Project Runway Teams: There Is No "I" in Team

I have mixed feelings about Project Runway doing a whole season of teams. On one hand, it is more like the real world of fashion where nothing is created alone. From my experience it's even rare to find a designer that does any sewing or sample making at all for their company, no matter how small. On the other hand, the show is about the best talent in the bunch. After all, a team won't win the whole shebang, an individual will. But since this new format hasn't created anymore drama than usual, I have no definitive yea or nay.

A warm welcome to Zac Posen who replaced Michael Kors as a judge. I was at FIDM when Zac really became an established designer, and I can safely say that he inspired me while I was in school. Plus, he's totes adorbs in spades, as the kids say.

Since I'm already behind, I'll just list my first impressions from the first episode. These opinions will almost certainly change and will also be based on personality almost as much as talent and aesthetic.

Like: Benjamin, Joseph, Stanley, Michele (mostly), and Daniel.

Meh: Amanda (turns out I know her sister in real life), James, Tu, Richard, Cindy and Layana.

No Like: Emily, Patricia, Kate, Samantha, and Matthew.

And here's the team breakdowns with their boring team names:
Keeping it Real: Stanley, Kate, Richard, Patricia, Amanda, Layana, Daniel, and Joseph.
Dream Team: Matthew, Samantha, Tu, James, Emily, Benjamin, Cindy, and Michelle.

There was nothing surprisingly great or awful in the first episode. Don't get me wrong, Emily's design was disgusting, but it was no surprise. It was quickly obvious that she was all bravado and no work. Creating something on your own time is almost nothing like creating something with a non self-dictated theme and in a time crunch. She couldn't handle it or herself. There's one or two every season.

James wasn't far behind, but I think his problem is more to do with being so unconfident in his own work that constrictive criticism is more like physical torture. It was boring and done, plus his construction skills don't seem on par.

Cindy needed some heavy editing, but at least she can sew and has a sense of proportion. I think I like her because she's not as aesthetically bad as some other...ahem...finely aged contestants have been.

I liked every one of the top three designs, and they were all completely different from each other. Patricia's fabric creation was top notch and thoughtful. But if she only makes generously shaped garments that highlight her fancy fabric work, I will tire of her quickly.

Richard's design looked easy and expensive. And let me tell you, making jersey look this good is no easy task. I would have put a little less volume in the side and shoulder gathers, but that's no big whoop.

Daniel, who I thought would torture me personality wise, is not only a delightful, warm person, but it looks like he's got some talent to boot. While his design wasn't all together original, you can tell he knows his way around patterning and construction. I'm glad he got the win.