Wimbledon 2010: Polo Ralph Lauren & Tiffany Diamonds by the Yard

Hello-Hello, and Happy Tuesday!

We missed you yesterday, but the volume of inquiries about the wedding of Sweden’s Princess Victoria made us think it would be wise to leave up our Saturday post detailing the party frocks, heads of state in attendance, etc. But we are back today, and a good thing, as it is high party and sporting season.

Everyone knows Wimbledon is under way, and that means lots of activities on and off the court. We begin with some images from the official Pre-Party this past Saturday, on the left we see Venus Williams; sister Serena Williams may be seen on the right.

Celebrities (we use that word loosely) were also on hand, including the Sugababes singing group. (Do help TP out here, are we hopelessly out of touch to be unfamiliar with this group?)

Claire Greenway/Getty

Two more athletes in attendance, Maria Sharapova and Jelena Jankovic.

As many readers know, there is always another party this time of year, the Polo Ralph Lauren annual Wimbledon celebration.

Dave M. Benett/Getty

This year’s event was at the firm’s Bond Street store. Party-goers included Gwyneth Paltrow  and actor Matt LeBlanc, the latter wearing Ralph Lauren.

More atmosphere at the party venue, the PRL store in London.

Below, Jules Knight, Stephen Bowman, Oliver Baines and Humphrey Berney of Blake (we confess to looking this one up on Google, they all are in what is referred to as a ‘boy band’) on the blue carpet.

Dave M. Benett/Getty

Also attending the festivities, former Champion Boris Becker and his wife, Lily, seen below.

Getty

We thought Venus Williams looked elegant, and adore the pink/green necktie the gentleman on the right is sporting.

The event was a fundraiser for a British breast cancer organization, Too Many Women.

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Mr. Becker’s connection with Polo Ralph Lauren can be seen in this ad showcasing the Wimbledon Ball Boys and Girls, all clad in Ralph Lauren designs.

Courtesy Image via AP

This is the fourth year Mr. Lauren has designed the uniforms, although they are basically unchanged from last year. More on this topic tomorrow.

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This year’s Wimbledon on-court fashion updates are many and varied, below we see Serena Williams in her new Nike look.

Toby Melville/Reuters

Maria Sharapova also wears a new style, also with a jacket over the dress, and also from Nike.

Suzanne Plunkett/Reuters

For more updates and information about the on-court fashions, pop over and visit Rich at Down The Line Tennis, as always, he is a much better source on the topic than we.  The most we can add is evidence that it is hot over at Centre Court.

Reuters

Yes, it looks very warm indeed.

Getty Images

Of course the uppermost image is a shirtless Roger Federer, the second is Rafael Nadal.

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And our final fashion note comes via a Tiffany new release regarding the earrings Maria Sharapova will be wearing during Wimbledon. Some may recall the tennis star and Tiffany have a marketing agreement; she wears and publicizes a specific pair of Tiffany earrings during each Grand Slam event.

Courtesy Tiffany

Ms. Sharapova is wearing Elsa Peretti Diamonds by the Yard®, here is a better look

Courtesy Tiffany

The Tiffany website’s product description:

“Maria Sharapova, one of the world’s top tennis players, is wearing Elsa Peretti® Diamonds by the Yard® earrings at Wimbledon. Sterling silver drop earrings with round brilliant diamonds, for pierced ears. Carat total weight .30. Original designs copyrighted by Elsa Peretti.”

Until next time!

ADDITIONAL PHOTO CREDITS:

• Claire Greenway/Getty
• Tim Jenkins/WWD

Tennis Togs Part Two & “When Logos Run Amok” Example 46

Hello-Hello!

Last week we ran a little preview of some of the tennis apparel being unveiled at this year’s US Open, including the new looks from Nike for Roger Federer, Rafa Nadal and Serena Williams.  We also looked at some of the pieces coming from Polo Ralph Lauren, the Open’s official sponsor.

