The Fashion Fund - General Discussion

[Texasmom1970]

I was really surprised that Paul Andrew won. Not that I don't love his shoes but throughout this season the judges seemed kind of iffy about him.

The way they have been slobbering all over Ryan and Eva I was sure they would have given one of the the win. Still love this show hope we get another season.

[kitten59]

I'm surprised by Paul's win, as well. They seemed so meh over him (both him and his shoes). Honestly, I would have vomited if Ryan won. Not a fan of that pale pastel heap....or that ghastly haircut on her giant noggin. I loved Eva's jewelry, although I tend to prefer bigger pieces.

[NowVoyager]

Eva wuz robbed!

Thanks to wings707 for the link to her website. Even more fabulous than what I saw on the show. I *lusted after her pieces....Way out of my league with the price point, but if I could have anything from the show, it would be her quiet, delicate jewelry. Soo beautiful....my lady parts clinched... (tmi?)

I think the reason the shoe guy & the pale pink sweater girl won over Eva is because they need more help than she does. I don't think they picked strictly the best product & that's why the one judge kept talking about voting his conscience.

Of course, the show was honest about withholding information from us----if we had been privy to the names of shoe guy's 5 consulting lines, maybe we all would have been more impressed with him....less blindsided by his win.

[Pepper Mostly]

I was spoiled but I was hoping I'd read it wrong. Thrilled for Ryan and Eva--it was cute to see that they'd become friends! "Eva and I always talk about that!" Hee hee. that was sweet. Shoe guy left me cold from jump but, good for him I guess. I love this show, though. I love seeing the behind the scenes and the process. So, see you all back her next year? I'll bring the wine. 

[GaT]

It's interesting to me that we all seem to be surprised by Paul Andrew winning. I really didn't even think he was a contender. I wonder if that was a deliberate choice on the part of the show, or if they didn't show us what we needed to see.

[ethalfrida]

Last season I was School people all the way but this season I didn't care who won. I just enjoyed watching the show without any superficial hype, false bravado and loved seeing desingners who understood how to lay a seam! It was so refreshing...

Edited December 23, 2014 by ethalfrida

[Jolie]

It looks like The Fashion Fund is moving from Ovation to Amazon.

 

‘The Fashion Fund’ Series Lands At Amazon

[GaT]

Well, crap. I'm not paying for Amazon Prime just to watch this show.

[RealityCowgirl]

Great. The one interesting, authentic "reality show" on my list. Guess I can unfollow - I won't be paying Amazon for the "privilege" of viewing,

[Bella]

Better that than nothing IMO, but I'm a high-volume Amazon customer and have had Prime for a while now.

[GaT]

Better that than nothing IMO, but I'm a high-volume Amazon customer and have had Prime for a while now.

I only use Amazon for book recommendations (I don't even buy the books there) & I don't like watching shows on my 17 inch screen computer when I have a 50 inch TV, so paying for Prime is not in the cards for me. I also don't like the way they treat employees, so I kind of stay away from Amazon, but that's another story.

[QuinnM]

I have Prine for the free shipping. It doesn't take but 4-5 orders to make it worth it. My DVR and my DVD player allow me to watch Amazon on my regular tv so that's not an issue either. This is about options outside the cable and more and more TV selections seem to be Amazon and Netflix.

[Bella]

I have Prime for the free shipping. It doesn't take but 4-5 orders to make it worth it. My DVR and my DVD player allow me to watch Amazon on my regular tv so that's not an issue either. This is about options outside the cable and more and more TV selections seem to be Amazon and Netflix.

 

I'm on the older end of the spectrum and, like many of my peers, would rather just turn on the TV and watch it (when I'm not chasing kids out of my yard). But these non-cable media seem to be taking over larger and larger portions of the market, and at some point I'll probably cave in. This show may be the one that does it for me. If not, something else I don't want to miss will cause me to watch one of these non-TV TV shows. It's just a matter of when. And if we had icons here, I'd insert one of a creature letting out a big sigh.

[LoveIsJoy]

We have Prime so I'll definitely watch it.  I just wonder how/when they're going to advertise it so I don't forget about it by 2016 and miss it.  

