S07.E08: Penneys from Heaven

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Quote

Vanessa Williams and Jasmine Tookes guest judge as Project Runway winners turn daytime separates into a sensational nighttime look.

Original air date: 2/20/19

[hoodooznoodooz]

This will be frustrating to watch, since we know the JCPenney collaboration went belly up. 

[Wandering Snark]

Awkward!!

[Lamb18]

On 2/15/2019 at 5:14 AM, ElectricBoogaloo said:

Quote

Vanessa Williams and Jasmine Tookes guest judge as Project Runway winners turn daytime separates into a sensational nighttime look.

Original air date: 2/20/19

When I first read this I thought it said "sensational nightmare look."

[Wandering Snark]

29 minutes ago, Lamb18 said:

When I first read this I thought it said "sensational nightmare look."

That would be right up Michelle's alley.

[auntlada]

2 hours ago, Lamb18 said:

When I first read this I thought it said "sensational nightmare look."

It probably will be.

[Sew Sumi]

So, the winner of this episode ain't getting shit.

[LennieBriscoe]

Haha! Dmitry coined another adage!

Calling another's outfit "blah" he said,  "It's so genetic."

(I thought maybe he rolled the "r," but I don't think so.) 

Edited February 21, 2019 by LennieBriscoe

[chitowngirl]

Could Isaac telegraph his favorite any more obviously? “No more low scores from you!”

Edited February 21, 2019 by chitowngirl

[Straycat80]

This episode was depressing for me because I miss JC Penney’s, that was always my go to store. 

I wasn’t blown away by any of the designs. None of them screamed Night wear to me. I guess Biddels came the closest and he won. 

The two on the bottom looked somewhat alike to me material wise and both were ugly. I thought flamenco pants would have gone home tho. 

[Fellaway]

Well, that was a whole lot of meh.  I can't imagine there was a wide score difference between the bottom and the top designs, but I can't figure out what's going on in the judges' heads.  They are full of wack.

I can't really disagree with the bottom three designers.  Their work was... meh.  Pedestrian.  And not nighttime, really.  I'm sorry to see Cynthia go.  She seems a pleasant person and I've liked most of her designs, but I'm glad Christina stayed.  I do think she's the better designer of the two.  Hey, I like her better than Sean, too.

So Biddell can finally agree with the judges now that he's the winner?  Yeah, we see you, Biddell.  I hated his, solely by virtue of the turbin.  I didn't love Irina's, but I did think it was more clever than anything else up there, and I did love what she did with the button plackets.  Did Biddell and Michelle use the same silvery textured material for their third fabric?

I wonder if Biddell will get his $2000 gift card from Penney's, at least.

Michelle continues to be vile.  She portrays herself as the coolest, chillest person in any room, and she is so not.

[Kitty Redstone]

I don't understand why Michelle's was in the top.  It was a sack, not unlike her sack from last week.

While I would never wear Biddel's outfit, it was my favorite.  Even the turban didn't bother me.

The flamenco pants were hideous. 

Maybe I travel in the wrong circles, but I've never seen anyone wear a long vest.  Are they really a thing?  That horrible Ivy person used to make them on PR many seasons back and I didn't get it then, either.

Isaac really does have a thing for Sean.  The other designers should really be pissed about that.

[gibasi]

I liked Anthony Ryan’s dress the best. I am not sure it was nighttime though. I liked the assymetrical lines of it and the contrasr of blue and red  

I hated Biddel’s. I cannot stand the dropped crotch pants.  And I didn’t like Michelle’s either. So simple and not special in any way. It was an oversized tee shirt dress. And I was sure Dmitry would be in the bottom. That looked more costumey than others he has been crticized for as being costumey. 

[bobbyjoe]

They should have just owned the situation and renamed the episode “Penneys From Hell.”  

They could have had Ron Howard’s narrator voice from Arrested Development pop up now and then and contradict a lot of what happened.  Like:

”Biddell, your look will be available on JC Penneys online!”

Narrator:  “It won’t.”

[or]

”Michelle, your look is one of the best tonight!”

Narrator:  “It wasn’t.”

[TexasGal]

On 2/19/2019 at 3:16 PM, Sew Sumi said:

So, the winner of this episode ain't getting shit.

The addition of “previously recorded” was a bit laughable when it first appeared a couple of episodes ago (like, duh, they are all previously recorded), but was just ridiculous this week.  

[zoltana]

2 hours ago, Kitty Redstone said:

I don't understand why Michelle's was in the top.  It was a sack, not unlike her sack from last week.

While I would never wear Biddel's outfit, it was my favorite.  Even the turban didn't bother me.

