If we have to have another informerical throughout this episode, I’m glad it is for Broadway. This weeks looks will be based on the musical Finding Neverland. Okay, I just has a minor freakout because for a minute it looked like the new Rachel Zoe show taped in place of this one. This means the end of my recording may be cut short.
We are down to eight designers and Swapnil has decided to start actually putting in some effort. Oh, look! It’s Matthew Morrison with a full beard! They get to see the show and it’s clear that Kelly has never been to a Broadway show before. “It’s like the movies, but in 3-D.” Every time I go to a Broadway show, I am mostly focused on not crying out loud. This was particularly hard during Phantom of the Opera since the girl I went with was sobbing like a grieving widow the whole time. It’s just such an emotional experience. Lindsey in particular did a lot of crying. Hopefully, she will be inspired and put something decent on the runway. Laurie seemed unimpressed. Maybe she has been to a lot of shows. For me, it’s a cryfest every time.
Laurie is inspired by her childhood. Lindsey is already questioning her ability to choose fabrics in MOOD. “Is this too couchy,?” she asks Tim. Any amount of “couchy” is too couchy. Candice wants to focus on black because Captain Hook has a line in the play about owning your darkness. She launches into a story about her parents both being drug addicts. It seems the play has awoken lots of childhood memories in the designers, some good, so not so good.
Tim comes in and puts the fear of God in the designers by basically saying there is no more dead wood to cut and someone great is going home this week.
Oh my Laurie is inspired by Tinkerbelle please don’t send wings down the aisle, Laurie! Kelly has admitted she has a “bedazzle problem” but at least she has immunity. Merline’s lost her confidence but she has gorgeous fabric. Tim like’s Ashley’s dress but I’m not so sure about what I see so far. Laurie is in trouble. Tim tells Laurie to “beat back the old lady.” The criticism deflates her. Lindsey is off to a good start with a long way to go. Edmond once again seems to have two looks going on in the same dress. Tim is concerned and so am I. I love Candice’s fabrics. Not sure where she is going yet. Ashley is having fit problems. Her model’s beauty just startles me every week. Why isn’t she super famous? Swapnil is going for the win this time. Oh God, Laurie, this is bad. Her model’s ass is really, really hanging out and there is no fabric on the model’s breasts, just some stick on covers! Sooooo bad!
The Runway
We start with Swapnil. I don’t like it. It is very flowy and ethereal on the bottom and very structured and gray on the top. I don’t like the mismatched textures, but the judges will. I do like the pink zipper in the back of the top to tie into the skirt. It’s pretty, it’s just not my taste.
Next is Ashley. How did she make such a mess? She is such a great designer? The top of the dress does not fit, the hem fell out on the runway and the dress itself looks like just a bunch of scarves very creatively tied to the model. Welcome to your first trip to the bottom three, Ashley. She’s in danger of being in last place and praying for a Tim Gunn save.
Candace managed to fuck up her dress too. And I really liked her fabrics. How is it that they get this far and then send a fail down the runway? Okay it’s not THAT bad. It does have sort of a Neverland feel that the others are lacking. That might keep her in one of the two safe spots. We’ll have to see the others to know for sure.
Kelly’s look is HORRIBLE. Definitely bottom three. The dress is way too short and the lace in the back shows between the models legs and looks like something is hanging between the model’s legs. The fabrics are garish. There is a seam down the front! It’s bottom three for sure. She is lucky she has immunity.
Laurie’s look is a hot mess. The skirt is too short, the top is non-existent , the coat is a hot mess. Bottom three! How many bottom threes can I pick? This is the worst runway ever.
Merline did a long black formal dress with some crazy (in a good way) shoulders. I love this dress. I hope the judges do too. It could go either way really. It is sort of a love it or hate it look, and I love it.
Lindsey’s dress is green. I love green but the judges historically hate it. I think the top is a weird shape, I like the back. I think she may claim one of the two safe spots. Then again, the judges don’t seem to like her much.
Edmond has the winning look. It is black skinny pants with a black crop top. He made the big purple vestlike thing that is hard to describe to go over it. It’s pretty awesome and going with pants for this challenge was a risk.
My top three are Edmond, Merline and Swapnil
My bottom three are: (pretty much everyone else) Ashley, Kelly and Laurie
That leaves Lindsey and Candace safe with me.
