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EVERY SEASON THERE IS AT LEAST ONE DESIGNER BY THEIR ATTITUDE, COMMENTS, OR ACTIONS MANAGE TO STEAL THE SHOW BEYOND THEIR DESIGNS. TELL US:

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So this episode started out like last week’s episode with the winning designer given the option to switch models.  We were shocked last week when Leanne decided to choose Tia over Karalyn so we were pleasantly surprised when Korto kept Katarina. Once that was out of the way it was off to meet Tim for a field trip.

The final destination of this field trip was the New York Botanical Garden where Collier Strong met them to discuss how he gets inspiration from the colors and textures in nature. The designers’ were asked to grab a camera and start shooting inspiration for an evening gown inspired by nature. This seemed easy enough. Right? WRONG.

The designers’ ran around Mood looking for fabric, agonized over their designs, and stressed about having enough time to finish their designs. Just when we thought Kenley was completely doomed because she left her tulle at Mood Tim saved the day by allowing her to return to Mood to retrieve it. We aren’t surprised at Jerell’s amusement at Kenley’s misfortune saying,” I am dying to see how this will all pan out. I’m staying tuned!”

In the workroom it was clear that Leanne, Jerell, and Korto were supportive of eachother and that there was definite divide between the trio and Kenley. Kenley appeared to be disappointed by this however explained that she was used to it.  The sulking and stressing didn’t last for long as it was on to the runway. Here Heidi announced that Georgina Chapman Co-Founder and Designer of Marchesa was the guest judge. This was the perfect challenge for her to judge considering her elegant whimsical gowns grace many a red carpets. Who can forget the beautiful looks she did for Anne Hathaway and Jessica Alba at last years Oscars.

As far as the runway show we would like to first point out that we disagree with the judges. We actually thought the designers did a great job and we were torn between several designs as to who we thought should win. Again, we obviously did not agree with the judges. Here is their take:

Heidi and Michael criticized Korto’s gown calling it a  “Pageant dress” and Nina told her that she did not think that the gown was elegant.  In Nina’s opinion Korto’s attempt to impress the judges left her gown looking overworked.  Leanne was given praise by Georgina for mixing soft and structured elements in her gown, however all the judges disliked the back of the gown and felt that she should have omitted the blue fabric at the bustle.  Jerell was applauded for making the most modern and youthful gown, but lost points because his piece seemed unfinished. Finally, there was Kenley’s mock neck sleeveless gown which received no praise from anyone. Georgina felt it wasn’t organic, Nina called it “creepy”, Michael thought it was cliched, and Heidi did not find her detailing “elegant.”

Next it was time for the designers to give their two cents. Heidi asked each of them to  tell the judges why they should go to fashion week and which two of the other designers should go to fashion week with them. Leanne, Korto, and Jerell all talked about their point of view as a designer as evidence of why they belonged at Bryant Park and picked eachother to join them on the runway. Kenley, the odd woman out, said she deserved to be there because she could put on a show and without flinching announced that Leanne and Jerell should join her on the runway. Oh the drama!

Ultimately, the judges picked Jerell as the winner but were deadlocked as to who lost the challenge. Essentially  all four were passed on to the next level of competition and asked to create a collection for fashion week with an elimination upon their return to New York. This did nothing to quell the tension behind the scenes as Korto lashed out at Kenley for making a personal attack, and Kenley moved even farther apart from the other designers even refusing a group hug invitation from Tim.

We can’t wait for the collections–and we certainly can’t wait to see what’s going to happen next. Bid in our auction and take home a piece of the runway!

Every week on Project Runway there is a twist and turn and last night’s episode was no exception! Similar to Episode 509:What’s Your Sign? The designer’s had to depend on each other to get through the challenge. This time by designing for each other and not together in a group challenge.

Can we just say were relieved when Tim picked the names and genres out of the hat as we didn’t want to see what would have happened had they been left to their own devices. As the names were called we had no doubt that Suede would be successful since he seems to have great rock sensibility just in his personal style. We were also pretty confident in Jerell’s ability to create a pop look. We were concerned however about Korto, Leanne, and Kenley all of whom seemed to be asked to step way outside of their box.

Once the sketching process began and ideas were being bounced around, our skepticism started to ease as far as Korto and Leanne were concerned ….as for Kenley that was another story.