Today we turn our attention to Lacoste’s new looks for Andy Roddick. Mr. Roddick can be seen below, as well as Mr. Federer, Ms. Williams and Maria Sharapova.

PHOTO: Ray Stubblebine/Reuters

He is wearing the Printed Check Super Dry Polo, we offer a better view:

Courtesy Lacoste

The Diamante Drawstring Short is on sale in select colors.Here is a look at the ensemble in navy as worn by Mr. Roddick yesterday.

PHOTO: Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty

The Women’s Short Sleeve Super Dry Polo comes in both white and a rich raspberry pink.

Many readers probably saw Mr. Roddick visiting the David Letterman show last week. Unfortunately he was sporting the new polo from Lacoste, with the “Big Croc”.

We clearly have a new addition to the “When Logos Run Amok” category.

Lacoste.com

An interesting note, the Oversized Croc Pique Polos for men run $92, while the Short Sleeve Classic Pique Polos are only $54.99 – $79.50.  A similar theme is evident on the Ladies side of the shop, with the Women’s Oversize Croc Polo at $85 and other versions running $54.99 – $79.50.

One more comment about Mr. Roddick, he is not happy with the Open’s new rules regarding Twitter. The Straight Sets blog from the Times carried a post about the issue:

““I think its lame the U.S. Open is trying to regulate our tweeting,” he wrote Friday night. “I understand the on-court issue but not sure they can tell us if we can’t do it on our own time … we’ll see.”

The rules state that tweeting is not allowed on the court during matches. They also warn players about using Twitter away from the court, saying that sending “certain sensitive information” could be considered passing along inside information to gamblers.”

We are grateful there are no such rules governing TP’s Tweets!

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When covering the Nike togs last week we neglected to show the looks for Ms. Sharapova, always a fashionista on and off the court. First, her day dress:

The Night Dress is a very dark midnight blue with silver piping; there appears to be some sort of unfortunate glittery lamé fabric insert.

It is superior to the dress worn by Ms. Sharapova last week for the Rogers Cup in Toronto. We like the minty-green color, but the full skirt is reminiscent of a prom frock gone bad.

Chris Young/Canadian Press/AP

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A look we liked even less? The not-quite-Ed-Hardyish drawing on the back of the dress worn yesterday by Venus Williams for her first-round win.

PHOTO: Emmanuel Dunand/Getty

The dress isn’t quite as bad from the front.

PHOTO: Emmanuel Dunand

And we do like pink.

But… the color for tennis apparel is white. Granted, we are old. We are boring. Fuddy-duddy is a kind and gentle way to describe our ‘tennis style’ as there is no style whatsoever.

We are quite comfortable in this kind of look:

This comes as no surprise to readers.

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One of the more intriguing debuts this week comes courtesy of US star James Blake, who has moved from Nike to Fila.

Chris Trotman/Getty Images for DirecTV

Fila and Mr. Blake have partnered on an apparel and accessories line, launched at the Lord & Taylor on Fifth Avenue last week.  In honor of the player’s late father the collection is named Thomas Reynolds.  Below, Mr. Blake can be seen with actor Will Ferrell, who was dressed as Blake for the annual Arthur Ashe Kids Day event.

Ray Stubblebine/Reuters

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For those curious about the outcome of Roger Federer’s first match against Devin Britton of the US, Mr. Federer won.

PHOTO: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

However, we may need to pursue a future chat about ‘Monogram Man,’ and the overall issue surrounding Mr. Federer’s logo/crest/monogram.

Below we see Rafa Nadal practicing this morning, his first match is set for Wednesday.

PHOTO: Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

On this smiling face, we say G’bye until next time!

Polo Ralph Lauren’s Next Team USA Olympic Uniforms

Hello-Hello and Happy Holiday Weekend if you are celebrating!

Frequent readers will not be surprised to hear we are careening from crisis to crisis, coping with all things Princess, many things Lilly, and a new thing from Ralph. Seriously.