Let’s see what the judges say. First of all, Heidi says she LOVED the runway show today. Really? This means they are going to pick crazy shit to win. Dear god in HEAVEN they send Swapnil and Merline off as safe? SERIOUSLY? Who the hell will be in the top with Edmond????
Did Ashley just call ruching, “rougeing?” Oh dear. Ashley is getting bashed to death! She has never been bashed like this before. But she deserves it. Did they like Kelly? Did they not like Kelly? They make Laurie take the jacket off of her model looks even more hideous. Wow, now they are ripping Lindsey to pieces for her dress and Heidi actually says she only likes the color. I’m no Lindsey fan but this garment doesn’t deserve this vicious criticism. I guess that means Kelly’s dress that someone called a negligee on top of a mini-dress made top three over Merline and Swapnil??? I mean they tore Lindsey UP.
Wait what? They hate the purple vest on Edmond but love the pants and top? Heidi said she thought this was a great runway but I still don’t know who is in the top three? They seem to hate everyone. Oh they love Candace. What do you know. I guess she is the winner;
Judge’s Top Three: Candace, Edmond? Kelly?
Judges’s Bottom Three: Ashley, Laurie, Lindsey.
This is the weirdest judging yet. First they say they loved the whole show, then they ripped everyone to hell and back. Even two of the top three? It was more like they had a top ONE and a bottom seven. So bizarre. They really hate Ashley’s. She is in danger. Thankfully, I think they hate Laurie more.
Candace wins and Laurie was sent home. I am typing this before I even see the end. BUT NO! They sent home Lindsey. There is no point in Tim saving her, the judges HATED her for some reason. She wasn’t the best designer in the world but she didn’t deserve to go home this week for that dress. There were at least three dresses that were worse.
These judges are idiots.
Lauri’s was hands down the most ridiculous. I can’t believe they didn’t send her home.
I also was really surprised Heidi thought this was a good runway. I thought everything was pretty awful.
Candice was the best out of all of them (even though I didn’t think it was good). And none of them seemed particularity wonderlandish to me.
Also Tamara, when I see a show, I too have to concentrate on not sobbing audibly. I am extremely moved by some theater shows and have had a particularily hard time muffling my sobs during Phantom, Fidler on the Roof, and Les Miz. But I could sob through anything live or on Broadway. I can barely make it without sobbing through the happy ones like Sound of Music and Oklahoma.
I totally understand about the crying at Broadway Plays. Every time I see
Les Miserables & Lion King, I’m crying like a baby! So beautiful & emotional.
I think the judges sending Lindsey home, instead of Laurie, was because she’d been in the bottom too many times, & they always seem to kick off boring designs, (Lindsey),
vs. too many ideas, (Laurie). I didn’t mind Lindsey’s dress though. I too thought Laurie would be “auffed”, until I heard Heidi compare the designs. When she said Lindsey’s dress was boring, I knew Lindsey was a goner.
I will always love Tim Gunn…♡♡
Lion King! Yes… That’s another one! Has me blubbering like an idiot.
When Swapnil’s model walked down the runway my TV companion & I both said at the same time that the sculpted dress looked like it was 2 vaginas. Go take a look again and tell me you don’t see vajayjays.
You have a TV companion? I’m jealous. My husband won’t watch most of my shows.
I’m over Candace’s “look.” If the challenge was to use Cotonelle tp and QTips (you know you gotta get that advertising in!) she would STILL make something black leather, because it juxtaposed with the cottony textures perfectly. I know they’re supposed to have a point of view but they’re also supposed to show a range. She didn’t deserve the win this week.
Does anyone else think that Heidi looks tired and haggard this season? Her outfits seem plain and her hair scraggly. I have found few designs to root for this year especially when so many of them come out unfinished.
I usually like Ashley’s outfits, but I could still see the straight pins in this one. Swapnil’s reminded me of Katherine Hepburn throwing a coat on over her negligee as she ran out the door chasing after Cary Grant in Bringing Up Baby.
Any other season an outfit such as Laurie’s would be criticized as demeaning to women, and she would be gone. I agree with you TT. Lindsey didn’t deserve to go home for the green dress.
I don’t think the talent has been nearly as good since the first five seasons. They clearly have picked through the best designers through the years and are left with little talent. You would think the younger up and coming designers would have more game, but they aren’t nearly as skilled as the old school designers. Season 3 (I think) comes to mind. Laura, Jeffrey, Uli… Those people had mad talent.
