One Girl's Opinion

Wardrobe Controversy on Project Runway

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 03:21:00 +0000

Okay, so for once I can weigh in with at least a very finite amount of first-hand experience on the DRAMA that is going on with the Models of the Runway.

To sum up, one model accused another of using double-sided tape with her garment, and that's against the show's rules.

Earlier this summer, I was the set costumer on a feature film. One of my jobs was to do "last looks" which means checking everybody over seconds before the camera rolls to make sure they look good (or at the least, look the way they're supposed to). Which means that I was the girl on set with the handful of double-sided tape.

And let me tell you, we used a lot of it sometimes. These actresses would look absolutely gorgeous in these costumes, but you had to be certain that it wasn't going to slip or shift and that it was going to look gorgeous every second you were recording. But it doesn't really change the look or feel of the garment, it just ensures that it stays put if you're going to be moving around a lot.

Which is why I'm completely surprised that the PR staff doesn't allow it on the runways. I'm sure if you went to Fashion Week you'd find quite a lot of it floating around. Heck, I'm sure a lot of women use it just for going out. It was pretty darn handy for a million reasons.

But, in the end, the rules are the rules. So they told Kalyn that she can't use the double-sided tape. Okay, to be honest, I believe that she knew when she put it on the first time that she wasn't allowed to use it and she was going to try to get away with it. There's no way they've made it that far into the show without this becoming a topic of discussion. So I do think there was a little bit of scheming there.

HOWEVER, Katie's insistence that she saw the tape was still on just before the runway show bothered me. She said that it was because she saw a red strip on what should have been flesh toned (at least, that's what I heard) and that proves it.

It doesn't, and Katie should know that. I don't know what's going on in her mind, I don't know why she's upset. I forgive her for bringing it up in front of everyone the way she did because she was being egged on to discuss what was bothering her even after saying she didn't want to. She caved and said how she felt, I don't fault her for that.

I fault her for the completely wrong logic it took to get to that conclusion. If there is one thing you learn about double-stick tape after using it repeatedly, it's that the stuff is REALLY sticky. Sometimes we used stuff that was actually wig tape, so it was designed to keep people's hair on. That's some powerful adhesive.

Irina's dress in this challenge was made out of a particular type of brocade. A type of brocade that quite frankly, sheds easily. It is completely conceivable that the residue from the tape that was left on Kalyn's skin and the fabric worked together to leave a line of fuzz where it had previously been.

Not to mention the fact that if Kalyn was actually using the tape, then how would Katie have witnessed it? Unless she was doing it wrong, it would be hidden by the fabric, or if it stopped working and the dress slipped anyway, in which case it didn't actually do any good or change any results, so why be so upset about it?

I know there are going to be people out there defending Katie's point of view and saying "She saw it there! What did she see if it wasn't the tape?" Well, I can tell you it's entirely possible, indeed plausible, that she saw the remains of the residue and adhesive that the stuff leaves behind.

I think Kalyn handled the whole situation with a lot of class, also. Good for her. Though to be completely honest, my favorite model got eliminated this week so I'm not entirely happy anyway. I'll continue rooting for Matar I guess, since I like her as well.

I know that I've stopped recapping the episodes like I used to. That's a mix of two things. First, that this semester has killed me and I haven't had time to think or sleep in months. Second, that I'm still upset about Ra'mon being auf'ed and Nicolas winning in that challenge and I still can't write about it.

DVD rentals vs. sales

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 03:34:00 +0000

Remember, way back in the day, back in the 80's, when a movie was only available for rental for the first few weeks or months of it's release?

Rental stores had to pay hundreds of dollars for each copy of the movie that they purchased, and if you wanted to see that movie the day it came out you had to get it from your local video store.

That changed around the time I was in high school I think, maybe a little earlier, when they basically made movies available to rent and buy retail at the same time.

Now, with the popularity of Redbox and Netflix rising every day, studios are apparently thinking of reversing the old system. Basically a DVD would be available only for retail purchase for the first few weeks and then to rent after that.

So here's my response to that:

Are they thick?

Did somebody smack them upside the head when they were supposed to be studying economics and business and it rattled their brain into perennial opposite mode?

This will not bolster or help the DVD sales market. The DVD sales market is dying for a few reasons, none of which are entirely the rental markets fault.

Reason #1? THE ECONOMY. It's bad. People aren't buying luxuries and one of the first luxuries to go is often entertainment like movies and books. I know it's the first thing that gets cut out of my budget and I'm a filmmaker.

Reason #2? Pricing and special editions. This is the same problem studio execs found with CDs and they still haven't woken up to the truth. If a DVD is too expensive people won't buy it. Think about this: say you make $10 profit off of a DVD sale at a $20 pricepoint.

If you lowered the price to $15, you would only make $5 profit, seeming to cut your profit margin in half. But if that price drop made twice as many people buy the DVD, then your profits would stay the same. I know that this is all fuzzy and conjecture, but with all the people talking about sales and the economy, can't somebody do the studies and show that lower priced DVDs would equal higher sales and higher profits for the company?

And while they're at it, could they show that releasing a movie twelve times with different sets of special features is irritating the consumer? Not to mention when you have exclusive content depending on what store you buy your disc at? That's just uncalled for.

There's even more stuff involved than that, but in the end, even if the studios do go and make films delayed on the rental market, all it will do is serve to cause me to purchase LESS films.

I have a very specific set of questions I ask myself before I buy a movie. Have I seen it? Did I like it? Will I want to watch it over and over again? Unless all THREE questions get a yes answer, I will not buy the movie.

I know, that isn't the typical thing you'll hear from a film major or filmmaker. Most of the people I know have overflowing stacks and shelves of DVDs. And that's great. But the thing is, those people are buying the DVDs instead of renting them anyway.

Basically all this plan is doing is setting out a sign from the film studios that says, "Hey, all you people who are budget conscious and like to live uncluttered lifestyles, who prefer to think about their purchases and give their money to only the best artists and people they truly love: we don't like you and we think you deserve to be punished."

I can't think of a single person I know who would say "I can't see this movie for two weeks unless I shell out $20??? I MUST HAVE IT!"

Heck, I don't watch new releases sometimes for months or years because my Netflix queue is so full of classics and television shows I want to catch up on from the years when I didn't have cable (I'm still eight seasons behind on CSI). The only reason I rented Transformers 2 this week was because my husband wanted to see it and asked me to. Otherwise my next disc is an anime from the 1980's that I haven't managed to see before, and after that is the Dawn of the Dead remake just in time for Halloween.

What I'm saying here is that this plan will not make an impact on DVD sales, probably not even a dent. But it WILL serve to make the studios look bad, and insult a subset of their audience. So why do something that won't help and might harm? If I can't rent the DVD in the first few weeks, I'll just throw it to the bottom of my queue and forget about it, not renting it for YEARS, which certainly helps nobody's bottom line.

Movie studios are starting to sound as stupid and out of touch with modern times as record executives.

Thoughts on Film Writing

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:54:00 +0000

I'll catch up with my recaps sometime this week. But the thing is that I'm snowed under with my grad school homework.

Which includes a lot of reading, which has gotten me thinking.

You see, I like film as an art form and as a storytelling device for one main reason: the way it resonates with so many people. A good film is one that crosses gender, racial, and social lines to appeal to a large number of people. Not in the same way, of course, but people of all shapes and sizes pull something from the film. It relates to my personal answer to the question "what is art."

I believe that when an artist takes something of themselves, some truth they're trying to attain, some piece of their own puzzle, something about their life or belief, and they put that into the work, then they are a "real artist." And I believe that when someone, anyone, other than that artist looks at that work and takes something from their own lives, some piece of their own truth, and they pull that FROM the work, when they see something of themselves in that piece created by a person they likely did not know, then that is art.

In other words, art is something that speaks. But the important thing here is that the piece itself speaks to the audience, not the creator. If a writer, artist, or filmmaker must explain their work, or they feel that the only "real" interpretation is the one they provide and anyone who doesn't see that doesn't "get it" then it no longer really inhabits the real of "art" and it's just a recitation. Art must live on it's own, and it only lives with an audience.

To me, the beauty of filmmaking is that it is so far reaching. I attribute that to the fact that filmmaking is really art by committee. I consider this a great thing, before you get upset. Filmmaking is an art where each person is taking something from their lives, from their beliefs, and they are putting it into their part of the film. Yes, the writer, director, editor, lead actors, and producers are all known to be putting their vision to film. But at the same time, so is the art director, the wardrobe designer, the extras (if they're good), and everyone else involved. When everyone really believes in a film and puts at least a part of themselves into that film, then that means there are a hundred little truths sprinkled throughout, and those truths all have the potential to reach someone in the audience. Perhaps I don't agree with or buy into the director's truth. But I might believe in the art director's vision and that might draw me in and make me think of the film in my own way, thus elevating it to art.

Which leaves me with a very unpopular opinion that is going to get me into trouble soon. I believe that one of the worst things that you can do with film is write about it in the "academic" vernacular. To take a film or set of films and create a work where you explore it in a way that is inaccessible to most people is against the very nature of the process. I have read so many essays and papers about film that could easily have proposed the same ideas, the same thoughts, the same conclusions, but in a more easily read and accessible way, but because of the strict standards of academia and "higher learning" they're written in a way that most of the American population can't begin to understand or care about.

Film is not an art form that is about being selective, exclusive, or that has anything to do with an ivory tower. Exploring film in that way is counter to what I believe, to what I feel, and I'm tired of being expected to write about it that way myself. I can't write that way because it's not true to myself and how I feel.

You can disagree with me, that's the point of this blog having the word "opinion" in the title. In fact, I think it's important to note that for some people who are steeped in academia they likely don't know any other way to write. If they are indeed scientists or philosophers, that will just be the way they express themselves. But I think that in the places where we're teaching people to think critically about film, teaching them how to really write about film in order to leave their observations for future generations, perhaps we should be teaching them a way to write that is both persuasive and understandable for a much larger segment of the population.

As they say in one of my favorite films, "an ounce of pretension is worth a pound of manure."

Fit to Print

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 05:36:00 +0000

Sorry about missing last week folks. If you'd like to read my thoughts, they're posted here. And if you want to make sure you don't miss anything even when I don't post on time, there's an RSS feed over to the right and there's also a syndication of the feed on Livejournal, thanks to the lovely Domynoe.

On with the real show!

I'm so happy about this week's challenge. It's so nice to seem them really returning to the wackiness and actually challenging aspects of previous years. I hope this trend continues.

What I wasn't happy to see was all the backbiting and middle-school aged immaturity on display. But I'll get to that.

Althea

My favorite dresses of this episode were the ones that used the photos in the paper to create a pattern, and this is one of the best examples of that. I know not a lot of people have seen the effect that's made by seeing a couple hundred copies of a newspaper stacked together, or on display, but the repetition can have it's own kind of beauty and Althea took advantage of that in a brilliant way.

The dress itself was also very nice, well fitted and flattering.

Carol Hannah

If I saw this dress and only knew that it was part of a challenge to make a dress out of newspaper, I would think "well, that's a pretty fair job."

But I've seen some of Carol Hannah's other dresses this season and while I like her quite a bit at the same time, her work can get just a little sloppy. So for some reason that's all I can think about with this dress, was that it fits with everything else she's done, which means everything else looks a bit like rumpled paper.

Also, I think her goal of making a dress that doesn't look like it's made out of paper was a bit against the spirit of the challenge, but perhaps that's just me. I didn't like that she dyed the entire thing, and I didn't like the color that came out of the effort.

It's just not impressing me, overall.

Christopher

Is it just me, or did Christopher never really answer the judges question about how he made the bodice so armor-like? He said something about pattern paper, but I'm used to pattern paper being that flimsy stuff that tears if you look at it the wrong way. When I've needed to make patterns on my own I've actually just used newspaper, so I'm not sure what he was talking about. Maybe that's my lack of experience sewing that's on display.

I admit, part of the reason I'm so curious is that I know a dozen costumers that would love to find a way to cheaply make light armor for their costumes.

Anyway, I do really enjoy this dress. I like that he thought to put something matching in her hair, because I think that's part of what sells it for me. It's well done, and the judges touched on everything that was great about it.

I actually wasn't entirely sold on Irina's trenchcoat, so I would have given this the win.

Epperson

This is what I was saying when I recapped last week's show. Epperson is just so steadfast and fantastic at what he does. He let the newspaper be it's own pattern, which most of the designers weren't able or willing to do. He made a really good garment, and Matar looks great in it.

But I can't say that it really stuck out in my mind or anything either. It seemed a little typical, not as creative as it could have been.

Gordana

Sometimes, I think that when the judge's see the tabulations for the top and bottom scores, they say, "Oh, really? Well...I don't know what to do with that." Because in the end, there's no real explanation for Gordana being in the bottom three.

Saying that she was too safe and too wearable could be a fair critique, but I see several other things that went down the runway that I would say were more so. I think Carol Hannah's is the obvious choice for that.

Gordana's dress is well constructed, well thought out, and doesn't rely on the use of dye to change the paper to something else, she just used the same section over and over to create a pattern.

I'm not exactly sure why they had a problem with it, because I think that it walks perfectly down that line between "wacky challenge response" and "darn good clothes."

And isn't that what Project Runway is supposed to be about?

Irina

Let me just say that I am so happy to see Irina finally getting her due. I wish it had been for a garment that I was more in love with, but such is life. It's just that I don't like big fur collars, so her approximation wasn't up my alley either.

At the same time though, Irina did put a lot of work and thought into this. The marker "stitches" were a great idea. Side note: somebody said something about not knowing how to sew newspaper. Um, you don't. I can't figure out a way where sewing it would actually be the proper answer to the construction issue, so I'm not sure why they bothered. /side note.

I'm going to take a second to comment about how a particular designer who I won't address until later stated that Irina didn't belong in the competition. I have no idea what competition HE'S been in, but from where I sit, Irina is one of the strongest contenders for either winning the show or having a fabulous and successful career after the show.

Think about it. Episode one she makes a fan favorite gown that is creamy and gorgeous. It shows off the model, it's classy, and most people agree should have been in the top.

Episode two she makes a completely beautiful light blue maternity dress that I would want to own in every color. The worst critique I've seen of it was that it was a little boring, but I can't say I agree. I think the sheer craftsmanship and fit of it saves it from boring.

Episode three she's paired with Johnny, so it's a misstep, sure. But the surf look is cute and casual, and the avant guarde look...well. The less I say about it the better. But they're still a top team, don't forget.

Episode four again saw Irina not make it to the top for a well designed, well made, really good looking dress. One that didn't look a bit like what other people were making, and flattered her model beautifully.

Saying that she doesn't belong in the competition is just ludicrous and I can't imagine where it came from other than either bad taste or insecurity.

Johnny

*sigh* It's time to talk about Johnny isn't it? Hasn't all of it already been said? This is a poor showing, it's a poor effort, and he should be ashamed.

His ridiculous story about the steamer was summed up best on Models of the Runway when one of the models incredulously asked, "he was steaming newspaper?" Johnny, if you're going to make things up, make up something plausible. You accidentally tore it straight up the side, and you didn't want to tape it all shut because that would show. You spilled dye on it. You knocked it over and your cranes were crushed. Heck, even, "I did a spit take when Epperson started imitating Shirin and it ruined the dress, oops."

I'm amazed, all the time, about the way the designers behave on the runway. Sometimes I think that the best thing about this show is that it might make people start thinking about how to think and speak to superiors. Doesn't anybody teach professionalism anymore? Listen, I'm in a creative field, and I'm in grad school. Defending your work without being argumentative, accepting criticism graciously while still standing behind your art, and generally not telling everything are all things you have to master.

There was no reason for Johnny to even bring up the first dress, because he should have known that the judge's wouldn't care. For him to say it was ruined wouldn't win him any brownie points, really. For him to say he scrapped it and started over, they still would have said, "you should have known better and made it work."

Johnny deserved to go home, and he deserves to be called out for his lie. He couldn't take a criticism and he couldn't defend his original design so he trashed it in a fit of childish tantrum. Absolutely. And his original design was pretty bad too, and it certainly wasn't "Dior."

However, I'm about to attack a sacred cow here. Tim's behavior after Johnny's exit was just as unprofessional and I'm just as annoyed by it. Tim has made a name for himself as a gentleman and a mentor. Speaking kindly to somebody's face and only waiting for the second the door shuts to badmouth them is not gentlemanly and it certainly doesn't make people want to open themselves up to your mentoring either. This isn't the first time that Tim's comments about contestants have sat wrongly with me, because I think of anybody on the show he should be living by the phrase, "if you don't have anything nice to say..."

A professor shouldn't speak ill of their students in front of other students. Tim, in his role as mentor, qualifies for that rule in my mind.

Listen, if Tim had couched it as a cautionary statement to the effect of, "I hope that you remaining designers can see that making up a story on the runway will not do you any favors, and I hope to never see that again" I wouldn't be so upset. And that was very likely his intention. But that's not what he said, what he said took on a gossipy tone and the timing of it bothered me because it made Tim seem two-faced, and that's the last thing I want to think about a man I admire.

I will point out that it's possible that an editing trick caused the timing thing (seconds after Johnny had left the room). I would have to watch it again to be sure, but I don't remember a cut at that point, it seemed to be a continuous shot. I'll check when Lifetime posts the episode.* Please see edit at bottom of post

I'm moving on to better things now.

Logan

For some reason (likely that they hate me) my cable company decided that the second after Heidi said "let's start the show" was the perfect time for a mandatory weekly test of the emergency broadcast system.

So while this design walked the runway, I was yelling at a green screen and annoying tone.

I really hate that I missed it. I absolutely love the way he played with the color, and I love the color itself. The dress fits fabulously, and if it was made of cloth I think that a lot of women would love it. It's not as ambitious as some of the others this week, but I like it quite a bit.

