S15.E01: Road to the Runway Season 15 / S15.E02: An Unconventional Runway

[Broderbits]

On September 16, 2016 at 7:41 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Remember when the unconventional materials challenge meant designing something that looked like clothes and the designers were chastised for using materials that were too similar to fabric (like tablecloths)?

Before every unconventional materials challenge they give that warning to "be creative" and not just use yardage as fabric. And then the judges usually award the top spot to someone who did just that; e.g. Season 3, when the 1st episode winner was a dress made from a tablecloth. A very boring dress, at least compared to the coffee filter dress (among others) it was competing against. The judging on this show makes me crazy because it's often so inconsistent and contradictory.

[Mumbles]

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I don't watch the Today Show.  Is Savannah Guthrie as useless there as she was as a judge?

I think so.

I am sick of celebrities with no fashion cred judging this show. Stick with designers, fashion journalists or critics, or even stylists- people who understand structure, construction, how the materials perform, etc.  These designers live and breathe this, for years. When she made the snarky remark about Brick's styling of his model, I just rolled my eyes. And then her diss of that structured dress - does she have any idea what went into making it?

She has a right to an opinion and an aesthetic, of course. So do we all. But *we* aren't making career-changing decisions.

[mansonlamps]

I never notice the styling that much but, damn, Brik's Little House on the Prairie look on his model was seriously awful for what she was wearing.  So far, as Nina would say, I have to question his taste.

Also, I absolutely refuse to believe they really thought Dexter's outfit deserved to be in the top three.  It was hideous and unflattering.

Other than that, I enjoyed this episode more than I've enjoyed a Project Runway episode in along, long time.  Looking forward to more.

[Love2dance]

6 hours ago, ratgirlagogo said:

This drives me NUTS.  Dexter made a dress out of a throw rug and a pillow cover.  And that's one of the TOP looks???!!!?  Those aren't unconventional materials, they're somewhat unconventional FABRICS.

Zac and Nina, maybe not, but Heidi was right in the party room, as was Tim.  They both knew.

 

Yes, yes, yes! I completely agree. So glad Dexter did not win. I kinda liked the look of the finished product, but he did not meet the challenge.

[NYGirl]

What was with that guy pulling the flowers out of the other guy's hands when they were picking their materials?  How rude!

That being said Ian thought he was above the show.  How many times did he say he liked the dress after he was eliminated?  It was amusing to say the least.  I'm glad you liked it Ian..nobody else did.  He had that condescending haughty look about him.

Another thing, someone made a white top with black beads and didn't get dinged for it.  Really?  It was muslin!

[sourpickles]

I'm cautiously optimistic about this season...the show has a long way to go to redeem itself in my eyes. I even rewatched the last season and got more agitated by the episode. I have a love/hate (though mostly love) thing going on with Tim Gunn, but I have to say he got it right with his critique of Ashley Nell, and her response seemed to me that she missed the point. Oy. Old news. Anywho, the first thing I though with this episode was "WTF is wrong with TGs face?". Glad it was just the new glasses, though they throw me. Still love Heidi. Hate the name BRIK (please, let it be a nickname) LOVED those pants. In the (practically nonexistent) minority with that I did NOT like that yellow winning look. I'm not sure if it is that that color has always put me off a bit, or that it didn't seem to be totally unconventional material. And Dexter is going to drive me forking nuts, I can already see it coming. Can't say I mind too many other people, and actually like a few. If any of these topics have been beat to death already, so sorry. Been crazy busy and this is the first time I've been on here in forever, though I see some familiar names! Love it, hate it, make it work, it is good to be back, and welcome to us all!

[savannah1985]

There's a really great "Actor's Studio" with Robin Williams on YouTube that I love to watch (I love Robin Williams and miss him so much) but my viewing is not as fun as it could be because there's a woman in the audience with the most annoying loud laugh, it just drives me nuts.  I know I'm not being fair or even very nice, I mean it's Robin Williams, she's supposed to laugh, but I can barely watch the show, so I'm hoping "annoying laugh" person on this show either saddens up or leaves.

[TattleTeeny]

I liked the yellow dress--wouldn't wear it but I thought it came together well, and was nicely done. Roberi's I also would not wear (and I love a micro-mini) but it reminded me of Starry Night, which is a good thing.

