good design at the vancouver olympics

Well the Vancouver Olympics are soon drawing to a close {sniffle...what will we watch on tv from now on?!} but as a design junkie, I wanted to do a post on some of the impressive design choices that were made for the 2010 Winter Games!

Melanie mentioned a few weeks ago the staging and lighting at the opening ceremonies which was incredible, and I wonder what's in store for the closing ceremonies. Here are a few other things je t'aime...

First, I really like the athlete's bouquets. I know some people think they look like broccoli. But as someone who has been honing their eyeballs on good floral design the past few years, I am relieved that the traditional, and often cheesy, rose bouquet was tossed for this fresh, green one that represents the lush green of British Columbia. Feminine enough for the ladies, and masculine enough for the gents, I thought this was a great choice. And bonus: the bouquet’s designer, 75-year-old June Strandberg {owner of Just Beginnings Floral society} teaches, employs and empowers women who have left prison, are recovering addicts, suffer disabilities or have been the victims of violence. So these bouquets are bettering the community too!

Have you noticed the ceremony podiums? They are gorgeous! By industrial designer James Lee, the podiums 'echo the undulating peaks and ridges of the Coast Mountain Range'. The medal trays are beautiful too, made with the same wood harvested in BC forests, and have a special coating so that the medals don't slip.

And speaking of which, the medals are pretty cool too. Designer Omer Arbel created the very artistic 'wavy' metal look, again inspired by the west coast landscape of mountains and water. The medals each have a unique element of aboriginal artwork which are constructed in a 30-step process. Looking at the medal designs over the past few winter Olympics {all are a bit ew with the exception of Turin's}, you might agree that this are the most unique, stylish and visually pleasing!

The outfits of the medal presenters are awesome too, and were created by every Canadian gal's favourite store Aritzia. I'm loving the heritage knit sweater coat...how cozy!

Is there an Olympic design that you like? Johnny Weir's skating costume perhaps?

{sources from here, here, here and here!}