But having not seen it walk the runway, I haven't had a lot of time to form more opinion about it than that.

Does Louise just not like Fatma's neck? Also, there are a finite number of women above the age of 15 who can pull off the "mouse ears" hairdo, and Fatma isn't one of them.

I just don't even know what the curlers on the front of the dress are supposed to be. What are they supposed to be doing? Because as it is, they just look wrong and like they were put in the wrong place. With the color of them, they remind me of little bits of hot dog or something.

I do like the skirt, but I think overall it's just not a very creative effort, and I'm actually glad to hear that Louise didn't feel so either. The fact that she recognized it means that she'll go further.

Nicolas

Oh. Now we're here. Nicolas. I know the recapper from Television Without Pity really loves Nicolas, but I haven't really liked him from the beginning. I don't think he's really shown a great garment yet (with the exception of the surfer one where Gordana made the top) and he's done nothing to earn his ego. As much as I disliked Christian, and didn't like half of what he made, at the same time he at least had some skills and talent, and I could admit sometimes that he just wasn't my style since I think skinny jeans need to drop off the face of the planet.

But Nicolas? He rips on Irina when she's outclassed his offerings in every challenge, and then he acts like a five year old tattletale on the runway. It wasn't just that he rolled his eyes, it wasn't that he made a comment. It was that he was practically bouncing up and down with glee as he got to report to Heidi that the first dress was a "red mess" and that Tim said the birds were attacking the dress. Which, for the record, was NOT exactly what Tim said, but whatever. Nicolas behaved badly, and he looked like a spoiled bratling. Also, isn't he supposed to be the feather prince? Why has he given us two boring black dresses, loose pants, a space prostitute uniform, a white shell, and then this? What kind of poorly thought out nickname was that?

As much as I might have wanted Nicolas to go home last night so I wouldn't have to hear him sound so smug as he insults others (really, his tone of voice drives me up the wall, he's so condescending), I have to admit that Johnny's dress was much much worse. This at least showed some attempt at imagination.

It's a mess though, sorry Nicolas. It's not very well made, and it doesn't really say or do anything. It's blah. It's less punk than Avril Lavigne.

I'm rooting for Nicolas to be kicked off next week. As he said, they're starting to weed out the weaker designers so it's his turn, because of the remaining pack, he's certainly the weakest contender based on his history on the show.

Ra'Mon

I actually really love this dress. I think Ra'Mon did some fascinating things with the colors, and the pattern. I actually could see it on a traditional runway as part of a larger show. If it was made of real fabric, I might think about getting it.

As for Ra'Mon's model...I was interested in the comment he made under his breath at Models of the Runway, that he didn't want to keep Vanessa. I wonder why that is. I know she's been the source of tension in the house, but I think in her original argument with Fatma she was in the right. I also don't think Fatma was really remorseful when she apologized, but I think Vanessa's insistence in not accepting the apology was kind of dumb. Just say "okay, fine" and move on, and don't be her friend.

As for their dream team, well, that's just clique-y and stupid, and so very reality TV. Yay Models, for dragging PR down to the level of the rest of the shows in it's genre.

Anyway, for the most part I thought Vanessa did a good job modeling for Ra'Mon, but this week I didn't really like her efforts. This picture is just kind of awkward and strange. I know, she wasn't posing for a photo. But runway shows are heavily photographed, so shouldn't they look poised and good whenever they pause?

I'm glad they're forcing the designers to all change models next week, so that Ra'Mon is free to chose as he wants to. I don't think anybody would have thought less of him for switching this week, but it's nice that he's concerned with being a good person.

Shirin

I can't say that I like Shirin's dress, really. But I can say that I think she really took a chance, and that I'd rather designers take risks than be boring. She decided to do something that she couldn't necessarily do with fabric (unless she's Leanne Marshall, but anywho). It had a great movement to it too, that some of the other dresses lacked.

As for the montage of Shirin being too talkative and all the designers hating her for it, I can't say it annoyed me because I really identified with that moment. I won't get into it more than that, but I'll just say that Shirin probably isn't trying to be anything other than herself, and if the other designers are irritated or want her to be quiet, there's a polite way to say so.

That episode as just too much after the blah that has been this season so far. I can't believe it took this long for it to get more fun again!

*Edited to add: I have watched the scene over again on Lifetime and I will have to admit that I was wrong. There is a slight cut point at that moment in time where a time compression easily could have occurred. While all the designers and Tim seem to be placed in the same positions that they were when Johnny left the room, the fact is we will never know how much time passed between his exit and Tim's comment.

This does not fully change my opinion of the situation, however. I still feel that Tim's comment was delivered in an inappropriate way, especially when coupled with my knowledge of some of the things he has said about previous designers in interviews in the past. Because of those statements and this one, I would have a lot of trouble trusting him as a mentor and teacher. While his taste is impeccable, there is a certain vulnerability involved in opening up your creative works for critique and the purpose of a good mentor is to give you a safe place to explore that work and create something better. The feeling that your mentor might talk about you or insult your work behind your back to your colleagues and peers is not a good one to have, and I have experienced it personally. There are few times I've felt as betrayed as that moment, or as disheartened and discouraged about my own work.

I still love Tim, and I am not saying that suddenly he is a bad person. Everyone does things that they regret and says things they maybe shouldn't have said. I'm just disappointed really. I had thought he was more classy than that.

Playing Catch Up

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 04:51:00 +0000

So, I missed writing up last week's Project Runway. I'm sorry, I had some class commitments that took up too much of my time, and I admit I wasn't looking forward to this one in particular, since it was amazingly boring.

Althea

Well, gladly I think my pictures ended up alphabetically so this is first and I can get it out of the way.

I absolutely hate this outfit. I fully believe it should have been one of the bottom two on the runway at the end, and that it's execution problems were on par with Johnny's rumpled mess, and Althea deserved to be called out for a shoddily made, poorly fitted, disastrous garment. As many people have pointed out, the jacket is really nice. Okay, sure.

But who can see the jacket over the bunched up wrinkled skirt? Over the tank top that doesn't even fit the model as well as my pajama shirt that I wear when I'm not feeling well and want to wear something frumpy and comfortable?

I've pointed out problems with the craftmanship on Althea's garments before that goes unnoticed and it just serves to remind me how ridiculously biased the PR judges can be, and that doesn't make me happy. It makes me grumpy with one of my favorite shows and who wants that?

Even if you don't believe this was a bottom tier outfit, at the least it should have been on the level of "safe." Who cares how good the jacket or the model were, it just wasn't as good as half of the other things that walked that runway, no matter what the guest judges had to say.

Some people have taken umbrage at Irina's catty comments about it in the episode that ran this week, but I can't help but agree with everything Irina said, so I can't hold her accountable for it.

Carol Hannah

This dress reminds me of Rami, in the best of ways. I love the purple fabric of the top, and how it works with the black. Actually, I would absolutely love to see these fabrics and this idea spread out across an entire collection.

I can't say I'm crazy about the model's styling, her hair really bothers me. But in the end, it's a great dress. The bit on the back is a little much, but I digress.

Christopher

On the one hand, I actually like this idea and the execution of it is pretty cute. On the other hand, it does look an awful lot like a sushi wrapper.

The fabric is also suffering from some of the same rumpling and messiness that Johnny's did, so not the best fabric choice for color or style.

But the shape itself is rather nice, maybe if he had done it with a more subtle green, or a blue, it would have been lovely. Not winner lovely, or anything. Safe, middle of the road, "you can leave the Runway" lovely.

Side note: I love his model, I think she's one of the most beautiful ones this season.

Epperson

This dress is not even a little bit within my style of clothing, but I like it. I think it fits Matar very well, and it flatters her coloring in an amazing way. This is a great dress for her to wear to an industry event where she'd like to impress people and be hired.

I think that Epperson is becoming one of my favorite designers, though I don't know if I picture him going to the end of the competition. But he's juts got this steadfast GOOD quality about him. He works, he does what he's meant to do, and he just gets it done. There's not much fuss or muss, no drama aside from his interactions with Qrystal. He just makes really good clothes.

There's a lot of room for that in the world.

Gordana

While I agree with some comments that the color of this dress when matched with the model's hair and skin tone makes her wash out a lot, at the same time I think it's just a really fabulous little dress. It somehow manages to feel mod and hippy at the same time. The detail on the front is really well done, especially considering how much time and effort it must have taken.

I wish this dress had been in the top three, because I think Gordana deserves a bit of respect and she doesn't seem to be getting it just yet.

All I'm going to say in conclusion is that if I wore skirts this short, I'd wear this dress. I really like things that use something other than lace, ruffles, sequins, feathers, or whatever to accent the garment in a non-traditional way.

Irina

Irina has been the dark horse of this competition, because nobody seems to be noticing the fabulous looks she's sending down the runway week after week. Well, at least they weren't noticing at this point. But look at this! That pattern could have been a complete disaster, and yet it works so perfectly on the model. The shrug tames the pattern just a smidge more, and makes it all much more elegant and classic.

I have a tiny problem with the giant lapel going on here, but in the end it's a really solid effort and I think it absolutely should have taken Althea's place in the top. It's a great piece.

Johnny

Well.

I think the judges did a good job describing this on the runway, so I won't really add to it except to say I'm pretty sure I knew girls who owned that dress and wore it to homecoming, or a spring wedding as a bridesmaid. There isn't a single interesting or innovative thing about it.

Also, the purse and the shoes don't really match each other, let alone the dress.

Logan

WHY did all the designers pick up that type of fabric? Christopher, Johnny, and Logan all had this stiff satin-y stuff (I'm not good with fabric names, personally, I know what I'm talking about but not what it's called). That stuff is terrible for wrinkling up and looking like this, and they all did it.

I can't put my finger on what doesn't work about this. Is it the styling of the model? Well, yes, but that still fits Koji very well. Is it the thick lace? Well, it doesn't do the dress any favors, but it's not a disaster. The shape? No, the shape is really fine, in the end.

Maybe it's just putting it all together that leaves something to be desired. I don't know, but it just doesn't work and I don't know why. I don't like it, but I don't hate it either. Maybe it's the fact that this particular shade of blue doesn't look good with Koji's skin tone, in my opinion.

Whatever the reason, it's good that Logan didn't go home for this because I don't think it's an intentional disaster, it just feels like one of those projects where you get started and you have no idea what's wrong or how to fix it, just that in the end it might be better to scrap the whole thing. I think almost all creative people know what that's like.

Louise

Well, it's nice. Okay, it's a personal opinion but I hate big collars like that. I've rarely seen women who can actually pull them off and make them look even the least bit comfortable or wearable. And it's not just that, because something can look unwearable but still fabulous, but it just doesn't work right with the shape or something. It makes women look like their heads aren't attached or something, I don't know. Can you imagine trying to talk to Fatma at an industry party while she's wearing this? Her head all cozied down in the middle of this ruffle? How do you have a conversation with somebody in this type of thing?

That said, I think if you took the collar off of this dress, it would be a fabulous little black dress, and it would be something most women would want to have a version of in their closet.

Listen, I don't understand Nicolas. I just don't, I don't know why so many bloggers love him, I don't know why everybody thinks he's fabulous. He's yet to make anything that I thought looked well fitted or desirable, and he seems to have about half the imagination of some of the former contestants of the show. Could you imagine him in a showdown with Daniel Vosovic? Daniel V. would wipe the floor with him without even trying too hard.

This is one of those garments that looks good on a runway, but not anywhere else. Think about it, imagine you're at an event looking for someone to work for you and represent you. You see someone wearing this. Does she stick in your head? Do you remember her at all?

Not to mention these were supposed to be tailored specifically for these models as a client, and I see no real match going on here. When you saw Matar in her dress, you saw MATAR in her dress. You don't see the model here. If this was in a runway show for a collection, I would think they picked the wrong model to wear the garment because somebody dropped out.

As for Nicolas' comment that the dress fit his model wonderfully, was he watching the same garment I was? From the bottom of her bust down, yes it fit great. Around her neck? Sure, it's fabulous.

But her bust wasn't even a little fitted, and it poofed out and folded with her every movement. Which is an innate problem with halter tops, actually. It's pretty darn difficult for it NOT to do that, especially with a fabric like this instead of say, a thin cotton. So normally I wouldn't really call attention to it, since it's an inherent issue with the style, but he's the one that said it fit her perfectly.

Qrystal

Valarie looks really unhappy in this picture, and I start to wonder a little if the judge's reaction to this garment isn't a little more influenced by her expression and performance.

Yes, it's safe. Yes, it's boring. But it's still pretty stylish, and maybe it's for an older crowd but I think there's a huge market for this particular dress. I bet she could make a dozen of them and sell out of them over a weekend.

In other words, Johnny made something that looked like something a high school girl would sew as an early project as she learned to make clothes (a talented high schooler, sure, but one without much attention to detail) and Qrystal made something that was at least put together well and didn't look like her model had just gotten out of bed.

Ra'mon

I think this angle and this photo highlight the absurdity of this dress quite perfectly.

Listen, I'm not against it. I think it actually could have been a great answer to the surfer avant guarde challenge. But it's not a cocktail dress for a model to wear to a party where she's trying to get a job. Again, we go back to the "how do you talk to her" scenario. When they showed her at the event itself, she looked completely strange and out of place.

The color is beautiful, and it's well made and all. But it doesn't fit the challenge, really. So middle of the pack safe makes sense.

Shirin

I love Shirin, I really do. And I think she did well with talking her model away from a jumpsuit and such. But there's isn't the first thing about this dress that stands out in any way.

It's boring. I can't even remember seeing it on the runway, I keep seeing the pictures of it again and going "Oh...is that from the same week?" It's a good dress, she could sell it in a store. It would be a great dress for going to a party where you want to look good enough to impress. But it's nothing to write home about either. Executives at the end of the party might turn to their friends and say, "You remember the girl in the blue dress?" and their friends would say, "What blue dress?"

Unless they responded, "The one that was being eaten by the ruffle-flower?"

Penelope

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 07:56:00 +0000

First, I just want to point out how much I absolutely adore Netflix's Watch it Now service. Now that I have a television I can hook up directly to my computer, I have watched quite a few hours of great movies and television without having to wait for a disc. My only complaint is that I have to run it in IE rather than Firefox.

Now that my fangirl moment is out of the way, I'll get to Penelope, after one brief tangent.

I'm currently enrolled in an editing class. Our current assignment is to cut a trailer for a film, so last week we watched several trailers and discussed how they were or were not successful. When the trailers for Penelope were coming on television, I thought I'd like to see it. It looked like a fun little whimsical fairy tale, and I just knew it would be a love story with a happy ending. Let's face it, I'm a sucker for a love story with a happy ending.

Now, in an attempt to find the trailers that I watched that made me want to see the film I just found the "extended trailer" which basically includes the entire plot of the film, and isn't nearly as fun and certainly wouldn't have made me want to go see the movie. If you have to give away the ending of your movie in the trailer, then how much faith do you have in your actual movie? Maybe film students are different from most viewers, but most people I know can tell if the trailer gives away the end and really resent it.

Anyway, all of that aside. I didn't watch that trailer until just now, and I did watch the good ones. So I watched the film the other night and I have to say I greatly enjoyed it. Don't get me wrong, the film had flaws, and some major ones at that. But I was willing to just let all of that go and enjoy the ride.

The biggest flaw, really, is the story. There's not enough of it there, and what is there isn't as well drawn as it could be. The film landed a huge coupe when they cast James McAvoy and they certainly underutilized him. In fact, almost every character is underdone. It's just not a character driven piece, in the end. I think that works against the film with current audiences, though I don't know that it was trying to be so much more than it was.

The problem is that once in a while, with a line here or there, a moment, an expression, the film transcends it's silly fairy tale treatment. When Penelope tries to explain to her mother how she's feeling, the writing becomes heartwrenching, if a little exposition heavy. I know I'm going to keep coming back to James McAvoy but in the end he has some of the finest acting I've ever seen. He says more with a pained look than some actors can in a whole monologue. And the end...I try not to spoil endings, but I must say that I think anybody who likes romance or love stories needs to watch the film, if for no other reason than to see the next to last scene.

I think that the art director and costume designer for the film deserve praise. They've created a setting that exists everywhere and nowhere at once. If the film is intended to be set in a specific place then I couldn't figure out where it was. It felt like New York City and London at the same time. Penelope's clothes were delightful, and everything looks beautiful. The only thing I can say is that Christina Ricci is almost too adorable in her pig nose, but I forgive everyone's overreaction to it as part of the sort of oversaturated screwball world that they live in.

It's a good little film. I think most people who like fairy tales, love stories, or quirky comedies will enjoy it. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to add everything James McAvoy has ever done to my queue.

Avant guard meets...surfer?

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Sat, 05 Sep 2009 23:21:00 +0000

When you think of surfer girls and surf wear, what's the first thing that comes to mind? Wet suits? Bathing suits? Hibiscus flowers? That really annoying level of JoJo's Fashion Show?

How many of you thought "Avant Guarde fashion?" Nobody? Crickets?

I'm so completely baffled by the decision to pair the two ideas, and apparently so were the designers. In season four, the designers had to make an avant guard look, and then create a ready to wear look to compliment it, the two looks mostly complimented each other. You also got some astonishingly good fashion out of it. Even the dress that got a designer eliminated wasn't BAD, it just didn't fit.

Yet this group...this group turned out a lot of really weird stuff. Some boring, some downright weird, and none of it matched, really at all. What did their pairs of outfits have to do with each other? They didn't. Much like surf wear and avant guarde fashion.

Louise and Althea

What's really sad about this episode is that aside from a few key groups, I can't even remember who was paired together. I keep having to go back to the website to figure it out, but I guess that's what you get this early in the season.

