Mariia Ignateva: Sketching the Performance

For Mariia Ignateva, costume design has never been separate from skating — it has always been part of the performance. Long before representing Hungary internationally, Ignateva was sketching dresses as a child, inspired by the costumes she wore on the ice and encouraged by her family’s creativity and attention to detail. Over time, that passion grew into something more than a hobby. In this interview, Ignateva discusses balancing training (with partner Danijil Szemko), university studies, and costume design while offering an inside look at her creative process.

When did you first become interested in costume design?

I first became interested in costume design through skating itself. When I was a kid, my mom always drew costume designs for me and very often we did it together. In general, my parents were always so passionate into the creation of my costumes. For them, my look on the ice was a really important thing. As I remember, I was drawing all my life and I also went to a drawing school when I was 4 years old. Strangely enough, my drawings have always been connected to fashion and beautiful dresses. Let’s say that ever since childhood, I’ve always drawn a lot of sketches for myself, and I never imagined that one day I could turn it into something so meaningful and exciting.

Did you have any formal training?

I’m mostly self-taught. A lot of what I’ve learned came from experimenting, studying fashion and performance costumes, and understanding what works practically for skaters. Naturally, a lot of it comes from my own experience and visual inspiration. During costume fittings, I always paid close attention to the details and techniques behind creating a costume. We also used to work with a designer who sketched our costumes, and that inspired me a lot. In the last year of working with a designer, I started making many adjustments by myself and drawing the details and shapes that I wanted to have. Eventually, I decided to start designing on my own.

A lot of things didn’t work at first, and of course, there are still things I’m learning. I’ve taken different online fashion design courses and watched a lot of YouTube videos, because right now I don’t really have time to attend offline courses or study at a fashion university. But it’s definitely something I want to pursue professionally in the future, after I finish university.(At the moment, I’m studying journalism at the university.)

How would you describe your design style?

I’d describe my style as elegant, detailed, and performance-focused. I like creating costumes that feel unique but still enhance the movement and music. I really love bold looks, statement details and unusual forms and cuts. I’m obsessed with bright colors, contrasts, and unusual fabrics — for example, my red latex costume for this season’s rhythm dance. I also love accessories like bracelets and chokers. I want a costume to immediately capture attention the moment a skater steps onto the ice.

As for my personal style, I can’t give a definite answer yet because I’m still exploring and developing it. Even if I design something that feels very “me,” it doesn’t necessarily mean the skater will like it, so I always try to follow the athlete’s vision and wishes. But when I create costumes for our team, I really try to make them unique, bold, and anything but ordinary. I love how a costume can completely transform a performance and help tell a story on the ice.

What does your process look like when you’re juggling training, competitions, and design deadlines?

During the season, I usually don’t take many orders, so I draw mostly when I feel inspired or simply want to relax. I can sketch between training sessions, on a plane, or in a café — I almost always have my iPad with me.

For example, I worked on the free dance costumes for our team for next season from October until February. (Although, most likely, you won’t actually see those costumes next season.) I worked on them little by little at different times because I was very emotionally invested in the process and wanted every detail to feel right.

Of course, after training I still have free time, but I mainly dedicate it to my university studies and drawing. Right now, with university exams coming up, costume orders, and the process of creating costumes for our team, I often feel like there isn’t enough time in the day. I try to plan my schedule as productively as possible and I also study between practices so I can leave more time for drawing and design work.

What inspires your costumes—music, movement, fashion trends, storytelling?

A mix of everything. The story for me is probably the biggest inspirations, but also music and fashion trends also influence colors, textures, and shapes. If there’s a particular design idea that I really want to create, I can adapt it to match the music and the story of the program. A very important part of the process is making something that truly suits the athlete first — considering their appearance and overall image — and then adapting the design to fit the program itself.

When designing for yourself, do you approach it differently than when designing for others?

When I design for myself, I already know exactly how I want to feel on the ice. I know exactly which shapes and colors suit me and what is better to avoid. I also know very well what works for my partner. But overall, I’m not afraid to try completely different ideas for us and experiment with colors. When I create costumes for us, I mostly build it  from my own ideas and my partner’s ideas.

When designing for other athletes, I always start with their wishes regarding shape, color, and overall design, because I can’t know all the specifics and proportions of the other people’s body, as they do themselves. But if I feel that a certain detail — for example, the shape of a skirt — will or will not work, I always share my opinion. The design for someone else is much more collaborative — we discuss a lot of things together, and I create the costume based on both the athlete’s vision and my own creative perspective. Sometimes the athlete could say to me “do what you want” and I do what I want with complete freedom and after we correct and change something together.

Can you walk us through the process of creating a costume from concept to competition-ready?

I can use our costumes as an example of the design process. First, I create sketches and always discuss them with my coach and partner. The sketching and approval stage usually takes quite a long time because after our discussions I constantly change, adjust, and redesign different elements. For one program, I usually create around 10–15 sketches, sometimes even more.

Then I send the final sketches to our dressmaker, and we begin choosing fabrics. Selecting fabrics and details also takes a lot of time. Last year, I even personally ordered specific hardware and decorative elements that I wanted to include in the costumes.

After that, we begin the sewing process. Right now, we work with our dressmaker online, which makes everything much more complicated because we can’t do in-person fittings. It’s always very stressful and exciting. During the process, I take a huge number of additional measurements for both myself and Daniil. I also draw directly over photos of the costume on mannequins to show what I’d like to change, add, or remove.

For example, with our 2024/25 rhythm dance costumes (the Elvis program, pictured right), I redesigned the appliqué on Daniil’s leather jacket while the costume was already being made because I felt it needed more detail.