[LeapDayBaby]

On September 16, 2016 at 8:10 PM, SailorGirl said:

agreed -- I was expecting diva too. All in all he seems pretty normal, but the Moe Howard haircut has GOT to go . . .

Or, for fans of the BBC series "Red Dwarf", The Cat's alter ego Duane Dibbley...
 

 

[Texasmom1970]

On 9/15/2016 at 11:07 PM, nb360 said:

Tim Gunn: "Ian, we're going to miss your SPUNK."  

Translation: "That's what you get, b*itch, for not listening to me."

Ian, poor Ian your broke the unwritten rule of Project Runway do not talk shit to Tim!

[Cheyanne11]

On 9/16/2016 at 2:08 AM, candall said:

Ian's stubborn rejection of Tim's advice thrice over was extremely amusing.  Ever seen this show, pal?  NOT a strategic move.  Bye.

Best part was his "I'm looking forward to Tim's critique.  As a designer, you have to accept criticism" shpiel only to go stone-cold bitchface as soon as he got some. 

At least we know he'll "love that dress til the day I die."  We know because he said it half a dozen times in his last two minutes of airtime. 

[candall]

8 minutes ago, Cheyanne11 said:

Best part was his "I'm looking forward to Tim's critique.  As a designer, you have to accept criticism" shpiel only to go stone-cold bitchface as soon as he got some. 

At least we know he'll "love that dress til the day I die."  We know because he said it half a dozen times in his last two minutes of airtime. 

Bookended with his post-Tim TH:  "I respect Tim Gunn's opinion, but . . ."

Heeeeeeee hee hee hee.  Oh, dude, you made your own gag reel, with just a one-and-done episode!

[millennium]

2 hours ago, Cheyanne11 said:

Best part was his "I'm looking forward to Tim's critique.  As a designer, you have to accept criticism" shpiel only to go stone-cold bitchface as soon as he got some. 

At least we know he'll "love that dress til the day I die."  We know because he said it half a dozen times in his last two minutes of airtime. 

I took special satisfaction from Heidi adding insult to injury, "Ian, it must be difficult to be the first one eliminated ..." -- like she wasn't going to let him off the runway without driving the point home.

[AZChristian]

I caught a rerun of the last 10 minutes of this episode when I was at Planet Fitness earlier.  When Nina denigrated the "creative" sparkly pants and praised Ian's mess as "elegant," and whatshisname guy judge said SERIOUSLY:  "So we have to decide between creativity and elegance," I started laughing so hard I almost fell off the treadmill.

Hey, judges, please be careful.  I'm at the gym to recover from knee replacement surgery, and I don't need to fall off the treadmill and break a hip!!!

[PaulaO]

At least Heidi finally realized and said "of course we've seen these dresses before" acknowledging there are only so many designs in this world.  After 14 seasons, it's all been done.

I vowed I was not going to watch, but got sucked I'm.  I hope there will be less drama and more design.  Most of the designers seem to be grown ups...

[dleighg]

47 minutes ago, PaulaO said:

At least Heidi finally realized and said "of course we've seen these dresses before" acknowledging there are only so many designs in this world.  After 14 seasons, it's all been done.

 

And if we haven't seen it before, maybe there is a VERY GOOD REASON. Sometimes everything old is new again. 

[Canada]

I'm actually very glad that they sent Ian home.  I feel like he would just have been nasty to watch all season if he'd stayed and it would have taken away from the point of the show, which is designing fashion.

I don't know if this is a new thing or not, but during the runway show, I noticed that Tim Gunn has the worst case of resting bitch face I've ever seen!!

[Vermicious Knid]

So once again, many of the unconventional material challenge outfits devolved to 'glue shit to muslin'.  I really wish they would remove that altogether as an option. They should have to make the entire garment out of what they can get, period. That said, Brik should have put some glitter patterns or something on his top to tie it in with the pants and he would have been safe and not in the bottom. He was saved because the judges appreciated how he re-purposed the hats, and they will always picks someone who tries and misses over boring any time.

I don't outright hate anyone yet, and no one has come off as really obnoxious. The obligatory pink-haired girl is just young and clueless.

