Countdown to Project Runway

After what seems like years of legal wrangling between Lifetime, The Weinstein Company, and NBC Universal , Project Runway’s first season on Lifetime starts tomorrow. I’m really excited, but aside from briefly looking at the photos and bios of the new contestants, I haven’t tried to find out anything about this season. I want to be surprised, and not to hate any of the contestants until the editors have provided me with a reason. I’m starting a new scarf, so I’ll have something else to focus on if the first episode is as underwhelming as PR season openers usually are.

Membership has its privileges

Although I’m trying to do better about managing my money, and am making an effort to say “no” in situtations where I previously would have offered a wholehearted “yes,” I still like to have to option to get things, should I really need or want to. I have belonged to Gilt Group and Ideeli  for about a year now, and now I joined Rue La La and HauteLook. You may ask yourself why somebody who is trying to practice more self-control is doing this to herself, and I don’t necessarily have a great answer. I know that I like my options, and that I try to get the most for my money when I do buy things.

So, anyway, all of these clubs are private, but in scouring the interwebz, I was able to secure invitations for all of them in a matter of minutes. Since I always live to save people the bother of searching the Internet, if you’re interested in joining any of these clubs, you may use my refererral links below, or visit any of them and use my email address, nicole[at]nonsenseuponstilts[dot]com (replacing the brackets and words with the usual email symbols and punctuation) as your referral. And, yes, I do get a credit if you join under my name and then make a purchase (from $10 to $25, depending on the web site). Happy shopping!

• Beyond the Rack – Please use the following code: NNWF60BB2B3
• Billion Dollar Babes
• Editors’ Closet
• HauteLook
• Gilt Group
• Ideeli
• Rue La La
• The Top Secret

I haven’t actually bought things from all of these sites yet, but I’ve heard good things about all of them, so I thought I’d share anyway!

It figures

I thought that something was missing from the news that Project Runway could go ahead on Bravo, but I didn’t know what. And then Heidi Klum and Seal announced that they were expecting their fourth child and I was like, oh yeah…

It’s just not a good season of Project Runway if Heidi isn’t sporting those insane maternity outfits and knee-high boots!

And now Project Runway’s disputed sixth season has a Lifetime premiere date of August 20. Can’t wait!

Dollhouse is finally worth watching

I’ve been watching Dollhouse, Joss Whedon’s new show, since its pilot. I wanted for so many reasons to like it:

• It was created by Joss Whedon, who I will always love for Buffy the Vampire Slayer
• It stars Eliza Dushku, who played the complicated and interesting Faith on Buffy
• The premise sounded really interesting
• …

Okay, so maybe there were just three reasons that I wanted to like it. But when the show premiered, it became clear to me that maybe these things were actually liabilities. Joss Whedon is a god to a certain subset of television and movie watchers, but Buffy and Angel were a long time ago, and Firefly didn’t even last an entire season. Sure, he did well with Dr. Horrible (although I believe I made my feelings on that one pretty clear), but you’re only as good as your last show, and I’m not sure that Internet sensations count.

Second, Eliza Dushku is not a great actress. She was the perfect person to play the tough, conflicted Faith, but she’s much less convincing on Dollhouse when she’s supposed to be nice and harmless. It’s gotten to the point where casting her conveys the same message as casting Lucy Lawless: watch out for this one, she’ll hurt you bad. I never quite buy it when other characters look at Echo’s Persona of the Week and fail to notice the danger. For example, on tonight’s episode, “Echoes”, they had her running around a college campus in an outfit that screams “late 90s” (complete with a miniscule skirt and almost thigh-high socks!) and wearing high-heeled Mary Janes. Who else but a freakishly tough woman could withstand hours of kinky sex, motorcycle-riding, and sneaking around in those things? I know that I probably would have only had the fortitude to get around to the first two things on that list.

