Project Runway All Stars: Go Big or Go Home

For the finale the designers had to make a mini collection. They picked their own themes, and they picked the number of pieces they'd put in each collection, which is a frist. Usually the number of full looks is strictly dictated, but no quandary came up about too few or too many looks or pieces.

The designers also got a little help from "out" contestants. I only mention this because I wanted to strangle Casanova. Uli picked him to help her and (at least by how it was edited) it looked like he slept on the lounge couch the entire first day. I'm sure he helped somewhat, but come ON. If you want to stay on vacation, stand up and say "no" like poor Joshua.

Emilio: Urban Plantation
It was easy to pick my least favorite collection. Emilio almost completely missed the mark for me. I understood his concept, but there's almost nothing I liked in his interpretation. First of all his main fabric choice of eyelet felt too 90s and too little girl. My impression was that he was looking at women of color from the past as heroes, and Easter eyelet (even in black) doesn't quite cover it for me. While heroes can come in all sorts of packaging, there are archetypes and symbols that probably shouldn't be ignored when you're trying to get your point across quickly. Also the graffiti fabric was simply an ugly, muddled pattern.

His first dress was such a snoozer in design, and it was so ill fitting that I cringed.

I did, surprisingly, like the idea of his mini bustiers over a shirt. It was kind of neat how the top and skirt evoked dress even though the shirt broke them up the overall silhouette. Unfortunately the proportions were off between the bustier and the volume in the shirts. In fact he had a lot of volume that I didn't understand, but I've never been a fan of voluminous tops and jackets.

 

His best piece was the red jumpsuit. It had the balance of strength and femininity that I think he was going for. And I think it would look even better on a not so teeny weeny model.

Uli: Winter Wonderland
I must say that Uli's collection was spectacular. I didn't love every piece, but everything was cohesive and certainly contributed to the whole. When I saw her collection walk, I thought for sure she was going to win. Her designs, fabrics, stylings, and the models walking slowly down the runway equally evoked excitement and wonder. It was both dreamlike and slightly menacing. But even though I loved the collection, I found much it to be more artistic than wearable, which is perfectly fine.

From the first dress I was hooked. It looks like snow-topped and soft apsen bark.

Don't ask me why I live these metallic cigarette pants, I just do.

It's funny how I should be so tired of Uli choosing white and/or feathers, but I'm not. I'm especially intrigued by the little gold number with feathers on one shoulder, although I don't think it was the right fit for the model.

 

Anthony Ryan: The Thin Line (or Dark vs. Light)
In the end, like the judges, I had to pick AR as my favorite, and it's not only because I've been rooting for him (and overly attached to him) all season. I liked all but one of his pieces to some degree, but that's not to say all his pieces were perfect either. And I hated the shoes. But his collection was true to AR: graphically strong yet feminine and wearable. [Slight tangent: I gravitate toward women's clothes that stay feminine, but are based in menswear or that have strong masculine features. In other words I usually want all designers to keep their frills and fussiness to themselves. I just want to put clothes on, feel good in them, and not mess with them until I take them off. Continual adjusting and tucking will simply not do. So you see, AR's aesthetic and mine greatly overlap.]

His finale dress was terrible. It was the only piece that didn't quite fit with the others, and the construction and finishings look suspect. Additionally the proportions of the color blocking made the model's torso look overly long. If he had to keep it in his collection, he should have hid it in the middle and made his first dress the finale dress.

The first dress is exquisite. It evokes the careful tailoring of a man's shirt and suit, but the tailoring is suited to a feminine figure. This is my favorite piece of all the finale collections.

I'm also particularly fond of this ladder dress...if both the neckline and hemline were slightly lower.

I was scared that this yellow and black 60s piece would read bee, but it's sweet and truly perfect in silhouette. (It also let me say one of my favorite movie quotes from The Baxter: They're picking wedding colors. "Yellow...and black? Like a bumble bee?!")

Congratulations, my sweet southern cherub, winner of Project Runway All Stars!

Next up: Project Runway Teams. I'm not sure how I feel about this. It sounds like more drama than fashions, but the only thing for it is to watch and see.

Project Runway: "Couture de France"

I know that producers of reality TV are always looking for the twist, the shock, the gasps, but I thought this runway was downright mean. Sure, I gasped as Uli and Joshua were given a mini challenge, but then I was angry. Not only is it awful to give a surprise challenge after a long, arduous challenge, which came on the tails of a long arduous season, but they made the designers cut up their couture gowns. It was especially a slap in the face, because deep down everyone knew that Joshua shouldn't be in the top three. While I think he's greatly improved in attitude (and maybe a little in aesthetics) since his regular season, he still lacks construction skills, consistency, and the ability to edit.