I remember in season 9 when they chose Anya as the winner. Her clothes went down the final runway show unfinished, And really lackluster. But they dug her personality and personal style so much (as did I), that you couldn’t help but want her to win, even though she didn’t deserve it. But there were really no great designers to choose from. I think they chose her because she was so likable.
It definitely isn’t what it was in the beginning. All of the good talent has already been on or is choosing different routes now. That’s my opinion.
Went back and watched some of the runways when it was on Bravo. Laura Bennetts, Christian Seriano, etc. Those were the days when it really was a finale. Now we have Mary Kay makeup and uber product placement. I miss the magical elves.
Exactly SaraK-
And Laura Bennett made the most beautiful cocktail dresses ever! She was a fantastic designer and an interesting woman. She was really pregnant with like her sixth kid and always looked impeccable. They had a really cool apartment in Soho or somewhere and her husband was a distinguished professor and author or something… With five little boys running around. Oye!
I remember her interview… She said sweats are a slippery slope. I thought she had a lot of class and elegance.
I loved Laura Bennett. She had mad skills & a beautiful fashion sense.
Haven’t watched the show in quite a while (didn’t even know it was still on until I started receiving TT’s blog alerts in my email). If this current season is representative of the designers still waiting/wanting to appear on the show, I predict this may be the last season.
I don’t think the right designer went home this week. I don’t think she is very creative but at least her model did not need pasties for the runway. That outfit was hideous.
I’m starting to understand why Heidi was trash talking this group on the red carpet at the Emmys while wearing her Big Bird suit. It still doesn’t make it right, or kind. But at that point I thought we had several people doing well. In fact last week was a really good week where I thought everyone did well. The matronly guy would have stayed this week with the same look he went out with from the week before.
I think the challenges are just too broad. Each week the one person who produced a look that represents that week’s advertiser seems to win. Candace’s look did scream Peter Pan/Captain Hook, I just don’t think that is necessarily a good thing to be screaming on the runway.
I am not seeing a vast improvement from ANYONE this season. Except perhaps Merline. I really think she should have won over Candace. She certainly should have been in the top three over ….I can’t even recall who the judges third was.
I noticed after the first episode aired that there was no “Rate the Runway” as per prior seasons. After episode 2 I realized why. They KNOW they are scrapping the bottom of the barrel this season and would get hammered like crazy if they did….!
Laurie should have been sent home. They have hated Lindsay all season but her dress was definitely not the worst. It had flaws but was nowhere as bad as some of the other mess on the runway. I liked Edmund’s outfit including the purple vest. I also liked Swapnil’s look. The winning look was nice but I didn’t like the boys on the corset…seemed out of proportion to me.
I am also a cry baby at the theatre and sobbed through Phantom, Lion King, Leslie Mis, Color Purple, etc. whether on Broadway or here Lasky.
I has no idea so many people sobbed at Broadway plays. I wasn’t even perimenopausal when I went. LOL. We’re all a bunch of sniveling idiots.
Could Project Runway be burnt out after so many great years? So many things being sent down the runway look amateurish or even like nouveau home economics assignments from people who are just learning to sew but are only taking the class because it’s required. The judges so often look almost disgusted and sound too damn mean and snarly, even hurtful. The previous week to Broadway Bound was better than most of the episodes. Paula Patton was a charming and refreshingly helpful, lovely addition to the panel of judges. I’ve never known (or seen) much from her, except when her marriage to Thicke went down in flames. Like most commenters, I miss the old days of Project Runway when so many of the designers blew me away. I still follow Christian Siriano, to me the best of the best, a total inspiration. Even Heidi Klum isn’t looking herself this year, and I don’t mean that she’s getting a little older. More like she throws something on and just shows up to say her unvarying lines and can hardly wait to go out to dinner. I’ll watch the finale as ever but am kind of dreading it!
They used to have more time on each challenge and I think they had a couple of days between challenges. No one can be creative that often. They are doing a disservice to the competitors and the viewers. And I really miss Tim’s Take.
I don’t think it is so much a lack of talent, but that they are giving designers less and less time to accomplish their designs.
I’m not interested in who can sew the fastest, I’m interested in who has the best ideas. I think they could extend filming for a few days to actually give the creatives some time to execute their ideas.
And, yes, the correct person went home this week. Lindsey should have been gone quite some time ago. She was constantly whining about the challenges instead of just admitting that she doesn’t have the talent. Notice that when it was a nonconventional challenge, she was making excuses about how that is not her forte, but when this challenge came up, she made excuses that there were no guidelines. She was in over her head. She knew it. But instead of admitting it and just getting to work to do her best, she spent the time making weak excuses and blaming others. I don’t expect to see her again in the fashion world.
