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make it work
July 20, 2012

Project Runway Recap: ‘Where’s the Dress Part of It?’

By Lauren Hoffman

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Season ten of Project Runway! Even Tim Gunn can’t believe it. “I never thought it would go to season two!” Never change, Tim. Never change.

The two-and-a-half-hour event starts off with an hour-long casting special, which is pretty thankless for anyone who’s spent time on Lifetime’s website and is familiar with the cast already (and believe me, Lifetime’s website is punishing enough all on its own). There are some notable moments: Lantie, who is a grown woman (48 years old) but still hopes there’ll be a “pretty girl club”; Ven, who was inspired to design clothes by drawing the cover of the Beauty and the Beast VHS tape over and over as a child; and Fabio, who is a Brooklyn freegan. Here’s hoping he shows up with a continental breakfast of garbage doughnuts for his cast mates!

After a quick flash-forward peek at the episode’s challenge, the sixteen designers enter the workroom at Parsons and are greeted by looks they made at home with unlimited time and (presumably) an unlimited budget. Tim Gunn shows up to what seems like semi-subdued fanfare (one of the designers says he’s “tired” when Tim asks how they’re doing, and everyone knows the only correct sentiments in the presence of Tim Gunn are elated or terrified). He announces that they’ll have a single day to create a companion look to the look they designed at home, and that they’ll be showing both looks to the judges and thousands of onlookers in Times Square. The designers’ responses make it clear that most of them have never actually been to Times Square.

I like this as a first challenge, mostly because it gives the designers a clear opportunity to showcase their skills and points of view right off the bat, rather than requiring them to, say, make a cocktail dress out of boxers or pleated pants out of hamster cage shavings. When you’re judging people on the latter, you’re judging their ability to put together a costume for their child the night before the school play, not their ability to envision and execute a wearable design. There’s definitely a place for the wackier challenges, but it’s not this early in the competition, so this marks a good course correction from last season — as does the fact that there are some very strong contenders in the mix this time. Consider me stoked.

Christopher gets the “everything’s falling apart” edit — his sewing machine breaks! his bodice got ripped! he has so much to lose! —and, of course, this means he’ll win the challenge. He gets in a few good rounds of bickering with Gunnar, too, and their arguments are hilarious because of the one-liners they generate (“He should be on Toddlers & Tiaras, not Project Runway. Wrong show,” and, “It’s not Project Obnoxious.“), and also because Gunnar is desperate to get a reaction out of Christopher, who simply refuses to play along. Dmitry is established as the one who just wants to work quietly and mutter smack about his fellow designers; when trying to describe Buffi’s personality and design aesthetic (loud and all over the place), he points out, “She is like … a diarrhea.” Tim’s visit to the workroom shows him interacting very, very briefly with all of the designers except for Kooan, who is the human, sentient equivalent of an animated GIF. Tim stares at Kooan’s design for several seconds before finally saying, “Where’s the dress part of it?” Meanwhile, it becomes clear right away that Beatrice’s sewing skills aren’t going to (ugh, no pun intended) cut it.

Side note: Am I alone in wanting live-streamed video from the designers’ apartments in the style of The Glass House? I’m pretty sure I could watch 30 minutes a day of Christopher and Ven having pillow-talk time.

And then it’s off to Times Square, where Lauren Graham and Patricia Field join Heidi, Nina, and Michael on the judges’ panel. Nina is tamer than normal (either flawless Dolce & Gabbana brings out the best in all of us, or she’s lying in wait), Michael is tan as ever, Patricia Field is apparently recovering from swallowing a box of thumbtacks the night before, and it appears that Lauren Graham is not allowed to speak without Heidi Klum’s express approval. Maybe it was editing, but the way Heidi shut down Lauren’s attempt at defending Beatrice, the sweet, hapless knits designer whose “sad” looks got her eliminated, was kind of shocking. And in the end, it was Christopher who triumphed over the adversity carefully edited into the show for him to win the challenge on the grounds of the long, intricate dress he’d made at home (even though the little black dress he made as his companion garment took a lot of heat for being little, black, and a dress).

One designer down, and off we go! Who are your favorites to make it to Fashion Week? Is anyone else hoping that each of the final five designers has to design a look for one of Heidi Klum’s children?