Remember the Ralph Lauren Team USA Opening Ceremony Uniforms from last summer’s Olympics?

We have an announcement on next year’s uniforms, direct from the Polo Mother Ship.  A hint can be gleaned from the sketches below.

Courtesy Polo Ralph Lauren

Yes, just in time for the patriotic holiday weekend, there is word that Polo Ralph Lauren is an Official Outfitter of the US Olympic and Paralympic Teams for the 2010 and 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.  Below, a Men’s look.

Courtesy Polo Ralph Lauren

In addition to uniforms for Opening and Closing Ceremonies, the company will also create apparel and accessories for Team USA to wear in the Athletes Village and other venues.  As far as the look itself goes, here is a snippet from the news release:

“Celebrating the rich history of the Olympic Games with a nod to the Lake Placid Games of 1932, the clothing will showcase a classic Americana and patriotic palette of red, white and blue.”

Pieces from both teams’ Parade Outfit collections will be available for purchase, along with other styles.  It will be fun to watch both Collections develop!

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As a segueway, we go to a story somewhat related to the uniforms story, we’re talking Wimbledon, where Polo Ralph Lauren is also the Official Apparel Sponsor. Oddly, it doesn’t feel like it is time for the Wimbledon Finals, but here they are: Venus vs. Serena and Roger vs. Andy in the Singles Finals.

It has been awhile since we talked about Mr. Roddick and his apparel sponsor, Lacoste. Well, we did chat up Lacoste no end in our ‘When Logos Attack’ post yesterday, but that was different. Below, Mr. Roddick at an earlier practice this week, sporting the Lacoste Logo tee.

PHOTO: Alastair Grant/AP

Pssst – the tee is now only $34.99, the original price was $50.

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In the spirit of the weekend, we close with this bow tie from one of our favorite gentlemen, Mister Mort, in collaboration with Baron von Fancy. Spotted by the ever-vigilant fashion guys at Men’s Style, it is even Made in the USA.

Courtesy Photo via Men's Style

The patriotic style statement is supposed to be available at Steven Alan, (where we must say, they are having a fabulous sale) and Opening Ceremony.  We did not see the tie, but did stumble onto a pink and green bag we simply had to share!

Courtesy Opening Ceremony

The handbag is from Issey Miyake’s new line, cauliflower, the bag showcases the pleating style this house is known for (think ‘Pleats Please’) and it looks darling. Best of all, the bag is on sale for $57!

Smiles and hopes for a Happy Fourth!

US Open Chaos, Maria Sharapova Goes Shopping

Hello-hello and Happy, Happy Sunny Day!

Although this was clearly not the case at the US Open this weekend.

Photo Courtesy: Philip Hall/usopen.org

We wish that everyone could enjoy the delightful sunshine and cool breezes currently on offer here in the Great Midwest, but know that is not the case in so many places, compliments of Hanna (whose name we misspelled in our previous mention of her nastiness), and we hope all survive intact.

In fact, the US Open Men’s Finals have been postponed until Monday evening at 5pm, an occurrence not seen since 1987, when Ivan Lendl beat Mats Wilander in the men’s singles final. And what a pairing it is, with Andy Murray’s stunning upset of Rafa Nadal, resolved only when those two were finally able to conclude their match on Sunday!

Mr. Murray has some wonderful photos on his blog, including this one of players checking their Blackberries yesterday, not for phone or email messages, but for weather reports!

Courtesy Andy Murray

And when the skies cleared enough that Rafa and Andy were able to conclude their match, the intensity was extraordinarily high. Yes, that is Will Ferrell sharing his thoughts from the stands, as well as Mr. Murray’s girlfriend, Kim Sears.

The Open *is* unusual among the 4 Majors in that it is the only tournament that does not have any rest days between the semi-finals and finals for men’s singles, and it is the only one to stuff the men’s semi-final and women’s final matches into the last day, a Saturday. (Any thoughts on why that might be…? Three letters: N.F.L.) Officials now say they will look very seriously at installing the frequently-debated $100 million roof on Arthur Ashe Stadium.