But let's talk about the delicious part of the challenge. This week the contestants had to create a couture gown, as you know. But first they got to fly to Paris!, visit the incredible House of Valentino!, see the Valentino runway show!, and shop for couture fabrics at the world famous Janssens & Janssens! I mean, I was overjoyed, and I wasn't even going, so I can't imagine how they felt.

One of my favorite parts is when they visited the work room in Valentino and all the employees look like they're working in a laboratory with their white coats, goggles, and gloves. It was glorious.

Emilio scored the best fabric, it was absolutely gorgeous. I know the glee the judges felt as the walked up to the runway to touch the fabric. I can't describe the thrill of encountering an amazing fabric, but it was written all over their faces.

Whether his fabric choice carried him or not, he had the good sense and taste to pick this fabric in the first place, so I'm 100% behind his place in the top two. And his dress proves that less is more. If he tried to add more design elements to this, like he was originally planning, the dress would have been heavy and cumbersome. So he focused on making a well-constructed and well-proportioned yet simple garment, and it paid off.

Anthony Ryan won the challenge! I'm so glad he's in the top three. And I'm glad he pulled a second dress out of thin air, yipes! It takes a lot of courage to scrap a design under a tight deadline, but I'm sure glad he knows himself well enough to trust his instincts. At first I wasn't sure about his dress, but it really is a beauty. The design lines and panels down the sides only whispered art deco, but it gave the classic touch he needed for his modern, dark mood dress.

Uli's application of her fabric choice was thoughtful and creative. The whole dress looked like it was covered with antique gold leaf rather than gold fabric. I fully agreed with the judges' assessment about the lining and the proportions in the back, which certainly put her in the bottom after what we saw from Emilio and AR, but it was still a beautiful dress.

Oh, Joshua. I don't necessarily hate his idea, in fact I like to play with putting things together that initially seem like they would never work together (The cliché "opposites attract" does not apply only to people, right?) But his odd taste level is once again revealed in his fabric choice. That too small, bright floral looked like a Joann's special, and the white details on the black lace felt forced.  Additionally the skirt silhouette read prom to me. I also wrote in my notes "traditional Spanish on acid."

In the mini challenge, Uli and Joshua had to create whole new looks in one hour while on the runway. Again Uli was clearly the better of the two. Joshua shortened his skirt and tucked the bodice of his dress in, and Uli made a whole new dress with a sweet little jacket. No contest.

Next week we'll see AR, Emilio, and Uli make their mini collections as the battle for the win. I like all three designers, so I wouldn't mind a win from any of them, but a win from AR, my sweet southern cherub, would make me the most happy. Fingers crossed, and good luck designers!

Project Runway: "All Stars & Stripes"

I thought this challenge was one of the most successful "average woman" challenges on Project Runway. It wasn't because all of the women on the show were military veterans, even though that was fantastic, it was because each client had a specific event that had specific design requirements. In the past the "average woman" challenges have had more vague parameters like "this is my lifestyle, make something that fits into it." 

It was a bit difficult to see the root of the critiques because the judges stayed smiley and positive in front of the veterans, and rightly so. It was a bit funny to see some 180s when the judges deliberated amongst themselves. 

Joshua designed for Leslie, an Army veteran. She needed a dress for black tie military events, because she wanted to be more feminine than her dress uniform allowed. I was nervous about that leopard print, but Joshua really stepped up and edited his design so hard for the first time in ever, so I do not begrudge him his win. In fact, I think this is the most edited and best challenge I've ever seen from Joshua. He might be a better designer within strict parameters, because otherwise, let's face it, he's just designing for himself if he were a woman and not actually considering what actually functions for a client. Also, puppy!

I was so scared for Anthony Ryan and his design for the Air Force veteran Donna who needed a dress for her 40th birthday party. He had really good ideas and intentions, but it's hard to know how to design for and distract from a large bust if you don't have one yourself. Sadly almost all this design features drew the eye right to the bust. First the amount of belting at the waist accentuated the bust, then AR had to resort to that weird, wide, white band to keep the dress up, and the the halter needed to angle a little more into the seam so it wouldn't gap. But his fabric choice and execution were beautiful, and I like it better in the image below than I did on the runway.

Uli, oh Uli, making another Uli dress for Marine veteran Jessica to wear to a wedding. It was executed well, but I was a bit bored with another resort style Uli dress. I was also nervous about what was or wasn't happening in the foundation garment department. 

I was more than relieved that all four designers were "in," because Emilio also had me shaking in my boots with his Vegas dress for Navy veteran Lisa. I know he chose to start over to "save time," but what he ended up with was horrific, especially in execution. The color may be the design's only redeeming quality. I think that strap in the back was zigzagged on at the last minute and pulled to within an inch of it's life. Also, two bust darts would have taken care of the sad gapping at the side. 

