S14.E10: Crew's All In

[FineWashables]

Why are we required to have absolutely everything filtered through Candace's perspective?  It's like she's narrating the show.  Weird.

 

 

And why was Nina so excited over Merline's jacket? It looked like a grey puffy potato sack.

Merline's jacket was hideous indeed. The first thing she came up with looked like a refrigerator cozy. I give her props for listening to her model and adjusting accordingly but that doesn't explain her aesthetic or why she seems to be drawn to ugly shapes. She and Swapnil seemed to have designed exactly the same ruffly skirt and it was unflattering on both.

 

Swapnil and his model: Nobody's right when everybody's wrong. (Shoutout to Buffalo Springfield. That's right, I've gotten old.) He figured that a makeover meant ditching her utilitarian wardrobe for a glam look. I would have thought the same thing. She pretty much dry heaved at the idea of looking hot, and so was determined to hate everything he produced in every iteration. It seemed pretty clear to me that a jumpsuit would have met her criteria, and I think that from what we saw this season that Swapnil could have come up with a flowy jumpsuit in a beautiful fabric. He was blocked, just as Ashley was.

 

I wanted to see a double elimination but I think we didn't get one because Tim intends to use his Tim Gunn save on Ashley or Candace, whoever gets Aufed first. 

 

BTW: How ridiculous was it that Tim Gunn is on the walkie talkie saying "TG here."  It would have been shorter to say "Tim." One syllable instead of two.  Just saying.

 

[Pattycake2]

Gawd, can you imagine Dmitry with this crowd?  He'd be in the corner..silently..just working...with an occasion side eye over his aquiline nose. Of course, then I imagine him snapping and beating Swapnil over the head with the dressmaker dummy.

[leighdear]

I felt that the crew members should have just been asked to go with the designer's vision, and allowed minimal influence. 

 

Because let's face it, almost every single woman who has ever been a bridesmaid knows EXACTLY what it feels like to be forced to wear a dress that's uncomfortable, unflattering and possibly downright ugly.  ;-)

 

Suck it up, Cupcake!

Gawd, can you imagine Dmitry with this crowd?  He'd be in the corner..silently..just working...with an occasion side eye over his aquiline nose. Of course, then I imagine him snapping and beating Swapnil over the head with the dressmaker dummy.

I would pay to see that.  A lot.  

[AuntieDiane6]

 

Are you talking about Danielle Brooks from Orange Is the New Black? I thought that dress was gorgeous on her and she worked the hell out of it on the step and repeat.

 

I saw it only from the side and then it looked like a bunch of scarves sewn together.  The front view IS better … but when I looked at it, it looked like a plain blue dress split in half with scarves added to accommodate her girth.  

 

I remember that prom dress Siriano made for a "regular" girl -- that was horrid.  HIS talent did justifiably save him. 

[TattleTeeny]

Swapnil was not even wearing his contacts..I think the Gunn explosion was based on off-camera issues. And I agree that the editing was retconned to explain his downtrend. Would not be surprised if he were using...he looked spacey and disconnected, and his energy and attention were flagging.

 

His eyes were really red in a quick shot early on in the episode. I assumed his contacts had been irritating him or something.

[lovesnark]

I was hoping to hear Nina or Zach or someone call out Candace for another corset that laces up the back. I know it fits well with her ghoulish hooker schtick but it's a total cop out when it comes to having to make something fit the body you're making it for.  And, even with it lacing up the back, her client's boobs were unsupported and hanging low. I made my daughter's wedding dress this summer and learned quickly that the reason we see so many strapless, lace up the back wedding dresses is because there is far less actual fitting  involved. It took a long time to get the bodice of her dress to fit perfectly because *gasp* it wasn't strapless and it had a full back with a zipper. 

 

Finally, I'd really like to know why the hell half the people on this show can't pronounce Merline's name? She's called Merlin and MerLynn all the time. Heidi gets it right but Nina seems to be unable to figure it out. I'd love for Merline to say "Thanks, Nine-ah" after a critique and see what she does.

[autumnh]

I have to say, this has probably been my least favorite season so far. I have yet to see anyone really stand out talent wise. There is way too much crying and lack of effort for me. I was glad to see Swapnil go..he really was just squeaking by.

 

Does Ashley always have to use such hideous prints? and I always notice that most, not all of her color choices are similar to her hair color.

 

Plus there just seems to be such a disconnection with the designers to one another.

[Former Nun]

There was one shot of Swapnil where the whites of his were practically beet red.  I don't know if he'd been crying or what, but that really stood out to me, because later, his whites were white again.

