Project Runway

Project Runway is on tonight and I know I'm excited!

Episode 2, Season 10  is on at 9 tonight but in case you missed last week, here is a recap.

The season opener featured a live runway show in the middle of Times Square.

This season the designers were asked to send a look that expressed their desighn aesthetic.  Upon arrival on day one they learn their challenge is to create a companion piece for that look in one day with $100, and show both on the runway.

 1. Ven Budhu (I would buy the companion)

Original: A white suite featuring pleated palazzo pants, a white jacket with pleated sleeves, and a fuchsia bustier draped to look like a rose in her cleavage. (not a fan of Palazzo pants-a bit old for me but the look was beautiful)

Companion: Fuchsia sleeveless dress with flat pleat skirt He's gotten a lot of praise, and I can see why. I'm on the Venwagon.

2. Beatrice Guapo (I would wear the original dress)

Original: Gray knit short sleeve dress with sheer shoulders, pleated back, and patterned aztec-print throw. The gray knot dress wasn't bad...simple, easy, didn't look cheap. Didn’t care for the throw.

Companion: Gary knit skirt. Red sheer tee, big wide belt. Really plain and uninspired. Of course, she cut a hole in her top at the last moment and had to improvise that red tee.

3. Lantie Foster (I wouldn’t wear either)

Original: Lace dress with bolero. With weird waist and neck snakeskin embellishment. It's all very fussy. Just below knee length…not flattering.

Companion: Ack, disaster!! Taupe shift dress with brown tulle over it and a weird snake breastplate. Add in the matchy matchy snake purse, the bump-it hairdo, and the overall poor fit, this was frumpy.

4. Andrea Katz (I would wear the original but not the Companion)

Original: Simple white dress with geometric horizontal stripes in the front, with spaghetti straps. (Doesn’t this model look like a young Jennifer Aniston?)

Companion: Short dress with a black top and big black and white stripe hoop skirt. No, you don't normally see short hoop skirts. Yes, there's a reason why. Beyond the unflattering possibilities, there's also the little problem of how the hoops ride up as you walk. This was awkward.

5. Christopher Palu (I wouldn’t wear either)

Original: A dark gown, with many small pleats. I was surprised no  mentioned that he could have edited down exactly how much skin he was showing. With a mostly backless back and a very high slit, this struck me as on the edge of vulgar.

Companion: Black strapless cocktail dress. A LOT of working with the fabric. Lots of pleating and seaming all over the place. Which was fine, if hard to see on TV. But I'm shocked he wasn't dinged more for this. First of all the big exposed zipper up the back only emphasized that the dress was riding up in the back. Plus there were strings along hem. I thought it was pretty weak, and he could have sacrificed some pleating for some polish. 

6. Alicia Hardesty (I would wear the companion piece I am not a fan of jumpers)

Original: Red capri jumpsuit with hood

Companion: Red/Rust sleeveless top with striped top portion, brown jodphurs-y type pants with exposed buttons.

7. Elena Slivnyak (I wouldn’t wear either)

Original: Black quilted coat dress. The quilted concept is cool, and it was overall well-executed, however, she includes these very wide boxy hips, and the end result is making this tiny model look big and boxy. Not flattering.

Companion: This dress was sort of a anime take on edgy. The dress was black jersey with a white center inset of a curvy figure. There were structured shoulders, and the styling included gloves, and knee socks.

8. Buffi Jashanmal (I wouldn’t wear either)

Original: Black pleather pants with a hot pink one-shouldered top. The top had a chartreuse band peeking out of the top hem. Again, for the piece they had time to work on it was pretty simplistic...could have been bought at Contempo Casuals in the 80s or stolen from Peggy Bundy’s Wardrobe.

Companion: Black mini dress with hot pink neck piece. The dress looked life a Hefty bag. The styling was Working Girl Staten Island 80s girl.

9. Dmitry Sholokov (I might wear the companion piece)

Original: Long black sequin gown with puffy elbow-length sleeves, sheer torso panels and plunging Vs in front and back. The sleeve length was dowdy, and overall this had a Joan Collins on Dynasty feel. But it did look well made.

Companion: Gray one-shoulder knit dress with cutout at waist and sequin-y belt. The fabric seemed like day wear.

10. Kooan Kosuke (I wouldn’t wear either)

Original: Romper onesie shorts with big turquoise circles and pink shoulders. You know, what can you say? This screams Japanese street fashion to me...or perhaps gamer/anime culture

Companion: And then after all the whimsy and drama of his first piece, the second is a silver metallic short sleeved dress with wide portrait collar.

11. Gunnar Deatherage (I’d buy it)

Original: White jacket, Mustard halter blouse with black collar, waist, placket. Nice floral print skirt with yellow and gray.

Companion: Mustard mini-dress with black waist and striped black runway from neck to hem, front and back. Meh. Color blocking 101

12. Nathan Paul (I wouldn’t wear either)

Origional: Hot pink long drapey gown with short sleeves, which is unusual. Cowl neck. Backless. It looked beautiful on the runway. 

Companion: Teal dress. Gathered in front. Draping in back, and in fact the back is most interesting part. I really wish this was just a halter without the sleve cap on one side. I do like the color.

13. Sonjia Williams (I wouldn’t wear either)

Original: Leopard-y pants with a drape-y over skirt-y part..made them look like maternity pants. Brown leathery jacket. Not sure if there was a top underneath, so the jacket seemed to be clipped closed at strategic places. Kind of haphazard looking.

Companion: Short dress with citron and leopard explosions from underneath a brown leathery vest.

14. Melissa Fleis (I’d Wear it)

Original: Black matte leather jacket with asymmetric hook & eye closure and long, long black skirt. All in  black. It's definitely marketable. Not sure it's innovative.

Companion: Black mini dress with one-shoulder/short sleeve and tail in the back. Overall, a simple, clean aesthetic that worked.

15. Raul Osorio (might wear the suit but no way on the dress or top)

Original: I really didn't like this. It was a gray pants suit, neither piece of which was particularly original or even well-fitted. But it was the old lady bowed blouse that you could see her golden bra through that really kind of killed me. Bleh.

Companion: Then he copied Lantie's doily dress approach and made a lace pouf-y halter short dress. In blush. With another very dated brooch at the neck. I'm shocked he wasn't in the bottom, honestly.

16. Fabio Costa (I wouldn’t wear either)

Original: Frumpy black dress with buttons down the front, and no sense of her figure underneath. Lots of weird asymmetry and bagginess. Overall effect=bag lady.

Companion: Dyed ombre short skirt with minimalist short sleeve striped top. While the look has an elegant feel to it I do not like the dye job or the colors.  Looks like a mechanic used that skirt for a hand towel.

The judges

Liked:

Ven: Two pieces worked well together.
Melissa: They know who she is. It's current.
Christopher: Fabric manipulation is well-done. (But MK no likee the styling: too "wedding party".)

Not so much:: 

Lantie: Poor construction. Sad. More styling than design to re-work vintage.
Beatrice: Sad. Too easy, not enough.
Kooan: Don't be a joke, don't be outrageous for its own sake.

Conclusion:

Winner = Christopher

Loser = Beatrice