I always show the work-in-progress results to my coach and partner. You could say that I completely take responsibility for the entire process of creating our costumes. And even after the day when we finally could wear and try costumes we can change many things. For example, this season (2025/26), I had to make a completely new bodysuit just two weeks before the qualifying competition in China because we realized that the latex fabric — even though it was supposedly adapted for sports costumes — would tear after only a few times on the ice.

What are some technical challenges people might not realize go into designing skating costumes?

Stretch, durability, and movement are huge challenges. The costume has to look beautiful but also survive jumps, spins, lifts, and many entries on the ice during all the season.

A costume should never make the athlete look visually heavier. A successful costume is, first of all, a costume that feels comfortable.

But that part depends not only on me — it depends more on the dressmaker, whose job is to make the costume comfortable and choose stretchy fabrics that allow complete freedom of movement.

Are there details only a skater would think of when creating a costume?

Definitely. As I already mentioned first thing that skaters think is the comfort and about things like where fabric might restrict movement or how a costume feels during difficult elements. This is the technical aspect, but of course the skaters think about to make beautiful and interesting costume, which will be noticed by the public.

What is it like collaborating with your partner, coaches, or other skaters on costume ideas?

Connection, collaboration, and the ability to listen to and understand other people’s opinions are an important part of any kind of work — not just design. Being able to hear wishes, ideas, and suggestions really matters.

When I create a design sketch, I’m actually happy when the athlete, coach, my partner has their own creative ideas and input. It makes the process easier and helps us find the exact version that feels right much faster.

I really enjoy collaboration. Everyone brings different ideas, and it’s important that the final costume reflects the program and the athlete’s personality.

Is there a costume you’ve designed that you’r especially proud of?

The costumes I’m especially proud of is  definitely Daniil’s free dance costume for (Joker program) in the 2024/25 and 2025/26 seasons — it turned out incredibly well. I actually sketched that costume on the first try, although originally it was in a different color. Later, I changed the color palette and added different details.

I’m also very proud of our rhythm dance costumes from the 2024/25 season (Elvis program). At that time, I was still working together with a designer. We spent a long time thinking about what kind of dress to create for the Elvis program until I suggested taking inspiration from the iconic Flame Dress designed by Bob Mackie. Cher famously wore it first, and later similar looks were recreated by many celebrities, including Beyoncé and others. It’s one of my favorite dresses ever. For Daniil’s costume, I immediately pictured a leather jacket and trousers. I added and designed the appliqué details later during the process.

I’m also very proud of our rhythm dance costumes this season (2025/26) for Be My Lover / Mr. Boombastic. I created a huge number of sketches. At first, I wanted to make a dress, but then Barbara suggested the idea of a red latex bodysuit, and for me that became the perfect solution.

I spent a long time thinking about the design and drew countless versions. Eventually, my mom and I sat down together and she helped me find the perfect final look for me. For these costumes, I was  inspired by 90s Versace Couture looks. We also created an amazing necklace and bracelets made from gold chains for me, but I never actually wore them in competition because they turned out to be too heavy and uncomfortable.

For Daniil, the process was easier — once again, I made just one sketch and later only adjusted the shirt colors and added extra details. We were also very lucky that my dressmaker and I managed to find silk fabric with a chain pattern exactly like the one I imagined, and we added rose appliqués made from another type of silk.

I’m also very proud of the costumes I designed for Maria Pavlova and Alexei Sviatchenko (pairs, competing for Hungary). The designs turned out fairly simple — Maria specifically wanted something light, minimalist style, but with a bold accent color — yet they still looked very stylish and elegant. I think the costumes suited them perfectly.

Walk us through some of the costumes you designed last season.

Last season, I designed the short program (Michael Jackson, Earth song) costumes for Maria Pavlova and Alexei Sviatchenko, the rhythm dance costumes for our team, and both the short program (Leon) and free program (Joker) costumes for Vladimir Litvintsev (man single skating, Azerbaijan).

I think this season I’ll take on more skaters and projects. I’m really happy that people are able to discover another side of me, not just as an athlete on the ice. And I truly enjoy helping athletes enhance their programs through beautiful costumes.

Do you see costume design becoming a bigger part of your career in the future?

Right now, I can definitely say that some part of my future life will be connected to design field. There are so many areas where I can apply my drawing skills and sense of style.

Design is something I genuinely feel passionate about.

It would make me very happy to see more skaters performing in costumes that I created. For me, those designs are like a part of myself — a reflection of who I am creatively. I want to create things that feel truly unique. I really enjoy growing and developing in this field.

Are there designers or brands you’d love to collaborate with one day?

Yes, absolutely. I think that’s the dream of almost anyone connected to fashion and design in general.

I would really love to collaborate with Hungarian fashion brands like Nanushka and AERON. I’m not talking about figure skating  costumes right now, but about clothes in general. I feel very connected to their philosophy and aesthetic code. Speaking about figure skating specifically, creating a costume together with Schiaparelli and Mugler would truly be something unique and special.

What advice would you give to other skaters interested in exploring creative outlets alongside competition?

Don’t be afraid to explore interests outside of skating. Creative outlets can actually help your performance because they allow you to express yourself in different ways. 

Is there a skater that you haven’t collaborated with that you would like to in the future?

Of course, it would be amazing to create something truly interesting and special for skaters who are currently at the top of the World ranking or Olympic champions. In general, it doesn’t really matter to me whether it’s an Olympic champions or junior skaters who are just at the beginning of their careers. I simply enjoy doing this and find the whole process genuinely interesting.

What is the best way for a skater to contact you if they’re interested in working with you?

The best way is usually through social media (Instagram) or email. I’m always happy to discuss ideas and future collaborations.

Concept Looks & Sketches