Lots of celebrities attended the matches, from Matt Lauer & golfer Greg Norman to model Naomi Campbell. Below left Charlize Theron and actor Stuart Townsend watch the Nadal/Roddick match, and actress Natalie Portman in what TP could swear is an utterly preppy madras plaid top with blue trim.

It wouldn’t be tennis without Don King, who originally handled the “Grapple in the Apple,” promotional effort that took place before the tournament. Yes, TP is so on top of things…sigh. We offer our most sincere apologies for not posting this when originally spotted…the day it happend. That event starred Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer and was designed to promote new styles in each of their Nike tennis clothing and shoes collections. As described by Mr. King: “The US Open is the ultimate championship – the biggest stage in the world,” said King. “You had the Thrilla in the Manilla and the Rumble in the Jungle and now you have the Grapple in the Apple.”

AP Photo/Starpix, Dave Allocca

Unfortunately for Nike, whose text describes things, “Will the victor be Rafa: Matador of Spin or Roger: Master of Precision? Cast your vote for Nadal with the Rafa: Matador of Spin Men’s T-Shirt by Nike,” the Men’s Final doesn’t feature that matchup as they hoped when risking the promotional effort.

In reality however, it seems Nike has done okay by this, as the Federer shoe is already sold out. For those interested, the company described Mr. Federer’s special Open apparel as a “new sophisticated night look…” and Mr. Nadal’s look as “…an evolved signature look…” Let’s ponder those two fashion statements, recalling as we do that someone described Mr. Federer as looking like “…a UPS delivery man.”

Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

And no, we didn’t make any of this up; The Princess is not possessed of an imagination quite that creative. As always, for vastly superior fashion notes on the Open (and any other tennis-related things), stop by Down the Line Tennis. You’ll be glad you did. In the midst of all the chaos of rearranged and delayed matches, congratulations to Serena Williams on her big win Sunday!

Timothy Clary/AFP/Getty

Unable to compete at the open, Maria Sharapova is managing to cope. Somehow. Perhaps a front row seat at Fashion Week helps, especially when one can successfully wear a Herve Leger bandaid dress to that show (actress Kate Mara is on the left). Ms. Sharapova looked stunning, as always. BTW, in the second photo note the strategic hand placement, a must in these dresses.

As Women’s Wear Daily put it:

“How many ways can you work a bandage dress? On the surface only a few, but in his collection for Hervé Léger, Max Azria tinkered with the label’s signature to an overall pleasing effect. Surely his Hollywood starlets will scoop up the sexy basics, which he cast in neutrals and Eighties brights and gave cat-scratch cutouts.”

As always, it is fun to peek backstage.

And if one is curious as to how one keeps track of what each model is wearing and in what order, this picture provides a general idea, perhaps a method TP should implement, especially with the change in seasons and return to constant functions and parties!

And what did Venus Williams do after she completed her time at the Open? Stop by one of the Princess’s favorites, Carolina Herrera, naturally.

As did actress Renee Zellweger, who was actually in the show and apparently kept Ms. Herrera and others waiting – the story is she was 25 minutes late. Not that we would ever intentionally be late to *any* designer’s Fashion Week show, but we most assuredly would do anything we could to avoid keeping Ms. Herrera waiting.

That’s it for this edition of ‘Tennis and Fashion,’ we hope you enjoyed it!

Photo Credits: Jim McIsaac/Getty, Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty, Matthew Stockman/Getty, Gary Gershoff/Getty Images for USTA, Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images for IMG, REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz, Nick Laham/Getty

Golden Boys, Sharapova Brings the Bling, Polo Ralph Lauren Wants You to Phone Home

Once again, it would seem the pictures best tell the stories. We start with the unprecedented.

