After fighting foes, battling against Bowser and rescuing Princess Peach for 30 years in the same blue overalls, it's time for a wardrobe change for Super Mario. British stars Henry Holland and Giles Deacon have given the popular character a sartorial makeover and redesigned his iconic dungarees, in celebration of the 30th anniversary of Super Mario Bros.
Henry turned his hand at coming up with a new look, and the result was a pair of cute mushroom-patterned overalls, finished off with furry blue padding.
Explaining his fashion choice, the 32-year-old said: "The inspiration behind the dungarees is Mario himself and my personal memories of playing Mario non-stop as a kid! I was obsessed with killing Bowser and finding out all the new cheats and secret levels.
Henry Holland printed cute mushroom designs on his Super Mario dungarees
"I spent several years of my life trying to get as many mushroom lives as I could so I covered my dungarees with the very same emblem."
Giles, meanwhile, chose to print the frustrating "Spiny" on his white overalls – one of his favourite characters.
"We chose to keep the dungarees simple, with white working as a canvas for our embroidered 'Spiny' emblazoned on the front," said Giles. "'Spiny' is one of my favourite characters from playing Super Mario Bros. in the 80s. These characterful naughty quadrupeds never fail to amuse me and are difficult to kill!"
The designer said he played Mario "non-stop as a kid"
Other designers who put their stamp on the dungarees included Marques Almeida, who opted for monochrome polka dots, and Markus Lupfer, who injected a touch of sparkle and fun to his sequin design. Naturally, no Markus Lupfer item would be complete without the brand's trademark lips, which feature on the back pocket of the dungarees.
Zandra Rhodes was inspired by the rainbow bright colours and imagery, such as stars and flags, that pop up in the Mario games.
"I particularly like Princess Peach and her bright sense of style," said Zandra. "This led me to use my iconic 'popstar frill' print, which was screen printed and hand-painted in a spectrum of colours and featuring a Zandra 'Z' instead of Mario's 'M'!"
Giles Deacon paid tribute to his favourite character, the "Spiny"
A total of ten designers were asked to recreate Mario's dungarees, and each pair of one-off pieces will be auctioned to raise money for the Starlight Children's Foundation.
The collaboration also marks the launch of the latest title in the Super Mario franchise, Super Mario Maker for Wii U.
