Project Runway All-Stars: O Say, Can You Sew - The Recap

Last night, the designers visited the U.N. for their challenge - an outfit inspired by a flag.  Okay, random.  It sounds kind of half-assed but the results were hilarious.

Austin picked the Seychelles.  I would've loved it if he had gone literal with the flag.  He could have and been totally safe!


Maybe a little too safe but still - it wouldn't have been this

There's nothing really wrong with this dress but Isaac did call the front V-neck "tortured" and upclose, it's very tortured.  The colours don't really match the flag colours either.  Not a big deal to me but I would've preferred something like Michael's - one-shouldered and drapey with all the flag's colours meeting at the shoulder.  Much better.

Speaking of Michael, here's his Greek flag dress

I agree with not-Heidi about the bow: it would look better on a Christmas present.  I was hoping he'd use the shoes from last week as a pop of colour but he didn't understand subtlety this week with that bow.  I do like the dress though.  It's very Michael.

Jerell thought we were still stuck in last week's challenge: a stage costume.  I mean, what the eff is this mess?

Yes, Jerell, you picked India.  And yes, I totally called it by saying, "Jerell has India which means a lot of gold and a lot of tacky".  I might've been wrong about the gold but, girl, this is tacky.  And so costumey!  How did he take this outfit seriously?!  He should've taken the Kenley route and done the "anti" version of this.
What am I talking about?  I'm talking about the State of Kenley Collins where the national colour is polka dots and the uniform has a Peter Pan collar and white gloves.


I have no idea how she thinks long sleeves are a good thing in Chile but whatever.  And she somehow got her polka dots in there as well, so...whatever.  Isaac, who I love more and more each week, told her to STOP making the same silhouette over and over.  THANK YOU ISAAC.  I'm glad you said something because it seems as though everyone else is afraid to say it.  Back to the "anti" thing - one of the judges (I think it was Georgina) said that when she thinks of Chile, she sees ponchos but this girl that Kenley designed for is the opposite of what you would think - and that works.  Okay.  It does but how on earth do you get heart-shaped polka dots and candy stripes from the Chilean flag?!

MOVING ON

Mila took us on a split personality Russian adventure.  So you'd think she has the Russian flag, yes?  NO.  She has New Guinea.

I get it.  The hint of yellow, the construction on the short dress, the construction on the long dress...but why?  Why the split personalities?  Why not put a bird on it?  Hiiiyoooo.  But seriously - why?  This outfit looks like all she's missing in the bear in a fez and the rest of her traveling Russian circus.  And although I'm not a Mila fan, I would've preferred her staying over Jerell.  Yes, Jerell stays.  BARF.
 
Now, can I just say - Mondo's mitering is lovely. Just so lovely. He could've had a boring black dress but no. Not on his watch.
 
LOVE IT.  Subtle.  Sweet.  Mondo.  I'm not too crazy about the headwrap thing but that pop of colour on the back is gorgeous.  Not too literal with the flag and it works.  Another Mondo win!  YES!!  How am I celebrating this Mondo win?  By successfully executing a Mondo pouf!

WHAT WHAT!
It's not as neat as Mondo's since I didn't gel it and I don't have a trusty barrel roller.  Also it's super humid outside.  Eww.  I basically started teasing my hair and when I got all frustrated, I started twisting my hair and it magically fell into place.  I'm not kidding.  I'm so proud of this.  I can't wait for my next attempt since I'll be ready for it.

You know what else I'm ready for?

PHARRELL WILLIAMS NEXT WEEK!
 


Finally! In fact, I had *almost* forgotten he was a judge on PRAS until I saw the preview - which came on AFTER After The Runway - which was a little boring since Mila talked shit via pre-recorded message and they recapped every single thing we had JUST seen. Yawn.  But I liked how pretty much everyone said that Mila should've stayed over Jerell.  And they all said it IN FRONT of Jerell.  Get over yourself, Boo.  Your designs are barf-o-rama.

BACK TO PHARRELL.



He's going to make the designers do some crazy-ass light show next week and I can't wait!!!  Kenley will probably find little lights to make her own light up polka dot pattern and Isaac will take her over his knee and spank her.  Austin will probably come up with some weirdo rich-lady-fell-into-a-glow-in-the-dark-paint-pit evening gown.  Jerell will make something tacky AS USUAL.  Michael will drape some lights on it.  Mondo will make technicolour magic.  At least, that's what I'm hoping for next week!

Project Runway All-Stars: Puttin' on the Glitz - the Recap

Holy Broadway!
Our fair designers had to design an outfit for one cast member of the Broadway show Godspell.  The winning look was to be in the show (obvs) AND the winning designer got a bio page in the Playbill.  SAY WHAT.
They were challenged to dress a very eccentric older woman who liked to flaunt her money.  So basically, it was like that older lady that you see in suburbia that wears all her jewelry at the same time at the flea market or something.  At least that's what I thought of.  Here's what the designers thought of...

