Finale Part 1

Ok deeeeeesignahs, you are in for the finale. Wait, you are ALMOST in, we are going to (hopefully) kick someone off before a final twist (I'm sure) and then the Final Runway Show.

What a waste of my time.Raise your hand if you DIDN’T think they were going to keep all 4 after all? I thought so from the first moment, but then what about when Tim did the home visits and Anya hadn’t sewn one item to show Tim? Who are we kidding? It was only going to be 3 designers if someone besides Anya or Josh had failed in their looks worse than them.

I do actually like the home visits. It’s nice to see the designers in their home element; they always look healthier and happier at home. Interesting that all of them had a “death” story to tell. See Josh, you are not the only one with sadness.

The thing I will say about this episode, the judging was the best it has been all season. This season, the

judges have been so catty and mean and contradicting at every turn. It has really turned me off of the show,

among their choices for favorites and un-favorites. This night, they really seemed to be giving honest critique to them about what they did and didn’t like. I hope the designers are smart and take their advice

seriously.

The obvious front runner was Viktor.

How cool was the gasps when he took that leather jacket out? I agree, his zippered outer skirt was too much with the top, I think he will listen and not have them together on the runway. The judges critiques were mostly nitpicky, but will only help him when it counts. Out of this final group, he is my favorite. He may be the one to beat in the final runway show, unless he just does too much technique.

Josh’s looks were kind of weird, but I knew the judges were going to think it was enough to keep him. The black cocktail dress was so lame, I don’t know why he chose this to show for his mini collection, except maybe to prove that his whole collection is not filled with the cray cray. I just don't see anything very amazing or fashion forward here. It will also be interesting to see how much he listened to Tim for his final collection.

I like the direction Kimberly was going with her looks, well except that pink skirt. God that pink skirt. I don’t mind the bubble butt, in fact I’m totally down with it, but the front! The front makes me cry. It was so weird and disproportionate and yikes. Honey can we get rid of that thing or what? I liked where she was going with the styling, the judges are just haters. I can’t wait to see all of her looks together. I’m glad she made it. Let's face it, there have been quite a few black designers in the finals, but none have won. If you look in the fashion world, there is still not much diversity, period.

Anya’s collection. I don’t care what anyone says, this is straight up crack smoking that got her to the finals. If they were going to send all 4, which they were, then why waste the time? Listen, if any one else had sent that gold dress down the runway, in any challenge, they would have been laughed off the stage. Do you hear me? It's ill fitting, sewn terribly and has no interesting design. It's a disgrace. Ok the print dress is cute, but what is it without that belt cinching it all in? The bathing suit was so unflattering I couldn’t handle it.

That. Gold. Dress. Get it out of my sight!

This season has been a joke. It's now a reality show with some sewing. I won't be blogging about the show again after this season. Last season we could see it was really falling apart, but there was some good work making it down the runway. I loved Mondo, but the judges were so fixated on Gretchen they couldn't even see his work. Which all in all was fine, he wasn't stuck with all the rules that come with winning the prize. However we could already tell the show was doing bad, I don't think I even finished blogging last season.

I was willing to give it another chance because it is one of my absolute favorite shows, I really enjoy watching Tim Gunn interact with the designers. When the judges give good critiquing, they are also great. Sometimes you would get a fun guest judge or challenge and it's so fun. This season we didn't get really any of that. The difference between the bottom and top looks were so minuscule the judges were making up stuff to justify what they were doing. It seemed like the producers have had a heavy hand in who went home and who stayed. The challenges were just strange and I have barely been watching each episode.

Do I care who wins the whole thing? At this point, no. I'd like to see it be Kimberly or Viktor, but it won't be shocking if neither of them wins. Be prepared for them to have to make a last look this week, they almost always have to.

Am I going to watch Project Runway All Stars? Most definitely, it will be great to see designers that can actually produce great work. I won't need to be that invested, because if these designers aren't doing well by now, it's their own fault, not the judges this time.

Project Runway, I'm sorry but you're Out.