I can't believe Tasha is only 33! 

[DEL901]

6 hours ago, Cheyanne11 said:

Best part was his "I'm looking forward to Tim's critique.  As a designer, you have to accept criticism" shpiel only to go stone-cold bitchface as soon as he got some. 

At least we know he'll "love that dress til the day I die."  We know because he said it half a dozen times in his last two minutes of airtime. 

He also (in the 1 hour intro) talked about how he went to design school but it wasn't for him... no kidding it wasn't for him if he can't accept criticism or accept that life and work don't let you do only the things you want to do.

[KLovestoShop]

I'm not sure how much Tim affects how the designers work, but as Ian found out, you don't poo-poo the Gunn on the first week.  While I'm not a fan of the weird materials show, it does show a person's vision and creativity.  

I read a very interesting article in today's paper which shed a light on how PR handles Fashion Week.  I never understood how they could show the final three, and not have viewers disclose who they are.  From what the reporter said, everyone is seated, and they show at least 6 collections, but never show the designers and you have no idea who the final three are.  Now it makes sense.  

I was also surprised that Tim greatly disliked the fact that Ashley won last season, and said her victory reeked of tokenism.  He said he'd never dress any woman in her designs.  

[sleepyjean]

Referring to a critique as a "crit" - is that design school/art school lingo?

[ratgirlagogo]

3 minutes ago, sleepyjean said:

 

Referring to a critique as a "crit" - is that design school/art school lingo?

 

Not really.

[awaken]

20 minutes ago, sleepyjean said:

Referring to a critique as a "crit" - is that design school/art school lingo?

Yeah, that was weird and affected. 

[AllisonWonderland]

Just jumping in here to say that I knew Dexter kind of peripherally in high school (one of my best friends was one of Dexter's best friends, though he and I didn't overlap all that often) and the persona he's presenting on the show is precisely the guy I remember. Now I haven't seen him in... almost 15 years? so I can't provide too much insight to him or his current design aesthetic, but I can definitely vouch for the fact that he was always a completely over the top, funny, stylish, "just a bit too much, but in a really fun and charming way" kind of guy. 

I didn't even realize he was on the show but when they showed one of his talking heads, I had that moment of "Oh my god, I know him but I can't place him... I don't know him as an adult.... so maybe from back home?... I must have been younger...?... So maybe high school?...  Oh my god, it's DEXTER, I totally do know him!" It was like gradually finding the path to where something is stored on your hard drive and eventually zeroing in on it. 

Honestly, I doubt he would even remember me now as it has been so long and we were never actually that close, but my mom definitely drove him home from after-school hangouts a few times. 

[lh25]

18 hours ago, AZChristian said:

 When Nina denigrated the "creative" sparkly pants and praised Ian's mess as "elegant," and whatshisname guy judge said SERIOUSLY:  "So we have to decide between creativity and elegance," I started laughing so hard I almost fell off the treadmill.

Me too, ok not the treadmill :)

That dress was horrible.  No shape to it, and all that streamery stuff hanging from her shoulders.  The panel of photos, and those hideous(In my opinion) yarn-looking tassels.  I couldn't get why they all seemed to like the color palette.  It looked like something a toddler put together for dress up play.

[candall]

I found it amusing that Ian was so indignant about the charge that he didn't do much more than glue crap to muslin.  He SEWED that crap on there, dammit!

[sleepyjean]

I don't know why, but it was making me crazy that they kept referring to them as glitter pants. That wasn't glitter, that was confetti. At least Zac knew the difference.

[Wandering Snark]

Ya know sleepyjean I was rolling with him calling it glitter; but now that you mention it they totally were confetti pants...

I 'liked' that when Ian's dress was turned around it made him look even worse as the panels were totally out of line and drifted to one side but I could see him telling himself he should just finish it off quick as nobody will see/comment on the back of his dress. Hah.

[Ms Blue Jay]

On 9/16/2016 at 0:22 AM, Albino said:

 Nathalia appears determined to be this season's resident scold.  I am seriously praying for a fur/leather challenge.

Ha!  Hahahahahahah!!!!!!