Based on the promo for next week (which I only saw half of), it sounded like next week was actually going to be the second to last challenge, so we really have two weeks of Project Runway: All Stars left? I could be wrong, please correct me if I am. Still rooting for AR to win the whole thing and hoping Joshua doesn't, but I feel like any of the designers could win at this point.

Project Runway All Stars: Whatever I Want

It doesn't matter that I've missed writing about the last six Project Runway All Stars episodes, right? Right. I'll just "catch up" with the last two.

"Flapper Fashion Face Off"
I like face offs. They bring out a little more intensity in the competition, and I think it's a good reality check for both the judges and contestants when side-by-side comparison is forced upon them. Since one of the up and coming trends is once again looking back to the 20s (I've been seeing it crop up here and there ever since I first saw The Great Gatsby trailer months ago), the challenge felt immediately relevant for once. Each set of faced off designers had a different 20s theme as their inspiration and parameter.

Emilio & Joshua: Afternoon Garden Party
Anthony Ryan & Ivy: Social Soiree
Uli & Laura Kathleen: After Hours Speakeasy

Joshua: This was probably my favorite look ever from Joshua despite the fact that the color combo, at least from the front, looked a bit old and dowdy. He should have put that lime stripe in the front too and left all the other fussy details off. He's always shooting himself in the foot with "more is better."

Emilio (winner of face off): I did like Emilio's look better than Joshua's, at least idea-wise. It wasn't an iconic 20s silhouette, but I bought his slightly stretched argument about it being a 20s-30s transitional dress...and admittedly I was partially swayed because I absolutely adore Emilio's personality. The lace cutouts were lovely, and his vintage-inspired print was a great choice, but the length looks more calypso than vintage.

Ivy: Oh, Ivy. I was shocked that she didn't go home for the last challenge. And this week she was wide of the mark again, but managed to scrape by. Her fabric was truly beautiful, but how she made it look so heavy and cumbersome is beyond me. I actually think her beaded fabric mixed with that grey leather could have been something amazing, but she didn't actually design anything, she simply constructed an ill-proportioned, mediocre sheath.

Anthony Ryan (winner of face off): I mean, y'all should know by now how much I love this boy. I'm certainly glad he won the whole challenge, but I can't say his design was perfect. Certainly 20s, certainly well-constructed and thought out, but still not a wow. But no one was a wow, so the best of the okay sometimes takes the cake.

Uli (winner of face off): I had mixed feelings about Uli's dress. There was nothing offensive, but nothing eye-catching either. I didn't understand the shoulder wrap, but her dress moved beautifully and was well-made.

Laura Kathleen: I was absolutely shocked that LK was out. Aside from the fur vest, this was one of her best silhouettes. I loved the color and the amount and placement of the sparkle was just right. No, it was not perfect as is, and no, it wasn't the best of the challenge, and no, I don't love LK, but the design certainly wasn't go home material. Ivy and Joshua have the same problems over and over again and they keep turning up like bad pennies.

"There's No Business Like Sew Business"
This last week the designers were challenged to make a modern, sophisticated, and feminine dress for designer Elie Tehari. They also had to keep their garment at a retail price point of $500-700. (Which isn't really all that difficult if you ask me.)

The bottom two were Josh and Ivy, but the funny thing is that if Ivy had listened to her critique and swallowed her pride (like Emilio did), she would have been in the top three, because the top of the dress was pretty great. Instead she went home with her nowhere length dress that had slits that cheapened the whole look.

This also meant that Joshua had a very narrow escape. Everyone agreed that his color and base fabric choice was absolutely gorgeous, but he couldn't not add and add to it until he ruined it. The lace and exposed zipper quickly took to the look to "lady of the night," and we don't really need to go into the droopy boobs nonsense.

Uli's look was okay for me. The silhouette and execution were fantastic, but it looked a little too much like crochet, and I do not enjoy crocheted clothes. (Yes, Virginia, fabric choice is key.) I'm not exactly tired of her doing white dresses, but I would like to see her do something else, because I like Uli and want her to be in the top.

I like Emilio's color choices and silhouette. Of course, as the judges mentioned, mustard can be hard to wear, but it doesn't mean that it's unsalable. In fact, a lot of "high fashion" I see is hard to wear in some way, yet it still seems to sell.

But my wee lamb Anthony Ryan wins again! Which is okay by me. He's remarkable in his ability to create clean, sharp looks that don't all look the same, and this challenge was no exception. The neckline could use a little pattern adjustment, and I might play with the proportions of the color blocking a bit, but that's all a bit nitpicky.

Project Runway All Stars: "Up Your Aerosol"

With an episode title like "Up Your Aerosol," you gotta expect some drama. The drama was pretty much about how rich Lauren is and how no one else wants to hear about it. And I don't care one whit.