Third, the premise seems more ridiculous each week. The idea is that there is a group of beautiful people who are essentially blank slates and for incredible sums of money (usually), individuals, corporations, the government, etc. can have these blank slates imprinted with any set of memories or skill set they desire. So Echo the Doll can become sex-kitten Alice, and then go back to being Echo when the engagement is over. And aside from the fact that the technology seems to keep finding newer and more spectacular ways of failing (no spoilers, but if you’ve seen next week’s preview, you know what I’m talking about), some of the assignments just don’t make sense. Why would a couple use a Doll as a midwife? Why pay a boatload of money when a real midwife could be had for considerably less? Or as a hostage negotiator? Why shell out a lot of money on a fake negotiator when one would presumably soon also be paying a ransom? The given excuse of the need for privacy seemed pretty flimsy. I can’t imagine many negotiators make it a practice to blab about their assignments once they’re completed. And, anyway, what value did Echo add in that situation? Due to the way she was programmed, she actually kind of arsed it up before damage control and more Dolls helped save the day.

And why is Echo working in LA, when that’s where she became a Doll? Episode 6 revealed that there are 20 Dollhouses around the world (why is the LA house the only one that seems to have reached the status of urban legend?), so what sense does it make to have her stay in the city where she started out? She’s already been recognized while on an engagement, and the more assignments she does, the more likely this is to happen again. This 20 Dollhouse thing feels to me like Joss is already tweaking the established mythology, although I am glad that he did not wait six seasons to reveal that there are a lot of other Dollhouses, so this main Dollhouse is less special. It seems that I may be harboring a little residual bitterness about the Slayerettes that popped up in season 7. My bad.

I’ve said more about this than I thought I would, and this post is already excessively wordy, so I will save my thoughts on the Dollhouse staff and other Dolls for some other time.

Things I Did Not Buy Today 2

These Delman shoes are awesome, but I did not buy them! They retail for $195, and were going for $68 (thanks to the always awesome Gilt Group), but I can be honest enough to admit that they were a want, not a need. I’m trying to be strong, but the world is full of lovely things that can be bought! Right now, I’m about to blow over $100 on yarn, but that is always money well spent, and I will definitely use it!

Also, it’s a good thing I finished those booties and gave them to my coworker on Thursday, because his son was born on Friday!

I’d rather have pretty dresses

I love the look of Tracy Reese and Alice + Olivia dresses. They have bold prints, youthful cuts, and just look like so much fun. So why do they look so wrong on me? I’ve tried on several dresses by both designers, and while they have all fit beautifully, they just don’t look good on me. I don’t feel like myself in them. Maybe they’re too au courant? I look better in simple things, and I feel uncomfortable in anything that feels to trendy. I think that discomfort comes through, when I wear things I feel fall into this category. These dresses are on the higher end of what I would pay for dresses, but they’re so cute. Over the last several months, the majority of dresses that I have fallen in love with strictly from pictures have turned out to be from these designers. It’s not that I like the expense; I’d love it if these things were much less expensive. Of course, I’d love it more if they’d just look good on me.

Showdown at Bryant Park

The Project Runway season 5 finale aired tonight, on the same night as the final presidential debate. I don’t know what to say, other than that whoever schedules the debates should be fired. You should not force the electorate to choose between two viable options. Thankfully, in this election, television is the only venue where this is currently an issue.

It seems that Kenley found the brattiness that she had APOLOGIZED for and toned down last week. Not that I thought she was being genuine then, but tonight she didn’t even bother to pretend. Cow. So anyway, she got on Leanne’s last nerve when they were picking models, and I can see how having Kenley’s delusional self trying to define your line for you and cast your fashion show might make you want to do her bodily harm. I just don’t get how Leanne restrained herself. Along with the wild overconfidence in her own designs came the other thing that she hid last week: her total contempt for Tim Gunn. Kenley was as rude and defensive as ever, and I can see that Tim washed his hands of her completely; he said his bit, realized that she was ignoring him, and walked away with an eye roll and a funny look at the camera. It it were either of the other two designers, I might have thought that that was the “Girls are weird” look, but since it was Kenley, I’m pretty sure it was more along the lines of “Bitch crazy.”

I liked Korto and Leanne’s more measured responses to Tim Gunn. She listened to him, and thought about what he said before commiting to a course of action. WHOA. Kenley actually did think about what Tim said, and changed something accordingly. It was never an issue of doing exactly what Tim said, but at least just listening to what he said.