[Jolie]

You don't have watch Prime on your computer if you have Roku or some other kind of streaming device. I watch both Netflix and Prime through it on my big screen TV. I personally like to watch on Netflix/Prime so I don't have to deal with the commercials of which there are many these days. Plus both there is some really good original programming that I enjoy so it makes the price seem like a bargain compared to my regular cable bill. I'm just glad The Fashion Fund is being shown somewhere since I really enjoy it. It's such a nice contrast to Project Runway. 

[missmontyp]

I was looking on Ovation for this.  Thank you for the information everyone.  Do you know when it is starting on Amazon Prime?

 

[QuinnM]

Just got a notice from Amazon. It's available starting Feb 25th. Yippee!

Edited February 7, 2016 by QuinnM

[GaT]

Hmm, my SO has Amazon Prime, I wonder if that means I can watch the show?

[GaT]

It turns out I'll be able to see the show, that's good. I've never watched anything on Amazon before, how does it work? Is there one episode a week like regular TV, or do they put all the episodes up at once?

[GaT]

I didn't see a season 3 topic already, so I started one.

 

I saw that Amazon had the first episode up for viewing (I'll come back to that), so I watched. It was about the application process which I always find interesting. I'm amazed at some of the portfolios the designers submit, they're really beautiful & expensive looking. They haven't said who the final contestants are yet, but I realized that I don't remember seeing women's clothing, I saw men's clothing, shoes, jewelry, but I don't remember women's clothes. I guess I'll find out next week. Amazon also has a shop that sells things from the contestants lines, so I guess that's why the show moved from Ovation.

 

Back to watching on Amazon. I've never watched any shows on Amazon before, so I just clicked & watched because it said free with ads. After I finished watching the episode, I noticed the promo ad now said "You own Season 3 in HD". I don't know how that happened because I didn't buy anything as far as I know, so it worries me that I now "own" something on Amazon, especially since it was supposed to be free with ads. I emailed them for an explanation, hopefully I just didn't spend money on a show I can get for free.

[ethalfrida]

Wow, let us know because we need to know about it...

[GaT]

Amazon answered & they said I didn't buy anything, so I guess I'm fine. They didn't explain how I now "own" season 3 though. I guess I'll just check next week & see if I can watch episode 2.

[ethalfrida]

 Thanks bunches for the update...

[ethalfrida]

Got it. enjoyed the first episode. But I wonder if it is possible to have the series in a resume watching status instead of having to search for it. Do you know?

[GaT]

Maybe if you add it to your watchlist? I'm not sure what a watchlist is, so I was afraid to add anything to it just in case it meant something other than just watching it.

[ethalfrida]

Thanks. I see the watchlist on line but it doesn't show up on the TV. Just thought there was something I was missing. Anyways, my listing says I own the series also even though there is only one episode so far, I think...

[GaT]

I just watched the 2nd episode, & they've picked the 10 finalists. So far I like Jonathan Simkhai's stuff, the others, I'm not sure about.

 

Just an fyi for anyone who is as confused as I am watching this on Amazon, the way I got to the 2nd episode watch to click on the thing that said episode 1 resume watching. That starts episode 2.

[GaT]

Are you a Prime member?  It may be that Prime members "own" the season.  It showed up for free for me too.  So far there has been the promo, and the first two episodes.

No, I don't have Prime, I watch the version with commercials.

[GaT]

Just watched the 3rd episode. Thaddeus O’Neill’s prices are ridiculous, $4400.00 for a cardigan, $265.00 for some board shorts, the judges even thought the prices were ridiculous. Who is his customer? really rich hipsters? Are there enough of them to support a business? I didn't think his clothes were all that great.

 

David Hart’s clothes are ugly, I guess that’s why “to be brutally honest, I have no business” was his answer.

 

The guy from Gypsy Sport does not belong there. He is not ready for this at all, whoever submitted him was wrong to do it. He couldn't even get his clothes there on time because he thought he would just show up on the day. His interview should be interesting, I think it's going to be a lot of blank stares & I think his clothes are awful.

[GaT]

Gee, this show used to have a lot more commenters, moving to Amazon may not have been the best decision. Anyway, just watched episode 4, & Jonathan Simkhai is still my favorite, but he had a terrible interview. I do not like Chromat, Gypsy Sport or Brother Vellies at all, but the judges seem to love them. I thought previous seasons had better designers.