Last week, I didn't like the fit of the bust on Althea's dress. This week, the fit is still really similar, so I think it's just one of her design trends. There's just something about that particular style and fit that makes the woman's chest look like an odd proportion. I don't understand why people think it's great, I guess because it shows off a lot of flesh? But in the end, it actually elongates that part of the chest, which I don't think is the intended result.

I also gave a pass last week to Christopher for the bubble skirt hem he did on the shirt he made. I won't do that with this bubble skirt hem, I still hate them.

In the end, while I like the color and the garment fits the challenge really well, it's just filled with sewing techniques that I've never liked, understood, or wanted to wear.

The avant guarde look is much nicer, and very well constructed. I find it very impressive, and beautiful. I don't think it takes enough chances to be really avant guard, but it's still nice.

But how does it even remotely relate to the first look? Look at them together, they don't even seem like they'd be in the same collection, let alone the same challenge.

Shirin and Carol Hannah

The surfer outfit was nice, I love the fabric. It really reminds me of the things that Uli made. The only thing I hesitate about is that I don't know if surfers actually wear teensy bikinis or if they prefer something with a little more coverage. Since they talked to the surfer girls, I'll presume that sometimes they wear more skimpy things. But in the end, solid effort, a little fun, and well done.

The avant guarde look...well, if you cover up the bottom third of the dress and pretend it isn't there, then it's really nice. The color is very pretty, the sweep around the shoulder, the braiding, all lovely.

The pouches at the bottom? Um...what was that about? They flopped around weirdly on the runway, they're large and cumbersome, and they don't really serve any purpose besides being large weird things on the bottom of the dress. And we're not going to go into what they remind me of.

But the big thing in the end? Again, what do these dresses have to do with each other? The colors don't match, the designs don't flow together. They're just two different dresses with two different inspirations and I wish that they could have kept everybody on the runway so that the judges could have called them to task for it.

Actually, why didn't the judges call them to task for not making the dresses work together? It was part of the challenge!

Christopher and Logan

Okay, okay. THESE two looks at least look like they belong in the same show, if not "inspired by" or anything. They're similar enough to be of the same aesthetic.

The top half of the model for the surf look is great. But while I realize this is a "surf inspired" look, I can't get over the idea of how much a surfer would probably hate wearing skinny pants like these. They look vastly uncomfortable, and as I pointed out time and time again during Christian's season, skinny pants are not flattering on anybody. They make you look funny, so please women of America and the world, stop wearing them.

No really, even if you're skinny they aren't right. They accentuate the wrong parts of the woman's body, they make her legs look strange, and just generally throw off the entire natural curve and proportion of a woman's body which is, in general, the entire thing most people find attractive about women.

While these aren't as bad as some I've seen, they certainly don't work for me.

I actually quite like the avant guarde look, because it's rather daring and fits the idea. It's on the edge, something that would be a good centerpiece to a collection even if it's not entirely wearable. I also like that it seems to be a very good blend of Christopher and Logan's styles. Actually, I think it's the best avant guarde look of the night because it certainly feels more risky, better made, and more demanding than Ra'mon's.

Qristyl and Epperson

I like the fabric for the casual dress, I like the top (though it's got a little of the same issue that I talked about with Althea. The problem isn't the tiny top so much as it is the long long straps until you get to the top, it makes that part look too long). But the bottom, I don't understand. It's gathered and flows strangely as the model walks down the runway and again, I just don't get it. I don't understand fashion. But I especially don't understand the level of this season's designers. Sure, I might not understand. But usually I'm not so completely baffled by the fall of the hemlines, even on PR. It's a topic that comes up for me several times and episode right now and I don't understand why.

As for the avant guarde...there are no words. Remember last season (was it last season, really? feels like years) when several designers made dresses out of this one particular brown fabric, and it was really hard to work with and looked pretty bad all around, and the two bottom outfits were made of the same fabric?

I think this might be made out of the same stuff.

Okay, I know it's not because I looked back at the old pictures and that brown was much lighter and shinier. But still, this is just...wrong. First, it looks more like a swimsuit than half the things that went down the runway. So, I guess in that sense it fit the challenge to mesh surf and avant guarde? But the bunches of fabric and how haphazard it looks just...what is it? What are they going for? What are they actually SAYING with this garment? Because I have no idea.

I wanted to like Qristyl and root for her, but I think I'm done.

Nicolas and Gordana

For the surf look, while it might not be my personal style, I get it and I like it. The workmanship is pretty amazing, and surprising. Actually, there was a lot of braiding and macrame this week, and I'm curious why. Is it something one of the surfers said? Anyway, it's still really nice, and it's light and open, so very beach-wear. The bottom also is very light and airy, and just feels appropriate for a beach cover-up, though it is a shade long. I'd rather see it show just a little more leg.

As for the other...

Well.

Color wise, I can see how the two relate together. In any other way, I don't really quite understand. And the blue lace body stocking...I mean, it even goes over her shoes! What in the world IS it? Who would have created that? Who, in a million years, would think that looks like anything other than trashy? If I cover up the bottom, and assume that the top flows into some sort of matching skirt (though I can't imagine what that could be) then it's not that bad. The collar and the design are interesting, at least a little inventive. But the stockings. I just can't imagine the stockings working anywhere on anyone.

Johnny and Irina

First, thank goodness that Irina was on the top of the runway for once. Girl needs to be given mad praise as soon as possible.

Second, Johnny's model has never looked more beautiful. She looks a bit like Sarah from the show Chuck, somehow. But I like it.

And I like their casual look. It's simple, but it's wearable, it's fun, and while the pockets of the skirt do a bit of an odd thing, in the end I think it might be the best surf look that was out on that runway. It just really looks like something a girl might throw on after surfing to go grab some lunch or a casual dinner.

While I don't see how the designs themselves really fit together, the avant guarde look was tied to it with color, which is more than some did. But I have to admit, I don't like it.

There's something about it that makes it look like the model is being pulled in two directions, like she twisted funny before she walked out on the runway and didn't have time to straighten the dress. The braiding on the top is a little off somehow, it's top heavy, though I can't explain exactly why. Maybe it's to do with the width of the strips or the tightness of the weave.

It just looks a little sloppy, a little half realized. I can't say that I'm a fan.

Mitchell and Ra'mon

I actually really adore this dress. If it had a lining instead of being sheer, and was for a dress challenge instead of a surf challenge, I would spend three paragraphs singing it's praises.

Instead, it's meant to be a surf challenge, and I don't see surf in this really. Sure, it's a bathing suit cover up. But the colors don't say sun and beaches to me. But I do like Ra'mon's story about the algae, so I guess I'll forgive it.

Now, I love the effect of the dye on the neoprene. I love the pattern that it makes, and I'd kind of like a laptop bag made out of the "print." But I can't say I loved the dress itself, especially not as much as the judges did. It's cute, and interesting. If it was the surf inspired part itself then it would be pretty good.

But avant guard? Really? It bunches in weird ways and when the model walks it just moved in an odd and stilted way (largely because it's neoprene and not being used as a formfitting fabric). But I just don't see it in the same positive light the judges did. I don't know who I would have given the win to aside from Ra'mon, because in the end his two looks were the only ones that were BOTH really well done. Not that they fit together in the slightest, but that's beside the point.

That said, the fact that he put it together in thirty minutes or so is really impressive so I won't be so harsh.

All that out of the way, to the drama. Mitchell made a huge mistake but at the same time, it was honorable and honest to not try to make himself out to have done more than he did. BUT, at the same time as that, the fact is that the only reason these came out as well as they did is because he didn't help, and I think we all know it.

I try hard not to be really harsh to these designers, and I realize I'm kind of picking on Mitchell a lot. But I just don't understand it, he seemed to show about the same amount of sewing ability that I have, and I'm really not cut out for PR.

For them to have the "follower" of the team win, and the "leader" lose, that isn't something that's happened before. But aside from Qristyl, I don't see any other way the elimination could have gone. And while they might say that they're only going to take into account the garment in front of them and not all their work, you know that they just finally gave up and said, "You know what, Mitchell isn't going to cut it."

As for the model drama, I have to say I now love the model who cried because she got chosen by her friend's designer (I can't learn any of the models names, I'm sorry models! But I'm barely keeping up with designers and cheftestants right now). But anyway, the emotion she showed for her friend was really heartfelt and it made me want to hug her, and her friend. I don't think she should have gone home anyway, she was very pretty and seemed kind, which I suppose isn't a requirement for a model but it's nice. But at the same time, I'm also glad Valerie didn't go home two challenges in a row, that would have been terrible!

I do like that they're back to their original antics of choosing models each week though. It was funny, one night the models were acting like that was such a new and weird idea and what in the world was happening, but that's the way it was first season and the designers jumped just about as often as they are this season.

I'm surprised at the girl who took the Arby's commercial instead of PR, but if they're still not getting paid for their appearance then I suppose I can't say much. But it seems to me that all other things being equal, PR would be a better way to actually elevate yourself and make yourself better known. It certainly has a larger following than Arby's. She did mention getting into SAG, which I found interesting because I'm pretty sure being in a single commercial won't get you into SAG, otherwise all the actors I've met who are so desperately trying to get in wouldn't be having so much trouble. But I guess I don't know the rules completely.

But then, why is a model trying to get into SAG? Is she really an actress and she started modeling to make more money until she broke into the business? Heck, a lot of full time actors I've known haven't even wanted to be in the guild, but that's a big long story that's far more political than I want to be. Anyway, she confuses me and we'll leave it at that. I liked Valerie (the one name I've learned) so I'm glad she's back.

As for Fatma and the other girl...The middle school called. They want their drama back.

Let's say it one more time: pregnant

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Sat, 29 Aug 2009 01:49:00 +0000

So, would a drinking game for this episode be inappropriate? Because otherwise, drink every time somebody says pregnant. If you can afford that much alcohol.

While I enjoyed the challenge and thought it was rather interesting and really a challenge for the designers, was I the only one that thought that the little pillows they tied onto the models didn't even remotely resemble pregnant bellies? I could be wrong, but they seemed off. I always figured that was why those "sympathy bellies" were big things that took up the whole upper body, so it would look and feel more natural. I think with a more natural shape, Ra'mon's outfit wouldn't have been so bad. Bad, yes, but not SO bad.

I actually don't love this dress the way the judges do, even though I quite like the idea of it. My primary problem is that the top really is entirely too small. Not just because it wouldn't cover the woman's chest very well, but because it seems disproportionate. It seems to me like most women who talk about wanting to show off their "pregnancy curves" are talking about their breasts being bigger. And this wouldn't really compliment that very well.

My other problem is that at one point when the model turned around during the judges comments, you could see that the ribbon-y details on the top were ragged and frayed. If this was intentional, I don't like it. If this was unintentional, then I don't see why Althea wasn't called on that when Mitchell was (rightfully) raked over the coals for his bad craftsmanship. Maybe some of the other dresses were similarly ragged if you looked at them very close up, and maybe it as a trick of the angle. But in the end, I'm glad it didn't win, though I don't think it should have been top three either.

But my big reason for thinking it wasn't top three material is the bust. It's just not flattering, and it wouldn't be on a woman with a larger or a smaller chest.

I don't want to, but I kind of like Carol. She's quirky and kind of lovable. I don't love the jacket here, if I'm being honest, but I can see how it would fit somebody else's tastes. I love the color of the dress, and you'd think that it wouldn't work to have that swath of fabric under the belly, but it actually really does.

In the end, it's very cute and fun, and youthful. And there's not a lot of "youthful" going on in the maternity market.

This outfit is really cute, and I absolutely adore the color and fabric of the top. I would wear this if it was tailored just a little differently (for plus-sized girls rather than pregnant ones). This is also one of the few times I would ever actually like this type of hem, the whole "bubble skirt" idea usually turns me off almost instantly. But it works here, and the pleats work, and everything about it is great. I would put it in the top three.

I don't really enjoy this garment very much. The jacket is very bulky and looks uncomfortable and stiff. Then she takes it off and well, jumpsuits don't flatter many women. I have to admit, it's actually a better jumpsuit than any I've ever seen (remember the last jumpsuit of PR history, on Kara? Ugh). In the end, it actually is tailored well and does what it can to flatter the body shape. And that gorgeous cream color, all the fabric is so gorgeous this episode.

But it's still a jumpsuit. I agree with the judges, middle of the road. But it is better than quite a few things that walked the runway that night.

I like the bottom of this, with the layers and he flow. But I just don't like the straps on the halter, they don't look well made, or really well planned. It's like they are supposed to be symmetrical but got messed up.

The jacket is very cute, but I have to say that those leggings would probably not work on anyone that is sporting a real pregnant belly. I certainly don't have any first hand experience, but it seems to me that anything tight on your belly would be uncomfortable.

WHY was this dress not in the top three? This, Christopher, and Shirin should have been the top garments and there's no reason why they weren't. How absolutely and utterly gorgeous is this dress? I want it in every color. Though the beautiful blue fabric she chose is a large part of why it works, I could see it in a nice subtle pink too, or a green, even a purple. It's versatile, it's beautiful, it flows well, it would flatter a million body types, it's fun, it's flirty, it could be a day or evening outfit depending on how you styled it.

In short, it was almost the perfect answer to this challenge, and there was only one I would consider better and even THAT is hard for me to say. I don't understand even a little why Irina was overlooked AGAIN. Almost everyone agrees that her dress last week deserved recognition, if not the win. So why wasn't she praised this time?

There's really not a lot I can say about this dress. It's okay, it's interesting enough. I don't like the flower on the shoulder. But in the end, it's not that remarkable. I hope he's not trying to aim for the middle, because that never works out well.

I have the same thing to say about Logan's outfit. It's not bad. It's a different type of top for maternity (or at least, it seems that way to me). But how utterly boring is it? It's just very drab, and has nothing to make it stand out or be interesting. If it wasn't so early in the season, the judges never would have let this go without a comment.

Also, side note about the Models of the Runway: Fatma's obsession with Logan is just a little odd. Maybe he's the only straight male, I don't know, and I'm sure models get crushes on designers all the time, but she's being a little creepy about it. Or at least, the editing is making her seem that way.

/tangent.

On the one hand, I really love this. It's very cute, it's flirty, it's pretty and it has a lot of consideration for the woman wearing it. I love the color and the fabric, and taking the time to hand dye the lace is very ambitious.

On the other hand, it looks an awful lot like one of my favorite nightgowns. And again, I'm not a fan of the big bunch of fabric/flower on the shoulder. I tend to not like those, because for the most part they're so decorative that they actually are irritating when you really wear them.

I like this, but Christopher and Irina's were better.

As a student in a rather creative major who hangs out with a lot of people in other creative majors, I have to say I know a lot of people like Malvin, who are very much about the concept and following some sort of high minded idea. And often it is to the detriment of the finished product, because it's almost like Michael Kor's said last week, you start to wonder, "Am I not smart enough to get this?" But in the end, you are smart enough, they're just intentionally being a little bit pretentious.

That said, he did have a concept, and he did stick to it, and he did make something that is at least wearable, even if it's not flattering. As the women pointed out, if the woman wearing it had already given birth and was carrying her baby in the sling, then it would actually be considered cute and interesting, I think.

Maybe it should have been in the bottom two, I do agree with that. But Malvin should still be there because at least he has a brain and he's unafraid to use it, take risks, and fail.

I said this last week and I will say it again: Mitchell does not deserve to be on Project Runway. He absolutely should have gone home this week and there is NO excuse for it in the end. The man apparently can't sew, can't handle a time crunch, has no idea what a woman wants, despite his own claims, and made an intensely sloppy and slobby garment that I don't think any pregnant woman would every wear, unless she was basically throwing on the equivalent of a sweatsuit so that she could grab the mail. At least Malvin had some interesting details and his was well made. This is a mess, this is so much of a mess that I wish Michael Kors had been there so he could have had a quotable quip to insult it.

When Heidi said that it looked like she made those shorts, I wanted to yell back "Me too!" Because I could have made this, and it would have looked about like this.

It's ridiculous, and I cannot even fathom why he was allowed to stay after sending this down the runway.

I'm also highly amused that the models feel the same way I do, and while Fatma's anger at being picked by Mitchell was so unprofessional that I doubt she'll stay in the competition long (well, I'd never pick her) at the same time, at least I'm not alone in my bafflement.

Also, how harsh is it that the model said that Mitchell "did the best he could?" Wow, that's so much of a Southern backhanded compliment she should have added "Bless his heart."

There's something about Nicolas' garments that just seem ill-tailored. I don't know what it is, but they don't seem like they quite fit. And they're boring and use a very dark palette for somebody who calls himself the "feather prince." It's just...dull and boring.

I love the color and fabric (again) of this dress, and I think it's very well done. I'm glad Qristyl toned it down a bit and made something classy, here's hoping she keeps on that track. But I hope she doesn't continue to just be happy being safe.

In high school, I was in color guard. If you weren't in it, basically we were the kids (all girls at my school) who spun flags and tossed them in the air during the marching band's halftime show.

I mention this, because Ra'Mon's dress looks like you should put it on a six foot pole and spin it. The swirls, the color patterns, all of it is the exact same type of thing that we would use because the patterns were big and bold, would be seen from the press box, and would create a cool effect when spun in a circle.

That is not the type of thing a person would want to WEAR.

That said, the colors are really great and compliment each other well. And I think that Heidi's observation that it was flattering from the front was spot on.

Actually, most of their comments were spot on. It did look like a bowling bag (though, really, that comment almost hit drinking game proportions too). And it was like having a big arrow pointing and saying "here is the baby."

So in the end, it was worth pointing out to him what went wrong with it, but he rightfully got to stay, since he was trying something new and maybe he didn't achieve it perfectly, but he at least made something serviceable.

Last year, I spent the entire summer and winter trying to find a new winter coat. Mine was rather old, I'd had it for three years and while it was warm and cute, it was also lavender which wasn't really that professional and didn't go with a lot of things.

