(S06E14) It's finally the end of Project Runway season six, and Carol Hannah, Althea, and Irina get to show off their looks. The three were evenly matched with a solid concept, good models, and similar makeup consultations. I've been disappointed with the way this season turned out after its long hiatus, and I'm hoping that next season's return to New York will be better.
In the end, I got the reunion show I was wondering about, in the form of Models of the Runway. It was the weirdest use of Project Runway's footage because the models didn't have any involvement in many of the videos.
(S06E13) Project Runway's part one of their finale episodes are always boring. This episode was no exception. We learn more about the hopefuls' backgrounds, peek at their final collection, Tim critiques them, they come to New York, and get some bombshell in one form or another.
This year's bomb is recycled from season two: a last minute thirteenth piece with the help of an eliminated contestant. This time, the muse model picks their final model.
The first half of the show was all about watching Tim in awkward situations: struggling to use a freight elevator, baking biscuits, and interacting with dogs.
(S06E11) Project Runway finally explained why different people won challenges this season instead of just Irina and Althea winning all of them. This week's challenge was to make a companion piece to the contestants' winning looks. Unfortunately, Logan has never won a challenge. With one day and $100, they had to make it work.
On paper, the challenge sounds like an interesting way of thinking of cohesive collections. Most of these designers have an aesthetic (Carol Hannah doesn't like pants, Christopher likes full skirts). For Gordana, Christopher, and Logan, the companion pieces that they made neither complimented, nor improved on their original outfits.
If things don't work out for Project Runway winner Christian Siriano in the fashion biz, he might want to consider a full-time gig as a talk show diva. As the number one guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show today, Christian was fierce, fun and oh-so-comfy that at times I thought Ms. O had her own little Ed McMahon or Andy Richter... but with a lot more style.
Oprah devoted the show to reality TV and the big get was Adam Lambert, the runner up in last season's American Idol. You wouldn't have guessed he was second place based on the assertion by Oprah that he was the top choice of her viewers when asked which reality star they wanted to see on her show.
I know I'm cynical, but I think it was planned. Adam's album is coming out on November 23 and there's already been lots of buzz, including the CD cover.
(S06E10) This week on Project Runway, the challenge was to become inspired by several locations that Michael Kors loves. They were given $150 and the day to make a pretty outfit. Why does it seem like there's always one contestant that gets a topic they know nothing about and makes something not even close?
There are only a few challenges left, and I have to admit that other than Irina, the rest of the competitors' outfits have become more and more boring. Production really needs to give these contestants one or two days off between challenges to recharge their batteries.
(S06E09) This week on Project Runway the contestants are given a very interesting challenge: design an extravagant stage look. Their inspiration has to come from world renowned Bob Mackie and pop superstar Christina Aguilera in mind. They had two days and $300 to make a sequin/feather extravaganza.
Unfortunately for us, Gordana had the last immunity of the season and couldn't be eliminated. I guess what she made was better than a sequin sweater. If I had immunity, I would have made a sequin one piece bathing suit with feather accents. It probably would have been better than Gordana's dress.
(S06E08) We finally get a challenge this season of Project Runway that doesn't involve models. I blame Models of the Runway for making so many model-centric challenges this season.
The designers had to make divorcee dresses out of wedding gowns. They had only one day, and the winner got the last immunity of the season. To make it worse, the contestants were only given $25 and a two yard maximum at Mood.
The designers should have remembered Steven Rosengard from season four and used the wedding gown as trim. Luckily, no one ended up making a funeral dress.
(S06E07) Project Runway finally got down to ten contestants, a number where I could finally tell the difference between Shirin and Irina. This week we welcome the return of Michael Kors. He quickly used the term "bridesmaid," and his sharp opinions were missed. Let's hope the eliminations will be less erratic.
This week's challenge revolved around the color blue. The outfits had to be two Macy's-inspired, commercial-friendly outfits. The reward is an ability to design a dress for Macy's collection. The teams had one day, a $100 budget, and no immunity for the next challenge.
(S06E06) For the first season of Project Runway in Los Angeles, production has been trying their best to use their surroundings for themes. This week Project Runway finally gave the opportunity to make a Hollywood based costume challenge. Unfortunately, the designers didn't realize that the challenge was just a façade for L'oreal Paris to play with the model's hair.