Let's start with Jerell so we can get him out of the way early.

Ugh. Hate the hair, hate the skirt and I definitely hate his attitude a little more each week.  The jacket is nice but I don't think I like the fur/feather things at the cuffs.  The colour is also a little too drab for me.  and that hair with the lace on the front of the jacket makes me think of a whorehouse in the Wild Wild West.

Mila's looked like she was supposed to be working on the corner for Jerell's Whorehouse Madam.

Or she could pass for a socialite in the early days of when being a socialite was getting popular on the interwebs and the TMZs.  Mila also thought that a lot of gold equaled money.  No, honey, it just looks tacky.  THIS LOOK SHOULD'VE GOTTEN MILA ELIMINATED.

Kenley was off her game last night.  I guess because she wasn't making anything with polka dots - which Joanna Coles was so sweet to point out.

I was too busy trying to figure out how she was going to survive since she couldn't make a Peter Pan collar for this challenge! LOL, I kid.  But seriously - the "Thrift Store" vibe she was trying to channel was not working for me and the fur trim on the collar looked sloppy.  She's not a master of the mixed prints like Mondo but we'll get to him shortly.

Michael's looked more contemporary rather than vintage, I thought.

The colours were pretty and worked very well together while the shape of the skirt had me making mental sketches on how I could possibly make a skirt like that for myself. I'd love to have this skirt in black!  It's so cute and so perfect for Spring!  And those shoes.  THOSE SHOES!  I want them!  I even want the green ribbons he used to tie them on his model!  LOVE!

Kara surprised me with her look.  I LOVED IT.

The bow was a little too large and in charge for me but I loved the black fur with the red skirt and the black and silver top. It was like the dreamiest outfit for any HBIC.  Too bad this look got her eliminated.  That really sucks because Mila and Jerell should've been gone...

Austin got a little catty on the runway when Isaac accidentally called him "Austin Starlette".  Shut up Austin.  You're still a perv with that mustache.

While this was a cute outfit, I was little confused about the leggings. Heather brought up a good point - he probably made them to be functional for the costume changes or something but I felt like while that was a nice thought, it didn't go well with the outfit.  I liked the cut of the dress and the big, billowy skirt but the hair wasn't working for me.  Well done Austin.

Mondo said he had to go to a dark place for this one.  During his mentoring session with Joanna, he presented a great idea with the smoking jacket and the pattern mixing which got me all excited.  But the put the jacket together and he hated the look.  WHAT?!  No, Mondo!  It was fabulous on the dress form but I will admit, the patterns were a bit much.  But then that realization didn't matter because Mondo is the MASTER of mixed prints so there was nothing to be worried about, right?  Right.

While the hair reminded me a little of Johnny Depp's Mad Hatter, I still loved the look.  The peacock eye-looking gold toned fabric over the shiny gold fabric was lovely and the rich hues from the jacket were a great match to all those golds and yellows - which led Mondo to another victory!  Hooray!  This was exactly the boost he needed coming off of his loss last week (which I still think was bullshit).  Way to go Mondo!! 

The preview for next week wasn't really that much of an informative preview at all but I'm hoping that will be when Jerell or Mila (or both in the dreaded double elimination) will get the boot.  I can only hope...

Inspired: Rodarte Star Clips

Is it possible to love an accessory so much you want to marry it? Yes. Yes it is.What accessory am I talking about? Why, this little darling from the Rodarte show yesterday...

Precious. I want it. I need it. But I can't quite have one. What, then? Do I curl up in bed and go wanting? NO! These little star beauties reminded me of these little star beauties:

They're not exactly the same BUT I think I'll take a cue from this fellow DIY-er and try to make my own.
I'll try to make mine closer to the ones seen at Rodarte but we'll see...Honestly, I think it will have a more Janine Basil feel - which I'm totally okay with since her stuff is AWESOME.
After reading this great article on From Me To You about the behind the scenes of the Rodarte show, I'm totally inspired to get my sick self crafting.Since I can't be in all the NYFW fun and since I definitely can't afford the fashion - why not try to recreate a budget-friendly version?  I enjoy that!  Maybe I'll have enough strength (and courage) to make my version of that cute L.A.M.B. pleated skirt?  I hope so!  Maybe I'll enlist the help of my Mom or Oni...making an actual garment from scratch scares me!

Victoria's Secret Fashion Show - Preview before the big show!

The Victoria's Secret Fashion Show happened on the 9th and I've been seeing photos from EVERYWHERE on the internets.  I was going to wait to post them until AFTER the fashion show aired on CBS (November 29th at 10pm) but I can't wait, so here they are!