 

 

At my house we wondered what type of "tobacco" he was using during his many (MANY!) smoke breaks.

[ryebread]

It made me very sad for the crew members.

 

Me, too.  Except for Swapnil's 'model'.  She was a bitch.  I see you snickering at Swapnil while Tim Gunn lost his damn mind.  Swapnil had checked out, true.  But that hosebeast did all that she could to make the challenge difficult, nay, impossible to complete to her standards.  And really:

 

Crew volunteers? It's a piece of clothing on a TV show that you never have to wear again or even keep. It's not your entire self worth. You'd think they would have been a little more relaxed from being around the show for years but on the whole they came off as demanding, uncooperative and tearful for no reason.

 

Slow clap.

 

This episode felt very cruel to me. From Tim's extraordinary (and, frankly, unpleasant IMO) outburst to the use of crew members as "real women" which created this weird and intimidatory dynamic between them and the designers.

 

Still clapping slowly.

 

It bothers me that a designer can get this far in a competition and all it takes is one whiny idiot that gets all butt hurt because she didn't get what she wanted and away goes the designer's chance of winning.  Swapnil didn't deserve to go all the way, imo, but these Real Women challenges always make me nervous. The designers are at the mercy of these sometimes, whiny, bitchy women who oft times don't know what they want.  It seems like they get in front of a camera, a designer makes a few pretty promises, they get their hairs and make-up did and the diva that they've suppressed for years rears it's ugly head.  The judges can be swayed on the runway by if the real woman model looks 'happy' or not.

 

I don't like it.

[sinkwriter]

 

BTW: How ridiculous was it that Tim Gunn is on the walkie talkie saying "TG here."  It would have been shorter to say "Tim." One syllable instead of two.  Just saying.

I thought that was one of the cute parts of last night's show. I chuckled every time he said "TG here..." Heee. Like they all have code names. It tickled me. (And made me wonder what Heidi's code name would be.)

[Maya]

Swapnil using drugs would explain Tim's anger and the retroactive slacker edit.

[Former Nun]

And on a shallow note, I wish the Mary Kay people would drag Ashley into their lab and show her a foundation that covers and blends into her natural skin tone without streaking during her numerous crying jags.

 

 

You beat me to it, BusyOctober.  I was going to suggest to Ashley that since she knows she will cry several times during EVERY episode, she should just go without make-up...or consult with Mary Kay to find a foundation that's salt-water proof.   Her look is always distracting...and then those tearstains make it pathetic.

[BananaRama]

This is probably the last season of Project Runway that I will watch. The designers just aren't as talented as they used to be in the earlier seasons. It's too bad because it was the first competitive reality show that the contestants with the most talent won. I enjoyed watching people use their skills to win challenges.

[woodscommaelle]

I don't think they get to keep the clothes, do they?   

Ugh, why would they want to?

[Wings]

I think they care because there is a vast epidemic of self-hatred when it comes to women's bodies in this country. If you hate your upper arms, or your thighs or your too big/too small breasts or your stomach or whatever, you really, really don't want to be seen on a popular television show wearing an outfit that puts maximum emphasis on that body part. So the women want to make extra-sure their designer gets that, and the more the designer seems to be ignoring their concern, the more frantic the models become.

 

 

 

 

Sure, tell the designer that you would like sleeves or I don't like strapless, etc.   But don't try to control it too far.  Just hit the high points and allow them to create what they like to do.   This time everyone, except the plus sized girl,  had a easy figure for design. 

 

Ashley does not dress herself well, from where I sit, so I was not surprised to see her fail with her model.   That was just grim. 

[AuntieDiane6]

 

 

This time everyone, except the plus sized girl,  had a easy figure for design.

Ashley does not dress herself well, from where I sit, so I was not surprised to see her fail with her model.   That was just grim.

 

Uh, no… They had breasts, which designers have a difficult time with since apparently they can only dress women with figures of 12-year-old boys going through a growth spurt.

 

They handed Ashley the biggest opportunity EVER for a win AND for a terrific brand launch.  That outfit could have been her signature look…  And don't tell me she couldn't have made one of the cute outfits she showed at her audition.

 

I wonder if her original, off-shoulder dress would have been better.

[JasmineFlower]

I forgot to say I can barely recall a time when Tim essentially said "Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out" to a designer this late in the competition. I recall it happening earlier in the season in prior years, not late or with people who have done so well in the competition. There was no "we'll miss you" or "you'll do great things" and no hug. NO NOTHING. Tim addressed the group instead and was totally dismissive of Swpanil. Possibly more went on behind the scenes than we saw, because its not all adding up for me. It can't just be that Swapnil should have spent more time working and the woman wasn't happy. Because stink face is never happy, let's get real here. She's not a happy person. She's apparently in her 20s yet looks weighed down by life and at least in her late 30s. She's not a happy woman at this point in her life for whatever reason.