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Alicia Hardesty Both the jumpsuit and the shirt-and-trousers combination are really similar to the bulk of Alicia's work. She prides herself on h... Alicia Hardesty Both the jumpsuit and the shirt-and-trousers combination are really similar to the bulk of Alicia's work. She prides herself on her tomboy aesthetic, and so there are lots of sleeveless tops, low-slung pants suspenders, buttons, hoods, and loose fits in her repertoire. But even though the jumpsuit looks like an old time-y bathing costume, it's still fairly flattering. If one of this season's challenges is to design outfits for the cast of Newsies (this absolutely needs to happen), she'll have it on lock.
Andrea Katz A fashion professor, self-described radical feminist and cat lady, and elder of the bunch at 58, Andrea says she's most interested in... Andrea Katz A fashion professor, self-described radical feminist and cat lady, and elder of the bunch at 58, Andrea says she's most interested in playing with shape and form to make women be and feel attractive in her clothes. Serious question: is it possible for a short dress with a hoop at the hips to be attractive and flattering? Her hoop-less dress, however, is pretty and flowed really nicely on the runway, even if the spaghetti straps make it seem a little dated. And she encouraged her models to smile, which was sweet.
Beatrice Guapo – Eliminated You couldn't help but feel for Beatrice, who was in over her head from the start and knew it. She does lovely kn... Beatrice Guapo – Eliminated You couldn't help but feel for Beatrice, who was in over her head from the start and knew it. She does lovely knit work -- her portfolio in the casting special was much stronger than the two looks she presented in the episode – so I'm not sure where things went wrong, or what she would have been able to do with a second challenge. The important thing is that now we all know how much Heidi Klum loves her Snuggie. Beatrice, you gave us that.
Buffi Jashanmal Oh, Buffi. Buffi loves sparkles and neon and things that are torn and doesn't mind being tacky or looking cheap on occasion. She ... Buffi Jashanmal Oh, Buffi. Buffi loves sparkles and neon and things that are torn and doesn't mind being tacky or looking cheap on occasion. She loves animal prints so fiercely that she has a neon leopard haircut. Put another way, she is Nina Garcia's worst damn nightmare. Her designs would be totally in place at Urban Outfitters, which is not an insult. There's definitely a market for what she's doing outside the competition, but selling the judges on what she does will be hard work. She seems pretty aware of her own limitations, and it will be interesting to see what she does in response to them.
Dmitry Sholokhov Early in the episode Dmitry talks about how he used to design ballroom dance costumes, and that aesthetic reads loud and clear i... Dmitry Sholokhov Early in the episode Dmitry talks about how he used to design ballroom dance costumes, and that aesthetic reads loud and clear in the floor-length dress he designed. It's good enough to get him to the middle (in combination with his too-much-going-on-but-still-boring little gray dress), but the only thing that makes it stand out is the material, which reads a little costume-y. He's getting a lighthanded version of the villain edit so far, and while this might just be because of his accent, it's more likely because he says things like. "Melissa, she looks like… groupie. Is that the word?"
Elena Slivnyak Elena's favorite topic of conversation is how avant garde she is, and that's fine. The judges' tolerance for avant garde design se... Elena Slivnyak Elena's favorite topic of conversation is how avant garde she is, and that's fine. The judges' tolerance for avant garde design seems to vary dramatically from season to season (and challenge to challenge), and it's not clear yet how flexible she's willing to be about her overall vision. The dress with the color-blocking was really nicely done; it stands to reason that she could branch out well. 
Gunnar Deatherage Gunnar told Tim in the workroom that his real passion is designing for older Southern women, and he seems to be pretty good at ... Gunnar Deatherage Gunnar told Tim in the workroom that his real passion is designing for older Southern women, and he seems to be pretty good at it, which isn't necessarily a compliment within the context of this show. What's sad is that in his audition portfolio, he had all these exciting vintage-y elements and hats and interesting combinations of textiles. Hopefully, that vitality will resurface later in the competition, instead of just an endless stream of Junior League dresses. Maybe the seething rage he has toward Christopher for winning the challenge will be a catalyst for positive design change?
Kooan Kosuke – Bottom Three Kooan is an enigma. Heidi put it well: "I definitely have a lot of question marks…[but your work] is intrig... Kooan Kosuke – Bottom Three Kooan is an enigma. Heidi put it well: "I definitely have a lot of question marks…[but your work] is intriguing. The question is, do I want to see more?" There was a lot of debate among the judges about whether Kooan is just weird or is just acting weird. His jumpsuit is interesting, his dress is not much more than a glittery sack, but he's silly and inscrutable and wild, which means he's tremendous television and will likely be around a few more episodes. His work got wild cheers in Times Square. And he threatened to cut his hair in the workroom. The Kooan Hour, ladies and gentlemen!