Michael Phelps holds each of his 8 Gold Medals

What it’s like being Michael now…

Finding room to breath at the Speedo Athletes party…

Is that the Lacoste ‘Gator on Steroids on his hat?

And then we had the fierce factor out of the water, but no less potent. Rafael Nadal of Spain was all over the court with a ferocity that did not back down.

Here is TP’s favorite shot, a suddenly very grown-up looking Rafa consoling opponent Fernando Gonzales of Chile after the match and Nadal’s win, 6-3, 7-6 (7-2), 6-3.

Of course, there is nothing like royalty attending your events to make you feel special. In this case, it is Queen Sofia of Spain.

Queen Sofia of Spain at Men's Tennis Final (Former IOC President Juan Antonio Samaranch seated behind her)

The reaction from arch-rival Roger Federer was what one would expect, saying Nadal “totally deserves” the number one ranking, paying warm tribute to the Spaniard who takes over the number one tennis ranking on Monday, replacing Federer after 4-1/2 years.

“That’s what I expected and hoped for many years ago when I got to number one, that if ever somebody were to take it away from me, he would have to play an incredible tennis schedule, win the biggest tournaments, dominate the game basically, and then like this he can take number one. “I didn’t want it to happen that I would play completely bad and somebody would pick up number one in the world. So I think Rafa totally deserves it.”

And let’s not forget Team USA’s golden girls, Venus and Serena Williams, bringing home the gold in Women’s Doubles, beating Anabel Garrigues and Virginia Ruano Pascual of Spain in the doubles final 6-2, 6-0. The sisters had some pretty good support from their fans.

The ladies really made short work of their opponents, looking outstanding in their pursuit of the win, and the Gold Medal. Congratulations to Venus Williams and Serena Williams!

Moving on to non-Olympic items, this has been covered many places and we keep intending to mention it ourselves, but between outside functions and Olympic events we simply didn’t have the time, so we apologize if it’s repetitive news. Here is the brief version: the smart marketing maneuvers at Polo Ralph Lauren continue at a rapid pace, most recently an announcement the company is moving into mobile, or “m-commerce.” In other words, we’ll soon be able to buy merchandise using our cell phone.

It all has to do with something called “QR” technology, that standing for Quick Response, a lovely idea, we are sure. Something to do with the box of computer-looking stuff, just like this one in the closeup, or in the ad just below. You can learn more about it in a story in “RL Magazine,” the online version.

Frankly, “Know the Code” sounds like some sort of Secret Squirrel Club hidden handshake or the government’s Disaster Preparedness Plans. Beyond that, all of the technospeak is a bit over TP’s head and really more the purview of The Princess Consort. Mobile shopping isn’t yet a critical need for The Princess, but should it become so, it’s nice to know that Ralph Lauren is leading the way in making it happen for us.

Injuries may have kept Maria Sharapova out of the Olympics and they’re also keeping her out of the US Open starting on the 25th, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t keeping other commitments. Come Wednesday Ms. Sharapova will be in New York unveiling five diamond-encrusted Canon PowerShot Elph cameras to hype her own Limited Edition version of the camera. (There’s that Limited Edition issue rearing its ugly self again…!) Yes, this is a *very* nouveau thing to do, and certainly nothing TP would condone (heh-heh-heh), however… those would be real diamonds, and real diamonds can be of assistance in these challenging economic times. For instance, if you are struggling paying the household staff, or pondering how to pay Missy’s first semester at Boston Latin… that sort of thing. Real-life emergencies.

The five cameras are part of a contest kicking off on Wednesday, “Canon Center Court” and running through October 20. And while we never (nevereverever) discuss the “M” word, it is suggested that each of the cameras is valued at about $12,000 each. If you should want to try to win one. More details will be available online at the Powershot.com site, presumably starting on August 20th.

BTW, speaking of mobile computing and such, you can also be in touch with the US Open through your cell phone via mobile alerts. Click here for details.

And we’ll be in touch tomorrow. ‘Night.