Project Runway - Episode 5 - here you are christie

[fuzzywuzzy]

Episode 5 - from Bravo and Tim Gunn's blog

For this challenge, Heidi brings in the models: twelve women, each of whom has undergone a significant weight loss. They are wearing the outfit that they loved most when they were at their heaviest, so on the runway they look like deflated balloons. Heidi announces that for this challenge, the designers will create a beautiful new look for these women using the clothes they’re wearing as the raw material for that look. She then assigns each model/client to a designer by selecting names from our velvet bag.

The designers are given 30 minutes to meet with their new clients in the workroom. That accomplished, I take them shopping for extra fabric and/or notions with a budget of $10 (yes, ten dollars). They have until midnight of that day, with a possible hour or two in the morning, to complete their work for the challenge.

Finally, I’m terribly sorry to say that we lose Jack in this challenge. He was seized by a repeat episode of an extremely serious staph infection, one that would require a week in the hospital with an IV drip. Morally, ethically, and medically, it was impossible to keep him on the show. Chris March was the last designer to be out, so we brought him back to replace Jack. Owing to the fact that Chris began the challenge very late, we allowed him to work through the night. Here is the joke on Tim...He tells Chris be careful you don't want to make any mistakes. I can't remember how many mistakes that I've made at 3:00 am" The tiddling of the designers begins...Tim looks around gets the joke , and says, "See shows you what an old fart I am, I didnt' get why you were laughing"

Christian wins, and in his own words, “Finally!” Our resident wunderkind really deserved this win, too. He created a look that embraced his spirit of innovation, but it was grounded enough to navigate the real world, too. And that, readers, was the challenge. His client, Kerry, looked “fabulous” in the reinvention of her heaviest weight outfit: a fitted and cropped jean with a shrunken jacket (a metaphor?) over a nude top. I was crazy about the horizontal pleats in the placket of the jacket. Furthermore, the silhouette and proportions of the entire look was “fierce.” Go, Christian!

Steve is OUT. I felt sick for Steve from the moment he received Laura as his client, because of -- omigod -- that wedding dress. To be blunt, the prospect of working with a full-length gown of white polyester/acetate with prefabricated adornments of cheap-and-cheerful lace, pearls, and beading was daunting even to me. And Steve’s decision to create a black dress and use remnants of the wedding dress for a collar and cuffs was risky. A black-and-white design scenario, especially with a collar and cuffs, is rife with clichés, and how to mitigate that trap added another dimension to the challenge. Had the dress been flawlessly executed, Steve would have had a hard enough time on the judging runway. But given that it was an oversized jumble of disparate parts, he was unable to defend the hot mess. Steve, we will sincerely miss you!

Chris returned to replace Jack, who had only barely begun to work with his client, Sylvia, when the impact of his infection became too serious for him to remain. So as happy as we are to have our dear Chris back in the workroom, what-oh-what was he thinking when he created Sylvia’s new look? Considering his background as a costume designer, I have been pleased that he has avoided that potential trap -- until now. If one were to remove the red sash from the skirt, then you’d be left with a baby-blue top with a scooped neckline and a navy pencil skirt. But even the skirt’s red kick-pleat was a costume nod. So was Sylvia’s runway styling: another slash of red in the form of a scarf that was tied around her neck. I didn’t get it. Was she boarding the HMS Pinafore or was she engaging in a French apache dance? Perhaps both!

Elisa’s design point of view was simply too dominant in this challenge. Tracy, her client, had lost 102 lbs., so Elisa had volumes of fabric with which to work. Frankly, those excesses contributed to her derailment, at least in my opinion. The look she created had too many layers, too much asymmetry, and was just, well, too much. This was to be an outfit for Tracy’s everyday life. I wasn’t a believer, unless Tracy is a ringmaster for Barnum & Bailey. Elisa, please tone down the clown clothes!

Jillian stunned me with her bold decision to barely use any of her client Erika’s wardrobe. Frankly, I was prepared for the possibility of a “disqualification” ruling from the judges. Jillian told me that she replicated the red of Erika’s shirt in the fabric that she bought (and I’m not at all certain how she obtained all of that fabric for a mere $10), and she cut up Erika’s pants for strips for piping I have to say that her design was strong: a red dress with a halter cum racer back. And her use of the piping to create the illusion of a longer and leaner silhouette was outstanding. I’m merely happy that the judges subscribed to the package, whereas I would have balked.

Kevin created a strapless, modified bustier top that flared from the waist and fell to mid-thigh. This was paired with black leggings. The top was in canary yellow with graphic accents in black: large buttons and piping. I found the look to be sleek and modern, and it looked adorable on his client Elise who walked it on the runway with extraordinary confidence. I saw Kevin as a strong contender for the win, except for the limitations of where Elise could really wear this look: everyday? I don’t think so.

Kit’s design was ambitious. Her client Alicia had lost 160 lbs, which was even more ambitious an achievement! Kit had a difficult shade of pink with which to work, plus a non-cohesive black and white print. To her credit, she made it work: a short and “girly” (her words) trapeze dress in the difficult pink with an underskirt and waistband in the print. It was a pretty dress, but was it fashion?

Rami created a tailored, high-waisted skirt paired with an organic, draped top. The skirt was sleek and beautifully fitted on his client, Lisa, and it offered an excellent counterpoint to the superbly draped top of twists and pleats, his Greco-Roman signature. Frankly, I was surprised that he didn’t remain on the runway as one of the three strongest designers for this challenge. Was his work too basic in the eyes of the judges? We’ll never know.

Ricky designed a baby-doll top and cropped jean for his client Penny. The top was in a nude fabric with a jeweled neckline. He gave the silhouette additional dimension by using a sash at the waist. Penny looked great on the runway, but regarding the top, I had to ask myself at how many stores on Madison Avenue could one buy an almost identical look?

Sweet P’s client Chris lost 100 lbs, thereby leaving Sweet P with ample fabric with which to work. She took the olive gray poly-blend and created a halter dress that evolved from basic to stunning with the use of white piping along the seams. Heidi asked for “beautiful” and Sweet P delivered it!

Victorya’s model Ory had lost 139 lbs. When Heidi made the initial introduction, Ory was wearing a dark green velvet floor-length dress. That meant that Victorya had plenty of material with which to work. What eluded me was how little innovation and invention Victorya brought to this challenge. Basically, she shortened the dress and fitted it very well to Ory’s newfound figure. Victorya even described it as a “cocktail dress.” How was it that so many of the designers lost sight of the premise of the challenge: to create an everyday look? To repeat: it eluded me.