My point is, I spent MONTHS trying to find the right coat, and it was really annoying because I wanted something cute, warm, and that would go with a lot of things. But something still a little fun and young looking.

I tell you this story because I managed to find a coat, and I love it. One of my favorite things was that when it arrived I found out that the coat I had ordered had this adorable pink lining. Now, I'm not a pink person, but this surprise touch of color made me really love this coat.

Which is why I wholeheartedly and undoubtedly want the coat that Shirin made in this episode. I want two of it, so that when the first wears out I have another in reserve and I don't have to go on another hunt for the perfect coat. The lining, the fit, everything about it was fabulous.

There is no question in my mind that this is the best garment that walked down that runway this week. Or last week. The color is beautiful (again) and I love the detail on the waist. I would wear this in a heartbeat. The dress is lovely, and alone it would have been a contender for the win. But when you add that lovely coat on top of it, it's an absolutely stunning effort. I really want Shirin to make this available to the public. I don't even care that it's maternity.

Here we go again

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 00:47:00 +0000

Okay, so now that I'm done ranting about hatred of Lifetime Television, it's time for me to get back in the PR recapping game!

I'm going to try my best to be brief. Each year, there are just so many designers in the first episode, I feel like I'll never learn all their names or get a sense of who they are. The first episode is always so overwhelming, and then with the change to L.A. and starting with such a big challenge, yeesh.

Plus, I'll be honest I've just gotten off of a very draining project and I've gotten very little sleep this week. So rest assured that I will be back in full force and form next week!

I can't say that I like Althea, but this is a good dress. It's not a great dress, or even an innovative dress, but it's certainly one I could see walking the red carpet. But it's not one I could see getting a lot of press either.

Can't say I like the feathers on the top, but that's just not my style. I'm sure some people would like them and could pull it off.

I feel like Ari wanted to be this seasons "loveable oddball" or something. Or maybe she's just really from another planet. But she just felt to me like a poor man's Elisa Jiminez. Elisa might be a little wacky, but I loved a lot of her clothes and I could see they were just a little outside normal.

Ari...Ari was different. In another challenge this could have been a weird but okay outfit to put down the runway. But a red carpet challenge? This doesn't even remotely begin to work.

That said, I still think Mitchell should have gone home. Ari might have been out there and just downright strange, but at least it was complete and she didn't blame anybody but herself.

I really, really don't like this dress. The top is a complete mess, and the bottom doesn't feel like it was pulled together properly. It looks like what I would come up with if I was trying to recreate something a real designer had made.

I can't say that I'm as thrilled with this as some of the judges. It reminds me of something that would have been made out of trash bags and curtains in one of the alternate materials challenges. But it was cute, and fun. I just don't really care for the colors.

I can't really see this on a red carpet, but I can see this on a runway at Fashion Week. There's something really nice and bold about it. I love the color, I love the statement it makes. I really would have picked this one for the win, myself.

I don't like much about this one. I like the color, I like that she made something short and fun. But the top is just too much. It's also just sort of "meh."

I find this dress very pretty, but something about it feels more bedroom than red carpet. I'm not entirely sure why, maybe the color? It also really feels like I've seen it before. It's extremely familiar, and I can't place it. Hopefully some other blog will figure that out.

I really don't understand what the judges saw in this dress that they didn't see in others that weren't in the top three. It feels a little too loose and free flowing, so it doesn't really strike me as flattering in the front. The back is, of course, more interesting, and unlike the judges I love the color. But I really don't see what they were praising on this one.

I love the color of this dress, it reminds me of Andre's gutter water dress. But in the end, it's another one that isn't particularly noteworthy for any reason. For a red carpet challenge, there were a lot of forgettable clothes.

UGH. When they first showed Louise, I liked her right off the bat. The older Hollywood glamour look is the kind of thing that I really like. But this? This doesn't really fit that mold. The top is rather ill fitting, so it doesn't do the model any favors. The color does completely wash out, and I don't know that the two-toned idea was a good one in the first place.

But the bunches on the sides? It reminds me of women tying their skirts up so they can stomp on grapes or something. What is this look supposed to be? It just looks odd, it's bunchy, and it's a bad idea.

I can't help but like and dislike Malvin so far. He's a little pretentious, but I don't mind that he's about rejecting some of the stereotypes that I myself am tired of. But this isn't a red carpet look. It is a cute dress, and I like it, but it's not red carpet material.

Mitchell does not deserve to be on Project Runway.

Harsh words, I know. But the fact is that if he couldn't find a way to rescue his garment besides giving up and sending his model down in a sheer curtain then he shouldn't be there. To whine, on the Runway, that his model was six inches too big is, in essence, standing there and saying you failed because your model was too fat and that you can't be held accountable.

First, why in the world would a real fashion designer take a set of measurements on a card in so much faith that they would do a design that relied on those measurements being perfect? Whenever I go to sew anything, I measure MYSELF all over again. I don't even trust my own notes from the last time I made anything because bodies are constantly in flux. That was a rookie mistake, and for him to be so indignant and rude about it shows that he not only has less skills than he should, but he has no class or professionalism.

He should have been sent home.

The top is very interesting, I actually would like to wear it myself, but as a separate top and not a dress (I can't tell if it is a dress or separates and I can't recall). But I think it would be more elegant and interesting with a longer hemline or pants.

I wanted to like Qristyl, I really did. Mostly because unlike most designers on this show, she's willing to make clothing for women of realistic shapes (though "Plus Sexy" seems patronizing). But first there was the name, and then there was this dress.

It's just...unfortunate. What's the worst part is that those two fabrics are actually really nice. If she had made something with less of the pattern, using it just as an accent, and that gorgeous purple, without that weird bunching in the front...well, it could have been something. But instead, it was this.

I like the idea of this dress, but it doesn't seem to fit the model. I suppose since they couldn't measure the models themselves before they got started that can't always be helped, but it just seems to bunch and fold in odd places. Otherwise, it's a great idea, a great fabric, and it's very nice.

I don't know what red carpet this dress is supposed to be on. I just know that I want a copy of it. I'm not sure if I could pull off that cape, but I love everything about it. She used the natural flow and fall of the fabric to make something cut, fun, and gorgeous at the same time. I have a feeling I'll be rooting for Shirin.

Thanks for reading, and if you want to make sure to catch my recaps for this whole season, subscribe to my RSS feed! The link is at the bottom of the bar on the right.

In Defense of Lifetime

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 22:49:00 +0000

Before I get started on telling everyone what I think about the newest episode of Project Runway, there's something I need to address: Lifetime, Television for Women.

I think all of us have to admit that we have insulted Lifetime Original Movies, and the station in general. The Onion has skewered the channel brilliantly on multiple occasions. We love to talk about the melodrama and the bad writing. In particular, I am constantly talking about how whenever I end up flipping through channels I won't let myself stop on Lifetime because I get sucked into their movies and I end up losing two hours of my life. So that was why I was making fun of the new home of Project Runway, saying I must change the channel the second that it's over or I'll never move from my couch.

However, in the last few months I have heard several people talking about the work of women screenwriters, using the term "Lifetime movie" as an insult that reeks of more sexism than I've encountered in my small corner of the industry.

As I've mentioned before, I am a film student and a screenwriter. The moment I remember thinking that this was a problem was in my summer screenwriting course, when the professor told a student that she should add a male character to her story so that it wasn't "too Lifetime."

This particular treatment was fascinating, well thought, and had great characters. It had drama, it had emotion, it had risk, and it was heart-wrenching at times. But the main character was a women, and the point of the film was her dealing with an extremely traumatic experience in a war-torn country. The professor spent over a half hour trying to defend his statement, saying that "men don't watch movies about women" and the great gem, "I'm not saying this to be sexist..." If you have to point that out, most of the time, it means you ARE being sexist.

I was so angry about the whole thing, because it was the first time in my program I had encountered any sexism at all. Only the week before I had been defending the industry on Jezebel saying that while there is still plenty of sexism, that at least at my film school it wasn't something I had seen and the women there were being trained to not think about how they had the odds stacked against them, but to think about how to be the best filmmakers they could be (which is, incidentally, the best thing I can think of to combat the problems in the industry. Stop telling women they're going to fail, and give them the tools to succeed. Because there is no surer way to get someone to fail than to tell them they can't win).

Months ago, I entered a screenplay competition with a draft of my first finished feature script. Now, I want to be very clear on two things here:

1. I did not enter this competition expecting or even intending to win. I entered because it was free, and one of the benefits was getting a page of comments from "an industry professional." The fact that I wasn't a finalist isn't a sticking point for me. Actually, if that draft had actually placed I would think the competition wasn't very good, because it was not a draft that was ready, it was one I was stuck on and needed more critiques in order to improve.

2. The response that I received did have some valid points about my writing and the story itself. They weren't new ideas, and were all things my professor had pointed out, so I admit I was disappointed that I have no new insights on where to go from here, but not all critiques are perfect or insightful.

The problem is that amidst the comments was the well placed insult that my script was "more suited to Lifetime Channel programming than a feature film."

First of all: what exactly do they think Lifetime Original movies are? They are full length films made for television. Nothing in the rules of the competition stated that it needed to be a major studio motion picture for distribution in a million theaters.

The problem lies in the fact that people have a tendency to regulate any script that features a woman dealing with emotional issues as a "chick flick" or a "Lifetime movie." This is especially true if it isn't of the currently popular ilk of "career woman realizes she needs to be more emotionally open and find a man in order to be happy."

My particular script was trying to discuss real life issues in realistic ways. And I specifically wrote it to avoid melodrama and Hollywood stereotypes. Maybe I didn't succeed, that's a valid point to make. But to say that because my film deals with the breakdown of a marriage that it belongs on Lifetime is sexist. There is no other way I can break this down.

You might be thinking I'm too sensitive, that maybe they were saying I wrote it in the melodramatic way that people associate with the Lifetime originals of the 1990s. Maybe they were saying it was cliched?

But no, the sentence specifically said that the subject matter was what regulated it to "television for women" and that because of the SUBJECT ALONE it was not good enough for a feature film.

So what both my professor and the anonymous commenter are saying that movies about women, especially dramatic movies about women, belong only on a channel billing itself for women, because no one else can or should enjoy them.

This is downright ridiculous. Movies that my friends and I love often have female protagonists. Successful films can star women, and maybe the marketing people will tell you they usually don't but maybe that's because we're not giving good films starring women a chance. It's ridiculous when you think about it, we're creating self fulfilling prophecies for the sake of marketing. Art isn't supposed to be about marketing, and I know the film business is a business, but it's also an art. So let it speak like one.

And while we're at it, what IS so wrong with writing something for Lifetime? If Lifetime approached me tomorrow with a paying job writing for them, I would take it and I would call everybody I know to tell them about it. Because it would be a paid writing job, and because just because a television channel is aimed at women doesn't make it less of a television channel.

Most people make fun of Lifetime because of the melodrama. The abused women murdering their husbands, etc. And, let's admit it, the production quality can be pretty low sometimes. But they've left a lot of that behind. Army Wives is critically renowned, and everybody just seems to ignore the fact that it's on Lifetime. There are mixed reviews for Drop Dead Diva, but for the most part people agree that it's better than a lot of things on television today.

During the premiere of Project Runway, they advertised a film starring Joan Cusack. I don't know about you, but I think Joan Cusack is one of the most talented comedic actresses of this generation. I'll watch almost anything that she's in, no matter what channel it's on.

And let's address the big thing here: Project Runway. Obviously, that show is one of my absolute favorites. Lifetime is doing it justice, and Models of the Runway might need a little tweaking to be less reminiscent of "America's Next Top Model" but at the same time it was fun to get to know the girls a little more, and see their reactions to their designers and the eliminations. It was a good little show.

So maybe it's time for us to stop being so harsh to Lifetime, and maybe it's time for us to stop using it as a tool for sexism and to degrade and discourage female screenwriters.

When I started this feature, another girl in class was writing about almost the same topic. She said she was worried about it being "too Lifetime." My teacher (a much better one) responded that we shouldn't worry about that kind of thing, and be true. We should write OUR stories, we should create OUR characters, and that if we did that the piece would be the best that it could be. And if that happened, then really, who cared where it ended up?

Chalice by Robin McKinley

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 19:14:00 +0000

Robin McKinley's name always catches my eye at the bookstore, but try as I might I've never really fallen in love with her the way so many of my friends have. I didn't enjoy Sunshine very much, and while I found Deerskin to be an enjoyable book, I can't say that it was one that I'll pick up again and again either.

Of course, it was her name that jumped out at me when I saw Chalice at the bookstore too, but it was the beautiful painting on the cover that convinced me it was worth at least reading the inside flap. This didn't seem to be yet another fairy tale retelling, but instead a new world with it's own magic and characters. That finally convinced me to give it a try.

The highest praise that I have for Chalice is that the book takes all the things that I disliked about Sunshine and does them perfectly. It is again a first person narrator, but Mirasol is likable and interesting. She has important things to say and new observations about her surroundings. She learns and changes as the story progresses, but still retains the things that make her a good person and an admirable heroine.

Another thing that Sunshine attempted but didn't quite manage was resisting exposition about the world the story takes place in. Rae spoke matter-of-factly about the things in her life that we would find different and strange, because she didn't find them different or strange. When you use a first person narrator who is supposedly telling their story to a contemporary audience, then they wouldn't explain things that might confuse us because to them it's normal. If I were writing my own life's story right now, I wouldn't stop to explain or describe what a blog is, or email. These things are part of our world and it's taken for granted that everybody knows what they are. If I grew up in a world where man-eating ferns were a way of life, I wouldn't stop to say, "Now, the ferns...they ate people." I would just say, "I almost got caught by a fern that night."

In Chalice, this particular literary style is done exactly as it should be. While we get most of the information about what a Chalice is and how the system works, we're never treated to a history lesson or a flat explanation. Mirasol talks about listening to the "earthlines" but we're never told what they are, who can hear them, or how they work. We find out what we need to do when the earthlines don't behave as they should, and cause a catastrophe.

We learn what a Chalice does because Mirasol is new to the job and afraid she isn't doing it correctly. But because Mirasol is our narrator, we really only learn about the role of the Chalice, and a little about The Master because they are directly linked. But there is an entire political structure, a Circle of people with titles and tasks, that we never really learn about because it doesn't concern Mirasol at the time. What does Talisman do? Or Weatherauger? On the one hand, I desperately want to know, but on the other, if the book had told me it would have rang false.

The story itself is compelling, and it moves at a very fast pace. It isn't told in a strictly linear fashion, because it is more of a memoir, so it jumps from one occasion to another depending on what Mirasol would be remembering or trying to explain. This means that we start with a bit of mystery, some intrigue, and some brilliantly planted moments that come back again and again as the story progresses.

The only qualm I might have had with the book is that is very much a love letter to honey and beekeeping, which I'm sure some people will greatly enjoy. Since I personally don't like the taste of honey, that didn't grab me the way it was probably meant to. But, I have to say, the descriptions of the honey itself are so vivid and enticing that it made me wish that I loved it as much as McKinley seems to. I think that's a testament to the writing.

Chalice is easily the best book by McKinley I've ever read, and one of the best books I've read in a very long time. I hope that she returns to the world, the politics, and the magic system that she's created here so that I can learn more about it, even if she doesn't return to this particular set of characters.

Princess Ben by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 01:27:00 +0000

I first noticed this book because the title caught my eye at the bookstore, and the jacket design reminds me of Gail Carson Levine.

The book is a bit reminiscent of Gail Carson Levine, but for an older audience. It's the perfect book to give girls who loved Ella Enchanted so that they can stretch their reading skills, though there is a bit of violence that some parents might be wary of.

Let me get this out of the way: I adored this book. I'm going to be buying it as soon as I have money again. I finished reading it and immediately went back and reread my favorite parts.

Princess Benevolence is one of the best fairy tale princesses of YA literature. She makes a point of saving herself as often as she can, though sometimes her version of saving herself only lands her in more trouble than before. She's lived an indulgent life, but never before realized just how cushy her life has been.

The best thing about Ben though, is that she starts out behaving in rather unlikeable ways. Because she is the narrator, you're able to see what she thinks of her previous behavior, so instead of deciding to dislike her based on her actions and behavior, you continue reading to see how and why she transforms. And because you see the reasons behind her behavior, you know that she is just trying to remain herself as her aunt tries to reshape her into a perfect princess, so you're willing to cut her slack.

But when she has an opportunity to hear the unvarnished truth about her behavior from an outside witness, Ben wakes up and starts to see what her actions are costing both herself and her country.

I'll not spoil any more of the story here, but Ben takes her future into her own hands admirably. There's a lesson here, though it's not shoved in your face. It's a book where a young girl finds that obstinately "being herself" at all costs isn't what being an adult is about, but facing responsibility with maturity and grace. She finds that when she opens her mind to new ideas, that her aunt's instructions actually aren't as horrible as she assumed and serve a good purpose.

The other point to note, is that Ben consistently remarks on her own weight. Actually, her obesity is a very important point to the story, because her aunt's anger at her over eating are what leads to Ben's imprisonment in the tower, where she encounters her magic for the first time. Ben's relationship with others is mirrored in her relationship with food, and in the end, though her trials cause her to lose weight, she is quick to point out that she will never be described as slim, and that no man she'd ever want to meet would be able to put his hands around her waist. She just simply gets more feminine curves.

On the one hand, part of me feels like the story skirts just this side of condemning larger girls. There's something about the fact that Ben doesn't even accept herself until after she loses weight. But on the other hand, the book does a good job describing her relationship with food, and has some rather astute observations about emotional eating. Somehow, it manages to describe her overeating without falling into all the typical disparaging cliches. I identified with her, and her struggle. And I admire Murdock's choice to keep Ben overweight even after her transformation. Though there's a short section about Ben convincing people not to be superficial that seems a little preachy, it's message is true.