While the other designers embraced the idea of their genre Kenley was stuck on her point of view as a designer. Any attribute of hip-hop that she didn’t like she didn’t incorporate in her design. This was not the point of the challenge. The challenge was for the designer to make an outfit that represented a particular genre and not necessarily create an outfit they would wear or a culture they are a part of. This is precisely what Tim was trying to tell Kenley when he came to give her a critique on her piece. Unlike the other designers Kenley vehemently disagreed with Tim to the point where he gave her swift tongue lashing ( well, ….a tongue lashing for Tim).

The judges including guest Judge Hip-Hop artist LL Cool J thought felt that Kenley’s look was not Hip-Hop and also commented that the pants to the outfit were badly made. Additionally, they liked the vest to Suede’s Rock look for Jerell but like Tim thought he could have taken it farther and really pushed the envelope. Leanne ‘s look was not the worst but they did feel like she could have done something more polished for Korto’s  Country look she created.

Ultimately the judges loved both Jerell’s Pop look for Kenley and Korto’s Punk look for Suede and decided Korto was the winner. Suede, who had been playing it safe for weeks, was finally voted off.

Although, we know some fans disagreed we think this challenge was fun, fun, fun and we can’t wait to see what all the tears on next week’s episode are all about!!!

We admitted last week that we sometimes relished in the designers’ anguish, but this week we must admit we also relish in the “real” challenges where they work with people like you and me.

After the designers discovered they would not be working with the first women Heidi brought out on the stage but rather their younger daughters all recent college grads, we knew it was about to get interesting. Would the young women take to a more professional look? Would they like what the designers sketched for them?

Turns out due to the grad’s mothers being around on the first day in the workroom, none of our questions above applied. Some like Jerell, Korto, and Kenley had a great working relationship with the mother daughter duo, while people like Suede and Leanne struggled with their duos. We’ll be the first to admit we were not sure if Leanne or Suede would be able to withstand the pressure, however all our worries melted when the young women returned the next day sans their mothers.

Knowing that the designers knew Cynthia Rowley would be the guest judge we figured they would take more risks and have more fun. After all, Cynthia is known for her funky style as well as her irreverent design aesthetic. It is for this reason that both Leanne and Joe’s designs were criticized.

The judges, especially Cynthia, found Leanne’s design for Holly too buttoned up. Michael and Nina felt like it should have showcased  her youthful figure while Cynthia argued that the design should reflect the fact that Holly will more than likely be working hands-on with the children. They all found Joe’s design for Laura too cliched and felt like he should have done a younger look that was more modern. We can’t say we were surprised. Laura expressed that she was apprehensive about the pinstripes while Joe insisted that they would be good. Just another example of what happens when you don’t listen to your client.

Given Suede’s point of view as a designer coupled with Avital and her mother’s design requests we knew Suede’s design might be a bit of a disaster. While we like the dress, we aren’t sure if it was appropriate for the office and we don’t even know where to begin with the jacket.

We agree with the Judges top picks this week. We found Kenley, Jerell, and Korto’s designs both professional and modern. Kenley’s design was young and flattering and perfect for Anna who is a buyer. We do however agree with Heidi that she looked a bit like a “mini-me” of Kenley. Jerell’s look impressed the fab four on the judging panel and achieved the chic and put together look Caitlin and her mother wanted . We love that she said that Jerell made her feel beautiful. Lastly there was Korto’s design, a modern dress and jacket look, which would be perfect for any young grad entering the workplace and equally as appropriate for Medical school interviews. If she had any doubt about whether her look would be cohesive the expression on the judges faces should have put her at ease.

Ultimately, Joe was elminated and Jerell won both the challenge and a  TRESemmé  ad in Elle Magazine. Come back next week as we get closer and closer to the final three- and bid now to take home a piece of runway inspiration with a sketch from your favorite designer!

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We love when the designers go on field trips. Every time Tim surprises them, or Heidi announces they are to meet outside the workroom for their challenge we prepare for a big adventure. So when Tim announced they were to design for a “Fashion Icon“, we knew this was going to be exciting. When Blayne automatically thought the icon was Mary-Kate Olsen we were at first shocked and then on the floor in stitches. Was the thought wild? Yes. But we expect nothing less from him. Our favorite line from him has to be when he announced “I want to marry Mary-Kate!”

Terri, who always has the best one liners, said it best when they showed up at their destination and she said ” We arrived at this beautiful showroom, and we were like ‘What? What’s goin’ on!’ I mean it’s Project Runway anything could happen.”

Judging from the looks on the designers faces when Diane von Furstenberg was introduced as the icon and the challenge was given, we knew they were looking forward to getting to work. Poor Kenley was overwhelmed and cried so many times from a mixture of excitement and worry that we weren’t sure she was going to be able to sew without exploding. We must admit we understand her feelings. Let’s face it, Diane von Furstenberg is an established  American designer who changed the face of fashion with a design so revolutionary and yet so classic that it has remained a staple in generations of women’s closets for 30+ years! Let’s not even discuss what she has done as President of the CFDA. The pressure was on!