Mini Colletions

In which we find out who will be the 4th designer after Anya and Josh, who have been let through each week up until now anyway, so why not?

On a positive note, what a great chance for the designers to practice in front of the judges before fashion week. They also brought back some familiar faces, with the auf’d designers to be their seamstress slaves. (This has been done since Season 1, so it’s nothing too earth shattering.)

It’s very hard to judge these, because I felt like they were all kind of terrible in a way.

How lucky for Miss Anya to have Bert helping her drape, sew and do most of the work. Sadly, compared to the rest of the designers, this did look the most cohesive and elegant. Sigh. We all know she’s going to make it to Fashion Week, there is absolutely no way the judges aren’t going to make sure that happens.

The designers were asked to make a range of clothing, which she didn't (can't) really do. However, even when the judges don't mention it, they want cohesive looks.

We also said Auf Weidersehen to Laura/Barbie. She had been going on and on all season about how sophisticated her style was and this was her final shining moment to show everyone up and she choked. Apparently the judges had worn her down, they did need someone to be the punching bag it seems.

This was a WTF moment here, and really what sent her home:

As for the “Safe” ones….

Kimberly’s looks were very Kimberly. I’m not sure why she likes such heavy fabrics. I feel like with more time and a better color palate, these could totally work. I think Kimberly has an audience that would buy her clothes and I’m hoping that she does well and makes it to the finals. The orange coat was not her best work, but I appreciated that she made a coat, it just was too heavy. The look on the far right...I just can't.

I absolutely hated Josh’s collection. The white dress wasn’t bad, it’s nothing very special. The look with the striped shirt and vest was way overpraised, I have no idea why the judges went on about it so long. And the Statue of Liberty dress or whatever it was? Why was there a black tank top underneath it? A definite WTF moment. There goes those judges, back to their crack!

Also, how do these go together? Because they go with his outfit?

Oh Viktor. The judges have quietly noticed that Viktor can make clothes and make them well. I liked what they called the secretary look and the pants look. The LBD was a little random and boring. I didn’t think the hip thing went well with that. However, I think it was smart of Viktor to do what he does well at this stage in the game. He knew the other designers were going to freak out and make mistakes. There was no way he wasn’t going to make it if he made well made chic clothes. He has tried to impress the judges with gowns and it hasn’t worked. I can’t wait to see his collection!

I would totally rock this look at work. Why do they make it sound like such a curse that he makes kick ass separates that have a subtle twist?

It's no secret that the judges have been over praising Josh and Anya all season. Now we can finally see if they were right all along when we see their final collections. I'm glad Viktor has made it through and we will see if Kimberly can handle more pressure as we get into the final stretch.

Last of all, I'm going to leave you with some pretty. I love her!

This is for the birds

At this point in the game, it's like a fashion designer boiling point experiment: How many crazy twists can we put on the designers before they stab each other with their scissors?

It started out birds as inspiration. Good idea to start....

Twist 1: Pairs challenge

Twist 2: Not a pairs challenge, surprise, you're against each other!

Then they added Collier Strong to make it a makeup ad. Not a twist, but duly noted for the designers: styling is going to be a big focal point in the judging. The winning look will actually be in a L'oreal ad AND $20,000! Pretty big deal.

The designers work away on their high fashion look when Twist 3 appears: Not one, but two looks for the runway! Off to sketch and back to Mood they go. Nobody loses their money this time....mmmhmm

As if this wasn't twisty -turny enough, Tim comes BACK again to tell them that Twist 4: "nevermind" they will pick only one look for the runway, and they get to choose which one.

Are you confused yet? sigh. I'm just confused at what came down the runway, but then again they were being jerked around every 2 hours on what they were supposed to be doing!

As for the match ups...

Kimberly vs. Viktor

Kimberly barely made it this round, she had more than a few ups and downs and nervous breakdowns. She also hasn't been on her game for a few weeks, and then getting pitted against Viktor didn't help her self esteem. This week's challenge actually made me sad it wasn't a pairs week, I would have loved to see a collaboration with these two designers! However, this is what we got from the Cockatoo inspiration.