This book is downright fantastic. There are some throw away references to classic fairy tales (a pea under a mattress, trading magic beans for a cow, a enchanted sleeping princess who must be woken with a kiss) they aren't the focus of the story. This isn't really a retelling of a story, it just is a more realistic take on that world, which I appreciated.

The Twilight Child by Sally Warner

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 02:00:00 +0000

The other book I picked up was one I just ran across on the shelf. I read the inside flap and decided to give it a shot. Twilight Child by Sally Warner is another story dealing with faeries and other mythical creatures like brounies and selkies. It was a book that delved into the history and mythology of Finland, which is not really a topic I would have come up with for a novel but it is a fantastic book.

The main character has the rare ability to see and speak to the mythical creatures she encounters, and because she crosses into many lands she meets several types. But they aren't the focus of the story, instead it is her journey from her homeland into Scotland, and the tale of how she lost her family and the land she loved.

Eleni is a good heroine for girls to look up to, though she can be a bit of a Pollyanna, looking for the best in everyone to a fault. The only fault I could find with the book is that it spends a lot of time with her voyage from Finland to Scotland, but then her time in Scotland seems to pass too quickly and with not enough detail. I wanted to know so much about all the people who help her there, but they don't get fleshed out nearly as much as I'd like. The book could have easily had an extra 100 pages to make these characters more alive and the plot wouldn't have had to change.

But I would still say that it is a good book for people who love fantasy novels to pick up, even if it is a bit off the beaten path.

The Ruby Key by Holly Lisle

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 01:51:00 +0000

I've decided to spend the summer at the library, because I honestly believe that the best cure for writer's block is reading. I also think my writing and my imagination have suffered lately because I haven't been reading as much lately.

For the first trip, I just browsed the YA section and picked up two books that looked promising. The first, The Ruby Key, is one I'd wanted to read for a while. The author, Holly Lisle, is a personal favorite of mine. I've had the pleasure of meeting her once, at a rousing Technicon a few years ago. I enjoy her work, and I think that The Ruby Key might be the best book of hers that I have ever read.

The world she creates is so beautiful, so layered, and so complete, that I felt at home there almost instantly. I admit, I don't actually enjoy stories about faeries all that often. I thought the series that contains Tithe (by Holly Black) was pretty enjoyable, but so many stories about the fae are about the courts and the politics. Court intrigue and politics don't really catch my attention most times.

But this novel didn't really have that problem. It had all the best things about faerie stories, and even some court intrigue, without any of the things that I normally find tiresome. I devoured it, refusing to go to bed until I'd finished it. When I got to the library the next day and a copy of the sequel, The Silver Door, wasn't readily available I got upset because I wanted to know so desperately what happened next.

I also want to add that I was very happy to find a story that had a cat who exhibited all the best and worst things about cats that I love. I'm very much a cat person, and the cat in this book was one that I'd love to sit and talk to. There were quite a few lines in the book that I think any cat person would love, so I would heavily recommend it to them.

Upset of the year

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 19:15:00 +0000

In the third season of Top Chef, Casey started winning challenges partway through the season. She took home plenty of different wins, and in the end it was her game to lose.

Then, in the last meal and the last challenge, she lost it. She put together a lackluster meal and in the end she had nobody to blame but herself.

Last night, Jerrell did the same thing.

There is no other way to explain this. I was Jerrell's game to lose and he lost it. Everybody is so upset that Kenley is still in but the fact is no matter what came before, Kenley went home and actually made something that was better than what Jerrell made.

I don't understand how he could like these dresses and think they're beautiful. I was talking to somebody about him the other day and I said that I still couldn't really get behind him because his early stuff had some pretty serious missteps. This dress is going back to what he was making at the beginning of the show.

The poofs of fabric on the chest are borderline ridiculous. What are they there for? What do they add to the dress? Nothing. The skirt itself is just messy. The whole dress is very messy and unkempt. I have met not one single bride who wants to look unkempt. Brides are some of the most put-together people ever.

The bridesmaid's dress showed no effort at all. It was made out of a fabric that showed too many wrinkles and creases, which is a common problem with Jerrell. It was an interesting color, but I didn't see how it really related to the bride's dress at all. They weren't a set, they didn't go together really. I just don't understand it.

The more I look at these pictures the more baffled I am that Jerrell thought that messy would actually be acceptable.

This is the thing about Kenley's dresses, as much as they aren't my style and as much as I don't like them, they're really well made.

You can go on about how her dress is a rip-off, but this is my problem with that statement: I think the dress is not a rip-off of a specific garment made by a specific designer. I think it's just generally not all that original. When she said there's no silhouettes like that, I wanted to smack her. I thought it looked like something Bjork has worn but I couldn't come up with a specific dress like Michael Kors did.

But I can't deny that both were at least well made, fun, and well done. I have a very big issue with the bottom of the bridesmaid's skirt. That problem primarily being that absolutely hate bubble skirts and that I especially hate extremely short bubble skirts.

Actually, I was surprised nobody said that her bridesmaid's dress was boring and derivative. Because it was nothing special, it was barely noticeable. The top is exactly like a thousand dresses I've seen and the bottom doesn't do anything special enough to offset that.

I wish they had declared a winner in this episode just so I at least would feel that Kenley knew that while she did well she didn't have a slam dunk either. But I guess at this point the final collections are made, so what could she learn?

As for the whole liking ropes thing...and when have you ever used ropes before Kenley? I mean, I think they can be pretty cool when used right, but that seemed out of left field.

I don't understand what's very wedding or bride-like about this dress. I don't think it's the color that is throwing me because well, I've seen bridesmaid's dresses of all kinds of colors. But the fabric itself wasn't really well suited for all the ruffles and pleats and folds that ended up on the dress. It didn't feel right, somehow.

I don't know why the judges disliked the bridesmaid's dress so much, honestly. It was a little odd that they said it was underworked because it seemed the right amount of work when you compared it to the wedding dress. But the other thing was that it wasn't really different enough from the wedding dress to feel like something you'd put a bridesmaid in.

But I do want to say thank you to Korto for saying bridesmaids are allowed to be beautiful. Brides that are all worried about their bridesmaids stealing the show are just far too insecure for my tastes. But then, I have a very very long rant about making good choices during the wedding and getting rid of the whole "it's about me" ridiculousness.

Why they chose not to actually display any of the great features of either of these dresses on the Bravo site confuses me. Why was there no photo shoot of these garments? Since I avoid spoilers, I haven't look at any of the collections so I can't get better pictures. Bah!

First, Leanne's wedding dress was by far the best one out there. It didn't fit my personal aesthetic at all, I wouldn't in a million years wear it or encourage anybody else to. But I have to say that it was innovative, it was interesting, and it was certainly what fashion is all about. The only thing I hated was that the model walked the runway with her hands in her pockets.

It's interesting that it had pockets. I might have liked pockets in my wedding dress even. But the way that it changes everything about the model's posture and walk was horrible. She could have shown that it had pockets without schlumping down the runway.

I loved the bridesmaid's dress. I thought it was just beautiful, though a little short for my tastes. My bridesmaid's wore tea length skirts, so it's not that I think it should be to the floor. But it's been a constant this season that the dresses have just felt too short. Have they not been thinking about their model's measurements?

But all that aside, I really loved it. The color was just absolutely beautiful.

Leanne was the clear winner, and I admit that I want her to take it all home. But I would be fine with Korto winning too.

The only reason I wouldn't want Kenley to win is because I agree with Television Without Pity, she seems more of a stylist than a designer. I feel she does a great job putting together bits and pieces from other people, but that her work has never really struck me as being really original. It doesn't strike me as copying either, just not as creative as she thinks it is.

What a twist

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 15:57:00 +0000

I am so tired of Project Runway thinking they need to throw a twist our way. Two things the producers need to learn:
1. Organize your shows better so that you don't have decoy collections anymore. It's useless and it makes you look dumb to have everyone on the show talking about "I have to win so I can show in Bryant Park!" when we all know that they showed anyway. Last year's Rami and Chris faceoff was the worst offender, but this season isn't that much better.

2. At this point, actually eliminating somebody in the episode before the finales would be a twist. Maybe you should start doing that again. Your little bit of not eliminating anyone is lame and it's a lackluster end to a lackluster season.

Seriously, what a complete let down! This entire episode was generally dull and petty. It reminded me of the point in the second season of Top Chef where they eliminated Cliff for manhandling Marcel. You realized that everybody there was a generally petty and annoying person, none of them seemed all that talented, and you were just bored to tears with the whole thing.

This is my view on the "drama" put as succinctly as I can. Kenley completely brought this on herself. As my husband put it when she started saying that everybody always turns on her: the only common denominator in all your failures is yourself. Kenley really needs to take a step back and say "is there a reason people always do this to me?" because the reason is that she acts like a terrible person. I don't think she actually IS that terrible, but she's very self centered and has poor manners. She needs to take a look at herself and make some changes and maybe she'll be happier and have more friends.

That said, all three of the remaining designers had an opportunity to be the bigger person. I don't blame them or fault them for their behavior, especially Leanne who had to deal with Kenley so blatantly giving her the silent treatment (how quickly viewers are forgetting that). Kenley was not a nice person, and they gave up trying to be nice to her. Nobody can say they've never done that, and the amount of anger directed at the other three is very hypocritical.

HOWEVER, I have to say that Korto and Jerrell both were given a chance to show themselves to be a better person than Kenley. I can't say what I would have done in their situation, but I can say that they can't claim any kind of moral high ground after they refused to help her.

Also, Korto's anger in the room after the runway judging was uncalled for. She had absolutely no right to try to make Kenley feel guilty for picking her. They all chose Kenley to be eliminated, and she was trashed much worse than anything she said about Korto (at least, that's what we're shown). Kenley shouldn't have interrupted Jerrell, and she shouldn't have pretended that the judges didn't want him to elaborate on why he wouldn't take her. That's why they asked the question Kenley, they wanted the other designers to bash each other. Don't act like it was out of line.

Okay, now that the drama is over with, let's look at the boring dresses from a boring challenge!

I agree that the bodice of this dress desperately needs to go higher. This is the problem with garments with this type of "neckline:" they elongate the top of the woman's body and really made her chest look abnormally long. This is one of the reasons that I almost always dislike strapless dresses. But it is especially evident on this dress.

Otherwise, this isn't amazing, but it's not bad either. It looks more like something they would have made early in the season, but when you look back on previous seasons people are always universally disappointing at this part of the season. Remember the challenge that claimed Kara Janx? How boring and terrible were those dresses? This felt like a redo of that.

This is clearly the weakest of the dresses that went down the runway. I agree with the other designers that Kenley's set of tricks is rather limited. The silhouette is very similar to most of the other things she's sent down the runway. I don't really understand the scales/leaves at the bottom, I can't really get what she's going for and why they're there. But I also don't think this was some sort of hideous costume either.

Okay, the fabric here is doing some odd little crinkling things and that's not good. But I honestly don't understand why everybody hated this dress so much. The curves of lace along the back don't really do it any favors in this picture, and possibly not at all. While I might not think it's worthy of this level of the competition, and while I think the fabric certainly should have been smoother, I also think it was only the bottom because Jerrell's and Leanne's were just a shade better.

Okay, I'm really torn between liking this best because at least it's a little different or liking Jerrell's because this is a bit typical for Leanne. And really, it's partially that I absolutely love this color, and Leanne didn't end up with crinkled looking fabric. But in the end I think it was really six of one, half a dozen of the other between Leanne and Jerrell. I love the flow of the skirt, it's very beautiful. I really wish she could have incorporated the other fabric because that blue with the lavender looked very beautiful.

Leanne's is the only dress I would consider wearing, but that doesn't necessarily make it a winner. But really, how dull was this entire runway show? I expected so much more, but I should be used to this part of the season being boring and disappointing.

I wonder how much Tim didn't want to go to Kenley's house. That's bound to be at least a little amusing.

Arbitrary or genius?

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 18:58:00 +0000

I can't decide if I loved this challenge or completely hated it for how fake and forced it felt. "You're not just giving each other makeovers, WHAT A TWIST!"

I am intrigued that just like in makeover episode of season two, the loser was sent home wearing the winning design.

On with the show!

There are actually a couple ways where Kenley looks better in this get-up than she does in the "style" she usually wears. I was interested by the difference, I think you could write an entire paper on it. But when it comes down to just the actual look, I don't love it as much as the judges did.

I thought it was simplistic for one thing. It doesn't look that hard to construct at all. My other major problem is the diamond cups on the front. They have no edge! They look unfinished and unpolished, which makes the whole dress look just a touch onto the trashy. If it looked a little more like a very well constructed bra (where's Ricky when you need him?) then maybe I would have gone for it, but instead it just reminds me of some fabric swatches glued on the front to keep her from being indecent.

The little fur shrug was...off. But very pop. This just goes to show how much I dislike pop-tartlet fashion.

For the record, I'm going in alphabetical order by designer, as I always do.

Okay, as much as I don't hate Suede like the rest of the world I've thought it was his time to go several times now. I figured he'd be gone by now, and so going into this episode I thought "Eh, it's probably Suede's last one."

Then THIS happened. There is no call for Kenley to still be in the running after this. Those pants are a travesty against woman and nature. I felt so terrible for Leanne having to pretend that this was acceptable. First of all, it was part of the arbitrary nature of the challenge that you got Leanne, who probably is the second least hip-hop person on the show and that it was being designed by Kenley who was the least hip-hop. Anyone on the show would have been better suited to design that genre, and Leanne at least seemed to have a pretty good grip on what hip-hop wasn't, which Kenley didn't have at all.

I can't believe how she just kept asking the black people "this is hip-hop, right?" and when they very unbelievably said "sure" she just accepted it and went on her oblivious little way. It was obvious they were just saying "whatever" and she didn't care.

And it's not even just that this isn't hip-hop. It's that it's TERRIBLE. Those pants are wrong on so many levels that I can't even begin to talk about why. Everything about them seems designed to make Leanne look oddly shaped, and it makes me wonder if Kenley didn't do it on purpose. She kept saying she didn't want Leanne to look ridiculous but then she put her in those pants.

I'll leave aside Kenley's ridiculous attitude since so many people have touched on it better than I. I'll let her outfit speak for itself, and it says VOLUMES.

Suede should have stayed.

You know, this doesn't actually say "punk" to me, but that's because I grew up in an odd era. It's close to punk, but it's not quite there. It's got too much grunge influence maybe. Anyway, of everybody there she did get the closest to what she was going for.

The other thing is, this calls to mind the things I said during the last challenge when the designers made over each other all those seasons ago. I mentioned that Santino and Nick sold their looks on the runway and really looked confident and great and those were the top looks. But that Daniel V. looked bored, sleepy, and unhappy and so his look was quickly targeted for dismissal. Suede was the only designer who was really into it. It's like he said to himself, "alright, I look frightening but I only get to do this once!" Leanne made some attempts at playing the part, but well, what could she do really?

Really though, in the end this doesn't make that much of an impression on me as an outfit because I saw people wear more interesting things in high school.

First and foremost, could we ditch the little checked scarf?

Second, what's with all the dissing on country? I understand if you don't listen to it, but the blogs and the judges...nobody seems to really like it. It's like everybody's next door neighbor that they pretend not to know if they see them at the mall or something.

I like country music, myself. I like old school country music too. So really, while this doesn't look like the modern "cross-over country" stars it also isn't that far off the deep end. I think if she had picked a better fabric for the top, and not done the gold accents but instead stuck with a color that was a little less contrast then it was a really solid idea. It didn't look like a CMA outfit, no. But it looked like a Grand Ole' Opry dress, didn't it?

And really, nobody wears anything that looks country to the CMAs anymore. Just like country stars are mostly not singing country music anymore either. But that's another rant for another time.

I will have to say again that the model either sells or doesn't sell the look on the runway. While I think Kenley's whining about Leanne was uncalled for (Leanne tried dangit) Suede could have easily made a case that his outfit fell flat partially because Jerrell's lackluster walk. It was terrible! He was modeling in his sleep or something.

I'll give you all the criticisms that the judges had. It does have to pop from the nosebleed seats if you're going with that kind of style. It doesn't look at all different from what Jerrell wears in general. But here's the other thing, the big rock stars right now? They're wearing jeans and t-shirts for the most part. They're not really going out there blinged up or glammed or any of that. I wouldn't know what to do with a "modern" rock star look these days. I guess dress them like Jeffery, but I thought he looked ridiculous.

Anyway, Suede said that he wanted Jerrell to look like Lenny Kravitz and if they had put a wig on him, he could have looked the part. If Jerrell had played the oozing sexiness and the cocky swagger of a rock star, this could have worked at least on some level.

Which is all my way of wandering around and arriving at the fact that Suede did not have the worst outfit that day, by far. He was eliminated based on past designs, not based on this week. Which I guess makes some sense but in the end, still didn't make me feel good.

Bonus: I took a look at Suede's collection for fashion week and while there were a couple really cute and flirty little dresses, for the most part it was pretty...off. So much of it would have looked good with one less ruffle or one less detail. Learn to edit a little Suede, please? You're getting pretty close.

Ooh, sleepover at Parson's!

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 17:38:00 +0000

So I have to admit that while most people would probably find the idea of giving recent college grads a makeover is a pretty stupid challenge. I think this episode failed the potential, but I do think potential was there.

Maybe I only find it interesting because I was in that spot once. It wasn't that many years ago when I was thrown to the wolves of the world with a bachelor's and a hope that I could get a job. But I had majored in film and photography and minored in art history, so really, I shouldn't have expected much.

But it is a time that's really interesting for women and their style. They have to discover how to fit in and look professional while still being themselves and having their own style. It's kind of fascinating in a way.

I could just find it interesting because I'm currently in my first few weeks of graduate school and I'm back to trying to reinvent myself again.