The flamenco pants were hideous. 

Maybe I travel in the wrong circles, but I've never seen anyone wear a long vest.  Are they really a thing?  That horrible Ivy person used to make them on PR many seasons back and I didn't get it then, either.

Isaac really does have a thing for Sean.  The other designers should really be pissed about that.

That's what I thought when I saw Michelle's too.  Another sack dress.  Why does she keep getting a pass for doing the same dress week after week? 

Edited February 21, 2019 by zoltana
Because grammar is important.

[Refresh]

I didn’t rewatch it to catch her precise wording but Anne said this challenge was the first where they made clothes out of other clothes?  Not true. 

season one (ep 7 thanks reddit!) they went to a thrift store and made IIRC futuristic outfits. I really loved that challenge. 

I like Dimitri but his prairie looks feel so dated to me due to that look being so big last year.  Fall 2017 ish. I hope he’s past it by now. Like, take the ruffle foot off the machine pls. 

Michele’s simple shapes that she makes interesting with fabrication appeal to me, But that’s how I dress. At least 80% of the dresses I own are a form of a shirtdress in different colors or textures. 

[GaT]

Too bad they couldn't eliminate both Cynthia & Christina, both their looks sucked.

[Aulty]

I knew Cynthia was in trouble when they showed her talking head a few minutes into the episode. The editing is that predictable.

I liked Evan, Michelle, AR and Sean's (sans the bottom layer) but the latter two weren't really nighttime. Christina's was bad, Irina's irked me and I can't with Dimitri's Boho phase. I dunno if its smart of him to stick with a (at the time of filming popular) theme throughout the competition, or if its one way monkey territory.

I think Sean (as de facto international) and Christina will be kicked out next, maybe some double elimination with Irina. Evan will be the token international in the finale.

Still curious how the snipped with Mondo from the season teaser will unfold.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I hate when the designers have to race around as part of choosing their fabric. It's so unnecessary and you know it's just because the producers are hoping for some drama.

Michelle basing her decision on the model rather than the fabric she was wearing was not a great strategy. Once again, Michelle made a totally boring shift dress. Yawn. And all she did with the denim was those little things on the shoulders? Lame. Ha, I was with Jasmine when she said it looked like an unfinished space costume.

I hated Evan's shiny genie onesie. Who would want to wear something that made you look like you had a shapeless body, a flat butt, and a poopy diaper all at the same time?

Sean's yellow print dress looked more like a daytime summer brunch dress than an evening look to me. I also thought that it was kind of a cop out that two of the fabrics were only used as trim. Then again, Evan did the same thing with his pink fabric. Anyway Sean's dress was fine but it looked like something you could already find at the mall. I did laugh when I realized that not going to Mood meant that he couldn't add any fringe to his look this week. I was half expecting him to start cutting one of his fabrics into fringe out of desperation.

Although I didn't love Dmitry's look, i appreciated the skirt because he tried to do something with that green fabric.

Anthony Ryan's blue one shouldered dress was not my favorite. I did not like the applique of the burgundy floral print at all. It looked very dated.

Oh, Christina. What in the hell was that Burning Man look? The sheer patterned white pants with the ruffles below the knee were straight up Black Rock City. The blue vest on top was totally incongruous. That was definitely not an evening look.

Irina's pink and red dress was a lot, but after seeing what preceded it on the runway, I ended up liking it in comparison.

When Anthony Ryan said that Cynthia was making something you would wear in an office, I really wanted to know what kind office he has worked in where you can wear crop top with your stomach showing. Then Jasmine said she looked like she belonged in an office and Georgina said she looked like a 60s secretary. Where do you people work?! I just rolled my eyes when Georgina blamed Cynthia because she chose that fabric. Uh, yeah, she chose it from the eight shitty JCPenney outfits that were offered to the designers.

Given that the winning design was supposed to be reproduced and sold at JCPenny, I expected Michelle to win since it would be so simple to make. I was surprised that Evan won. I would have chosen Irina as the winner.

I really liked a lot of the things that Cynthia made. I would prefer to see what she makes instead of Michelle's same fucking dress every week or Anthony Ryan's endless parade of ugly stuff.

[sunshine23]

This episode should have been called "The least ugly of the uglies.", and I am posting before reading other comments so apologies for any redundancies.

Overall I thought the looks were pretty awful; too fussy or plain, shapless, and boring. Then again, they were kind of set up for failure having to use the pairings on the models.

Michelle - When she was describing her dress I thought "One trick pony." because it sounded and looked similar to the dress she won with. It ended up looking different, and while I liked the texture on the back overall it was boring. Any other week it'd be in the bottom or just meh.