[candall]

You know what I think would be an interesting challenge? If they had to make two of the same garment, one for a model and one for a real woman, and make them walk the runway side by side.

I would love to see that as well, but you know they'd never show such a direct comparison.

 

My mother was a professional fashion illustrator and her sketches were beautiful fantasies--slender, long-waisted figures with impossibly elongated legs.  It makes me smile that the initial sketches on PR still depict a nine-foot tall woman with a 19-inch waist.

 

Designers are forced to compress the fantasy ideal onto six-foot models in six-inch heels, but nobody wants to pull back the curtain and show us how much less attractive everything looks when scrunched down to the relative dimensions of "stump."

[Minicatfall]

I had some major issues with this episode (although I admit that my view of it was probably a bit skewed by discovering what Tim had done in a previous episode behind the scenes).

What did Tim do or say?

Like several posters here, I am thoroughly disappointed in the direction this show has taken. PR is/ was my one Thursday night must watch, but I'm just about done.

Edited October 9, 2015 by Minicatfall

[Texasmom1970]

If I have to hear Heidi say boobies one more time I am gonna stab q-tips in my ears. You are not talking to a bunch of 6 year olds woman choose another word!

I really hated everything this week, really hideous. Getting very tired of Candace and her signature looks. She needs to stop with the Morticia Adams/dominatrix line of clothing. Why haven't the judges slapped her down for repetitiveness?

[Ms Blue Jay]

I hate Tim.  And he is an asshole.

 

Tim is becoming like how Tyra was on America's Next Top Model, whatever season was that I finally saved myself and decided to stop watching.  They are both utterly insane. 

 

Now I'm deprived of a good designer on my screen, because Tim is fucking insane.  Whatever.

 

Let me please praise those posters who pointed out how crazy half of those crew members were.  This challenge is always a recipe for disaster.

 

The challenge requires that you please the runway judges, yet Tim always sticks his fucking nose in it and claims you also have to please your client.  No, you don't.  Who cares.  Just please them enough so they don't cry on the runway.  Unfortunately with Tim's idiotic interference Swapnil ended up failing at this.

 

Tim screaming at the designers, "Well let me ask you this, WHY CAN'T IT BE BOTH?"  Just fuck off, Tim.

Edited October 9, 2015 by Ms Blue Jay

[poeticlicensed]

When did Swapnil go from talented designer (the judges were fawning all over him at the beginning) to pariah who needed to be aufed harshly? The editors seemed to fixate on his smoking. That's a first for PR. There have been designers in the past who smoke like chimneys, but it seemed like with Swapnil they spend a lot of footage dedicated to his smoking. Yes, the outfit he made was hideous. They were all hideous, IMO. His model was terrible, she hated everything. I think he saw the handwriting on the wall and gave up. 

 

I cannot stand Ashley and hr crying ways anymore. The first couple of weeks I liked her, but she is so one note and her fabric choice was so teriible, I think she should have been aufed for that alone. I'm sorry, you don't put a peplum on a plus sized person. Everyone knows that. She should have made a flattering sheath dress. Big and flowy would have been just as bad, but frankly, it was the fabric color and pattern that did her in. I was sure she was getting the auf and Tim was going to save her. 

 

Kelly is so nit my style, but she and Edmund are my choices for the win. Candace can take her dominatrix outfits right back to Fredericks of Hollywood. Merlene's clothes are just plain strange IMO. 

 

I am almost done with this season. I honestly don't think any of them can compare to winner and even losers from previous seasons. 

[ChelseaNH]

It seems Candace can only do corsets for women with small busts.

 

I think Swapnil sabotaged himself, quite possibly subconsciously.  This way, he doesn't have to find out if he's really good enough to win it.  Consider the critique that turned into a fitting.  There was a significant amount of time between the announcement that fittings were happening and Tim's visit with Swapnil.  During that time, what did Swapnil do?  Wait around.  He had nothing to try on his client, but he didn't try to do anything about it.  I think that's what really set Tim off.  And wow, that was seriously uncomfortable to watch.

 

Perhaps he should have stuck with his second design

 

This reminds me of something Tim said many seasons previously, and we've seen it a lot lately.  The critique happens and the outfit has issues.  Rather than try to fix the issues with the outfit, the contestant creates a whole new outfit.  I wanted to smack Ashley when she told her client to get out of the dress -- leave it on and look at ways to change it.  Try adding sleeves, or changing the neckline, or whatever.

