Is sports clothing still fashionable, is the question.  Inspired by a recent trek up Mount Snowdon in Wales, the highest mountain in England and Wales.  Sports clothing needs to be firstly practical and being fashionable is often an after thought.  Wearing water proof trousers, bulky walking boots and a padded ski coat I must admit I felt very unfashionable.  However some people I passed when climbing Mount Snowdon seemed to have the “outdoor trendy look” down to a tee.

In the eighties and nineties sports fashion was at its peak.  It was fashionable to wear sports clothing by brand such as “La Coste“, trainers such as “Nike Air Max” and head-wear such as “Reebok” caps.  Big designer brand labels displayed on clothing were all the rage, the label became more important then the  style of the clothing.  The reasons for wearing sports clothing became more about displaying a status symbol, rather then selecting to wear a sports garment because it flattered your shape or even to play sport in.  Sportswear is often unflattering and unglamourous as it is designed to be practical, therefore it is usually designed by Sport Technology experts as opposed to fashion designers.

Stella McCartney has changed this trend, she is well known for her “sportswear” style clothing designs and has designed collections for Adidas.  As a fashion designer her style is quite casual, including relaxed tailoring, draping in many of her collections and her style is suited to sports clothing because of this.  Her designs maybe casual yet are sophisticated and in the collections she has produced for Adidas she has managed to create a sports look that is also fashionable.

Wearing sports clothing as a fashion item in 2010 seems to be less trendy, however with designers such as Stella McCartney working in this field I pose the questions. “Is Sportswear Still Fashionable?”, please complete the poll below and comment in box by scrolling down.

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1980s Style Velvet Dress by Collette Costello