Dimitri - What in the world is his obsession with fugly ruffles and lace that make his model look like a walking doily? His outfit looked like an ugly take on early 1900's clothes or a movie costume.

Sean. I actually liked his dress and think, had Anya produced it, the judges would have loved it. At least it was fun and energetic.

Bindell - I am trying to remember what outfit he started out with that ended up with so much fabric to make that jumpsuit. I hated the turban and wasn't crazy about the look.

Anythony Ryan - At least it wasn't shapeless. 

Irina - Her clothes always end up looking slutty. I liked the color and how she incorporated elements of the clothing she started out with like the buttons.

The fact that I can't remember the names of the 2 in the bottom says a lot. Neither was good. Both were awful, but I think the fact that the one who lost didn't listen to Ann and her outfit was not eveningwear.

[Kanner]

Am I the only one who just wants to punch Biddel in the face? There is just a smugness to him that just grates for me.  Critiquing your fellow contestants is part of the show and I don't generally mind it but when he does it it just comes off as "holier than though".  I can see he is not a "safe" designer and I should appreciate that but I find myself actually rooting against him now even more than Michelle. Yikes! I am in trouble!

[Angeleyes]

I wonder what the designers’ limitations were when shopping at JCP? Did they have to purchase just one of each item as presented or were they allowed to buy multiples in order to have enough fabric? If they were limited to one per item, did they have to purchase the model’s size or were they allowed to purchase the largest size available? Curious minds want to know because that could have affected the game depending on the material and what they had to work with. My guess is that they at least were able to buy multiples. 

[terrymct]

8 hours ago, zoltana said:

That's what I thought when I saw Michelle's too.  Another sack dress.  Why does she keep getting a pass for doing the same dress week after week? 

The same inexplicable reason that Anya was praised week after week, season after season for draping some fabric and calling it a jump suit.  The judges consistently have blind spots with certain contestants.  Michelle's dress was a sac that would be impossible for a woman to sit in.  That would barely make it as a cover up for a bathing suit.

7 hours ago, Refresh said:

I didn’t rewatch it to catch her precise wording but Anne said this challenge was the first where they made clothes out of other clothes?  Not true. 

season one (ep 7 thanks reddit!) they went to a thrift store and made IIRC futuristic outfits. I really loved that challenge. 

They've also done first episodes where the designers had to make a new outfit out of the clothes they were wearing.

[Lady of nod]

8 hours ago, GaT said:

Too bad they couldn't eliminate both Cynthia & Christina, both their looks sucked.

too bad they can't eliminate michelle and anthony ryan because they suck as human beings

[sempervivum]

Biddell's winning look was soooo 2017- remember when Justin Bieber was always being photographed in drop crotch/loaded diaper pants?!

Michele's dress looked like the top of a fancy nail salon's uniform. Isn't this like the 3rd time she's done those v-shaped inserts, too? You know, the ones that look just like that one dress of 'Dima', her great friend/sarc  ?

Those long vests on the bottom looks- all I could see was something Bea Arthur would have worn.

I'm actually surprised they aired this, unless they were trying to shame JCP's for dropping them. It's not like there'd be a national uprising if the episode continuity was messed up- they could have had a voiceover saying that Cynthia was eliminated, then gone on to the next episode. 

[millennium]

Irina has nice legs.

That's all I got.

(Charity prevents me from commenting on the perpetual-motion nightmare that is Michelle.)

[Delete]

Biddell's winning look was the weakest look he put out so far and he wins! smdh. Cynthia is a lovely person, but her look was weak but not the worst imo. I thought Dimitry's look was a DISASTER. Yet, he was safe. 

Michelle has  got to be the most annoying human, and an overrated designer. Her personal look is a nightmare, and what was up with that piece of scraggly denim around her neck? So edgy, Michelle. *eye roll*

Edited February 21, 2019 by Barbara Please

[TVbitch]

The collective sound made when Anne says "hi designers" each week is hilarious.

What does Michelle have on these judges? They actually said of that sack garment something about her having an extraordinary ability to frame the body. 

I was pleasantly surprised that supermodel judge spoke her mind and was not afraid to conflict with the judges. She was the lone voice of reason about Michelle's dress. 

[meep.meep]

I loved the supermodel judge!  She was saying everything I was thinking.

[oldCJ]

1 hour ago, sempervivum said:

Biddell's winning look was soooo 2017- remember when Justin Bieber was always being photographed in drop crotch/loaded diaper pants? 

This season was filmed in 2017. 

[sempervivum]

31 minutes ago, oldCJ said:

This season was filmed in 2017. 

I know. that's why I said it.

