'Project Runway' Where's Carrie when you need her?
Last week's Project Runway challenge was a sweet one, but sadly we said good-bye to the sweetest designer, Elisa. Meanwhile Rami took top honors for his futuristic candy-inspired frock. This week, our designers face something far less sweet than chocolate kisses. They face catholic high school girls. And I can say that, because I used to be one. Beware the uniformed clique!
Judging by the designers' responses to this matter, it seems they know what they are in for. Even more daunting -- they are making Prom dresses and the girls picked the designer they wanted to work with based on their portfolios. We get a reminder of Chris' drag queen get ups, complete with 10-foot hair and 12-foot boobs as he laughs and wonders about the girl who picked him. Christian, meanwhile, just moans about how prom is horrible, tacky and gross. Projecting, are we? Better yet, Christian's model identifies herself as a designer and snatches his pencil to draw her dress herself. She wants pleats, lace, gold and black and Christian is about to die. Someone is in for a fun two days!
All the girls have strong ideas about what they want. And apparently they all want to look like high class escorts, because most of them mention plunging necklines and backless dresses. Luckily the designers aren't stupid, as several of them say they are going more modest then the girls request, with Kevin joking that he's going to build a chastity belt into his dress. We also get treated to some of the designer's prom pictures. Christian's hair was actually worse when he was younger, if you can believe that. But the best moment of all is when Victorya asks her client why she chose to work with her and the girl deadpans "I got last pick." That's what happens when you fish for compliments!
The mood changes, as it always does on the second day. Ricky camera talks that growing up poor he didn't feel that he could be creative and that winning would open so many doors for him that he just has to cry. Meanwhile, Sweet P and Christian both come to the conclusion that they need to over ride their client's wishes because they aren't going to be sent home due to what a teenager wants. Christian moans and pouts and basically gives up, much to Tim's chagrin. But we soon are back in good spirits as Ricky admits that he made his girlfriend's prom dress and maybe that should have been a clue in regards to his sexuality. The girls return, with their mom's in tow, and the designers have to face their biggest critics. Chris asks his client's mom if she realized it was him in all the photos in his portfolio and you can almost see through her laughter that she is wishing her daughter had chosen someone else. The mother of Kevin's client tells him that the dress makes her daughter looked pregnant. A knocked up catholic school girl is every mother's dream!
Speaking of dreams, let's get this one on the road and hit the runway, where our usual cabal of judges is joined my Gilles Mendel.
Sweet P: It's sublime. Truly the best work we've seen her do. The color is gorgeous, the fit is perfection and it screams classic Hollywood.
Victorya: Very age appropriate, and the color is fantastic, but it's a balloon hem and I just can't like that. The cut of the dress is modern, as it's a modified halter that rises up the breastbone like a cuff. However, the material here is bejeweled with multicolored crystals, which just screams South Beach 2004 to me.
Chris: He's still editing! It's very lovely, another gorgeous color with great fit. There are lots of little elements, with straps descending down the back to meet and gather in a silver ring -- a design element that is echoed in the front of the dress.
Kevin: Oh, where to begin? The color is dreadful on her skin tone, making her look mottled and sick. It's too short to be tasteful, and the hem is only stitched -- not truly finished. On top of it all, he somehow managed to make a halter neckline look matronly and completely unflattering.
Jillian: Great color choices, with a mix of vibrant and pale blues that float around the model with an understated elegance that is just note perfect for the age of the girl and the event she will be attending.
Christian: It's a disaster. Brown taffeta that is rusched and gathered and spotted in black lace with several layers in the skirt that makes the model look heavier than she is by sticking out stiffly around her. Worst of all, the hem looks poorly planned as it is shorter in the back then in the front.
Kit: It totally shows her point-of-view without being too edgy for the model. The main color is a dark blue, but the pop of multicolored fabrics in the bodice is fun and eye catching, making a fun statement that is perfect for a prom dress.
Ricky: It's boring. There's an empire waist, which he tried to add a rusched element to one side, but it's poorly executed so it looks like an after thought. He also went for a balloon hem, but the material is too stiff for the effort and it offers no movement. Additionally, it's a shade of pink that is barely a step above nude, which washes the model out totally. It would have benefited tremendously from a pop of color in a brighter pink, but as it is -- snooze.
Rami: It's back to what he does best -- Grecian. But it lacks his usual taste level. The waist line on one side is odd in that it isn't empire, but doesn't sit on her hips, falling instead to the danger zone of halfway up the rib cage. The other side is draped and then pinned far below the waist, making the entire dress look off balance and unflattering. Lastly, it's not a dress for a 17-year-old. A 37-year-old is more like it.
Right away Kit, Jillian and Chris are sent away with safety. Which surprises me, because I thought Chris would be in the Top 3. Instead, it seems there is only a Top 2 -- Sweet P and Victorya -- and I disagree with the judges again when they give the win to Victorya. Her dress wasn't awful, but it looked dated to me, whereas Sweet P's was timeless and elegant. In 10 years, Sweet P's client will look back at pictures and still feel her dress was flawless. Victorya's client will like laugh and wonder what she was thinking.
We already know Rami is safe, since he has immunity, but I am gob-smacked when the judges dismiss Ricky as safe, leaving us with Christian and Kevin. Christian immediately throws his model under the bus by claiming that the bad design elements were all her idea and declaring her difficult to work with. Classy. Unfortunately, it's obvious Kevin will be leaving, as Christian is this season's golden boy -- and while their dresses were equally heinous, Kevin has turned out some truly forward thinking and beautiful garments of late. Ricky, on the other hand, has eked under the wire each week, with mostly boring dresses that bordered on sloppiness rather often. Why he is still on the show while Kevin is gone leads me to believe that the produces put more stock in weekly tears than in actual design.