 

As for Swapnil, by the time he did his second outfit, it was clear his client was going to be difficult.  At that point, just make her look good.  If the judges are telling her she looks fabulous, any complaints she has are just going to reveal her delusions.  It's better to be up there with something you can defend then to cave to your client's insecurities, and I can't see why (other than exhaustion) he thought rushing through a third outfit would be the preferable course of action.

[Freckledbruh]

What did Tim do or say?Like several posters here, I am thoroughly disappointed in the direction this show has taken. PR is/ was my one Thursday night must watch, but I'm just about done.

If you look in the Swapnil thread, it is said that Tim went to the judges several times behind the scenes asking them to cut Swapnil because he thought he was lazy (not because of his actual work) which is why Zac had those out of nowhere comments about how they had to deal with Swapnil's "mediocrity" week after week. That to me completely taints this season. The designers should be judged on their output and not on what the mentor thinks of their work ethic. The whole episode (after knowing this) looked like a staged, clunky producer driven storyline.

[Thadeeeyus]

I forgot to say I can barely recall a time when Tim essentially said "Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out" to a designer this late in the competition. I recall it happening earlier in the season in prior years, not late or with people who have done so well in the competition. There was no "we'll miss you" or "you'll do great things" and no hug. NO NOTHING. Tim addressed the group instead and was totally dismissive of Swpanil. Possibly more went on behind the scenes than we saw, because its not all adding up for me. It can't just be that Swapnil should have spent more time working and the woman wasn't happy. Because stink face is never happy, let's get real here. She's not a happy person. She's apparently in her 20s yet looks weighed down by life and at least in her late 30s. She's not a happy woman at this point in her life for whatever reason.

 

Exactly! I hope we get the real story from someone because there were definitely things going on that we weren't privy to.  Did we ever hear any negative comments about Swapnil from the other designers?  Wouldn't they air those if the attempt was to make him look bad, if  they existed? I thought something was up with his participation on the show from the beginning.  No wins, in spite of high finishes, praise, and IMO what were some winning designs.  I thought at the time that he was maybe a ringer and was promised publicity and a runway show, and then something went horribly wrong and that all went out the window.  Something definitely happened. Did Swapnil realize what a crapfest this show is and decide he didn''t want any part of it? Did something happen between him and Tim on a personal level, like a proposition?  I would even buy a drug story, but wouldn't they try to create a more sympathetic story for his ousting if that were the case, if someone had an addiction and needed help?

 

Anyway, for this episode, I was thinking the whole time that Swapnil DID create what his client asked for initially, something day-to-night with long sleeves.  He should have stuck with one of the two first creations.  If his client made herself more clear at any time, that wasn't shown, other than not bombshell. And what he created wasn't bombshell in my mind.   She herself was portrayed in a bad light, as a negative nellie from the start.  Why would they make one of their crew look so bad?  Questions, questions....  Swapnil did not deserve to go home based on his creations the past few weeks. This was obviously all manufactured.  I just want to know why. 

 

Ashley's was one of the most unflattering creations I've ever seen on this show.

Edited October 9, 2015 by Thadeeeyus

[Primetimer]

When Swapnil struggles with a difficult client, Tim Gunn is no help.

Read the story

[Julia]

She probably had to bleach it super-light before doing the lavender color, and now the ends are fading faster than the rest, most likely.

 

I never "get" this criticism. Taste is subjective, for designers and clients...for everyone. To me, the term "good taste" or "bad taste" means absolutely nothing (in terms of clothes and other superficial things, that is). Taste is not much different than an opinion. All fashion is not for one type of consumer taste. 

That said, I can see that criticism being valid when the challenge is to design for a specific niche or market, like the Just Fab one. But in general, there is no such thing as "bad taste" in clothes; different taste, yes. Bad taste, no.

 

(I have never typed the word "taste" so much in such a short time! And I write for a living.)

 

I think because given who their current sponsors are, they can't actually say "those look like clothes tacky poor people would wear." That's still what they mean.

[seasick]

Really?  Didn't she *gasp**pearl clutch* forget her kit at home?  I can't believe she was actually somehow able to get her own scissors somewhere in NYC!

Wow!  That was really harsh...

[TattleTeeny]

Good point. If that's true, the judges (like many commenters here, haha) would take one look at my closet and ding me for tasteless prints too. Still, though, judging on "taste" without specifics is akin to saying "your opinion is wrong" and also implies that there is only one "right" "taste"...which is not a sensible idea in the fashion world.

