‘Project Runway’ Recap: MOAR plaid!
| September 13, 2013 at 2:20 PM EDTPlaid! Who knew that when America thinks of “modern southern women” we all think they’re running around in plaid?!
I can’t explain exactly what prompted this photo, only that I love it. Photo: Lifetime
Project Runway Recap – “Let’s Do Brunch”
The Project Runway Challenge
First, a Southern-style brunch. Everyone was suspicious but this gave Helen Castillo a chance to talk about New Balance, while Jeremy Brandick gave her judgey looks.
“Kate, did you kill that French Toast?” – Helen Castillo
Tim Gunn and Swatch have a heart-to-heart.
Well, the look was to create a look for Belk (ick) that would fit the “modern Southern woman.” Upon hearing the news, Dom Streater and Ken Laurence simply knew they had this one in the bag, as they’re both from the South.
This was a pretty broad challenge. They could do day or evening looks. They could do whatever they wanted. And Tim Gunn let them know to focus on colors and feminine details.
Stunning as always, Heidi Klum reminds me that I want to wear red lipstick more.
Naturally, everyone ignored that advice and went for plaid materials and power suits, because we’ve all seen Designing Women. The modern Southern Woman is wearing 80’s shoulder pads and perms, right? We all know that they’re about 20 years behind us Yankees. (Please tell me you understand I’m using sarcasm, c’mon!)
So, the trip to Mood was a PLAID FEST. (And silk prints. Silk prints EVERYWHERE.)
“It’s definitely not a picnic dress or a go to the forest…” – Alexander Pope
What I want to talk about is that Ken Laurence refuses to tell anyone what Southern women wear. Which would be fine, if this didn’t make him a total freaking hypocrite. Wasn’t it last week that he got all grumpy at Helen because she refused to tell him something she’d asked Tim? She even relented and told everyone the tip she’d gotten! But Ken? Nope. This grump plays dumb, which, let’s be honest, isn’t a huge stretch for him.
This makes me smile. Zac Posen and Stacy Keibler are just…yea.
“It’s a competition…I’m not going to go into depth on who the Belk customer is because I need to win a challenge!” – Ken Laurence
“Tim said design for the modern Southern woman, not Little House on the Prairie.” – Ken Laurence
“She’s going to a cotillion…that’s like a thing in the Southern, not just something I see on TV?” – Helen Castillo
Justin LeBlanc almost used orange and black in a dress fit for Halloween. I loved how Tim Gunn pointed out that using the “orange” on its own it reads as coral, but putting it with black it cheapens it and it’s suddenly Halloween.
“Alexandria speak to me, it looks like you’re going crazy quilt on us!”- Tim Gunn
Kate Pancake (Kate Pankoke) explains she’s been meditating on the dress fabric so it will speak to her. Uh, sure.
Judging
Stacy Keibler is there, dressed like a vampire from True Blood’s Fangtasia, and she’s promoting Supermarket Superstar which is OH HEY on Lifetime, too. I love brunettes, but girlfriend needs to go back to blonde.
“What do you mean Eric Northman isn’t at Fangtasia anymore?!”
Helen Castillo – She made a long yellow gown with floral lace overlay which looked very dated and 60’s and … where is someone going to wear this long day dress?
“Why don’t people like black? Black is just such a cool color.” – Alexandria
Alexandria Von Brommsen – She’s such a great designer, but she went boho for her look. Wrong!
Jeremy’s look is for a very mature woman with very bad taste. Oye.
Bradon’s dress is so freaking cool, but it should have been in one solid color. The plaid makes it look a little messy. Heidi Klum says she’d wear the dress, so Brandon is feeling good no matter what.
Top: Kate, Alexander, Brandon
“Are you giving me a look, Ken?” – Heidi Klum
Bottom: Ken, Dom (whose dress I liked!), Jeremy
Send them back!
So, Alexandria, Ken, Dom, and Jeremy are all sent back with an hour and one helper to fix their look.
Out: Jeremy
Surprise: Dom’s dress is so well-received that Belk decides to sell it, as well. And to be fair, it’s an amazing dress.
Tim Gunn is very concerned.
Tim really could not be MORE concerned.
Ken makes a bridesmaid dress.
Kate Pancake makes a dress that everyone loves, except for Heidi, who says it’s a maternity dress. I would never be that fashionable while pregnant, man.
Dom’s look is so good that the judges have to mix-up the rules to crown her a winner.
Brandon’s dress is good, although I’d love to know who is going to wear this, and WHERE. A nighttime garden soiree? To a kid’s uber fancy playdate? I just don’t understand the …. I mean, WHERE? Where do you wear a long madras dress?! I wear it no where! If he’s made this dress shorter, it would have still been cool and a more obvious “okay, I wear this anywhere in the day.” All the Real Housewives would have wanted it for their dramatic lunches!
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