From the very beginning it was clear that this challenge was going to be a struggle for both Stella and Blayne.  For Stella, this task and DVF’s aesthetic was so out of her point of view as designer that she was going to have to push herself to the limits, and for Blayne this challenge did not give enough wiggle room for him to  be quirky. On the flip side, we automatically knew Korto and Leanne would be front-runners given their penchant for sophisticated well-constructed pieces.

How Blayne flew under the radar and did not go into the final three we will never know. His cropped pants were a mystery to us, and certainly are not part of DVF’s aesthetic or a look we saw in her Look Book. Like Diane we didn’t like the rear view of Joe’s look either however, we were taken aback by the harsh criticism he received on the runway.  Stella’s look wasn’t spectacular but we were pleasantly surprised she stepped outside of her box and created a more polished look. Her execution on the construction and the crooked cape were her downfall. Had she kept it simple and maybe nixed the cape she might still be on the runway. Lastly, we thought  Suede’s gown looked okay but the vest was awkward and did nothing for the look.

As for the top three we thought Korto’s gown was glamorous and exactly what we expected of her. It looked pulled together and had great movement. We found Leanne’s exquisite gown perfectly channeled both the Old Hollywood glamour of A Foreign Affair and DVF’s Collection.  We agree with the judges that she did a great job of mixing  the soft feminine look of the gown with the hard masculine edge of the coat.

Finally, there was Kenley. We can hardly talk about her dress because we can’t believe her attitude on the runway! Not only did she cut Heidi off when she was giving Kenley her critique but she shunned all criticism from everyone and sassed Diane von Furstenberg saying she thought she needed color in her collection. Whew! As far as her dress we thought it was nice but we didn’t think it deserved to be in the top three. Like Heidi we saw it as a well constructed but simple dress.

Ultimately, Stella went home and Leanne was the winner again.  Her look will be on a special site for American Express cardholders and a portion of the proceeds will go to the CFDA Foundation.

We really enjoyed this challenge and are biting our fingernails until next week. As always bid now-and own a piece of the runway.

Judging from Episode 507′s guest Judge Rachel Zoe and Heidi Klum’s reactions to Korto’s design, we knew this seatbelt coat appealed to stylish women who like high-end fashion. What we didn’t know was that this nifty little coat would  be a huge hit with the fans too, and would lead  the auction with the highest bid (beating Leanne’s winning design by more than twice the amount).

The current bid on Korto’s coat is an astonishing $1,001.10.  This number is so high, that some people are even speculating that either Ms. Zoe  or Heidi might be bidding. ( We’ll keep you posted if we hear anything!) We loved the looks from this offbeat challenge and think that any of these pieces would be a great  to own.

So don’t miss your chance to take home a piece of the runway. Bid now- and send us your best guess on what you think the final bid will be!

Can you hardly wait for New York Fashion Week? We can’t either! To get our lovely style correspondent Joslyn Davis in style for  the Bryant Park Tents to cover the Project Runway Season 5 fashion shows/finale, we’ve enlisted Rami Kashou from Season 4 to dress her in a piece from his collection. Will he put her in one of his classic draped numbers? Will he choose a piece in a different silhouette?

Stay tuned to watch the video- and in the meantime see how it all went down when Joslyn visited the tents last year by watching the Season 4 Fashion Week videos.

If ever you wished you had your own personal stylist, you’ll be certain to fall in love with Nina Garcia’s new book The One Hundred: A Guide to the Pieces Every Stylish Woman Must Own . This easy to follow volume by the stylish Editrix is in the same vein as her first style tome The Little Black Book of Style. She keeps the lessons easy to follow by listing her pieces alphabetically and using whimsical designs by fashion illustrator Ruben Toledo.

FROM The One Hundred: A Guide to the Pieces Every Stylish Woman Must Own

With her style philosophy firmly out in the world, Nina decided to address the most popular question readers consistently ask her: Exactly what are fashion’s timeless pieces?

The One Hundred answers this question and provides women with a tangible style map to follow when planning a shopping trip and stocking one’s closet. With illustrations from world-renowned fashion illustrator Ruben Toledo, The One Hundred contains the 100 items that Nina believes will never go out of style, and that have become absolutely indispensable for any woman reaching for her own eternal fashion look.

Snag your copy today and  let Nina help you shop your way to a chic new wardrobe!