And Korto decided to scrap two of her looks, which means that she had to design two new outfits during their work week. That is just nutty! During the prep parts of the episode, they kept showing her working on her new dresses. I feel like that should have been a better way to fix what she’d done, without creating two entirely new looks.

Now we’re off to the makeup part of the day. BORING! I like to wear makeup, but I don’t care about hearing the designers plan their models’ faces. It did crack me up, though, that Kenley wanted her models made up like pinup girls. This is my shocked face. Hair was also terribly uninspiring. I understand that designers have to think about every part of their models’ looks, but that doesn’t mean that I’m going to find all of it interesting.

LOL. Kenley and Leanne interviewed about each others’ collections, and they both hated what the other had done.

Oh my goodness, there was a dog in the work room. I was wondering what would happen if the dog pooped or peed on a design, but thankfully she only did it on the floor. Which was bad enough, but then the model cleaned it up while wearing one of Leanne’s dresses! Nuts! I am impressed that Leanne didn’t have a nervous breakdown right there, because I know that I would have lost my mind that happened to me.

On the morning of the show, the designers got up super early (it was still dark out when they got to the tent), and they talked about their nerves and hopes. Plus, they were all stoked that their families were in attendance. I was actually excited for all of them! But Oh! No! One of Jerell’s uglyass tree headbands was growing right out of Kenley’s head! All three designers were given fashion students as assistants, and Kenley talked about how hers were not allowed to touch her hand-painted dress, because she was the only one who knew how to handle and iron it. So of course the next shot is of Kenley allowing the dress she was ironing to fall to the floor. Way to show ’em, Kenley! Then, when were done laughing at Kenley, there were shots of celebrities, like Michelle Trachtenberg, and former contestants, such as last season’s winner Christian Siriano and season 2’s Uncle Nick.

Uh oh. One of Leanne’s looks ended up being weirdly limp and big on her model, so she had to switch her into a different dress. And Kenley managed to make a huge production of fitting the gorgeous Topazio into a dress and basically implied that Topazio was a fat fat fatty. Jerk. Heidi looked amazing (AMAZING) when presenting the designers and welcoming the crowd.  Heidi revealed that Jennifer Lopez was supposed to be the guest judge, but had to bow out due to a “foot injury.”  I’m sorry to hear that the former Flyy Girl was injured, but thank goodness it did not prevent her from kicking butt two days later in the Miami triathlon. I’m glad to know that it’s more taxing on one’s foot to sit down and judge a fashion show than it is to complete a triathlon. Going on this logic, I’ve decided that I will go out and win the Ironman just as soon as I recover from uploading this post.

So I have no respect for Jennifer Lopez for backing out at the last minute with such a flimsy excuse, but I love how Tim Gunn ended up being the guest judge. The designers, as you might expect, were not happy to have someone so knowledable about what was NOT good about their collections be the fourth judge, but I had to rewind a few times because I loved it when Kenley said, “Are you kidding?! Okay, maybe I should have improved my attitude.” Kenley? Realizing that her poor attitude might have screwed her out of winning this competition? Priceless! Tim said that he wouldn’t hold anything that he already knew against the designers, but I wonder how well he’ll be able to distance his judging from what he already knew.

Kenley went first. I didn’t love her collection, but it was well made and I totally believe that those pieces were her dream wardobe. I think she did an excellent job of realizing her vision, even if I wouldn’t want any of those clothes. Okay, I take it back, I’d wear the hell out of the little black dress and that cream dress with the flower pattern crossing diagonally across the front.

Korto’s collection was second. I loved most of it. I’m not sure about the longer of the new dresses. I loved how into it Korto’s relatives were. I appreciate that every item is something that would look good against my skin tone (I know that I would not necessarily look good in a lot of that).

While I loved loved loved Korto’s collection, Leanne‘s was just a different level of awesome. Her stuff was just so interesting and flattering, it’s like she was in a different, more complex competition. It wasn’t even fair to poor Kenley and Korto. Leanne definitely got the largest applause.
After the runway shows, former contestants and judges weighed in on whose work they thought was best. Chris March and Rami liked Korto (which surprises me; I would have pegged Rami as a Leanne kind of guy), Uncle Nick thought that Leanne’s work was ready for Elle Magazine, and Daniel’s endorsement of Kenley’s work showed that his taste has in no way improved since he was auff’d. Fern Mallis congratulated Kenley, but I’m not convinced that Kenley is the only one who received congrats from Ms. Mallis. I think this was a case of judicious editing. Nice try, editors, but we know that nobody in their right mind would have preferred Kenley’s collection to the other two!