[Audpaud]

Hanging in there with the Show, but it is so very painful.

[Gummo]

1 hour ago, TVbitch said:

The collective sound made when Anne says "hi designers" each week is hilarious.

LOL! Whenever Tim Gunn enters the workroom, everybody lights up. Whenever Anne walks in, the whole room sags: "Oh shit, here comes the dreamkiller."

Isn't a mentor is supposed to guide and inspire you? All Anne does is make people feel shitty about themselves.

Maybe it's just hindsight talking, but this whole season is just so blah and tired, it would be easy to believe they KNEW it was the last season and were just going thru the motions.

That the producers had to put that stupid "Previously Recorded" message up over most of the episode was sadly hilarious.

[joanne3482]

10 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I hated Evan's shiny genie onesie. Who would want to wear something that made you look like you had a shapeless body, a flat butt, and a poopy diaper all at the same time?

Oddly I thought I could see a Kardashian in something like that. Maybe not Kim, but one of the lesser Kardashians. Probably Khloe. 

12 hours ago, Refresh said:

I didn’t rewatch it to catch her precise wording but Anne said this challenge was the first where they made clothes out of other clothes?  Not true. 

season one (ep 7 thanks reddit!) they went to a thrift store and made IIRC futuristic outfits. I really loved that challenge. 

There was also a challenge they had to use the clothes they were wearing.  I remember one of the males being kind of upset because he LOVED the pants or jacket he was wearing. (I googled... it was Season 2 episode 2 and Nick was wearing a leather jacket he loved and Andrea had a denim jacket and pants he loved that he had to give up).  And there was another challenge they accosted people in the park for clothing (All Star Season 1).  

[enoughcats]

7 hours ago, Angeleyes said:

Did they have to purchase just one of each item as presented or were they allowed to buy multiples in order to have enough fabric?

I just watched it without heavy fast forward use (horrible gray day here) and most of them were carrying coathangers -three and four of the same thing- so many that I worried that their arms would tire.

Biddle's turban (not a good name for a retro rock band)  may have been his way to stop the beauty squad from doing a hair do that would overwhelm the sleek image that I think he was hoping to sell.  Sleek vs overwrought. 

[Snewtsie]

I thought Biddell's look was the hippest on the runway, and I liked it for that reason.  I don't see many women actually wearing it IRL, but I did find it a cool disco club look.  Irina's look was nice but I'm not a fan of her aesthetic- too much hoochie T&A for me.  I wanted to scream when Michelle got into the top 3 yet again with another simple shift dress.  I personally like shift dresses & she sometimes adds details that can be interesting, but there is no innovation there.  She should not be rewarded anymore for giving the judges the same silhouette week after week- I'm really surprised they have said nothing to her about this.

I echo the sentiments on "in what office would a woman wear that??"  Those crazy judges.

[Grandma Saracen]

I'm so meh about this season.
On the runway, AR and Irina's looks both seemed to best meet the challenge for me. I think Sean did well with what he had to work with. 

The heavily produced, awful THs are almost unwatchable. Especially Michelle and Bidell's. I'm not really rooting for anyone, just for the damn season to be over. 

[SSAHotchner]

Hey, judges, perhaps the reason none of the "designs" looked like evening wear was because the clothes they were given to use as fabric were ugly to begin with.  I used to love to shop at Penney's. Were these the best clothes they had to display that season? This episode was embarrassing for both PR and J.C. Penney. I felt sorry for the designers having to come up with evening wear from that assortment of garbage.

[Kitty Redstone]

9 hours ago, Angeleyes said:

I wonder what the designers’ limitations were when shopping at JCP? Did they have to purchase just one of each item as presented or were they allowed to buy multiples in order to have enough fabric? If they were limited to one per item, did they have to purchase the model’s size or were they allowed to purchase the largest size available? Curious minds want to know because that could have affected the game depending on the material and what they had to work with. My guess is that they at least were able to buy multiples. 

I wondered the same thing.  It looked like they had at least three of each piece of clothing plus whatever the model had on.

2 hours ago, joanne3482 said:

I remember one of the males being kind of upset because he LOVED the pants or jacket he was wearing. (I googled... it was Season 2 episode 2 and Nick was wearing a leather jacket he loved and Andrea had a denim jacket and pants he loved that he had to give up).  And there was another challenge they accosted people in the park for clothing (All Star Season 1).  

Season 8 had a version of this, too.  If memory serves it was the very first episode.  The contestants had to rework what they were wearing that day (or maybe a piece of clothing from another contestant?) into a new look.  The only reason I remember it was because of Peach's toile jeans, lol.