At least Laurie had an idea. With a little more time, it could have been worked into something. And I would have loved to have seen wings on the runway.
For the rest:
Candace deserved the win. Fresh, original, and she nailed the terms of the challenge. She likes leather and she was robbed of the win during the Mary Kay challenge because she used it. That was unfair and every judge up there knew it. Notice how they are heaping praise on the use of leather in protest.
Edmund did a great job and I loved the vest. Maybe the purple could have been a slightly lighter, fluffier color, but he was on the right track.
Swapnil’s was great. Again. I think he is just not making the top three because it would get a little tedious having him hanging out getting compliments the entire time. He’s a great designer.
Ashley, poor Ashley. The idea could have been something with a little more time to work it out. Everyone stumbles, even the greats. She will dust herself off.
I was shocked that Merline finally made something worth a runway. Good on her. I thought she was kind of the pity choice for the group.
Now we are getting into some talented designers. I’m looking forward to see what they come up with.
I did not see Lindsey whining about the challenges. I did not see her making excuses in any of the challenges. I think she was cut because she didn’t show anything crazy either in her designs or in her behavior.
I didn’t see her whining about the challenges either. But she did doubt herself. This week in Mood she was not even able to make a fabric choice She was tentative and lacked confidence. That’s mostly what I noticed. Honestly, I got the feeling she was there because she knew someone and not on her own merits.
Everyone’s saying how great were seasons from 1 to 5, about old school and so on, but guys, there was season 7. It was the best in my opinion, they managed to make a great show every time. Emilio and his pretty flawless dresses, Seth Aaron and The Jacket, Mila and structural very nice outfits, that nice Jay with his garbage bags pants and so on.
And this season is just a blah. Nothing happens, everything’s unfinished, everyone makes the same things over and over again. I like Swapnil, but he repeats himself every show, same thing happens to others OK designers, Laurie is ridiculous, Lindsey is hot as hell, but was just to safe. Merilyn seems to me the most interesting designer. The only one interesting enough.
Isn’t it sad?
It is sad. But I am thrilled that two new people with thoughts on the show that make sense are here. Welcome.
Project runway season 11 was the first show I watched in English without subs) so it’s like some kind of imprinting.
And I really love fashion, I sew a lot, so this show is for me.
You have very interesting point of view, I like your recaps, so this morning I get enough of bravery to write some of my thoughts here)
Irina, thanks for joining us. Your English is great! I’ve never understood learning a language from TV. I can’t even make it through a French program and I studied French when I was younger.
Hmm. Don’t understand why can’t I reply to you last comment.
Thank you for your words) though I haven’t learnt English from TV. I studied English in University, but didn’t graduate, still I love the language. I watched a lot of movies with subs, but I made a decision to watch something without subs one day. I didn’t want to get any movie because of all that emotional whispering and crying and other things, which make understanding much more difficult. So I tried this show with normal people and language. And I got it all to my great surprise.
Wow, Cobe, who are you and where did you come from? Love all of your thoughts and hope to see more of your comments!
But really, of all the weeks for Lindsey to go home? I don’t think this was it. She could have gone any of the previous weeks, but this week was full of such sloppy messes I expected Ashley or Laurie to go. And Tim would have saved Ashley but not Laurie.
Agreed. If it was only about this week, Laurie had a disaster.
I kind of wonder if Tim will even need to use the save.
Thanks for the compliment! I’m so glad you are recapping PR.
I have loved this show from the beginning and they often would
give the designers 2 days. Now it is more of a race than a design challenge . Remember Chris March over the top designs. BTW my son was in middle school art classes with Christian. Siriano…always sketching. OT I feel the same way about cooking shows..too fast..not enough time to do interesting dishes.
I’m loving these new interesting PR commenters! Seems like some of you are actually telling a friend about TT. I really appreciate it.
I kind of need a lot of new friends atm. I’m running with the big dogs FOR NOW.
Hey Pittypat. Love your porch! 🙂
Thank you and others here for pointing out the factor of being given enough time to assemble and finish what is being designed. It brought back memories of how long and hard and weepy it used to be for me, as a young girl, to complete one dress and that was with a pattern. It always fascinates me to watch the different combinations within each designer, of vision and technique. Even a few more hours of work time could really help on Project Runway and would not sacrifice the last moment bursts of excitement just before the runway presentation starts.