Kimberly's look came at the 11th hour and she ended up snagging the win out of the two. They thought Viktor's was too literal. Perhaps it was, but it did end up being a beautiful gown. I wish all the designers hadn't been so literal with their coloring. I think these were both lovely, but Kim's does have more of the wow factor than Viktor's when you side by side. I know that frustrated Viktor who spent more time on his, but it's really not about how much or how little time was spent. Hopefully this gives Kim the kick in the ass she needs!

Josh vs. Bert

Josh and Bert didn't go super literal with their coloring, but unfortunately they didn't capture any of the joy from their inspiration of the parrot. Josh really does do better when he does a toned down version of his crazy ideas. I wonder if this one went too toned down? It did look better on the runway than in this still. Perhaps he figured if he was going to compete with Bert's simple sophistication he would need to stifle the excess and make something that was a well made current look and hope that Bert continued on his somewhat dated looks he can be known for.

Bert somehow took the fun out of Sweetie the parrot and unfortunately also got the Auf. His look was not current, interesting or had any kind of wow factor. I don't even think it was the coloring that hurt him as the design was a little too prom and just not fun at all.

I think many people were rooting for Bert. Although he seemed to come off as the cranky older man a few times, you could tell deep down he has the know-how to pull off an exquisite runway show, but in the confines of these challenges, he couldn't roll with how fast you have to work and all the twists and turns they kept throwing out. Goodbye Bert, I can't wait to see your decoy runway show.

Anya vs. Laura

Did you see how ecstatic Anya was when she thought she had Laura as a partner and not an enemy? She probably thought she could just come up with the style and Laura would do all the sewing. Luckily for Anya she quickly realized she was going to have to change up her game to compete with someone with more experience than her. These girls had the Raven, which of course would have been my favorite choice. It pains me to admit, but Anya had the better look. Anya went for a more structured look, which is what I would think of with a raven, and it ended up having the feel of a bird, without looking like a bird. I was also very curious about her other look, the fabric was so interesting, I was looking forward to seeing how it was going to turn out.

As for Laura's look, well I don't know if it being too literal was her downfall as just being a bad look. Had this been an amazing jacket or dramatic coat, she could have blown Anya out of the water, but unfortunately the jacket didn't seem the right fit or shape. The feathers around the lapels just looked cheap and with the jacket hitting right there, it makes you focus more on her tight pants. The styling was terrible to boot! Hey Barbie, what the heck are you doing? I thought you were all about sophistication and really well made expensive looking clothes? It just didn't work and she's lucky she didn't get the Auf.

Did anyone watch "After the Runway" I did and wished I hadn't. So I just think Josh is even more of a immature douche and Anya is really just playing the game. Should she have helped Josh when he asked for fabric? It wouldn't be wise to help Josh at all, however isn't it a little hypocritical for her to deny help when she has received so much from others? Or is that everyone else's fault for helping her? I wonder if the other designers knew back then that she would win so many challenges, if they would still help her?

Sew 70's

Sew 70's: As in, judges are back to their regularly scheduled program of crack smoking.

I know! The designers did so bad making 60's and 70's clothes, let's make them make 70's clothes and make them Modern and Chic! Do you think they have the cognitive capacity and know-how to make this happen? Answer: The producers are asking these questions so I'm assuming the answer is "No" so they can have what they want-more drama and tragedy on the runway. Sure, they probably plan out the challenges and guest judges much before they do them, but that doesn't mean they don't switch the order around for better TV.

I don't have much to say about this one, so let's get our pipes ready....

This boring maxi dress by Anya won. Oh Anya, you're so amazing with prints, you really know how to dress a woman: blah blah blah. Congrats Anya, you're beautiful and you can design clothes. I suppose I'm just being a hater.

Wait, I forgot this is a jumper so those are pants. Nope, I'm not impressed. That and this was sold for $198 on Piperlime.com and is already sold out.