Edited October 9, 2015 by TattleTeeny

[magpye29]

The problem with Ashley's peplum, for me, was that it wasn't a peplum.  It was a giant ruffle around her model's middle.  It was also double-layered, and therefore, even bigger.  I'm built kind of like that model, and I have a big belly, but I look good in dresses that follow the lines of my figure (as long as I wear a good foundation garment that holds my belly at bay.  Ashley could have made a really cute dress out of that floral print, and if she needed a ruffle, put one at the hem but just above the knee.  

 

I just feel like these designers have no common sense or problem-solving skills.

[spaceytraci1208]

I fucking lived for Tim Gunn's rant at Swapnil because it felt like a genuine moment of frustration. It reminded me of RuPaul this season yelling at her girls and telling them she didn't want to hear anymore goddamn excuses ANYMORE.

Or Tyra Banks' "We were all rooting for you!!" meltdown on America's Next Top Model years ago lol

[Julia]

FWIW, I don't think Swapnil doubted his ability to make beautiful, flattering clothes. I think he doubted his ability to make the kind of clothes the judges are rewarding and heaping praise on. Which is not a skill anyone who doesn't design for Conways needs, really.

[PrincessSteel]

My husband will claim that he NEVER watches PR and that he is only in the room with me while I am watching to keep me company. Heh. He call Swapnil 'the bored playboy'. I must echo what several previous posters have written: There is some off-screen situation this season that I want to know about.

[FormerMod-a1]

I liked Ashley's first dress, I thought it looked good on her crew member. I know she wanted sleeves, but why didn't Ashley just add sleeves to that dress some how rather than making that sad looking top?

[TattleTeeny]

Seriously! It sounded to me like the model wanted a basic fit-and-flare style, which is flattering on so many heights and shapes, in solids or wild prints. And Ashley can do that in her sleep, I'd suspect. Was she worried that that style would get her scolded by the judges for being repetitive?

Edited October 9, 2015 by TattleTeeny

[Pepper Mostly]

Swapnil was my favorite from the beginning, but I knew as soon as he started getting the slacker edit, things weren't going to end well for him. It still sort of saddens me that he never got a single win because a lot of his early designs were beautiful. I think the whole "I'm not giving it my all" attitude was totally an effort at self preservation because he was always coming in second. It was just a bummer to see him worn down. Normally I'm completely in the "real" women's corner for this challenge, but these crew members seemed super hard to please. And the looks all ended up being pretty bad.

The whole thing screamed "SETUP" to me! they "randomly" assigned the crew members to a designer? What a coincidence, the plus size girl gets Ashley, and moody, passive-aggressive one gets Slacker Swapnil (at least that's the story production wants to tell), pretty easygoing overall-clad woman gets Kelly. I think they were all encouraged to be difficult. Maybe there was bonus money for the woman who got her designer auf'd. (Viewers of Unreal, amirite?). When I saw Shiri and Constance as guest judges, I knew. The was producer manipulation at its best. Angela's mother didn't cry as much as these people. These women know the ropes, so their over the top reactions were making my eyes roll out of my head.

 

I can't help but feel Swapnil has been ill-used. Its like ANTM when Tyra brands one wannabe as "fading away" or "lacking personality". There's no coming back. For some reason he was the sacrificial lamb, and I am very disappointed in Tim. He's supposed to mentor, not torment. The kind of talk he was dishing out was not going to work on Swapnil, who might have responded to some encouragement and kindness. The old Tim would have given him that.

 

Those ridiculous pockets in the peplum on Ashley's dress were cringe inducing. But yay Kelly! I just love her. All of my psychic energy is now being directed to her making the top 3.

Edited October 9, 2015 by Pepper Mostly

[Minicatfall]

If you look in the Swapnil thread, it is said that Tim went to the judges several times behind the scenes asking them to cut Swapnil because he thought he was lazy (not because of his actual work) which is why Zac had those out of nowhere comments about how they had to deal with Swapnil's "mediocrity" week after week. That to me completely taints this season. The designers should be judged on their output and not on what the mentor thinks of their work ethic. The whole episode (after knowing this) looked like a staged, clunky producer driven storyline.

Ahhhh...

I did a quick read through and also checked out the EW interview. How sad that the final thing Gunn said was 'the producers were happy.'

That just about sums up the tenor of PR.

[Freckledbruh]

Seriously! It sounded to me like the model wanted a basic fit-and-flare style, which is flattering on so many heights and shapes, in solids or wild prints. And Ashley can do that in her sleep, I'd suspect. Was she worried that that style would get her scolded by the judges for being repetitive?

Ashley actually did say this on the episode to which I said "Noooooo!" to my tv screen because the client wanted Ashley's usual design. She really shot herself in the foot.

