons (not because they cut corners during production), and those options shouldn’t be ignored but should instead be leaped upon whenever you get the chance to purchase cheap ice-skating costume products.

Like most everything else in this world you getting exactly what you pay for when you buy an ice-skating costume. Unless you want to go out in front of the judges and perform your routine without having total confidence in every move and the way you look. The kind of decision that can cripple your ability to win, you should spend at least a little bit of extra money on your ice-skating costumes just to be sure that you look your best and can compete at the highest level.

Closing thoughts

At the end of the day, there certainly isn’t any shortage whatsoever of fantastic pieces of figure skating apparel available for sale.

All of the biggest names in the business of figure skating offer some top-notch clothing options, most of them designed to help you get the most out of your athletic ability out on the ice, but some of them designed for the “figure skating lifestyle” as well.

Don’t be shy about adding to your collection of figure skating apparel organically over time, as this is usually the best kind of approach – especially for those operating with a relatively strict budget.

Just try to do your best to think out your purchases in advance, really trying to figure out whether or not a specific piece of figure skating apparel is going to contribute or cloud your routine. Don’t be shy about asking your coach, your teammates, your friends, and even your family for advice so that you know that the moment you step out on the ice, you’re going to look your best to perform your best!