[GaT]

I watch tv on a Fire stick so get plenty of Amazon show ads, so I noticed it and tried it out, since my daughter loved Project Runway.  It's odd.  I'm a Prime member but get commercials, and I find that a sub-30 minute show with multiple commercial breaks playing THE SAME FOUR COMMERCIALS each time is annoying.  We binge-watched 3 episodes and I'm pretty sure I would now go out of my way to NOT buy any Lily Pulitzer, Proactive or Sonicare.  Sadly, I do already use #4- Geico.  

 

Jonathan is also the only one whose clothes I like.  My daughter said she'd wear a Chromat swimsuit, until she saw they were $600 or something.  I wish there were more womenswear.  Menswear=dull.  I like the shoe girl but I'd never wear that stuff.  Did any jewelry designers get through?  There are only the two women, right?  Aurora and the Chromat girl?  

 

I don't think they're comparing products directly so much as choosing who has the most deserving potential business, right? 

 

I have a feeling when you take Amazon up on a freebie they consider you "own" it?  I wouldn't worry, they've never charged me for anything wrongly and have even taken returns on shows I bought accidentally.  

It sounds like this is the first season you've seen, the first 2 seasons were on Ovation, & IMO, they were much better. They had jewelry designers, more women's wear, even purses. This season seems overloaded with men's wear & strangeness. Also, annoying commercials.

[ethalfrida]

Does anyone know why Anna Wintour is wearing the dark glasses inside?

[leighdear]

This was my first season watching.  Lots of people in the Project Runway threads talked about it, and now that it's available on Amazon, I decided to give it a shot.  I like the concept, but agree that the ads are a pain, as I am also a Prime member and shouldn't have to deal with them.  The designers presenting I'm mixed on. 

Thad

Deus

O'Neil came off to me as a pretentious surfer-douche that's like, so really into the, like, wave culture, bro.....Surfing is the new Golf?  Did he really say that?

Bondage girl has some extreme looks, but I guarantee a few Kardashians are already dialing her up, and her line can go a little more commercial for the general public.  

African shoe girl is a one-way monkey for me, with the limited view.  However, she can grow into a clothing line in the future. 

 

There's just been the 4 episodes so far, is that correct?  Do they put up a new episode every week, to continue the story?

[leighdear]

Seriously, I've never seen an East Coast guy push the surfer-dude caricature so hard and so completely.  At first I thought he was joking about it until we saw the blurb with his wife and kid on their boat.  I honestly never knew East Coast surfing was a thing.    

[xingcat]

I kind of like Baja East (and the two dudes who own it are cute as hell), but they and Thaddeus ONeill are really silly in their pricing. The folks who can afford this aren't going to be wearing it for very long, honestly.

 

I like Brother Vellies as a concept, but the shoes are either total costume pieces or really boring. Those "desert boots" are nothing but chucks. I felt Anna Wintour when she said they were there for fashion, not for good feelings.

 

I like the style and sense of Cadet, and I suspect they're there more to raise brand awareness than anything else. I don't think they want to go into wholesale. Some stores are better left as stores and not as international brands.

 

I like David Hart's stuff, but it's pretty standard. Make suits and then put in some odd patterns or colors. Kind of ho-hum, so I understand why he's struggling.

 

Chromat just looks like student work to me. I didn't appreciate the sniffling that the Rag & Bone dudes were doing at it, though. They seem like incredibly pretentious dicks to me. Vest over t-shirt? You're high fashion, sir, don't let anyone tell you differently.

[ethalfrida]

I wonder when they post the epIsode. Do you know, whimsey08?

[GaT]

Episode #5 just came up on my list.

I didn't even realize there was a list at the bottom of the page until you posted that, I've been stupidly going through all the episodes to get to the latest. Duh.

[leighdear]

I want to go to the Baja East "experience"!  *LOL*   This was a good episode, but I'm going to wait til more people watch it to make additional comments. 

 

I actually like that they aren't eliminating a brand each episode.  With a specific amount of challenges that are scored individually, it allows for the aggregate final "score" to determine a winner.  And that doesn't necessarily dump a brand that may have just had one bad showing, but overall is strong. 

[GaT]

Anna Wintour really loves that necklace(s), she's been wearing it with everything. It looks like cheap costume jewelry to me.