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I don't like Chi-what'shisname from Philadelphia. I guess he was ok otherwise, but snatching the flowers from that other guy's hands left a bad impression.

Mah-Jing Wong.  No "Chi" in the name.

For the below quote, I must ask why a lifelong fan has not watched his show?  Out of curiosity?  No snark intended.  It might give you some insight as to why so many of us have become disillusioned with the man.  It's nice to hear he is good to his fans.  My mother is a big TG fan too so I get it.

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I didn't watch Under the Gunn, so I can't speak to his actions on that show, but based on my personal experience and interaction with him, I have nothing but respect and admiration for the man and am a lifelong fan. 

 Edited Friday at 10:12 AM by SailorGirl.

 

Edited September 19, 2016 by Ms Blue Jay

[sleepyjean]

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Ya know sleepyjean I was rolling with him calling it glitter; but now that you mention it they totally were confetti pants...

Thanks WS, for making me feel slightly less neurotic. ;-)

[DEL901]

4 hours ago, lh25 said:

Me too, ok not the treadmill :)

That dress was horrible.  No shape to it, and all that streamery stuff hanging from her shoulders.  The panel of photos, and those hideous(In my opinion) yarn-looking tassels.  I couldn't get why they all seemed to like the color palette.  It looked like something a toddler put together for dress up play.

The funniest thing about them praising the colour palette:  they should have been praising whoever decorated for the party.  It's not like Ian had a lot of choice what colours to use.

[LeapDayBaby]

16 hours ago, sleepyjean said:

Referring to a critique as a "crit" - is that design school/art school lingo?

Affected, yes, but not uncommon in art/design school:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/30/arts/design/tales-from-the-crit-for-art-students-may-is-the-cruelest-month.html?_r=0

[dleighg]

Speaking of color, I'm getting caught up with the Road to the Runway; What's her name with the yellow dress, she had *tons* of that color in her samples! She really likes yellow. It's nice seeing that these folks actually have some pretty nice ideas when they are allowed to use actual fabric.

[lorikauai]

I was laughing so hard at Ian's "I can do it, I just don't want to." He reminded me so much of my kids in that moment.

Me: You need to learn to tie your shoes

Kid: I can tie my shoes, I just don't want to

Me: You need to tie your shoes because you are going to trip

Kid: I like them untied, but I can tie them

Me: Okay, if you can tie them, then do it

Kid: Well, I could, but I'm not going to

Me: See, you can't tie your shoes

[Empress1]

Ah yes, the old "I just don't feel like it right now." Classic.

[TattleTeeny]

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Referring to a critique as a "crit" - is that design school/art school lingo?

 

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Not really.

Sure it is--at least when I was in art school in the '90s, it was the standard term (and, haha--it's probably retro to these whippersnappers!).

 

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Affected, yes, but not uncommon in art/design school:

I really don't understand what's so "affected" about an abbreviation. Is it "affected" if I say "mac and cheese" instead of "macaroni  and cheese"? Or "Brit Lit" (as in the class) instead of "British Literature"? They were "crits," and they done in class once a week.

 

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Even the guy with nose ring, Dexter?, seems refreshingly normal.

This made me laugh--was the nose ring referenced just to identify him, or is a nose ring a signal of abnormality? I assume the former but then read it in my grandma's voice and wasn't sure, haha!

 

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Why are so many designers freaky looking?   Do they think it gives them "street cred"?  

Creative people do creative things, probably just because it's fun? No one looked "freaky" to me--just standard variations of not-mainstream styles. From what I saw, nothing seemed too out there or that different from fairly common "alternative" aesthetics.

Edited September 20, 2016 by TattleTeeny

[auntlada]

I always thought a "crit" was a critical hit. Maybe I spend too much time with gamers and not enough with designers.

[SailorGirl]

On 9/19/2016 at 1:07 PM, Ms Blue Jay said:

Ha!  Hahahahahahah!!!!!!

Mah-Jing Wong.  No "Chi" in the name.

For the below quote, I must ask why a lifelong fan has not watched his show?  Out of curiosity?  No snark intended.  It might give you some insight as to why so many of us have become disillusioned with the man.  It's nice to hear he is good to his fans.  My mother is a big TG fan too so I get it.