BUT, I think they failed utterly at the fact that the mothers were involved. They were unnecessary, they had no purpose dramatically. I'm in a screenwriting class right now and she keeps telling us about how if it isn't an integral part of the story, then the detail shouldn't be there. Is it vitally important that the main character has blue eyes? No? Then chuck it.

So, is it important to the dramatic arc of the episodes that the mothers are there at all? Absolutely not. The clients ran about the same chance of being demanding and difficult as the prom challenge, and so you didn't need the mothers there. The mothers only came to TWO meetings out of what, four? Then they watched the runway show and went away without a word!

If the mothers had at least joined them on the runway to talk about what they thought of the makeover then I would have given it a go. But they didn't, so they shouldn't be there.

It occurs to me that using a screenwriting argument to debate the merits of the challenge on an "unscripted" show could be it's own post, what with the WGA and all. I'll avoid that post and get back to the fun part: MAKEOVERS!

Or not, since most of the girls looked so very much the same as before. Blah de blah.

Jerrell very clearly won this challenge. He took the girl who said she liked androgyny and tomboyish looks and made her look stylish without being overtly feminine. He made her look professional without making her look old, and just in general I'm a fan. The only problem I really have is that along with this "head to toe" makeover they should have done more with the hair. I'm going to refrain from critiquing the girl's hair because no 22 year old needs an anonymous blogger saying she had a bad hair day on national television, but I wanted to see DIFFERENT looks, and this girl's hair didn't really look different.

They got rid of the different colors and made it one solid, and that's about it.

That said, it's still absolutely the best garment of the show, it's actually so far and above the rest it deserves a win with a gold star or something. Absolutely an earned win.

I have no problem with Joe making an interview suit instead of something that screams "graphic designer." Mostly because what in the world screams graphic designer? Bold prints? I don't know. But the thing is, I'm a filmmaker and I'm pretty sure that I should still just wear something professional to job interviews. I'm still supposed to own a suit. There was a bit of a speech at orientation about "dressing like a filmmaker" but I never did figure out what that meant, so I think Joe's idea wasn't bad.

I think Joe's execution has so many flaws I can't actually go over them all. The skirt is the wrong length, it comes up too high above her waist. The jacket is tailored badly, and the shirt...I can barely look at the shirt. It doesn't fit her, it's terrible. It also is far too low cut to go with the rest of the look, I'm so confused by it.

Also, it should be worth noting that pocket squares are not, by default, outdated and terrible. I bet they can be pulled off with quite a bit of style if done right. This isn't it, by far, but still. Don't laugh just because it's a pocket square.

All in all, Joe just fell apart here. I expected to not care when he got eliminated, but somehow I actually got a little upset about it. Not fair, Project Runway!

Dear Kenley,

Please go home. You obviously don't want to be here, so just leave already.

No love,
Me.

That's all I'm going to say about Kenley's miserable attitude other than where has this been the whole time? I know there's editing tricks and stuff, but it's really confusing! Maybe it's always been there, but it's still just obnoxious! I so wish she had gone home last week.

The dress itself...I actually don't like it. I think it's boring, I think it's cliched, and I think it screams "Look at me, I'm so desperate to be different just like all those other people!" Just watching the girl and Kenley snicker on the runway was like watching a bad high school clique or something. What does that have to do with the dress? Because it feels like a costume, like the girl is putting on an entire costume instead of being a person.

I hate the belt. The vest and dress, with a thinner belt, could work for me I guess. But I agree with Tim that the tulle shouldn't have been showing. I also think that this wasn't remotely a makeover, but then almost nobody really did that.

Maybe I'm just too sour-faced about Kenley in general, but I just don't like it. I think that it was only in the top because when you only have six designers it's either top or bottom. In any other week this would have been the middle, IMHO.

Brace yourselves.

I don't like this at all. I think the jacket would look great on somebody with a different build, but this makes her look like she's so wide and so short. There's just so much not to like about what it does to her body. The dress might be fun and nice under that jacket but when you put them together it makes her a block.

I like the idea of the jacket, I wonder what it would look like on Korto's regular model. I also wonder what it would look like on Korto, I think I'd like it.

But this outfit? I'm just not really a fan of it at all.

Leanne...oh, poor Leanne. While there wasn't much drama or difficulty in the long run, why did you make this dress? Fresh off of three phenomenal garments you make THIS? I realize the girl is an elementary school teacher, but so was my sister and she didn't wear things like this.

The idea might have been sound, I guess. But the jacket is just off in so many ways, including the fit. And the top was just not as well made as I'm used to for Leanne. It made me sad to see, and if she had been one of the bottom two I would have cried.

I just don't know how this garment existed. After so many amazing things and then she makes this? It reminds me more of Jennifer than Leanne.

Okay, that jacket is bad, I'll give you that in a heartbeat. But at least the dress itself is very cute. Maybe it's not a professional work attire kind of thing, but at least it's cute. The jacket...the jacket is just kind of wrong. But it's so much better than Joe's. As much as I'm confused by how long Suede has lasted, this wasn't an elimination dress.

I do have to say that it makes me kind of grumpy how they kept saying "she doesn't look like a photographer!" What exactly does a photographer wear, hm? I get the whole thing about pants because she's hauling equipment and running around to get a good shot, but there are so few professions that have a dress code and photography is not one of them. I was one for a while, I just wore business casual.

Side note!

I checked out Joe's collection since I now knew he was a decoy, since I don't actually look at them before the show. There were a few good pieces (I love the first denim skirt) but for the most part I was so perplexed. The second corset top with the zippers? That looked so cheap.

What really bugged me was his insistence in the Western theme he had going on with the turquoise jewelery. Okay, my mom loves turquoise jewelery, and it can be really beautiful. But it has to be paired properly and wore the right way, just like anything else. Almost nothing in his show fit that description.

Though I am amused that I looked through the pictures yesterday with a co-worker and we couldn't figure out why he went all western and then this morning's Style section in the Express was all about how the Western look is back. Well, you get two points for physic power, Joe.

Missed Oppurtunity

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 15:11:00 +0000

I understand that in a way they wanted the designers to have some sort of investment into the sign that they were using, so they wanted them to do either theirs or the auf'd designers. But here's my issue: we could have had this great fashion show type situation where each of the twelve signs was represented and everybody was working on something different. You could have even tried to do that first season thing where it needed to look like a collection instead of separate pieces. Instead, we get lots of the same sign over and over.

And only one person picked Leo! I guess there was only one Leo, but that's just not right. Obviously we Leo's are the most interesting sign ; )

On with the show:

This garment is so much of a disaster that I can't even begin. It reminds me so much of the terrible-ness that got Emily sent home, and nearly had Blayne thrown out too that same week. What in the world was he thinking? How could he have conceived of this idea and thought that it actually made sense? What in the world was he thinking when he chose that fabric for the base part of the outfit and then puckered it that way so that it looked like old pantaloons?

What does have to do with being a Libra? I get the idea of playing with weight and balance, but how does this actually convey that? I don't see that really even at all. I'm completely baffled.

I don't really understand how Blayne made it this far in the competition in order to be this bad at this stage in the game. I suppose because of his habit of being on one week and terrible the next week.

I really wish we had been able to see more of the judges talking about the top outfits, because I want desperately to know why this dress won. First, it's not avant guarde. I might hate that term, but it doesn't fit it. Second, if I saw this and had to guess the sign it represented I would say Pisces because it seems fish-like with the scales and the green colors.

I also think that it makes the model look like she's leaning back in a weird way when she wears it, and maybe she is. But there's something about it that makes her look wrongly proportioned. The top is sort of baggy and loose too, which does her no favors.

I'm not saying this is a BAD dress. I'm just saying it shouldn't have won. It certainly is nice, it's well made, and I do like the skirt and think it's pretty interesting. But why it won, I'll never know.

I kind of don't care at all about this design. I don't see it really representing anything about the zodiac. I like the fabrics but really, it's just sort of there. It's not bad, it's not good. It just is.

It's another one of those outfits that the next day I couldn't remember even seeing in the show, let alone what it looked like.

Okay, I realize avant guarde does not mean wearable. I get that. But this is the thing, when Christian and Chris created an avant guarde look last season, it was completely unwearable and yet it was fabulous and gorgeous. This? This is neither of those things.

First, I don't care what Kenley says this has no relation to Aquarius. And I realize that the two fabrics don't have to MATCH but really, they could do better at it than these two. Kenley might want to be known for prints (which is what my text message said last week when they were doing the Diane Von Furstenburg challenge) but really she needs to work at figuring out that fine line that's involved with "matching" contrasting prints. I haven't seen her achieve it all that well.

This is the worst thing about this episode though, not only is this garment off the wall and strange, not only does it not fulfill the challenge, but Kenley turned into a horrible person somewhere along the line. I kind of liked her before, but she's just turned a little more every episode and I want to put duct tape on her mouth.

It's fine if she's in love with her design, she should be. You should be doing something you believe in. But the way she expresses it seems intentionally obnoxious. She's also rude to the judges, and you can think what you like about the judges but that's just a stupid thing to do. But in the end the thing that drives me the most crazy?

"I don't look at collections."

If that is true, my dear Kenley, then you are a failure. You can't be a writer without reading, you can't be an artist without appreciating art. What do you do in film school to learn to make films? You watch a LOT of films (trust me on this one, a lot) and you're encouraged every step of the way to look at other films that have done what you're trying to do so you can see ways they failed or succeeded as well as developing your own idea about the topic. If you want to be a fashion designer and you want to say, "I don't look at collections" then you're doing it wrong and I've lost all respect for you.

I'm almost sad that she stayed, and that's saying something.

Korto's dress really captures the essence of her zodiac sign, Aquarius. But it does so in a rather expected way, I think. The dress itself doesn't seem very new or edgy either. I love it, don't get me wrong, I just think it wasn't out there enough and that might be Korto's weakness.

I do wonder about the little jumpsuit that the model is wearing under the sheer overlay of the top. It looked a little odd coming down the runway.

I have to admit that I think Leanne should have taken home a third win in a row. Not just because I like her, not just because her colors are so gorgeous. But because if you look at the top designs it is clearly the one that took the challenge as inspiration and then went somewhere else with it. She didn't make a direct representation of the zodiac sign, she made something that is tangentially related but more about the avant garde portion of the episode.

It is something that you could take and then tone down into a ready to wear outfit that would be a huge hit. I can't necessarily look at it and see Scorpio, but I can see how she got there once I know. With Jerrell, even after I know what he was doing I don't see what he was thinking.

I do think that there's something about the dress when it's shown in a photo like this one that you don't get, and it doesn't look as good in a picture as it did on the runway. It's definitely something that needs to be seen in motion.

It does make me wonder if the designers supervise the photo shoots, because I don't know why the model is smiling the way she is.

Honestly, as much as Terri's attitude bothered me, and as much as I think her inability to be a team leader makes me think she should go home, I think Suede should not have stayed in this instead of her.

This outfit is not just kind of boring, it's not typical, it's poorly made. It is so badly made that it reminds me of the first time costumers try to mess around with satins. It's puckered and mangled and just sad to look at. But at least Suede didn't try to make himself a martyr. But really, he should have gone home. Sorry Suede, you seem like a great guy though!

It depresses me that this is the only representative we have of Leo. That makes me downright sad. Leo isn't just a fire sign, it's also a sign that denotes royalty. This does not look like royalty.

I think if she ditched the gold skirt for either a different gold fabric or something else entirely, I would like it so much more. But as it is the fabrics just don't go well together and I just don't like them.

But the thing that bothered me most was Terri's attitude. It was useless, it was baseless, and it made me cranky. She intentionally set up a situation where she was doing all the work and then tried to get somebody to feel sorry for her about it. She wanted to be a martyr for her efforts and that's just stupid. Even if you don't like Keith, he knows how to sew a straight line so have him sew the straight lines. It's not that hard. Give him the crap work, sure, but don't just tell him to get out of your way and then get mad at him for listening to you.

While it may have been a touch petty, I like the way Keith handled it. He basically said, "Fine, I'm not going to fight you, there's nothing in it for me." But he wouldn't just sit there on the runway and take the blame either. I'm impressed that the judges realized that Terri was the problem and didn't try to say "Why didn't Keith stick up for himself." Good on you judges, did you review the tapes or something?

In the end, like I said, I still don't think this deserved to go home because really, Suede's was much worse. I may not be a huge fan of Terri's work (I don't actually understand why so many people loved it so much) but in the end, she's proved herself to be more skilled than Suede and I'd rather see her collection at Bryant Park.

Another administrative note: For those of you who have LJs and would like to add the Syndicated Feed for this blog to your friendslist, my friend Domynoe created one for me! It's at http://syndicated.livejournal.com/1girlsopinion/profile. Thanks!

Back to the same old

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 17:51:00 +0000

Project Runway, the highs and the lows. The great challenges and the fun drama followed by Kenley crying a lot and forgettable designs again.

Ah well, not much to be done about it. I did enjoy the challenge, and I did quite enjoy some of the top looks. I just felt like there were too many people in the middle again. When I went through to save the images, all I could think was "Oh yeah, that is what Jerell made, isn't it?"

Shouldn't I remember these things the next day? I would think so.

I have no idea what this is. The jacket itself is really cute, I like it. But those pants, what in the world are those pants? I understand nothing about this ensemble, even though I can forgive the scarf as just a splash of colors. But the pants...I just keep going back to those pants. It's the wrong fabric for them, and it's the wrong look in general. I just don't understand it even slightly.

Jerell doesn't know how to turn himself down from 11, does he? He can't just make fashion, can he? If you took off the bright blue belt, which frankly doesn't belong at all, and the jaunty little hat, then you have a cute little outfit. But it's like he's compelled to take it up that notch into costume. On the one hand, inventive styling really helps you stand out and be interesting. On the other hand, why is he that way week after week after week?

I do think this is a cute outfit, but like I said, I forgot it entirely in the meantime.

Okay, I would like to point out the absolute saddest part about the previous two outfits. Up until I just looked at this picture, I remembered that the challenge was to create a look to go with Diane Von Furstenberg's collection. I completely and totally forgot about the entire "A Foreign Affair" influence until I looked at this outfit and tried to remember why he wanted an oriental look.

What does that say about the previous two? That they failed utterly to convey the influence of either old Hollywood or the film. That must be where Jerell's jaunty hat comes in.

Back to Joe's outfit, which is a bit of a mess. I actually kind of like the little hooded wrap/shawl that he's got, but I hate most of the color choices he makes. Why the hot pink with the more orangey-pink of the shirt? Why the glittery black with the satiny black? I'm baffled.

The idea is okay, actually. It's the execution that fails completely. Like I said, the colors are off. They're poorly chosen and they don't go together. But then to have an uneven hem at this point in the competition is a little ridiculous, and for everything else to be lopsided in the back? I'm confused. And the open back almost could have worked with the hooded shawl IF the fabric had been a little less...trashy. It could have been pretty if he had done maybe all black or more muted colors. But those bright pinks just don't flatter the design at all.

I might try to make a shawl like that though.

I ponder that pattern. I think the dress looks great, and it could have been the most impeccably made thing that Project Runway has ever seen. But looking at it on the form Kenley HAD to know that it wasn't going to be enough. She obviously knew, she interviewed about it constantly. So why didn't she conceive of even a little shrug or a shawl or something? Why didn't she try? I understand her protests about making the perfect dress, or the collection needing a simple look (and isn't that presumptuous?) but at the same time, she should have known the judges wouldn't buy it and they wouldn't care.

But the thing that kicks it over for me is that I really never warmed to the print. It would be a great print if it had a solid to temper it. Even a wrap or a small jacket could have broken it up and made it really so much better. Making the top in this print and the skirt in a solid could have done something great for it too. But instead I just think the whole thing looks so busy that I wonder who could wear it.

I expected Korto to win as soon as I saw her put that splash of yellow in the underside of the dress. In this picture the dress isn't as flattering as it could be around the hips, so maybe a bit more tailoring could have helped. But I love the interplay of the print and the yellow solid.

This outfit really does seem at home in high fashion, and I could see it on the runways at Bryant Park. My only problem, and what makes me step back from saying it should have won, is that I don't see the exact correlation between the influence of the film and the dress. But then, I often don't see the influence in finished garments.

I have to say, I really love that Leanne won with immunity. It was a great thing to see because she's just so darn cute and excited all the time. But I do have to admit that as far as fashion goes, I like Korto's dress better.

That isn't saying I don't love this one though, I do like it. I think the coat probably could have stood to be a little less bulky. But the dress is fabulous and I can really see the influence of old Hollywood in the design, without it being too retro.

I think I just still have problems understanding how the jacket fits with the dress. I see how it's an intersection of masculine and feminine and such, but at the same time, it doesn't seem to go like an outfit meant to be together. It seems to be an accidental success where the woman put on the wrong jacket or just had to grab something before she went out. I do think the jacket on it's own is really great though, it's the kind of thing I'd like to wear.

Of all the crazy things that Stella has made (and worn) throughout this show, I think that the model really works this look in this picture and makes it hard to understand why she was eliminated when compared to the other bottom level looks. But in motion and on the screen it really was just a mess. It looked to me like it needed another trip through the iron.

I'm surprised about how the fit ended up because Stella makes tight pants as a matter of course. So how did she mess up making pants? Was it just that her heart was not in it? Was it the fabric? I've got no idea. I do think it's interesting how Stella didn't pay a bit of attention to the challenge. Maybe she wanted to be out, I don't know.

I'm actually kind of confused by this print even being in Diane von Furstenburg's closet in the first place. But I suppose it could be used to good effect, it just isn't here. Also, it's boring. The jacket doesn't look well tailored or well made.

I think the positive thing about this episode is that none of the bad designs are THAT bad, but I also think that's part of what makes this season boring. Where is the crazy German lingerie?