[slothgirl]

What a spectacular fall from grace, Swapnil. I can't even figure out what happened to him. That garment was tragic. You could have driven a truck through the distance between him and Tim when he walked out. Wow.

 

I remember some pretty chilly farewells from Tim, but that was jaw-droppingly cold!

 

You can't depend at all on editing, but I got an "entitled" vibe from Swapnil. I think he's hot-stuff back home and was totally unprepared for not being a shoe-in for a win. When he complained "She wants her arms and legs covered... what am I supposed to do?" (or whatever it was he said) I wanted to reach through the tv and smack him. He's the one who said early on "Women tell me that when they wear my designs, men want to have sex with them" (wasn't he?) I found him smug and irritating almost from the start. If he wasn't good-looking, I think his attitude towards women would have been more obvious. "I have to give her SLEEVES? OMG, that will RUIN any design I could do!" Jackass.

 

So little patience, I have. Crew volunteers? It's a piece of clothing on a TV show that you never have to wear again or even keep. It's not your entire self worth. You'd think they would have been a little more relaxed from being around the show for years but on the whole they came off as demanding, uncooperative and tearful for no reason.

 

Unlike Nina, I was not one bit surprised that Ashley sent her model out in something unflattering for a plus size person, because that's the way she dresses her own damned self week after week!

I been saying that from the beginning about even her home video and portfolio designs. I felt like I was the only person who wasn't enamored of Ashley.

 

I wonder if the crew was instructed to be demanding. Or maybe because they work around "fashion" (and I use the term loosely) all the time, they were just more discriminating and less start-struck than the usual real women who get on the show. Or maybe these designers are just so much less imaginative, that any demands at all stymie them. Kelly shined because she IS a real woman, not a "fashion designer" with the industry's usual POV about real women.

 

Some of the crew really rocked the runway... maybe Swapnil's not the only one with delusions of grandeur. ;)

 

I have grown to appreciate Kelly. Her aesthetic is the complete opposite of mine, but it is indeed her point of view, and this week she listened to her client (and was critical of the designers who didn't), and she constructs her garments pretty well. She's like Betsey Johnson to me. Betsey's look isn't my cup of tea, but there are women who do like that aesthetic, and they look great in her clothes (and I admire her work ethic and joie de vivre.) And Kelly's talking-head sessions tend to be thoughtful and not gratuitously bitchy.  It also seems like the crew likes her.

 

 

Well, this explains why they finally auf'd Laurie last week. No one on the crew wanted THAT much exposure.

If you had told me at the start of the season that I'd like Kelly and she'd make top 5, I'd have laughed.

Swapnil has been checked out for weeks, so no great loss. Talk about an awkward exit.

Ashley did her model no favors. No larger woman wants peplum and that fabric was a crime against humanity.

Yep... How NOT to do Peplums. Sigh

 

I wish they had auf'ed Laurie a lot sooner and somehow kept Lindsey around for the RTW and real women challenges. I think we would have seen better work from her than from some of these designers that are left (cough.. Ashley.. cough,cough) For that matter, I would have rather seen more of Jake than Laurie or Ashley. I thought his outfit for the blue team challenge was one of the best of the episode.

 

I love Kelly. Just love her. I think when she has more experience and learns to consistently edit, she will have a great career. And I want her as my BFF. I'm still shaking my head at people who lumped her in with "mean girls" not that long ago. I can't wait for Ashley, her tears, and her frumpy designs to be GONE. I think if she were not herself overweight, they would have auf'ed her long ago. She was kept around for PC'ness and to appease fans (who in some cases were on her side primarily because she was overweight). I never saw her as being someone capable of revolutionizing plus size fashion.

Edited October 9, 2015 by slothgirl

[RealityCreator]

I think this is yet another case of designers taking Tim's advice when they shouldn't have.  If Swapnil had stayed with his original vision and tweaked it a bit, he could have made something beautiful that Sourpuss may not have liked, but the judges may have.  I don't think "lazy" should have anything to do with judging.  If the designer is able to put something on the runway that the judges like, why does it matter if that designer didn't have to work as hard as others to do so?  

 

Ashley was also mistaken in listening to Tim and her client.  Though her fabric choice was *atrocious,* her initial dress was a far better design for her model than what she ended up with.  Since the client didn't want her arms showing, she should have just made her a little jacket to go over the first dress.    These are the kinds of critiques that should have been coming from Tim, but he was so obnoxious and protective of the crew members that he couldn't or wouldn't help the designers.  I guess he was so over Swapnil, he no longer wanted to help him.  Sigh.  Not enjoyable TV watching.  Not at all. 

