What do sports and luxury lifestyle products have in common?
Apparently more than we’ve ever imagined, judging by the number of luxury lifestyle brands that featured prominently in the just-concluded Olympics. Predicting the future can be hard, but it is a no-brainer to imagine that by the next Olympics, the fashion of the games will be just as important, if not more so, than the actual games themselves.
By now, you’ve seen them all: the equally colourful and beautiful Haitian ceremonial uniforms by Stella Jean; the formal jackets for the American team by Ralph Lauren; the adaptable, accessible and lively uniforms of the Canadian team by Lululemon; the chic, elegant ceremonial outfits of the French team by Berluti, and, not forgetting all the objets designed by LVMH for the ceremony like the medal trays and the torch trunks.
Not forgetting of course all the beauty products that went viral as competitors took to their social media pages to share GWRM videos while at the Olympics village. So far, we’ve identified Make Up Forever lip liner and Olehenrikson peptide lip treatment combo of Sunni Lee; the Fenty Beauty Invisimatte Instant Setting + Blotting Powder used by Simone Biles; WYN Beauty’s Featuring You Hydrating Skin Enhancing Tint with SPF 30 Chioma ‘CiCi Onyekwere Lyons used while representing Nigeria at discus, and, Singaporean swimmer Jing Wen Quah’s Maybelline’s City Bronzer, amongst others.
Luxury accessories seem to have been neglected, however, which in our opinion, is a shame since all the pieces that made it to the games were rather impressive. They may not have made quite the splash as the clothes and makeup, but they are no less front cover-worthy. If you are looking for some luxury fashion accessories ideas inspired by the just-concluded Olympics in Paris, here are our top picks
The Omega Special Olympics-edition timepieces
These need no introduction as they made headlines once they dropped. But, in case you missed it, Omega is the official timekeeper of the Olympic games, and, to celebrate this year’s games, the Swiss horologie brand released five special-edition timepieces – a Seamaster diver and a Speedmaster chronoscope in four variants.
All the timepieces feature elements representative of the games like the official black, gold and white colourway, the Paris logo and Olympics rings on closed and frosted case backs, and the official typography adopted for the competition.
The Montblanc Meisterstück Olympic Heritage Collection
You could argue that this is not a luxury accessory per se, but it is hard to deny that it deserves a position on this list.
Per the Olympics team, “The new writing instruments form part of the IOC’s Olympic Heritage Collection, which offers products featuring art and design elements from previous Games editions, connecting fans and collectors with the rich heritage of past Olympic Games.”
This special collection comes in two sub-collections: the Meisterstück x Olympic Heritage Paris 1924 Special Edition in red — in a nod to the official red colour of the Olympic Games Paris 1924 — with a golden nib embellished with a javelin thrower, in reference to a vintage Olympic poster from the same Games. The second sub-collection, the Meisterstück x Olympic Heritage Chamonix 1924 Special Edition also incorporates Olympic iconography such as a a ski jumper on the handcrafted solid gold nib and the Olympic Heritage emblem and rings on its cap top ring.
Both mini-collections are available as fountain, ballpoint or rollerball pens, and you can get yourself one at any Montblanc boutique or online.
The Pandora Olympic capsule collection
You can trust Pandora to make simple yet beautiful jewellery pieces perfect for daily use and special events. To commemorate the 2024 Olympics in Paris, the Danish jewellery brand dropped a 9-piece limited-edition collection that includes a bracelet, and charms featuring the Phryges mascots and the Olympics and Paralympics symbols.
The Bose x Nadine Goshn headphones
This is the only brand on this list whose accessories for the Paris 2024 Olympics were made for specific competitors and not the general public.
Working with jeweller Nadine Goshn, Bose designed unique headphones for US tennis player, Coco Gauff and US NBA shooting guard, Anthony Edwards. The unique headphones not only provide exceptional sound quality but also infuse designs that reflect the athletes’ vibrant personalities and careers in a perfect blend of functionality and high fashion.
Gauff’s headphones are adorned with 1,180 handset stones, including approximately 26 carats of rainbow sapphires and over 1 carat of diamonds in a mix of a mix of rose, white gold, red, white, and blue. Edwards’ were inspired by his Adidas AE1 sneakers and are decked out with 420 handset stones, including 4.5 carats of blue sapphires and 1.5 carats of diamonds.
It is impossible that anyone would be able to get their hands on these bespoke headphones right now or anytime soon, but, if they appeal to you, Bose has a partnership with ColorWare that allows you to choose your unique colour for your headphones and earbuds. You may not get the same sparkles as these Nadine Goshn-designed headphones, but you can definitely get a piece that reflects who you are, in your unique colourway.