It seems so late in the season to be seeing what the designers do with their own fabrics and designs. Too many challenges have been unconventional material or using pre-selected fabrics for the designers to really show their true styles. With the exception of the really strong one note style of a few, like Candice and the leather.
Remember Uli used beautiful soft print fabric and created dresses that flowed, or Laura Bennett making evening wear that woman could dream of wearing. Even LeAnn folded, pleated designs that were like art work evolved during their seasons.
I think part of the weakness of this season is production changes as well. Let the designers show you what they can do with their choices within the challenges.
And I liked in earlier seasons when the designers had enough time that they could surprise you with a broader range than they had shown, like Jeffery Sebelius (sp?) going from rock style to couture with that yellow plaid gown or when Mondo created those cool pants out of that fabric he created. And the final runways, the designers had, I think, six months to create their looks and you can really tell that they are now given mere weeks.
Oh, that yellow plaid gown… It was a show stopper. I’ll remember it till the end of my life)
Anyone who watched Uli’s season should have no problem remembering her soft print fabric flowy dresses. That’s ALL she ever made. 😉
And in All Stars she made these incredibly beautiful white dresses. Oh, I want most of those dresses)
Some of you bring up really good points. I know they have pretty much always had an unconventional challenge. But I don’t remember for those first several seasons how much time they were given per challenge.
Perhaps if given two days rather than one, we would see better things from the last few seasons. They really do seem to work them to the bone with very little time allowed in each challenge. I am sure the time factor they are give plays into a huge part of that.
No, no, no. Sorry, I have to disagree on a couple of fronts:
1) I don’t know why people think they have less time for the challenges this season. If anything, I think they’ve had more time. More than once, I’ve heard someone say, “We have two whole days!”
2)The designers have been given short amounts of time for challenges since the very beginning. This is on purpose and for good reason: it’s important for the creative process. Anyone who has gone to school for one of the creative disciplines will tell you this too. (They do the same thing to you in school!) To get creativity flowing – and to maintain it – too much time is poison. You start to 2nd/3rd/4th guess yourself, and the next thing you know, you’re stuck in a morass of indecision.
That sense of urgency that they instill actually helps the designers. They are forced to think of an idea, make a choice, commit to it, and go with it.
The judges are aware of this too. They’ve always made allowances for the amount of time given. Yes, they expect well-finished garments, but they’re not expecting absolutely perfect ones.
Worst runway ever. How embarassing. Ashley? Were you drunk while sewing?? They should have sent half of them home. I agree with the winner, though would have been happy if Edmond won.
I don’t think they are scraping the bottom of the barrel. But I do think they are getting a lot of designers one or two years out of school. In the past years , the show attracted designers who already had exposure and careers. Jeffrey designed for Marilyn Manson before he won his season.
Now the show is for people who don’t have a lot of opportunities, like Kelly, where the exposure of project runway is all they can hope for. Each season there is someone who just got out of school yesterday, like this seasons Blake.
As for the clothes, I thought Marlene had a really great dress compared to Kelly, but I don’t quite get how the judges feel about her work. Swapnils outfit confused me and I agree he should go back to 40%. I wasn’t feeling Edmonds jacket and I think he has a confusing taste level. Underneath the jacket was pretty hot tho.
But Lauries outfit was embarrassing for the model. She looked like she was trying not to cry for a moment. I was send down the runway in see through stuff and mynipples were out for the world to see many times. But purposely, in a sophisticated way. Who’s idea were the pasties? Just blur it out on the tv.
Lindsey is really pretty but a serious downer. She should not have gone home for this dress but would she really bring anything further in the weeks to come. No. Laurie may.
Ashley dropped the ball as we all do at times. But can I discuss how her foundation color is too orangey for her skin. And caked on thick. I am sure she has flawless skin underneath. Every time she cries you can see the color come off. Someone talk to her.
Thanks for the recap.
..i think the producers purposefully cast designers who make “clothes” like lindsey. Never has a designer used the word comfortable(a Michael Kors NOno) as much as she did. So some of the more cutting edge progressive designers must not make the cut.
candace used vegan leather for the Mary kay challenge..maybe thats still too controversial for Mary Kay?
..i think heidi looks amazing..im obsessed with her eye makeup..is it that green eyes go with everything?
…i miss Michael Kors.