Project Runway: All Stars: A Night at the Opera

First I would like to thank Rami for affectionately tufting Anthony's hair during the designers' chat in the apartment. Very sweet.

Now onto business. Badgley and Mischka were charming guest judges with criticisms that were insightful and helpful without being harsh. Plus they are handsome and very well groomed. And what a fun challenge with so much potential! That being said, I knew from the challenge announcement who would not do well. And I was right with Sweet P., Kara, and April right in the bottom three. Poor little ol' Sweet P. She wasn't very good at her follow-through or construction under pressure in her regular season either, and that is why she got the boot this time too. I fear that April will be next as she seems to bite off more than she can ever chew, which showed in her horrific construction. Also, I did not hate Kara's dress. I thought I would with that 80s print, but the silhouette with the print had this odd combination of babydoll meets 1700s French fashion that I found particularly interesting and full of potential. I may even try to sketch something out based on Kara's look, but better. Obviously.

Sweet P.

Kara

The surprises for me were Kenley's dress and Gordana's. I thought Kenley might crash and burn doing a powder pink dress, but it really turned out well because of fabric choice and her ability to work with said fabric. Other than the polkadot bow being too large for my taste, it was a lovely 50s inspired dress.

The fact that I liked Gordana's dress came out of nowhere for me. Her aesthetic has almost no overlap with mine. Her dress was a bold 20s silhouette with an "under the sea" feel? Describing it is making me cringe, and I really didn't think it was right for the challenge, but it was creative and interesting and even beautiful.

Gordana

I'm sad to say that I did not like and almost hated Rami's dress. It looked so overwrought and messy and ill-fitting. Not really what you expect from Rami. But I do think that Rami was right about Joanna's lack of nurturing toward the contestants. I would like to somehow see her give the contestants a vote of confidence and/or compliments in their abilities. But at the same time I love her no-nonsense, straight-forward approach to her critiques. Give me my cake, Joanna, so I can eat it, too!

Rami

Since they didn't highlight Mondo's dress at all during the episode, I gasped when it came around the corner. It was dramatic and well constructed and so Mondo. He has quite the honed point of view. I love him and his aesthetic so much. But I'm not sure why Mondo always seems to be the bridesmaid and never the bride. Any thoughts on this matter would be appreciated.

Mondo

I think the judges were right to put Michael's and Austin's dresses in the top two. They were both beautiful. I entirely loved the feather and rhinestone halter on Michael's dress. It held the glamour, the femininity,  and the drama that the judges asked for. And although I think Michael's dress may have been more appropriate for the challenge, I'm not sad Austin's dress won. His gold lamee number had this dreamy, silent film star quality to it. It was old Hollywood all the way.

                                      

Favorite lines:
"Tell Scarlet O'Hara that THAT'S a ball gown." Isaac Mizrahi's catty commentary on how someone's "gown" (I can't remember who's) was not a gown. I'm sure we'll hear more catty, diva remarks from Isaac as the season progresses.

*Gasp!* "Shock and horror!" Joanna's mock shock and my new favorite sarcastic line to throw around.

"I mean, I DID add pockets!" Kara's only defense for her gown, and my new defense for my whole life.