Lantie Foster – Bottom Three The judges took issue with Lantie's looks for being unflattering and sad; in particuar, Michael described them ... Lantie Foster – Bottom Three The judges took issue with Lantie's looks for being unflattering and sad; in particuar, Michael described them as a story that's only about textiles, only without any interesting textiles. She got one of the two "sads" of the evening, before Nina went full bore and told her it was horrifying. It might not be full-on horrifying, but it doesn't seem like she'll be able to achieve a higher design standard than, say, your neighborhood Forever 21. Lantie was really defensive during judging and acted particularly affronted when she was asked if everything she makes has a panel of unusual textile on the front, even though there were panels on both dresses she'd designed and the one she was wearing at the time.
Melissa Fleis – Top Three Michael loves Melissa. Michael gets Melissa. This is unsurprising, since Melissa spends most of her Mood time lovi... Melissa Fleis – Top Three Michael loves Melissa. Michael gets Melissa. This is unsurprising, since Melissa spends most of her Mood time lovingly caressing black fabrics and Michael will likely marry the color black as soon as it is legal to do so in the state of New York. Heidi, meanwhile, tells Melissa that her dresses are nice and something every girl would want to wear, but manages to do it like it's an insult. Melissa can talk about how her work was Bauhaus-inspired and she's clearly intelligent – with the technical skills to back it up – but she's going to have to make something that isn't a black dress at some point in the competition.
Nathan McDonald Nathan's pink dress was far more impressive on the runway than it is in pictures – it moved in a way that was really captiva... Nathan McDonald Nathan's pink dress was far more impressive on the runway than it is in pictures – it moved in a way that was really captivating, and I like that he chose strong colors for both looks in a season where close to the majority of the designers are drawn to black. He's one of my favorites, although the footage of him weeping profusely in upcoming episodes has me a little concerned.
Raul Osorio There was a lot of consternation in the workroom about how Raul's dress was basically see-through and he was going to have to send a ... Raul Osorio There was a lot of consternation in the workroom about how Raul's dress was basically see-through and he was going to have to send a half-naked girl down the runway, but once the show started, everything was fine. I think the dress is the more interesting of the two looks (in a napkin-y sort of way), but Raul claims that he absolutely loves the trousers and blouse and jacket that he made at home. The trousers are well-tailored, sure, but that's less of a blouse and more of a mess of lace plus a bow plus a bra. Not to pull a Nina so soon in the season, but I question his taste.
Sonjia Williams It's probably a good thing that Sonjia dyed her hair blue before the start of the season, because otherwise it'd be hard to remem... Sonjia Williams It's probably a good thing that Sonjia dyed her hair blue before the start of the season, because otherwise it'd be hard to remember who she was. The work she showed in the casting special was strong, and she emphasized wanting to design clothes for women who don't go to galas, but we didn't hear her speak much during the actual episode, and I definitely forgot both of these dresses as soon as I saw them.
Ven Budhu – Top Three Ven is going to be a polarizing figure this season, which mostly means that I don't like him very much, but think he h... Ven Budhu – Top Three Ven is going to be a polarizing figure this season, which mostly means that I don't like him very much, but think he has a really good chance of winning. His work speaks for him. Obviously, he has impeccable technical skills. The white pants are a feat all by themselves, and they're topped off with that flawlessly constructed flower bustier. Each element of that look is strong on its own. But everything he brought to auditions, presented last night, and has posted in his portfolio is white, pink, or red, and usually floral. I don’t want to pick on him for lack of range before the season's really begun, but I also don't want to spend four months looking at red, pink, and white flowers. Aim higher, Ven! I believe in you.
Christopher Palu – Winner Christopher's win was a delight, but a bit of a surprise. The little black dress he made had issues (it tore, it n... Christopher Palu – Winner Christopher's win was a delight, but a bit of a surprise. The little black dress he made had issues (it tore, it needed to be taken in two inches, etc.), and Lauren Graham pointed out that after nine seasons of watching the show, she finally understood why little black dresses were a bad idea – what's gorgeous up close or on camera often can't translate to the runway. But the strength of the gown Christopher made at home brings him the win. Heidi calls it exquisite, and she's right: the shape and design of the train make it feel really light and ethereal while the colors make it feel grounded and substantial. 
Fabio Costa Both of Fabio's looks are pretty simple. He's more fond of the black dress he made at home, but even though the cut is unusual, there... Fabio Costa Both of Fabio's looks are pretty simple. He's more fond of the black dress he made at home, but even though the cut is unusual, there's nothing terribly interesting about it. There's more going on with the skirt and shirt combination, but still, it's surprising to see him play it so safe when the rest of the work in his portfolio is trying so hard to be different (e.g., lots of straight jacket-style distressed t-shirts). Still, it's not the worst idea for him to play it safe until the herd of designers thins, and take risks later on.
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