I do really love this coat, but I have to say that the designers and their comments about Terri making the same thing over and over are really spot on. She's reminding me of Christian, only with more understandable ego and a lot more imagination. Did I say that out loud? Anyway.

I think the print worked out pretty well here, but I do wish that Terri would bust out a really fabulous floor length gown or something. What else can she do? Where is she going with this? What kind of collection would she make? This is not to say there isn't a market for Terri, there is. She is going to be very good at what she does and make money at it. I just don't know why that makes her a Project Runway winner.

A housekeeping note: I'm sorry these are getting posted on Friday's these days, but I've started grad school and I have class on Wednesday and Thursday nights and it's the first chance I get to write them up. But I should be able to continue to post them up on Fridays. Also, there's now and RSS feed for this blog, click the link over the right that says subscribe and you'll never miss a post!

Finally!

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 23:56:00 +0000

I can't believe it, but seven episodes in this season of Project Runway seems to have found it's feet, and so did the designers. All it took was horribly blatant product placement! I can't believe how good this episodes was, it was like I was in a completely different series. Maybe it was that Laura came back. If you follow my blog you'll know I'm not actually a huge fan of Laura, as much as I think she did impeccable clothes I also didn't really buy into her specific style. But she did know what she was doing and it almost made up for Rachel Zoe, who I really just can't stomach.

On to the showcase of this episode, since the challenge was just so dang weird, the clothes!

On the dress form and in the sketch this dress was amazing. It was so pretty looking, and I thought "Hey, Blayne is going to pull it out once again! When is he going to stop doing this to me?" But no, instead when the garment actually came out onto the runway it just...was fitted so wrong it was depressing. What in the world did he do to make the top fit that poorly and couldn't he have stuffed her bra or something to make it a little better? Heck, Leanne stuffed our model's hips!

The concept was great, the fit was terrible. And that seemed to be universal in the lower levels of this episodes.

I hate the styling of this outfit but I can see how it's "runway styling" and not "everyday styling." But the garment itself is really great. It had some problems with bunching, but I've started paying attention to other people's clothes lately and realized that fitted clothing just bunches strangely all the time, it's only flat when you just put it on or something.

But the ideas here are sound, the colors are great. It's a little on the micro side but I love it still.

This is a little too similar to his work in the Olympic challenge, IMHO, but I like that he incorporated the logo for the car. It's a really cute outfit that I could see on the girls that walk around race tracks for some reason (do they hold the flags? I'm not sure, I'm not that into racing). But it really looks like something you'd see around a track. Only, the cars were Saturn's and I'm sorry but race cars they are not.

I love the colors though, I'll say that. I'm a huge fan of that color palette.

This is the thing about Keith's downfall: he forgot what the judges are there for. It's kind of easy to do. See, I'm in film school right now and I know how it is to be in classes or be judged by people constantly who are critiquing your work and going on about what you're doing wrong. I know how easy it is to get down on yourself and assume they hate you.

But the other thing I know, and the thing that Keith lost sight of is that the judges aren't there to make you into somebody else, just like professors aren't (if they're good professors, I've had some that did seem to want to make me in their image). What they're trying to do is help you be a better you. Help you find your voice and use it to the best of your ability, to be the most effective.

Keith couldn't figure that out, and that's part of why he's gone. If he hadn't made those comments on the runway, I'm convinced Stella would have been eliminated instead. But he decided he was a victim, and I've been there so I can't make fun of him too much for it.

The dress itself was a pretty big failure, to be honest. Seatbelts are kind of horrible for stuff like this, I've seen them made into bags a lot and they're stiff and have very little give, and they very easily pucker and twist. Though I do think that them making his model sit down in hair and makeup was just wrong. If she walked in and said, "I can't sit in this, it'll split" then they should have worked around it. Maybe she didn't say that, maybe he shouldn't have let her leave the workroom in the skirt. But all the same, something smacks of "not his fault" while at the same time reminding us of "make it work."

The problem, I think, was completely in the top. Sure, the skirt was uninteresting but if it was countered with a truly fabulous top it could have been something, and instead it wasn't.

I love the handmade zebra print so much. That was such a creative use of air filters, and I think Kenley really made something that was creative and used interesting materials. My biggest problem with it is just that it's a little boring, and it's just so much like everything else that she's given us. Where's the thing that's supposed to make it memorable?

I like this coat, don't get me wrong. But the one thing that makes me not love it as much as some is that I've seen this woven seatbelt thing before. They sell these bags at the Hirschorn in different sizes, and they do some interesting patterns to. So that's not really something that is new.

That said, it's still very impressive. I think that Korto is absolutely a lock for the final three, there's no doubt in my mind about it. One of my friends said that everything she's made has been a kimono, and I do have to admit that she goes with similar styles often enough. But she's been strong in almost every single challenge and she's definitely got a handle on herself and her own style.

I am so in love with this garment. Leanne impresses me more and more every episode, and I'm so happy that she's also got a fabulous personality and great manners to go with a good aesthetic.

I just really love what she did, with taking the natural flow of the leather and letting it really just do what it wanted. Also, for me, this is an example of a garment that isn't something you would just wear to work but isn't' so over the top that you look at it and say "WHO would wear that?" It's just well made and well thought out so you look at it and you don't care who would wear it, the model is wearing it and she looks fabulous.

I love that she decided to fray the seatbelt too. I never really thought that much about seatbelts before, but the frayed ones I've seen haven't been nearly as attractive as she made this. You also can see pretty quickly how fast she learned how not to just pile things onto the dress because the trim is so understated and it's really a trim.

An absolutely deserved win.

Stella is the same story as Keith: she was on the bottom because instead of trying to be better at what she does she decided to be something else. But also, because it was a poorly fit, boring and drab little outfit. Not to mention the fact that the seatbelt skirt had this huge pucker in each layer going down the back. I know it's a horrible "fabric" to try to work with, and that puckering like that was probably their number one enemy. But the fact that it was so bad just speaks to how little Stella wanted to work on this challenge.

I'm really a little baffled about Stella suddenly deciding not to be herself. I don't like her garments or her style, but at least she was unapologetic for it up until now. Unlike others, she just said, "this is what I do, these are the clothes I make." Sure, I wanted to see her branch out, but there's a difference between branching out and wussing out.

If the top had been more fitted and the skirt hadn't had those puckers then I think she probably would have still been in the bottom for being a touch boring, and because so many of the dresses were so good. But I wouldn't be thinking she should have gone home.

This is a really fun little outfit, but it reminds me so much of most of the things that Suede has made up until this point. I do like that he was the only one that used some of these materials, but it's overall effect was really impressive, but would have been more so if we hadn't seen this dress from him before just in different fabric.

This is a fabulous outfit, it's absolutely wearable. I could see this model walking into a club right now. Some of the praise that was heaped on Terri's earlier inspiration design fits right here. The only thing for me is that it is a little plain and safe at the same time. And saying that makes me feel like a hypocrite because both things can't be true at the same time.

I wouldn't have replaced anybody that was in the top (except perhaps Jerell, I think that this garment is on par with his) but at the same time, I think it was really fantastic and I could see this actually being sold in stores.

While on the one hand I absolutely hate this challenge because of the product placement and the cheap commercialism of it. On the other hand, it's more along the lines of the flower challenge or any of the crazy weird ones we've had in the past. I also think that these are just the best garments that these designers have produced so far. Congrats guys.

I'd rather have more Chris March

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 00:36:00 +0000

Really, bring back Chris March. You did it once, maybe could we do it again? Then I would have a designer I actually cared about in this year's crop. Instead, I just keep rooting for one of my five least favorites to get eliminated every week. At least this week I got my wish.

Okay, Blayne seriously needs to put tape over his mouth and stop speaking. Immediately. I think he might be sealing his fate in the fact that he'll never be able to get a serious job in his life because every employer will just keep saying, "oh, you were the licious one."

There's nothing wrong with this outfit. Which is probably the most distressing part of it all, because I wanted him to make something terrible, but he didn't. It's perfectly capable, and it looks like it's straight out of Adventures of Priscilla. It fits his Queen perfectly.

He really did need to think about the wings falling though, I know costumers who are more competent when it comes to that, but when they're standing up like they're supposed to they are pretty fun and wild.

Thank goodness that's the last time I'll have to see Daniel look so appalled at the judge's opinions of his work. Did you see the condescending look he had when talking about the challenge? The man didn't want to make a drag queen outfit and so he didn't, he thought he was above it. That's fine, Christian thought he was above everything and somehow managed to make everybody love him anyway. But Daniel came right out on the runway and said to RUPAUL of all people that he didn't want to be tacky etc. Um, you don't really know your audience, do you Daniel?

The dress is pretty, it's really nice. It's made out of great fabric, and if he had made it for another challenge I would have talked about how great it was. But once more he came in about three levels short on the challenge. He never was somebody who really could make things pop (after the cup dress anyway) and kept making rather boring, simple outfits. So I'm not surprised that this was the challenge that did him in.

I think Jerell had a bit of a difficult task ahead of him, because La May seemed to be one of the more subtle Queens on the stage, and how do you impress in a drag queen competition if you're subtle?

This is, again, a very costumey look (I hate using that word but it's all I've got for Jerell) and while that's what the challenge called for, there's something about how the collar and the dress go together that doesn't work.

But, I really think that Jerell ended up on the bottom three because everybody (except Daniel and Keith) did such a fabulous job that they had to pick SOMEBODY and they had to say SOMETHING negative about it.

It was a great dress, and so it's a little longer, it's not THAT long. And it's plenty dramatic. I think Jerell just ended up in the bottom three of a very strong group, and the judges were more harsh than even they wanted to be.

I find it amusing that Joe, who seemed just a touch too uncomfortable with the challenge, was the one who won. But he really did take his Queen and give her a fabulous outfit. Heck, I wouldn't be surprised if she goes and buys it off the auction so she can keep it.

It does look so fabulous on her, it fits so perfectly. It's eye-catching, it's fun, it's dramatic. There's so much about it that's perfect.

I'm not sure that I think it should be the winner, just because it is rather simple and doesn't amp up the drama that extra little bit.

This is such a terrible outfit, and if it wasn't for how insulting Daniel was on the runway, I really would have wished for Keith to go home because of it. It does the Queen no favors, it isn't fun, it isn't well made, and it just doesn't convey anything except being raggedy.

I can't for the life of me figure out what Keith was doing here. Apparently he really needs Kenley to temper his crazy and deconstructed ideas, because he could have done something with this if he had scaled back and edited a little bit. But instead he just went all out and it looks terrible. It's like he ran out of time and glued strips to a bra.

This is so typical of a Drag Queen outfit that I really don't have much to say about it. It's pretty, it's well made, it's very classic and goes with the client's style very well.

But it doesn't really pop, does it?

I love this dress, I absolutely would have picked it for the win over Joe. The biggest reason? Because Sweetie obviously loved it, and loved wearing it. It made her feel beautiful, it made her feel confident, and it showed in the way she wore it.

And that, my friends, is an amazing success. She looked and felt fabulous. The dress had drama without having too much, it fit perfectly. I love the colors, I love the sculpture on the shoulder (and unlike Blayne's wings, it was made really well).

Korto is becoming one of my favorite designers this season.

If Leanne had wanted to bring out the word surrealism, she certainly could have with this dress. I don't really like it as much as most of the other's this week, but it's a little wacky and a little fun, and it fits the client.

I love the colors too, they work so well together. There's not a false note for the fabric at all. It certainly isn't a winning garment, but it's a good effort. There's just a few more awkward looking parts to it, but I can't put my finger on what.

Stella gets a challenge to make an outfit for a drag queen, and she makes this? I'm so baffled by it. It's interesting, a little different, but I really don't see what it's about, what point she's trying to make...

I just don't understand the plaid. Not enough to think it's a bad garment, but enough to say "Eh?" I actually would have put it on the bottom instead of Jerell just to ask her what she was going for.

Dead grandfather's advice aside, what the heck was actually up with those little lettuce roses on the gloves? I didn't like it, I don't understand why Tim loved it, and I just don't get it. The dress itself is fun, but it doesn't look like a showstopper. It looks like something Hedda Lettuce would use as an intro outfit, or something for a more casual event instead of a show. It's a party dress.

But I guess the challenge didn't specify that it needed to be a show dress. Actually, looking at it, it seems like a traveling outfit to me. Like she's about to get on the train to go on some sort of exciting adventure.

I definitely like it, but it's again just the middle of the pack.

I am one of the only people who probably doesn't really like this outfit. I think it definitely deserved to be in the top three, because it does very perfectly fit the Queen it was made for. I completely agree with the top three pics (and the bottom two). But I don't like this better than Korto and Joe's for one reason: it's too much. I know, can you have too much with a drag queen? But I think this one does get there, because there's just so much going on. Not to mention that I can't imagine her actually doing a show in this. Modeling? Sure. But anything past a runway walk, what would she do? It doesn't look like she's meant to really talk, you couldn't do stand-up, you couldn't really dance...maybe you could sing, but for some reason the makeup and garment together make me think it's not meant for somebody who will be making any noises at all (maybe it's the white mime-face).

I will say that I'm so glad RuPaul mentioned Mahagony because I was desperately trying to figure out what it reminded me of.

I think Terri is probably starting to get frustrated, and I know her fans must be. She's had fantastic showings for a few episodes now but not managed to pull out the win. But I really don't think up to now that she deserved it yet. But I see it coming, I think she'll get there, and I can't wait to see it. I might be tired of her ego, but I'm in love with the fact that she really puts herself out there and makes outfits that I can remember the next week and want to talk about. Most of the other designers aren't accomplishing that yet.

Where's the drama, team challenge?

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Thu, 14 Aug 2008 18:35:00 +0000

Hey, remember back in the day when Project Runway used to do these team challenges? And the people would argue and cause all this drama, even if up to this point they always got along? There would be at least one crying meltdown, and at least one angry accusation on the runway and it was when PR really delved down into typical "reality tv" territory?

I hope you remember, because I don't think this season can deliver. The drama we get is:
-Terri fusses at Suede, and he efficiently fixes the problem!
-Kelli tells Daniel that his skirt stinks and to remake it. And he gripes but does it and nobody mentions it on the runway!
-Joe says something to Tim about Korto's design, and she says she's looking out for HIM and wants to hear MORE of his imput! The nerve of her! He apologizes and says it wasn't a big deal! It all is solved with a minimum of fuss!

The interviews were so much more confrontational than the actual moments, and I have a feeling it's because the producers went, "well, crap. We tried to make something drama-rific and they didn't deliver. Quick, bait the questions and make them sound more angry!"

At least this episode the garments were so much more successful than the last, for the most part.

This is the thing about Blayne and Leanne's contribution: it doesn't fit the challenge. This isn't something that's even slightly formal, it couldn't be worn to work as is. BUT, it's really well made. I wouldn't choose most of the pieces to put them together the way they are, but I don't see anything that looks particularly borked up.

And on top of that, I really like that blue shirt. It's a bright and pretty color, it hung really well, and I just liked it. Maybe not with the purple shirt under it, but I liked it.

I think Blayne scraped through on this one not because of the actual look but because it at least was well made. Also, as bratty as he was you could tell that he and Leanne worked well together and respected each other. I like how Heidi tried to call in and say "Why didn't Leanne speak up" when really, the design was approved by Brooke Shields so what would she say? "No, you really need slacks with this." Slacks weren't what he pitched.

Though they would have improved the whole thing enormously.

Laura K. at Blogging Project Runway said that she was impressed with Jerell's attitude and the way he treated Stella. It was really admirable, and I think that the dress really shows how much they respected each other.

It's not my personal taste, but I could really see it working on Brooke Shields and on the show. I can see it working in an office setting with different accessories, and as it is out on the town. A side note, I'm really tired of this "day to night" junk on the show. Everybody seems to think it means some sort of wacky convertible thing, but really it could just be a look that works well in both settings, like this one.

The only qualm I have about this one is that the very top of it doesn't seem to fit the model very well. There's something about the way it flowed on the runway that didn't look fitted properly.

I have to say I really love the skirt. I would actually like to see if I could pull off a skirt like that. It's the type of subtle but fun print that I think they expected out of Kelli.

Am I the only one that is completely reminded of Ugly Betty with this model and the styling here? Yeah? Just me? Okay.

I love the top, I think it's really fabulous. The print is, again, really great. It's a fun bit of design and I really like it. I'm also so glad that the other print that Kenley was advocating was nixed, because seriously, what in the world was she thinking? No, please, no.

I'm not actually that big of a fan of the skirt, but it's just not my style. I can see how it could come off pretty well in the right setting, but something about it on the runway didn't seem right to me. Maybe it was the unfinished edges on the scallops, or just that they looked unfinished.

You know, I don't really like the high-waisted trend, have I said this before? On this dress it almost works, but I think lowering the waist even a few inches would have made it more successful.

But as it is, it's still a deserving win.

I have so many problems with this outfit, and that's why I'm not even that sad to see Kelli go, even as good as her first outfit was.

The colors don't seem to go, the print is just not the right choice, and my biggest problem? That the construction just seems shoddy from top to bottom.

The top is cut strangely, the bustier left this swatch of midriff that was entirely inappropriate, and it didn't look at all like they had the same time as everybody else. It looked like they took three or four hours less.

I would have been okay with Daniel going home too, if only because if you notice, I still haven't seen him repeat anything nearly as good as the cup dress and because I'm so sick and tired of how absolutely APPALLED he looks when anybody disagrees with him or says something bad about him.

Watch his reactions to anything from Joe fussing at him at his machine to Michael Kors' insults last week to Kenley's outburst of laughing (which matched my own, I admit): he's shocked, SHOCKED I tell you, that anybody could doubt him! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?

Really? Daniel, you haven't even shown the personality and the ego to back up your indignation (see Santino for an example of this) so just let it go.