The judges were kind to Kenley, and complimented her hand-painting, although the only negative thing that they said was that one of her dresses resembled Balenciaga. Kenley conceded that she needed to learn what’s going on in fashion, so she doesn’t keep recreating the looks of other designers.

Korto’s collection got mostly high marks, and the judges complimented how she wove her heritage and point of viwe into what she did, although they thought that some of the pieces were still overworked.

Leanne’s collection was praised for the diversity of her looks, but they were concerned that she had too many petals, and that it was too one-note. True, but they were so beautiful. I can see why the judges were concerend about how that would translate to the 40-look collection.

It was great to listen to the judges decide who won. I’m really glad I didn’t watch this live, or else I might have puked from nerves. I don’t know how the designers stood that kind of pressure while waiting for the verdict.

Kenley was out first. This is what I expected. She did not take it well. I expected this, too. Yay! Leanne won! I really thought she must have when I saw the collections last month, but it’s good to have confirmation. I felt bad for Korto and (to a lesser extent) Kenley, and I really wish both of them awesome, fulfilling careers in fashion. How much do I love the fact that Leanne had to record a Saturn commercial pretty much immediately after winning? So so much! She’s super crunchy and from Oregon and you know she probably doesn’t even drive (non-drivers, represent)!

This wasn’t the most exciting season of Project Runway ever, but I did end up enjoying it and the way it concluded.

Jerell speaks

I know that several tv shows and web sites get interviews with outgoing Project Runway contestants once they’ve been auff’d, but I’ve never really sought out those print, web, or television appearances. I’m interested in the program itself, and not so much what happens outside of it. Today, though, I read an interview that Jerell did with Entertainment Weekly, and it made me think well of him. I give him credit for his incredibly charitable view of Kenley’s behavior and of his own ouster, and wish him all the success in the world! I am sure that I mentioned that Jerell’s designs really grew on me over the course of the competition; in the beginning, I was convinced that he was one of the weakest links, and by the time he was judged off the show, I was sure that he had been robbed! It was pretty classy of him not to pick a favorite New York Fashion Week collection done by the remaining designers; I don’t think anybody could have blamed him for having an opinion, and I think it’s sweet that he kept it to himself.

Jerked

Poor Jerell. He really really really deserved to go to Fashion Week. And based on his performance over a significant part of the competition, he should have been a shoe-in. And the items that he showed this week were not even close to his best work, but they weren’t the worst pieces on the runway.

And then there’s Kenley. Kenley’s previous efforts and actions should have earned her a one-way ticket to Brooklyn. But they didn’t. And this week, she really showed me something I didn’t expect from her: talent, not filtered through her tremendous self-involvement, but just plain talent. It was impressive, and helped me believe that she wasn’t kept just to add controversy and color to the show. The reprieve that she was granted last week (not that she’ll ever believe there was any possibility that she’d be sent home) means that Kenley was judged on what she did this week, and not what she showed last week. And even though her improved attitude was as genuine as a four-dollar bill, the high caliber of her dresses was undeniable. So she should have stayed, and the judges did make the correct decision regarding Kenley.

By now, it should be plain that Leanne is a genius at design and construction, and there’s no way that anybody with eyes could ever question whether she deserved to show in Fashion Week. So we move on to Korto.

We know that I love love love Korto. And though I thought that she did not receive the recognition she deserved earlier in the season, the fact remains that her wedding dress and bridesmaid’s dress? Were not up to the level of the items made by the others. And Korto, my beloved Korto, deserved to go home.

But she didn’t! Jerell was sent home and I do not agree at all. And I’ve seen Korto’s fashion week collection and I definitely preferred it to Jerell’s, but the judges couldn’t know this! Based on what was shown, Leanne, Kenley, and Jerell should have been in, and Korto should have been one of the decoy designers. Boo!

The one where everybody cries

So Project Runway may not be leaving Bravo for Lifetime. Hallelujah! I don’t want my fashion tainted by association with women in danger and endless Tori Spelling movies.