Talk to me, fashionistas! Did the right designer win? Does anyone agree with Kevin's elimination? Did anyone else yell at their TV, or am I the only freak? Did anyone else shudder in horror at the school girl's uniforms?
Sweet P got hosed this week, as did Chris. Those two should have been the Top 2, in that order. Both gowns were divine. Victorya's dress looked like something a drag queen would have cast aside. Those jewels on the front looked like some left over Ju Ju Bee's from the last challenge.
Ricky: Lets play the drinking game each time he whines and cries on the show. Better yet, lets not. We'd all be drunk before they get to Mood. He should have been sent packing with this collection of hideous frocks this season.
Kevin: Was it me, or were they making too much of a deal of his unfinished hem during the construction portion of the show. Granted, his dress made his girl look like Imelda Marcos but he should not have been kicked out.
Jillian and Kit: both middle of the road dresses. Although I liked Kit's color scheme.
Christian: I can't imagine that bossy girl picking him unless he, too, was one of the last choices. Maybe she picked him because he was the youngest and she thought she could boss him around. I was waiting for him to turn around and smacka-dabba-doo her *** back to school. Like Steven with that wedding dress from hell, Christian nearly got thrown under the bus tonight but at least he survived. I am curious to see what he pulls together next.
Sweet P got hosed this week, as did Chris. Those two should have been the Top 2, in that order. Both gowns were divine. Victorya's dress looked like something a drag queen would have cast aside. Those jewels on the front looked like some left over Ju Ju Bee's from the last challenge.
Ricky: Lets play the drinking game each time he whines and cries on the show. Better yet, lets not. We'd all be drunk before they get to Mood. He should have been sent packing with this collection of hideous frocks this season.
Kevin: Was it me, or were they making too much of a deal of his unfinished hem during the construction portion of the show. Granted, his dress made his girl look like Imelda Marcos but he should not have been kicked out.
Jillian and Kit: both middle of the road dresses. Although I liked Kit's color scheme.
Christian: I can't imagine that bossy girl picking him unless he, too, was one of the last choices. Maybe she picked him because he was the youngest and she thought she could boss him around. I was waiting for him to turn around and smacka-dabba-doo her *** back to school. Like Steven with that wedding dress from hell, Christian nearly got thrown under the bus tonight but at least he survived. I am curious to see what he pulls together next.
Yeah, I agree, Sweet P's was divine, and I hated Victorya's. I think Chris' was beautiful and simple. Although I like Ricky, he definitely deserved to go - his dress was bland and blah and he clearly is not as talented as the others. I can't believe Kevin went - just due to his past designs he deserved to stay, some of which I thought were fantastic. But my biggest problem with the show is that they allowed Chris to come back after already being dismissed. Even though I really like him...if I was one of the other designers who got sent home when he stayed, I'd be royally ****ed.
I agree that once again, Chris comes up with something elegant, tasteful, beautifully fitted. Sweet Pea's was elegant, too with a great color choice - BUT
Victorya? Great color but those hunks of cheap looking whatever they were made her look like she raided the warehouse where they're keeping all the Miami Vice hooker garb that was too tacky to use on the show. And while Kevin underperformed, the hem thing wasn't an issue - there are ways to finish a hem other than - well - hemming - and the dress was no more than okay but not nearly as bad as The Weeper's - that was bargain basement.
And Christian - okay why don't I pick the colors and fabric that I saw Miss Kitty wear on some old episode of Gunsmoke and throw in a lot more junk and then make it really short and poof it out so she looks like she has a huge butt!
This episode infuriated me! Victorya's dress was AWFUL. Bubble hems and bedazzled? It wasn't even flattering. Sweet Pea was robbed, as was Chris. Keving leaving just killed the show for me- he has consistantly shown quality, and shocker, clothes that weren't pulled from 1983 or consisting of a poorly sew baby doll. I knew they would save Christian, but keeping Ricky? Kill me.
I also think it was Sweet P's week. Her dress was exquisite from top to bottom.
I am stunned that Kevin was the one to go. It's true this wasn't the best dress on the runway this week, but it was far from the worst. Ricky continually puts out boring, poorly fitted and badly finished products each and every week. Christian's dress was a nightmarish mess from every angle. I guess the talented, heterosexual man isn't allowed to win this season even though he has consistantly put out brilliant looks every week until this challenge. It definitely smacked of a producer's influence as to who went and who stayed this week for demographics, ratings or some other nonsense reason.
Shame on Nina, Michael and Heidi for suc***bing to the pressure.
It was obvious the second the judges gave their comments who was in and who was auf'ed. Even before that when editing had Kevin saying he wasn't worried about the hem. I think that is the theme of this season. You may only have 10 hours to create, but just make sure it's finished when send it down the runway ---or you're history.
Kevin should not have gone, Ricky should go. Kevin has been producing garments that I would buy (thought not this red dress, so one mistake, who cares). But Ricky just eeks by every week, to quote you the author. sigh. I was sorry to see Kevin go and he didn't want to leave as he kept talking to the judges from the runway. poor thing.
Sweet P should have won the things, either she or Chris. Victorya's dress wasn't that cool. Like you said, she'll feggedaboutit in a year or less yet Sweet P's and Chris's dresses will be admired for years, I think.
So this ousting hit me as hard as Allison's oust last year so soon in the competition for one mistake. gawd. is it producer-influenced? I hope not.
this is the worst season to date---no confrontation between designers---boring to watch.
I also have a 16 year old daughter who said she would not be caught dead in Vicorya's dress - it was cheap looking and the gems were hideous. Sweet P and Chris's gowns were perfect for a teenaged girl! The judges were 100& wrong this week.