I know, I must be crazy, but I kind of enjoy this look. The colors are fun and bright, the skirt is a great counterpoint to the jacket, and it might not have as much flash as say, Jerell and Stella's contribution but I like it. It's something I could imagine seeing on stylish women in NYC.

The sleeves are a little much, but only a little.

I'm getting a little tired of Terri's schtick. This is a perfectly acceptable garment, I couldn't wear the shirt at all but I could imagine the girls I work with looking really great in this outfit. It's a little casual for the office, but not too bad for the type of office Shields' character works in.

But I really don't see anything extraordinary about it. What sets it apart? Why does it deserve any praise? I'm not really getting on the Terri bandwagon. I want to see her do something new and different, and something really fascinating. I guess we'll see.

This episode was so emblematic of this entire season. I could write an essay on it. But when they had the bottom four on the runway, all I could think was "As long as Leanne stays, I won't feel at all sorry for anybody else leaving."

Though that weird brown thing Leanne was wearing did try my patience a little.

Nobody likes to settle for silver

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 01:11:00 +0000

Finally, Project Runway 5 has an original challenge! It's even timely and could have been really fun and fascinating! You know, if they had some more imaginative designers who liked to take more risks and just be more out there.

The think I love about the early seasons of Project Runway, and the thing I love about a lot of really creative types, is the way they're willing to do something really wacky. As much as I don't personally like Daniel V's orchid dress from season two, it was really an amazing risk.

This outfits were all so safe, except for Jerell, that I was afraid I had missed a part of the challenge that said that they couldn't do anything too weird.

I'm also surprised at how most of the outfits don't really fit what I think of the Opening Ceremony outfits at all. If you watched last night, and saw the garments created by Ralph Lauren then you would see that the only person who really came close was Terri, and I have my own opinions about hers, which I'll get to. But in general, everybody seemed to miss the mark. (I actually delayed this post so I could watch the opening ceremonies and compare them).

Okay, for the challenge, this outfit is generally awful. It's not something that American athletes could really wear, and you couldn't make anything remotely similar for the men. Plus, it's pink and light blue, which are not the colors of our flag.

But if you take it outside the challenge, as much as I hate to say it, it's pretty cute. He must have changed the sweater a lot after he talked to Tim, or Tim didn't really see what he was saying. Because I don't see anything Sgt. Pepper about it.

I do take points off for the skinny pants, just because they work on the model but they would never work on anybody else. But really, the sweater is neat, I could see somebody wearing that if they had the confidence to pull it off.

I don't care how much I did or didn't like Jennifer, this dress is a travesty. It has nothing even remotely to do with the challenge, and if it was a challenge to make a cocktail dress, it still doesn't look very good. The buttons are just wrong, they throw off the balance completely. The shade of blue with that bright red don't really work well either. And maybe it just needed a good ironing, but why is it so wrinkled? Why did it seem so puckered on the runway?

I think both Jennifer and Daniel had an equal chance of being eliminated, and personally I think both equally deserved it. After that one high note, Daniel hasn't done anything really spectacular. If he doesn't really bring something to the table next week, then he should go.

Also, I realize Joe's little freakout was pretty unreasonable, but Daniel's reaction to it was equally idiotic. He just kept whining over and over about it when really, he could be sewing.

Last note: I don't think a bolero jacket would have saved this. In fact, I think more red would have killed it.

Again, this dress has nothing to do with the Olympics. But what it has going for it that Daniel's doesn't is that at least it's wearable and cute. But I can't make a case for it even beginning to fit the challenge.

Nina was very accurate to say that Jennifer couldn't get out of designing for herself, no matter what the challenge was. But the sad thing was that even the clothes Jennifer wore seemed very "same thing, different day" to me. I wanted to like her so much, she seemed like such a nice person. But in the end, her garments just weren't very creative at all.

And I really wanted her to just stop it with the surrealism bit. I've studied surrealism and I won't ever pretend to understand it, but I do like it. Nothing that she presented, nothing that she wore, was even remotely related to the word surrealism. If you watch Un Chien Andalou or go to a Dali exhibit (as she's always mentioning) then you'd see how little her clothing relates to the word. When Michael Kors said something about the surprise of surrealism he hit it perfectly on the head. But there's nothing surprising about Jennifer's designs.

Oh, gracious. Again, Jerell puts out something that looks like a costume more than anything. This one makes me think of boating, like it belongs in a 1950's movie with a yacht scene.

The biggest problem is that there's far too much going on. There's a hat, there's leggings, the skirt, the belt, the shirt, the two scarves and it's just all stacked one on top of the other. A little bit of editing (and a lot less hat) would have made this really work, I think. It at least would have been much more like the actual outfits worn by the athletes in the opening ceremonies.

An important note: I normally hate high waisted skirts, pants, and shorts because I think they typically make people look downright strange. This really, really works. I'm a fan of it, and that gives this a bonus point. Jerell certainly didn't deserve to be eliminated for this, but I think it's good that he got called out and told to tone it down a bit.

Joe is the only person that I thought made an effective mix of red, white, and blue. Everybody else had too much of one, not enough of another, and it just didn't work for me. But because I thought the colors were so balanced on this one, I'm glad it got in the top three. Though I have to admit that the Ralph Lauren outfits had almost no red.

I think it's much too casual for the opening ceremonies, but it would still make a really cute garment for publicity shots or some other event. I even like the USA down the side, though a lot of people think it's a little too much.

The one thing that kills it entirely though, and the thing that I think clearly lost it for him, was the mismatch of lengths on the skort. If you're going to do something like that, then you have to have the lengths match, there's no changing that. I honestly think if he had made just a little skirt then he would have had a clear chance at winning.

What in the world is that skirt? Did he just bunch of the fabric like that because he was in a hurry? Because it really just looks like a ruffle on the bottom of the jacket instead of an actual skirt.

The scarf is definitely too much, though it could have been nice if it was a little smaller. But in general, I think this outfit would look horrible on most of the athletes competing in the games, and popped collars are not actually in right now among the demographic I belong to.

A different bottom and this jacket could have been something. But with that skirt it just all falls apart. I would have put this in the bottom over Jerell, even though I thought Jerell needed waking up.

I'm really, really unsure what Kelli was going for here. It's very Pleasantville, and with this years Olympics people have been talking a lot more about the modern age and technology, so I think retro is the exact wrong direction to go.

It's a nice enough outfit, for a certain type of person. You have to be really into that 1950's look to be able to do this, and I think Kenley could probably pull it off (though she'd probably not pair the top and skirt together) but I don't really see it working as an Olympics outfit.

This is a really smart dress. I like it a lot, if you look at it completely separate from what they were trying to do. It does seem really similar to a lot of the things Kenley has made already, but it's nice, it's well made, and the model looks fantastic in it.

It's a shame it doesn't look like what they were supposed to be making at all.

Korto again is showing that clean, simple, but stunning garments are just what she does. It's very impressive, because she's not doing flashy things but she's showing how impressive something simple can be.

I have two qualms with the outfit, the high waste makes the model's lower torso look abnormally long, and that there's not enough color. I don't know where she could have incorporated very much more color, but it still would have been nice to see it.

I don't agree that this would look good on a lot of body types, anybody even slightly short would look terrible I think. People with muscular arms, it's iffy. But on the model, it's fabulous. It's a deserved win, I think.

While it's not shockingly good or bad, I really like this outfit. The model looks very happy and comfortable. The only change I would make is that the shorts make it more casual, when the opening ceremonies are a little more formal. But it's all well made.

I would still want a little more color though, personally. But it's a good effort from Leanne, I like seeing what she'll do next.

Why hasn't anybody looked at Stella and said "Please stop making the same thing over and over again!" I mean, they told Jennifer that, why not Stella? Oh, wait, because the judges went nuts over her "green" dress for some reason.

But really, tight pants. A simple vest. Blah, blah, blah. I like the colors and the contrast on this, but I want Stella to actually branch out and do something different. I also don't think it would work on anybody but somebody the model's size, and I don't think that it befits the American Athletes.

I have to admit it wasn't the worst thing out there though, and it is really well made and fitted. Begrudgingly, I have to say that it does look good on the model so it was a success on a few levels.

A lot of the designers are having trouble being really creative, aren't they? Sure, little things might be different, but I see such similarities between their outfits from week to week. Change it up people! Be different! The whole point is to show a range.

This is a cute little dress. I like it. But it's not very imaginative, it's not very different, and it's not even that difficult looking. I've made skirts like that before, and I'm certainly not that skilled.

The worst part is, this actually fits the challenge really well, unlike so many of the others. Well, if the skirt was a little longer.

Like Joe, two changes and Terri might have walked home with this one (and been really similar to the designs that the athletes DID wear). First, get rid of the scarf. What in the world is the scarf? Why does it exist? Why did she add it, and when she did, why did she make it a billowing tumor down the front?

The other thing she needs to do is not have the top fit so poorly so that the model was falling out of it. When I saw it, I assumed there was some sort of flesh toned top part on the shirt, and that it wasn't fitted properly so it looked like the model wasn't wearing a complete shirt.

Nope, turns out that it really was the model spilling out of her shirt. That's just completely ridiculous, and I can't believe somebody didn't mention it on the show.

Like I said though, those two changes and this is easily the best effort on the runway and the clear winner. The jacket is just fabulous, the pants fit well and aren't those cursed skinny jeans type fit. Everything else about it is spot on.

Enjoy the Olympics everybody! I had a lot of fun watching the opening ceremonies and seeing what all the countries had their athletes wearing. There were a few too many solid colored blazers though, and I was sad that the U.S. outfits were so boring. Fashionable, I guess, but boring.

Inspiration take two

noreply@blogger.com (Elizabeth) — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 20:36:00 +0000

Sorry this is a few days late, I was in the land the internet forgot for the week watching the ponies swim on Chincoteague Island. It was a ton of fun, but they also didn't have Bravo so I had to wait until I got home to post.

I know everybody is saying it, but it bears repeating: what's with the recycling old challenges, Runway? The first one was kind of cute, and interesting to go back and do it again. But this one? Blah, blah, and more blah. All it did was really put a spotlight on how dull this pack of designers really are.

I really don't understand why Emily got all the dislike and this dress didn't even make the bottom three. They're really extremly similar, and honestly I think Emily's is better made and more presentable.

Blayne is going to be one of those who is either really good or terrible isn't he? For one, his inspiration photo wasn't all that fascinating. Actually, almost none of them were. For two, what in the world is that collar?

I would have made this dress be out before Emily's, honestly. It's so...amateur and simplistic. It's a little literal, which is never really fun, and it just makes me think of the kind of thing a teenage girl makes when she first decides she wants to be a fashion designer.

First, I don't understand this dress exactly. That little bit of black bodice at the top just makes me think the dress wasn't finished and it's her bra showing through or something. But the fabric is lovely, and if it didn't have that one thing that confuses me, I'd like it more I think.

But it is just rather dull. And aside from the materials, the cup dress wasn't that amazing either. I guess you could argue that Daniel is all about simplicity and classic sillouettes but so far I've just been wondering what he can do and when he's going to stand out again.

I can't understand why so many people seem to think that Jennifer's dress was a bigger disaster than this one. For one, her picture was so typical. It's NYC at night, let's do time lapse of car's lights. Never heard of that before.

For another, it's supposed to be a photo about energy and movement, and this dress has NONE of that. It's just a ruffle. A big, funny looking, not very colorful ruffle. And it looks like it's supposed to go all the way around but one end got detached and is just hanging down the front.

Plus, Emily committed the cardinal sin of saying, "Tim Gunn told me X, BUT, I like my design so I'm not listening." STOP DOING THAT. How many times do we have to repeat this over and over and over? Maybe Tim isn't always right, but don't discount him without thinking about it.

If the dress had been strapless, then maybe the ruffle wouldn't have been as bad, but instead you've got this one shoulder that's thick and doesn't make sense.

The only thing that keeps me from confidently saying this dress deserved to be eliminated is that I think Blayne's was so much worse.

So help me, I cannot figure out what the heck matronly means while watching this show. I've tried to pay attention, and I just don't get it. Is it the fabric? Is it the length? The sleeves? I don't know, nothing is consistent about when they employ that word, except maybe that the dresses are a little more conservative.

This is the thing with Jennifer's garment though: her inspiration photo was actually kind of neat, and different than what most people come up with. New York City at night, and we get graffiti and we get lights every single time. But we don't neccesarily get a well-cropped photo of a pretty nifty looking clock. And maybe it's just that I often find myself taking photos of neat clocks when I'm on vacation, but I like it.

I like her fabric, and I see where she went from her photo to the dress. Okay, it's not gorgeous, it's not perfect, and it maybe deserved to be pretty low on the scores because it's a little dull, and only the sleeves really make reference to the clock. But you can't convince me that it's not a better garment than Emily, Blayne, and Keith's creations. The worst part of it is the top layer of blue skirt, because it poofs out in an odd way. Otherwise, it's not THAT great, but no, it isn't an elimination dress either.

I admit that Jennifer shouldn't have started her whole Holly Golightly/Dali thing and talking about surrealism because it's not in this outfit. She even said in an interview that she was going literal. So that was a major misstep, she sold it wrong. There's nothing slightly surreal here.

I have so little to say about this dress. It's a step up from last week, but at least it looks more like a flamenco dancer than an exotic dancer. The bust fits oddly, and really, that's all I've got. Why are these designers so dull?

I liked Joe's photo, it stuck out in my mind. Plus, he did a more literal take that still managed to be interesting, and kind of cute. But he's still coasting along the middle of the pack, when is he going to do something that's going to get him noticed?

Oh, Keith. His photo was intriguing, the idea was really interesting. Most people in a challenge like this, if they're not Andrae, are going to look for all those bright flashy and beautiful things that make up NYC. But Keith found something dirty and discarded, which is also a part of any city.

And then he went completely in an opposite and strange direction that I couldn't follow. How did he get from that photo to this dress? I absolutely don't get it. It just looks like a bunch of rags pinned onto a sack. The fabric choices don't make a lot of sense to me either. I have no idea what he was thinking, and honestly thought he was going home. Which would be sad, he's grown on me.

To be completly honest, I keep going back and forth on if this one is worse than Emily's, and the only reason I think it isn't is because he at least had a different kind of inspiration photo.

So promising right out the gate, and yet what has Kelli given us in the two challenges since? I know they're designers and not photographers, but her photo was kind of bad. There's a way to take a photo of a fire hydrant and that's not it. But that's just me being picky.

This is not my type of dress. At all, it doesn't even come close to the types of things I like. I can see the Mad Max influence, I can see how it could be an expression of her as a designer. But I don't really care for it anyway.

Okay, I want to say first that I kind of like Kenley. She seems like a nice and fun person, she has a design sense that I like. I like vintage, I like that older pin-up style. I really enjoy some of the clothes she's made and worn so far.

I really don't like this dress and I have no idea why it won. I can't figure out who would wear it, where they would wear it, and what the relation to her photo was at all. It had generally nothing to do with her photo, let's all admit that right here. The colors weren't even similar.

The tulle-like skirt part is interesting, and if it had been with a different pattern for the main dress, or different sleeves on the dress, I might have gone for it. But putting it all together, I just simply don't like it at all. Thick collar, puffed sleeves, bubble skirt...it's all too much.

I have no idea why this won. No idea at all.

Remember when I was talking about Daniel and how he might just really like simple garments? I get that feeling from Korto, she's seems to be very focused on simple ideas done well. But here's the thing: her outfits aren't boring. They're just not flashy.

I don't even remember her inspiration picture, but this jumpsuit is completely wearable and I could see it on store shelves right now. It's nice, it's well made, and it's just a good, solid effort. I can forgive the misstep from last week easily when you put this and the first dress together.

I think I'm joining a chorus from the rest of the internet when I say I want this skirt. Leanne deserved this win, hands down. She looked at the city and found something commonplace for inspiration, and said as much. That's something that a good photographer has, the eye for seeing things that have always been there as something worth looking at, for not glossing over the commonplace and forgetting that it's there.

Then she took that inspiration, and made something classy out of it. Something simple, beautiful, and it's very easy to see how she went from the photo to the garment. But at the same time, it wasn't a literal translation of it, it was just an inspiration.

She learned so much from last week, and I'm sure it makes all the judges happy they didn't eliminate her because I don't think Wesley could have done that. It's always impressive to see that kind of progression from somebody on a show like this. Most of the time they walk around saying, "I don't care what the judges think this is what I want!"

This whole piece is just absolutely fabulous, and I have no idea why it didn't win. Apparently the internet feels the same, because every poll I've seen has said by a gigantic majority that it was the favorite.

Deserved praise, every bit.

Can we eliminate Stella before I fall asleep? Or before she wears those atrocious pants again? Please?

This is so boring and typical that I refuse to talk about it.

Kind of cute, kind of fun, not that fascinating. I'm so running out of nice things to say about some of these people's outfits. Somebody on Blogging Project Runway commented that this looked like it belonged in Michael Knight's collection from season three, and I completely agree. But it looks made well, and it fits her nicely.

I have absolutely no idea why the judges loved this so much. I can see how she went from her picture to this, that's fine. I can see how they enjoy it in a 70's throwback kind of way.

But I just don't like that pattern for the top at all. There was something about it on the show that bothered me the entire time. The horizontal nature of it? The darkness of the colors? I don't know what it is, but that pattern on that dress seems completely wrong to me.

So I didn't like it, and I think I really could have if it was slightly different. A little lighter maybe? I don't know. But I certainly don't get the idea of wanting to get to know a girl that's wearing that outfit. I wouldn't think she was anybody intersting at all. Sure, attitude, I can see that. And I can completely understand why it was in the top, in fact I think the top dresses were the best ones. But I don't understand the overwhelming praise.

It must be that it's just not my style, I guess.

Let's see which challenge they crib off of next week! I would guess a team challenge, but it's not the right number of designers for that. I'm going to guess there's unconventional materials involved.