The actual challenge had the designers creating their own graffiti-inspired (or "aerosol art"?) fabric using spray paint. The idea was that their garments would be "wearable works of art." The designers' success in this challenge was incredibly mixed with most designers falling into an unmemorable middle.

Before I move on, I have to talk about the guest judges, Jeffrey Castillo and Robert Tagliapietra. I mean, did you see them in all their casual Santa, hipster lumberjack-i-ness. They looked both imposing and adorable. Plus their critiques were insightful and interesting.

I can't say I agreed with the judges' tom and bottom three, but I knew as soon as I saw Suede's dress in the workroom that he would likely go home. His dress was a mess. It looked swampy and not unlike a witch costume. I don't know why he had to emphasize the polka dots on the skirt with cutout polka dots. The bottom line is that his taste level always falls short, so he went home. Check another off my list of who will go home first.

Now, I'm not saying that Kayne's dress was good, in fact it was pretty bad, but it was much better than I anticipated when I saw it in the workroom. So I probably would have put Andrae's (bottom left) raffia bow-inspired dress or Casanova's (bottom right) odd patchwork dress in the bottom three instead. They both were poorly constructed with not-quite-right proportions.

Laura's dress was just okay. The judges had it right when they said that the top of the dress had potential silhouette-wise, but the skirt looked like a different dress. I really didn't like her fabric; the colors were muddy and the pattern was messy. A graffiti-inspired design should in the very least be crisply graphic and should probably include bold colors too.

I was shocked that the judges put Ivy in the top three; it was awful. Her fabric was lackluster and too literal to say the least, and her silhouette was boring and similar to her leather and lace design. And I don't even want to talk about that ridiculous chiffon lower skirt. The judges keep saying that she's an impeccable tailor, but her jackets are shapeless. To be clear, her construction skills are just fine, but tailoring is not the same as sewing well.

I would have put Joshua in the top three instead. Even though his fabric design was a literal city landscape, it didn't read too literally in the garment (excepting the road lines at the waist). But the interesting thing for me was the his silhouette and structure themselves somehow evoked a city landscape.

Emilio and Anthony Ryan duked it out for the win. Anthony Ryan tends toward clean, graphic looks anyway, so it was no surprise that he did well in this challenge. The lines of this dress were crisp and clean, which is a breath of fresh air among this group of designers. My only complaint: because the waistline was slightly raised, I would have liked the skirt a titch longer to avoid a 90s babydoll silhouette completely.

Emilio snaked the win in the end, and I think he deserved it. The colors were perfect. And while his oversized jacket is not part of my aesthetic, the overall silhouette was well-proportioned and more or less well-made. I would have liked it better if the sleeves were slightly narrower with a more fitted cuff, and the decorative zippers on the sleeve and skirt front should be nixed completely. They weren't needed in his already visually interesting garment.

Project Runway All Stars: "Put on Your Dancing Shoes"

I was confused by this week's challenge. The designers had to make "party wear" drawing inspiration for from disco and 70s-inspired shoes. When did that 70s come back? I mean, geez, the 70s are so 90s.

As seems to be the case recently on PR, the judges didn't actually judge based on all the parameters of the challenge; there was no mention of party wear in the judging as far as I could tell. Believe me you, I'm no party wear expert, but I didn't think many of the designs were party wear.

I cannot believe that Andrae didn't go home with another fussy chiffon jacket. It was so boring, it didn't evoke disco, and it didn't have anything to do with party wear. But I wouldn't mind owning that skirt. Also Andrae's weird affectations on the runway during critiques are off-putting.

It was a surprise that Kayne (left) was in the bottom instead of Suede (right). Kanye's was nothing special, except his exceptional work in matching the chevron stripes, but Suede's was a tortured, grecian mess where dreams go to die.

Of course Wendy went home. Her design was completely atrocious. Those gloves alone deserved the boot, but the whole outfit was a weird mix of 90s reference to the 70s and Russian prostitute. Yes, that's mean, and yes, it's true.

Even though I oddly didn't hate Casanova's design, I'm not quite sure how he made it into the top three. Sometimes a surprising color choice can go a long way, I suppose.

I liked Ivy's dress in theory, but not in production. The green and gold combo was lovely, but the green fabric was overworked and poorly finished. And the overall proportions were off, but the idea of a boy short under a sheer skirt is kind of fun...for someone to wear who isn't me.

Uli was certainly best of the top three. The dress had so much movement, which was fun and a bit exciting--perfect for party wear. And since no one else really wowed me, which happens when I'm overly tired, I was certainly okay with Uli's win.

Despite their design flaws, I will give honorable mention to Anthony Ryan (top) for his monochromatic graphics, Althea (left) for the interesting texture on the front of her dress, and Emilio (right) for his use of movement and volume.