Edited October 9, 2015 by RealityCreator

[izabella]

The problem with Ashley's peplum, for me, was that it wasn't a peplum.  It was a giant ruffle around her model's middle.  It was also double-layered, and therefore, even bigger.  I'm built kind of like that model, and I have a big belly, but I look good in dresses that follow the lines of my figure (as long as I wear a good foundation garment that holds my belly at bay.  Ashley could have made a really cute dress out of that floral print, and if she needed a ruffle, put one at the hem but just above the knee.  

 

I just feel like these designers have no common sense or problem-solving skills.

 

As others have said, a wrap dress would have been great.  A dress with a tulip skirt can also be great if done properly.  Something cut on the bias would have drapes beautifully.  A regular coat dress with buttons in an A line would have been beautiful on her.

 

Ashley had options, and she should have known what they were instead of that mess!  I think Tim psyched her out when he told her the silhouette of the first outfit was something they'd seen before from her.  Ashley should have said, so what?  I'm going to make the best damned seen-before silhouette for this client, with some modifications for the sleeves/strapless issue.

[mansonlamps]

Darn, the boards ate my lengthy, insightful post, so here's what it boiled down to: Ashley was not the only one exhausted as the post I copied from indicated, it was a two day challenge without even a twist so we should have seen some really good stuff, the real women models had much less challenging body types than those in past real women challenges, K from the D' s overalls were ugly, Merlines poorly constructed jacket was not luxe, Edmond's was creative even if the 2 pieces didn't go together, Heidi shouldn't have put on the raincoat in front of the crew member knowing it would look much better on Heidi even though per DT, she is no longer a perfect 10 ;)

And I hope the truth about Swapnil comes out on Twitter or in the reunion show, we may never know.

[slothgirl]

I began wondering -- since she was insisting on so much modesty such as covering her arms and legs -- maybe his model had religious and/or cultural parameters she wanted to observe. I guess she would've said that if she did, but it kept popping into my head by her reactions to everything.

I am surprised at the number of people saying she should have lightened up about what she wanted. I have to wonder if she had been a real woman "off the street" (so to speak) like previous real women challenges, that people would have viewed her the same way for asking for her skin to be covered, especially if the designer seemed to have Swapnil's attitude about how covering her left him with nothing he could do.

 

I think the crew member in this case got an unfairly bitchy edit and was probably at the end of her rope with Swapnil. If TIM lost it with him and he's supposed to be his MENTOR, why expect the crew member to be docile and go along with whatever Swap comes up with? She was probably afraid he'd put her in some weird strappy bondagy thing and she'd never live it down on-set. These women were really in an awkward position if you think about it. It may appear as though they have a large number of women on the crew, but I'll bet there are still FAR more men.

[BloggerAloud]

I think it's interesting that Kelly was just going to send her outfit down the runway and then Tim tells her he thinks that she add another element. As soon as it is on the runway, all the judges agree that they preferred the outfit without the vest. That seems to slowly have become a normal storyline of Tim suggests something followed by the judges being in direction opposite opinion.

[ChelseaNH]

Tim didn't tell her to make a vest, though.  If she didn't have the vest, would the judges have asked what she spent all her time on?

Edited October 9, 2015 by ChelseaNH

[izabella]

I am surprised at the number of people saying she should have lightened up about what she wanted. I have to wonder if she had been a real woman "off the street" (so to speak) like previous real women challenges, that people would have viewed her the same way for asking for her skin to be covered, especially if the designer seemed to have Swapnil's attitude about how covering her left him with nothing he could do.

 

He designed two different tops with long sleeves before the blue top with 3/4 sleeves and she was still bitching, so I don't know what Swapnil was supposed to have done.  One top had zippers on the sleeves and she hated.  The second was a plain long sleeve, and she hated again.  So what magical sleeve did she want?

[Freckledbruh]

I am surprised at the number of people saying she should have lightened up about what she wanted. I have to wonder if she had been a real woman "off the street" (so to speak) like previous real women challenges, that people would have viewed her the same way for asking for her skin to be covered, especially if the designer seemed to have Swapnil's attitude about how covering her left him with nothing he could do.

I think the crew member in this case got an unfairly bitchy edit and was probably at the end of her rope with Swapnil. If TIM lost it with him and he's supposed to be his MENTOR, why expect the crew member to be docile and go along with whatever Swap comes up with? She was probably afraid he'd put her in some weird strappy bondagy thing and she'd never live it down on-set. These women were really in an awkward position if you think about it. It may appear as though they have a large number of women on the crew, but I'll bet there are still FAR more men.