Here's Heidi showing her Anya-love. Heidi is showing that model how to WORK!

.....I just don't trust Anya.....

Plus I do feel honestly that the judges are giving Anya leeway on her designs, knowing her sewing skills are not up to par.

"Anya, this concerns me"

"Don't worry Tim, I got this. The judges eat up whatever I put on that runway. Smize!"

In another double win: Bert also won.

Who knew the old dog had it in him? He's just biding his time while the other designers bicker and freak out and he may just calmly walk into the finals. Who knows?

This still bores me.

Viktor robbed again. This outfit looked better without the jacket and the pants are not a particularly flattering cut, but overall he had the best look. Once again.

I guess they gave up on doing anything with the models on this show? I don't really mind, but Viktor really needs to get rid of this model, I think she's hurting his chances.

Image is Everything

I love Adam Lambert but I don't think he added anything to this challenge. Good idea but I don't remember anything profound.

Also, how much do you wish that Seth Aaron had done this challenge?

Let's Carry On....

The previous week the designers were tricked into thinking they had to design menswear.

Surprise!

This challenge they really did have to do menswear.

The designers watch The Sheepdogs, aka Most Patient Band Ever, perform their Creedence style music and talk about what they like to wear. The designers are split into two "teams" of four, with each band member covered by one designer on each team for a total of two super groovy outfits. Tim tells them it is not a team challenge in the sense that there needs to be cohesion, yet they still have to come up with a team name. To recap: Menswear, guys who like the 70's, teams that are not teams and more menswear which the designers hate.

The band members were so sweet, they really did have to be pretty involved; consultations, fittings and Garnier Fructis ads for two designers. They all handled it with a sense of humor and put up with a lot of personality and hideous clothing. Let's see how they designed their band member, shall we?

Band Member: Leot

Top: Laura

Bottom: Viktor

At top here we have blood spatter alley and wannabe cool guy. It's obvious the designers failed all around on this challenge. However these two were pretty good. Yes, Laura's was on the feminine side, but I liked that it kind of looked bloody, it made a little more rock and roll compared to the other cheesy hippie vibe looks. Viktor was the winner, and that was good to see.

Team Untitled: 1

Team Harmony: 0

Band member: Ryan

Top: Anthony Ryan

Bottom: Joshua

Interesting that the pants look the same, except as we know Josh's look has the look at my crotch zipper. Anthony Ryan's shirt hurts my eyes and there's so much going on with Josh's look, it's actually helping that the eyes are drawn to the zipper. Joshua wins this round.

Team Untitled: 2

Team Harmony: 0

Band member: Sam

Top: Kimberly

Bottom: Anya

At Top, Shaggy. Underneath, Pocahontas. I guess if I have to choose one, I'm going with Kimberly's.

Team Untitled: 3

Team Harmony: 0

Band member: Ewan

Top: Bert

Bottom: Olivier

At Top, sassy viking. Underneath butch wallpaper. Bert easily wins this round. He was the only one that did good on the top, not trying to make a fem button up with a sad collar. I also liked his pants. Overall not good, but in comparison to the others, I give it a pass.

Team Untitled: 3

Team Harmony: 1

So, if this had been a team challenge, Team Untitled probably would have won with the judges and Olivier would have been saved. That would have put Team Harmony on the chopping block and Anya in danger of the auf. I say danger because although she had the worst design, I don't see the judges sending her home unless she commits a horrible crime against boobs and Heidi cries.

I have a lot of questions running through my mind:
Why did they think fringe was going to be cool?
Why can't the guys make better menswear? Do they not make clothes for themselves?
Did the band members have a contract that made them do the show? Or did they think it was going to be something different than it turned out to be?

Oh sweetie.

Here is Olivier with the only models he can handle. They can't talk, they don't have breasts or hips, they are not tall or large and they don't have personalities.

I was never an Olivier fan. His accent confused me, it changed so often. I didn't like his clothes; they were sad colors, sad shapes and always had strange folds. No thank you Olivier, stick with the dummies-literally.