 

Some of the designers really have no concept of what things cost, do they? 

 

It's her body & she can certainly decorate it any way she wants to, but when they showed high school pictures of the woman from Chromat, I was surprised that she was pretty. Those nasty pointy bangs & colored eyebrows are not doing her any favors.

 

I really like that people aren't eliminated, it's not that kind of competition. They aren't trying to get the winner of individual challenges, they're trying to determine who has the overall best chance of succeeding as a designer based on what skills are required. 

[leighdear]

Thankfully I'd never be able to afford anything by 

Thad

Deus

O'

Neil

Because there's absolutely nothing he could ever do to redeem himself for me.  Surfers wearing neon pink sequined wet suits?  Seriously?  A guy with a Ukulele?   He just has idiot written all over him.  In Sharpie.  

 

Gypsy boy impressed me with his attitude and his clothes are actually starting to grow on me.  He actually makes me want to take 3 random shirts from my closet, cut them up and sew them back together in a crazy way.  *LOL*

[xingcat]

Thaddeus ONeil has to be a kept man, right? Or he has family money? How does that man, who I wouldn't expect to be able to keep from drowning in the rain, make a living? A surf opera? What?

 

There's something so smarmy and off-putting about the two Rag & Bone dudes that I just want to smack the smug off their faces. Yeah, you're big-time designers, but it's basically white male privilege personified every time I look at them. Of course they didn't get the Chromat idea, because she wanted to empower other women.

 

So 10 grand will get you a rickshaw and a tent with a psychic in it? I know it's high end and New York City and all, but seriously, I can't imagine that that's totally it for the marketing idea. I also (as someone who works in a marketing company) laugh at the idea that "trending on Twitter" does one thing for your ROI. A joke, because most of the people are either too high up in their own perspective companies or too deeply mired in struggling as designers to understand that marketing that doesn't lead directly to sales is bad, bad marketing.

 

Still really like the Brother Vellies woman (who I think must win or runner-up because she's in those commercials for Sonicare, which is bizarre). The Gypsy Sport dude is entirely lovable, but he's really a Project Runway designer and not suited for this particular challenge. Cadet and the dude from the midwest seem to be the same person to me, so that doesn't say much.

[7-Zark-7]

I think Anna Wintour made it seem like she would prefer to hear her clothes are made by kidnapped children in sweatshops than find out about anything ethical.   

 

I didn't like the way the men were forced to do women's wear... and in such a short period of time.  Having said that, I loved David Hart's colorful Mondrian-ish period menswear and thought it would great in women's cuts. Those prints on clothes cut in the Agent Peggy Carter style of blouse and pants would be crazy good.

 

I wish they had chosen the costume jeweler (not the former ballerina who was doing expensive Judith Ripka stuff), the one with the expandable bracelets. I thought her pieces were nice.

[Marianne]

I, too, am underwhelmed by the designers this season.  Random thoughts:  East coast surfer dude with the $6,000 cardigan? Yikes!  Cannot stand the voice of the Brother Vellies woman.  Is that what they call a vocal fry? Too much menswear.  All the clothes are boring except for Chromat and the Gypsy sport guy.  I like him and hope he wins, but he probably won't since the panel emphasized how tiny his business was and they're looking for some one who's further on their way.

 

Finally, why does this show have to be as numbingly repetitive as Project Runway--same intro with the extensive description of the competition and the prize, same comments multiple times by contestants and judges--winning this is really important for my future, this will help me get to the next level, blah blah.  There should be so much detail re the actual clothes that could be shown instead.

[leighdear]

So how is Brother Vellies empowering African women if half of their shoes are custom made in Italy?  Are they just empowering the Africans to decorate some of the shoes?  And yes, she has one of the worst cases of sing-song, Valley Girl vocal fry that I have ever heard.  Ever.  Seriously.  

 

The Chromat stunt dress was such a waste of time.  I know they all have to have a "Big Finish" garment, but that just looked like a Velociraptor attached itself to a really tall girl.  And I hate nose rings.  The company owner speaks through gritted teeth, and sadly her look & sound just distracted me away from her designs. 

 

Thad was bad.  Everything looked like Tommy Bahama knock-offs.  Idiot. 