The designers were given a genre, $150, and a day to design a visual masterpiece representing their genres. Somewhere in that day, they lost time to consult with Collier Strong to make sure that L'oreal (and not Garnier even though they are in the same family) was represented.
(S06E05) I have a problem with this season of Project Runway. The contestants seem to focus on how much they hate other designs instead of being friendly and helping or saying that the outfit looks like a hot mess to their face. They hope that the clothes will sink the competitors, so they stay silent.
The drama continued this week when Tim Gunn revealed that the challenge was using newspaper as fabric. The unconventional material challenges lead to a lot of failures (fat paper Minnie Mouse from Season Three's Garbage challenge comes to mind), but overall, the contestants stepped up their game.
(S06E04) Project Runway loves messing with their designers. This week's challenge was that the models were their clients. It's not groundbreaking (season one's Wedding Dress Challenge comes to mind), but the real challenge is trying to tell these girls that they're delusional and not designers. Epperson's model Matar wanted an orange, punk, flowing, tiger dress. Thankfully, he took pieces and translated it correctly.
Tim announces that this is the first one-day challenge. This group has it easy; season five's first four challenges were all one-day. They probably wanted to make sure Johnny didn't have another mental breakdown and quit.
(S06E03) Early episodes of Project Runway throw me off. There are too many contestants, and a lot of them get lost in the shuffle. A lot of the designers have five seconds here and there, but the editing team chooses which ones we get to know.
This week was a team challenge where everyone was paired up in a school-yard pick. Who is Irina anyway? The designers had the chance to talk to locals, but the information they gave was useless. If someone didn't know beach wear was influenced by tropical colors, comfort, and functionality, they deserve to lose the challenge.
(S06E01)Project Runway is back! With few exceptions, the show seems remarkably unchanged by the move to Lifetime, so those who were fearful that without the Bravo touch Project Runway would cease to be... Project Runway, your fears should be allayed. The one significant change, one I'm still not sure about, is the move from New York to Los Angeles. New York just screams fashion to me, the rag trade, and the buzz of Seventh Avenue. L.A. doesn't, but we shall see how it plays out.
Meanwhile, Heidi, Michael, Nina and Tim were there, the touchstones of the show, and as the new contestants were unveiled, PR was off and running.
In a smart programming move, Lifetime ran a Project Runway: All Stars edition before the Season Six premiere. Seeing familiar faces from the Bravo years immediately sent a message to viewers that this was the same Project Runway.
In preparation for its big August 20th season premiere on Lifetime (and, evidently, to interrupt me when I'm trying to watch a few episodes of Frasier and Will & Grace), Project Runway has been running endless ads, loud and proud. I'm sorry, did I say "loud and proud"? I meant "weirdly sentimental and full of slow-mo."
The commercials featuring individual designers from the upcoming season were almost touching enough to confuse me. I mean, I'm used to the super-catty "I didn't come here to make friends, I came here to be the snarky queen bee" sort of ads. Are these just to reel in the average Lifetime viewer, or is this an early indication of Project Runway's slightly new voice?
So the new season of Project Runway premieres on August 20, on Lifetime after a legal battle with Bravo and a long wait (filming ended nine months ago). But there isn't just one Project Runway this season, there's two, if you include the spinoff Models of the Runway, which will show the models they use on the show talking about what went on behind the scenes.
Coming next season: Gaffers of the Runway, where the crew that works on the electricity/lighting on the set will talk about the models, and then Project Craft Services, where the people who supply the food to the cast and crew will talk about what the models eat (or don't eat) and which of the designers eats the most.
(S06E14) It's finally the end of Project Runway season six, and Carol Hannah, Althea, and Irina get to show off their looks. The three were evenly matched with a solid concept, good models, and similar makeup consultations. I've been disappointed with the way this season turned out after its long hiatus, and I'm hoping that next season's return to New York will be better.
If things don't work out for 
(S06E09) This week on 
(S06E08) We finally get a challenge this season of 
(S06E06) For the first season of 
(S06E05) I have a problem with this season of 
(S06E01) Project Runway is back! With few exceptions, the show seems remarkably unchanged by 
In preparation for its big August 20th season premiere on Lifetime (and, evidently, to interrupt me when I'm trying to watch a few episodes of Frasier and Will & Grace), 
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