To me, the issue wasn't the crew member asking for her arms and legs to be covered. My issue was her crapping on the first two designs that followed that directive without telling him what she didn't like and what she actually wanted. Also, editing didn't cause her to roll her eyes at hair and make up. She was an ass. Straight up no chaser.

As for Tim, if he can't put his personal feelings about a designer aside and do his job as a mentor then he needs to leave the show. His rant was uncalled for, unhelpful and embarrassing (on both of their parts).

Edited October 9, 2015 by Freckledbruh

[Pepper Mostly]

I forgot to say I can barely recall a time when Tim essentially said "Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out" to a designer this late in the competition.

Emilio Sosa. Tim hated him. He hated him even more than he hated Santino.

 

I laughed like a hyena at Swapnil shaving. He knew damn well production would have a fit. I always said that if I went on reality teevee (never happen!) I would wear a different outfit every day and do something different with my hair/makeup to keep 'em scrambling. Good one, Swapnil!

[sleepyjean]

The problem with Ashley's peplum, for me, was that it wasn't a peplum.  It was a giant ruffle around her model's middle.  It was also double-layered, and therefore, even bigger. 

And she put pockets in it. Pockets in a peplum!! I refuse to believe I am the only one disturbed by that. We get that you know how to make pockets, Ashley. They are nifty, but they aren't a necessary part of every garment and they don't show off any particularly magical skills on your part.

[slothgirl]

Which makes me wonder how bad they really were, this being (presumably) the most flattering edit the show could give them (I bet the unseen footage on Swapnil's crew member is deee-liiiightful -- and I'm sure it's a complete coincidence she ended up with Swapnil -- no producer Hand of OMG at work there).

 

I wish she hadn't been chosen to do the episode. Anyone that vigilant about their body being revealed (no arms! no legs!  -- jesus, make a secular burqa and be done with it) is usually a drama-driven bore to watch. And it fucks up the designs.

I completely disagree. It shouldn't hamper the designers or screw up the designs that much to put sleeves on an outfit or bring the hem down to a reasonable length. Wasn't there a designer a few seasons ago who we all complained about because she didn't do a sleeve all season? (cough, Anya, cough).

 

Where I live, you can go sleeveless for about 6 weeks of the year. Even at a party, you're going to want either sleeves or a little jacket because no one can heat their house enough. Maybe she's cold all the time. Or just maybe she didn't want to be made over into a "bombshell" by someone who thinks all women should look like bombshells. I don't find that indicative of insecurity.. I think it shows the opposite. That she wants to look like the best "her" she can... not some tramped up version of herself as though she can't be sexy while being true to herself. That's just insulting.

 

I also don't expect the show went out of their way to give the crew members the best possible edits. I don't think the editing staff in general is all that ethical, and I also doubt they mix much with the taping crew.

 

I was most pleased with Kelly and Edmond (though I agree, that raincoat did not work well with the dress - he should have worked harder to coordinate the two and make the raincoat fit with the style of the dress better).

 

I'm so disappointed in Ashley - I really, really wanted her to rock this challenge, but the judges were right. She choked.

Saying she "choked" would imply that it was somehow out of the pattern for her to turn out a frumpy ugly outfit and I don't think it was. She's choked quite a few times already. That's not "choking"; that's just a limited designer.

 

Although I liked Edmond's weaving, I think he should have made the raincoat the main item and just given her a simple dress for underneath that didn't clash with it. Then he could have made more of a point that she asked a raincoat and turned out an impeccable one. Both items had potential but they really didn't work together as an outfit, which also says something about the coat if you have such a hard time pairing it with your clothes... that would have been less obvious if he had done a simple dress.

 

But good for him for giving the client something she wanted and not just freaking out over having to do a complicated item that he had never done before. He really is the most prepared-for-the-show designer I've ever seen on PR.

 

You know what I wear when I don't want to expose my arms and legs? Pants and a jacket. No burkha necessary.

This. Or even a dress/skirt that doesn't just barely cover my butt.

 

since they work in TV, offer to design them a look they can wear on the red carpet at the Emmy's...which would have given the designers a chance to do something really fabulous.

 

Swapnil was not even wearing his contacts..I think the Gunn explosion was based on off-camera issues. And I agree that the editing was retconned to explain his downtrend. Would not be surprised if he were using...he looked spacey and disconnected

 

I have also wondered if Swapnil was "using" something. When he wasn't spacey, he was hyper and giddy.

 

I doubt these crew members get in to the Emmy's. I also think that they couldn't do this episode earlier in the season because they had to wait until they had fewer designers based on the number of women in the crew (or the number willing to participate)

Edited October 9, 2015 by slothgirl