Project Runway Episodes 11 and 12: And So It Goes…

A thousand apologies for the lack of Runway recaps last week. I was on holiday in Portland and was too busy throwing back microbrews to remember the time difference. Whoopsie. Thank god for reruns and fellow Runway fans.

PW film writer Aly Semigran did her own recap. Here’s a snippet:

First, congratulations must be in order to Jeffrey Sabelia, the season 3 winner of Project Runway. Jeffrey, you’ve been cleared of being the most vile, mean-spirited, stubborn egomaniac in the show’s history. From here on out that title belongs, with flying colors, to Kenley. But, before we stay focused on Kenley’s all-around awfulness, let’s discuss tonight’s show. In a truly fun and original challenge the five remaining designers were asked to create outfits for one another based on different genres of music. While some grasped the concept completely, others decided to march to the beat of their own drum (even if they don’t know how to play it.)

Since I could go on for days about Kenley’s extreme bitchiness, let’s start off with her pigheadedness too. Kenley was asked to design for Leann with a hip hop aesthetic. Now, to be fair neither of these ladies are even close to hip hop, but yet again Kenley took it upon herself to ignore the challenge at hand and create something for herself (or at the very least, Urban Outfitters) all the while being totally snarky and crass to our boy Tim Gunn.

Long story short: Kenley was a total wench. Suede got sent home and Korto won yet another challenge.

As for tonight’s episode, I am outraged. In the final elimination before Bryant Park, the designers were challenged to create an evening gown inspired by a flower. First of all, that seems mighty simple for the most important competition of the season. Secondly, none of the designers hit this one out of the park, furthering my argument that this season’s cast is the weakest in Project Runway history.

Korto made this simple sherbert-colored gown. I will note that it looks eerily similar to my senior prom dress which I purchased at David’s Bridal in Northeast Philadelphia. You may draw your own conclusions

Jerrell created this very textured, multi-layered dress and won the challenge. I dig the bead work, but am a little concerned about the top of the bodice. Even the smallest ta-tas would come tumbling out of this dress.

This pretty purple number is by LeAnne who based her design on an orchid. Sticking to her structured aesthetic, she spent a lot of time with rouching and the intricate details of this dress and didn’t focus so much on the back. The bustle was sloppy and it was ultimately her downfall.

And then there’s the vicious Kenley. She left some of her fabric at the store and I was certain that it would cause her to lose, but Tim Gunn infuriatingly allowed her to retrieve it. She create this scaled dress and the judges railed against it’s aesthetic. When Heidi mentioned a lack of elegance, Kenley snapped at her and it got a little ugly. I was certain she’d be eliminated.

But in an interesting turn of events, Heidi made each designer explain why the deserved to show in Fashion Week (blahblahblah my life is hard…) and to name who else they’d like to see there. Shocking no one, Jerrell, LeAnne and Korto called out Kenley for being an awful person as well as a one-trick pony when it comes to fashion. Kenley—who revealed earlier in the show that her life was especially hard because he father was a tugboat captain—cried. I cheered.

Then Heidi announced that all four designers would be allowed (read: given money) to create shows for Fashion Week and that they’d decide on the next episode. Interesting, right? Totally shocking? Yeah, maybe if you didn’t see last season when the producers did the exact same thing. I call shenanigans and suspect that this is a ploy to keep a villainous character around.

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Challenge: The One Before Bryant Park

Guest Judge: A British designer whose name is mysteriously absent from the Bravo Web site.
Winner: Jerrell
Loser: No one.
PW Style Blog MVP of the Night: Jerrell, Korto and LeAnne for throwing Tugboat Kenley under the bus.