I'm loving these Victorian-inspired looks.  The boots, the cameos, the lace - GORGEOUS

 

Miranda Kerr rockin' the $2.5Million+ Bra!  Gorgeous!

 
The Swarvoski Elements wings are AMAZING!!!  I cannot wait to see them walk down the runway along with these beautiful feather wings!




 
Adorbs super hero / comic book gals!  I'm sure there's more and I can't wait to see them all!!




ZOMG!  How Heatherette are these Pink looks?!  I'm in LOVE with the neon wings!  So cute!!





 


This post is a clusterfuck of photos, I know, but I guess I won't have screen caps until the fashion show airs on 11/29.  Mark your calendars!  I know I did!  It comes on CBS at 10pm!  Don't forget!  Nicki Minaj, Jay Z,  Kanye West and Maroon 5 all perform as well, so you won't want to miss it!

Katzi
S.L.Y.A.S.D.I.

(photo source)

Project Runway: What Woment Want - The Recap

He did it! Joshua edited his aesthetic, left the attitude at home and freakin' WON! I know he techincally won the New Balance challenge but in reality, Viktor was announced first and then Joshua's name was called but who cares - he has 2 wins now!! Good for you bb! Last night's challenge was fun! It was boyfriends/husbands describing looks for their girlfriends/wives to the designers. It was full of hilarousness, awkwardness and lots and lots of boob talk - which made Olivier a little upset because his client kept saying his wife had HUGE BOOBS but in actuality, they weren't that big. See?

I'll admit that the top does tone them down a bit but, believe me, they're not as huge as the guy made them out to be.

More after the jump!

Project Runway: The live-blog: What Women Want

The 2010 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show

This is one of my favourite nights because I love love LOVE the VS Fashion Show! Every year, they put the playfulness back into the runway not only with the fashions and the ridiculously crazy wings, but with great performances by their musical acts and the models themselves.
This year saw cute designs smashed against the WEIRDEST thing: a Country theme?
I know, right? WTF?! It was not cute AT ALL. I have a lot of respect for the designers, don't get me wrong, but I hate MOST country things.
I mean, WTF is this shit?!

Doily wings that looked like they were plucked off MeeMaw's table? MeeMaw's table cloth that she loved to literal pieces and turned into a quilt which turned into a jacket AND wings (wings not pictured but trust me, they exist). Oh, and let's not forget the straw/hay wings that were probably heavy as FUCK (but probably not as heavy as these). They were pretty neat BUT they blended into that poor model's hair and it was like, "Oh look, they made wings out of hair. Why would they make wings out of hair? In the country portion? Oh...wait. They're zooming in. Yes, camera person, those are boobs. Zooming...zooming...HAY? WTF?! Wings out of hay???"

*faceplam*

MOVING ON.

The rest of the outfits were great! The "Tough Love" portion had a few obvious nods to McQueen that were FABS.

They all looked like little trampy vixens and I loved it! Especially Adriana.

ADRIANA LIMA APPRECIATION
I just can't get enough of her. It's almost like she's not even real. She's that beautiful to me


The Sports segment was a little weird. It had its hits and misses (ZING!) but it was well done. Definitely creative!

And I LOVE that guy's face in the middle pic on the bottom row. "No, I'm totes NOT checking out Alessandra's ass! Whatevs. Okay I am."

You're silly.

The Jungle segment was pretty. The peacock wings were to die for!!!


This was AMAZING!!!

Look at that headdress!!!
FLAWLESS!!!

Then Akon came out and sang during what I dubbed the "Goddess" portion of the show. Goddesses, indeed! Look at these ladies!

And to think: these aren't even all the outfits! *gasp*



My most favourite outfit of the night was this one:

STUNNING!!!! There are no words that can describe how I feel about this outfit...Stunning doesn't even cut it.

On to the Candy Raver slumber party!!!!



I was loving the "Rainbow Brite come to life" aura of this:

Squee!!! Super cute!

Along with the model interviews and behind the scenes featurettes, there was also a Director's track. There were several people on headsets that were announcing who was walking next, which segment they were running and so on and so forth. I can appreciate that because that's always interesting to me but I couldn't help but think that they got some guy and some gal to come in during post and add in their "cues". Not even the real people directing the show, just some random voice over talents. You never saw who was talking during the director's track and you only saw fleeting moments of a person wearing headsets while they were pointing frantically or ushering the next model to the staging area or to her wardrobe station. And knowing how hectic it gets back there, if they had actually used the live director's track, there would have been a lot of censoring. I know I would be cussing up a storm. But once the dust settles, it's all hunky dory. It's the heat of the moment. I get it. Good job, voice over people!

Catch more VS shenanigans here and here. I want to try and find more outfits because these aren't ALL of the outfits from the runway! They were all so awesome (save for the country but I'll shut up about them now). Off to hunt for more!

Love and kisses,
Katzi
S.L.Y.A.S.D.I.