 

I loved and would wear just about everything Cadet showed in their women's line.  

 

Gypsy boy seemed to veer a little too far towards the outlandish for me, going outrageous just for the sake of it.  I couldn't see any real style in that show.  Just weirdness heaped onto strangeness and wrapped in WTF?

[GaT]

I don’t understand the point of making the menswear designers do a women’s line, they didn’t make Chromat or Jonathan Simkhai do a men’s line, so why? I wasn't impressed by anything I saw, even Jonathan Simkhai's stuff which I've liked up until now looked boring.

 

Every time Anna is on the screen I get distracted by her strange costume jewelry necklaces, why does she wear them with everything?

[xingcat]

 

So how is Brother Vellies empowering African women if half of their shoes are custom made in Italy?  Are they just empowering the Africans to decorate some of the shoes?

 

The original designs are developed in Italy and then they're made in Africa. So that makes sense to me. There's definitely a much longer tradition of fashion shoe-making in Italy, so construction, etc. happening in Africa doesn't bother me at all.

 

After this episode, I think Jonathan Simka has this in the bag. Or maybe Cadet, but I think Simka is already established, he's in a bunch of high-end stores, and he's ready to go.

 

Baja East...are those two guys in the Norelco ads they play? They look just like them. Huh.

 

Gypsy Sport's show was cool, but who is buying those clothes? It can't be a huge market. Retail stores won't find it saleable, so he's just going to get a few orders from...somewhere?

[leighdear]

 

Some of the designers have somehow blurred into one mass of nice looking men sporting scruffy almost beards on one side, and the more individualistic looking designers on the other

I agree, the guys are all interchangeable to me.  Except for Thad.  

 

I see the "judging" part as being very much like a loan officer evaluating an application for a pet supply shop alongside a bakery.  2 different customers and 2 different sets of products, but each has the same specific criteria they have to meet in order to be awarded a loan.  It's the same for feathery shoes versus surfer shorts.  Do they have all the necessary building blocks already in place?  Business plan? Marketing Strategy? Supply Chain? Infrastructure?  Every business has to have the essentials, no matter what they sell. I think the winner will be the best organized overall, and not necessarily the most creative.  Because it still has to make money. 

[xingcat]

 

Having them create last minute women's clothes when so many of the designers are focused on men seems a little unfair, but I don't quite understand how furry and feathered shoes can be compared to whatever Chromat is doing. and how does Gypsy Sport get judged against just about anyone else?

 

My suspicion is that there are 1 or 2 front runners who the judges are pretty much sure they're going to award the final prize to, and the rest are there as sort of the "filler" for it all. Since it isn't an elimination type of competition, these filler designers just have to be interesting enough to keep the Fashion Fund word out there and get more applicants for the next year. If you look at the previous winners, they all are kind of the same "type," really. There isn't a huge difference in the demographics of the winners' customers. I don't think Gypsy Sport is really in contention, for instance (though the founder's story would be fun for a runner-up), I think eventually the winner will be someone who makes clothes for upper-class people who shop at Bergorf's.

[leighdear]

I agree, David's book looked adorable.  I think that's what sold Anna.  So strange that the Cadet guys just blew off going to see "Hamilton".  Obviously the judges & advisers know what the contestants are doing, so I think that even if they liked what Cadet did, their noses would still be out of joint.  They want those contestants toeing the line.  

 

When I saw that Angelina Jolie was on the cover, my interest in the contestants was sidelined.  It's a really good article, actually. 

http://www.vogue.com/13357646/angelina-jolie-pitt-november-2015-cover/

 

Rio from Gypsy Sport confused me with his attitude about the fashion shoot. Obviously the models didn't look ridiculous and ugly enough for him until he saw the photos.  And they still looked normal!  He's coming off as a weirdo to me now. 

[GaT]

I don’t know why I didn’t think of Jaden Smith as soon as I saw the Gypsy Sport line, but he is absolutely the guy who would be wearing those clothes, and the Star Wars premier is absolutely the right event for them. I think it says a lot (but I'm not sure what) that Vogue gave Gypsy Sport two whole pages, & other designers had to share one page. Chromat’s designer was barely in the picture. I loved David Hart's book too, & I think this may be his challenge if he doesn't screw it up.