The four remaining designers were really stressed out this week, in their final runway show before New York Fashion Week. Their challenge was to create an evening gown, and everybody felt the pressure. There were tears and mini breakdowns and bleary eyes and glasses instead of contact lenses, and it was pretty much awesome. All of anti-Kenley hostility that has been simmering for the last several weeks kind of exploded tonight. Leanne, Korto, and former Mean Girl Jerell all made very little attempt to hide their contempt for Kenley. As usual, it was pretty impossible for me to feel bad for her, since she caused a lot of this with her poor attitude and misplaced sense of superiority.

The other designers and the judges all made mention of her attitude, and she basically acted as though the lot of them were making it up. Top American Designer* Michael Kors had it right – how well is Kenley going to in an industry where one’s creative vision may not be appreciated or shared by those on whom one depends for one’s livelihood? Not everybody is going to agree that Kenley is a genius, and she should probably be prepared to think about criticism and evaluate its relevance before dismissing it completely. I like how the guest judge this week, Georgina *married to one half of the bazillionaire duo who produces this show* Chapman was like, “I do not see what I thought I would,” about Kenley. There were no floral prints or 50’s shapes, but the defensiveness was there and Mrs. Bazillionaire still seemed singularly unimpressed.

So what did I think about the way the judges chose to end this challenge? I thought it was pretty darn awesome. Why? Because it’s tv! Drama is always appreciated, as long as it’s is somehow justifiable and not just for the sake of being dramatic. Kenley and Korto have made enough great things on this show that it makes sense that neither of them would be easy to send home. I think that I have been inspired by Heidi Klum, Nina Garcia, and Top American Designer Michael Kors, who have been on the receiving end of several of Kenley’s eye rolls, sighs, and ridiculous responses, and still thought that she deserved a chance to compete for a spot at Fashion Week. I also like that nobody gets to rest on his or her laurels. It would have been easy to do what they did last year and only have two people compete for the final spot, but this adds intrigue and an extra bit of motivation that Jerell and Leanne might otherwise be without.

I always like to see what the designers can come up with when they have much more money, time, and sleep to bring their vision to life. I can’t wait for next week, because it’s always fun to see how time away from each other and watching the episodes at home influences how the designers interact when they reunite for the clip show.

The designers:

I really am impressed with how un-ridiculous Jerell’s stuff is of late. Sure, his dress tonight did need a bit of work, but compared to what he was cranking out the first few weeks of this season, his improvement is nothing short of inspiring. Like Kenley, Jerell has been known to talk smack and offer a mean running commentary about others’ work. Unlike Kenley, Jerell’s work mostly backs up that talk.

There’s a special place in my heart for Leanne, who managed to fight her way out of thin, brunette anonymity to become recognizable not only by her face but also by her interesting designs. She’s another one whose first few weeks of work definitely didn’t seem promising, but I’m glad that she’s stuck around. Her designers are infinitely wearable and show a lot of thought and work. Plus, she seems to dislike Kenley quite a bit, which only makes me love her more.

Nobody needs to be told that I am rooting for Korto, right? I love her sense of color and style, and would happily wear whatever she chose to put me in. She’s funny, but knows how to shut a person up when that is called for. I think it’s telling that Kenley hates Korto’s stuff, since the things that Korto makes often seem like they did actually originate in the twenty-first century.

Last, both in my affections and this wrap-up, is Kenley. The girl’s got talent; I’m not going to lie. And I’ve got the shape to rock a 50’s style frock, so I really do appreciate her designs. My main problem with her, aside from the fact that she only ever produces some slight variation on one pattern, is that she has the worst attitude of any Project Runway contestant ever. EVER! And this is the show that gave us Wendy Pepper and Santino Rice. I’ve never seen anybody so unwilling to accept criticism and responsibility for her own choices. Self-confidence is great. It’s necessary, and it’s how you advance yourself through life, but too much is just as damaging as too little. Why can’t she just think about what people say to her, instead of mouthing off? If I mute her while I’m waching the show, I am usually much more inclined to like what she’s done.

* I love this designation and will never again say this man’s name without using what is not doubt a contractually-obligated phrase.