Because I don't really watch that much tv and I didn't even know about the show. I watch the shows I know about and enjoy (a grand total of about 3 or 4 shows) and that's it. Yes, I am absolutely a fan but I don't seek out specific personalities to see what other shows they might be in. Same with movies. There's a lot of actors/personalities I enjoy. "I didn't know he/she was on that show/in that movie!" is a frequent phrase of mine. Too much life going on to spend a lot of time in front of the tv. Yet here I am, posting on a site that is all about tv. :-D

Edited September 20, 2016 by SailorGirl

[KLovestoShop]

Nina Garcia has just given up the right to judge any outfit from any designer for the rest of her life because of the totally awful monstrosity she wore to the Emmy's last night.  I just wish I knew how to post a link.  

[AZChristian]

40 minutes ago, KLovestoShop said:

Nina Garcia has just given up the right to judge any outfit from any designer for the rest of her life because of the totally awful monstrosity she wore to the Emmy's last night.  I just wish I knew how to post a link.  

Here you go.

 

[kat165]

Nina's outfit: Holy crap.

[Canada]

Good lord, that's an awful outfit.  I hope she got paid a lot of money to wear that monstrosity out in public.

[KLovestoShop]

51 minutes ago, AZChristian said:

Here you go.

 

Yep, that's it.  Thanks for posting it.  What an awful dress.  I wonder if it's Zac's?

[Wandering Snark]

Whoa... someone lost a bet.

[ratgirlagogo]

Speaking as the person who didn't feel "crit" for criticism was a pretentious art school useage - I've found it's slang not just in art school circles but music/theater/performance in general.  In current useage I find it's pretty common among art performers.

I'd add as a footnote that the useage "crit/self-crit" was common in American left political circles from the 60's up until the 80's - not to get into it since I'm sure I'm one of the only people here old enough to have encountered it but it was a Maoist Cultural Revolution thing.  Believe me you don't want to know - it was gross.

[bitchin camaro]

Ian reminded me of Man-Bun from last season's Top Chef. At least the PR judges had the decency to send him home before we got the fashion version of snot on a rock.

 

I actually really liked the winning look, which is odd because I have a mild wig phobia (don't ask.) I really liked the paper lantern dress too - it reminded me of the sculpture in Al Pacino's apartment in The Devil's Advocate.

My theory on Grumpy Tim is that he was filming PR Junior at the same time as All Stars (or maybe it was last season's PR), and after working with children who were talented and mature way beyond their years, he's over a bunch of whiny assholes who act like toddlers.  I would be too. And so far, this seems to be a fairly mature bunch of characters, so perhaps the powers that be took notice as well.

[Calamity Jane]

19 hours ago, LeapDayBaby said:

Affected, yes, but not uncommon in art/design school:

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/04/30/arts/design/tales-from-the-crit-for-art-students-may-is-the-cruelest-month.html?_r=0

In my field (languages & literature) we talked about "lit crit" (literary criticism).

[Almost 3000]

The winning yellow dress is also winning the ebay bidding:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/142117630831?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

eta: I highly recommend looking at all the auctions because there are lots of close-up pictures of  construction and a magnifying tool to better see the production photos too.  I was most interested in the fastenings, closures and zippers because they were pretty amusing and it was remarkable that some of the designs made it down the runway. I've never seen this amount of detail available before and it was fun to examine them so closely.

Edited September 20, 2016 by Almost 3000

[sourpickles]

WTF Nina Garcia??????? That is hands down one of the worst things I have ever seen. It looks like some kind of European cultural/native costume! Or a tablecloth. With far to much fabric because she is so thin. She definitely lost some credibility in my eyes. I'm actually out of words now.............

[sourpickles]

I was laughing so hard at Ian's "I can do it, I just don't want to." He reminded me so much of my kids in that moment.

Me: You need to learn to tie your shoes

Kid: I can tie my shoes, I just don't want to

Me: You need to tie your shoes because you are going to trip

Kid: I like them untied, but I can tie them

Me: Okay, if you can tie them, then do it

Kid: Well, I could, but I'm not going to

Me: See, you can't tie your shoes

I just laughed so hard at this. I think our kids are friends or related or something!