[hula-la]

26 minutes ago, Kitty Redstone said:

I wondered the same thing.  It looked like they had at least three of each piece of clothing plus whatever the model had on.

Season 8 had a version of this, too.  If memory serves it was the very first episode.  The contestants had to rework what they were wearing that day (or maybe a piece of clothing from another contestant?) into a new look.  The only reason I remember it was because of Peach's toile jeans, lol.

Yes, it was Season 8, episode 1 (I just showed it to my students--somebody had to use Casanova's $1000 Dolce and Gabanna pants that he was wearing). They also did something similar during Season 2, where the designer went home partially because she didn't want to ruin her family heirloom Hermes scarf and Andre had a meltdown on the runway.

Edited February 21, 2019 by hula-la
wording change--somebody else used Casanova's pants

[auntlada]

16 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

When Anthony Ryan said that Cynthia was making something you would wear in an office, I really wanted to know what kind office he has worked in where you can wear crop top with your stomach showing. Then Jasmine said she looked like she belonged in an office and Georgina said she looked like a 60s secretary. Where do you people work?!

I don't think any of these people have ever been in an office, let alone worked in one. You'd think at least one of them would at least have seen pictures of "Mad Men" if not actually caught an episode at least once.

6 hours ago, TVbitch said:

What does Michelle have on these judges? They actually said of that sack garment something about her having an extraordinary ability to frame the body.

I'm still trying to figure out how her dresses frame anyone's body. I can never tell what the shape of the body under them is.

[Fallacy]

Based on all the confessionals of Dimitri and Michelle talking about each other’s looks every single episode, including this one, and their bs drama over Michelle copying Dimitri a few challenges back, I’d say the editors are setting us up for a Dimitri and Michelle showdown in the finale with arrogant Biddel coming in third or beating them both. As a long time Dimitri fan, I can only hope he beats out Michelle in the end. 

They both had hideous looks this challenge, but I didn’t hate his blouse. 

[auntlada]

I didn't like Dimitri's blouse, but I did like the skirt. Thirty-five years ago, I would have loved that skirt.

[bourbon]

This season is utterly joyless to me. The problem with the All Stars, particularly with this iteration wherever everyone has won at least one season, there's just a feeling of ennui and too-good-for-this-ness. Bitchiness abounds, and not in a particularly fun way. 

[Token]

Well, that was a piling of something steaming.  The looks were all garbage, both before and after.  I would have sent them all home.  I can't believe that's the level of clothes that JC Penney sells.  Just awful.

In a shock to no one, another international contestant goes home, further cementing the certainty that an American is going to win this season.  Completely undeservedly.

Not denying that Irina has really tacky taste levels, but it does amuse me when Anthony Ryan complains about other people's taste.  I find his clothes so tacky and ugly.

How is Sean still in this competition?  In a field of nothing great, he still stands out for being awful.

Edited February 22, 2019 by Token

[GoldaVining]

13 hours ago, Kanner said:

Am I the only one who just wants to punch Biddel in the face? There is just a smugness to him that just grates for me.  Critiquing your fellow contestants is part of the show and I don't generally mind it but when he does it it just comes off as "holier than though".

Yes. I get why you want to punch him in his (very handsome) face. I find him so so so handsome, but so mean.

[Ellaria]

Just my opinion, of course, but this season is dull. Many of the designers seem less than fully engaged with the challenges. Not one “look” has wowed me. The judges seem to be in a parallel universe because I haven’t agreed with any of their chosen winners.

When this episode began, I thought that this challenge was too easy for All-Stars. Then I saw the results. Ack! So disappointing. Was any of it remotely wearable?

Michelle’s look reminded me of a shower curtain. Dmitry and his ruffles are getting old. AR’s isn’t as clever as he thinks he is, especially in his talking heads.

Don’t get the judges’ ongoing love for Michelle’s looks. She is going to win it, isn’t she?

[MrsClaus]

I'm just watching this shit show to try and determine what the judges are smoking/drinking right before judging these "clothes"

These All Stars are verging on All Washed Up.  Dimitry, redeem thyself.

[sweetcookieface]

18 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

When Anthony Ryan said that Cynthia was making something you would wear in an office, I really wanted to know what kind office he has worked in where you can wear crop top with your stomach showing. Then Jasmine said she looked like she belonged in an office and Georgina said she looked like a 60s secretary. Where do you people work?! I just rolled my eyes when Georgina blamed Cynthia because she chose that fabric. Uh, yeah, she chose it from the eight shitty JCPenney outfits that were offered to the designers.

Ha, I came here just to make this point - it's so clear these judges have never worked in a "normal" office!

I'm bummed Cynthia got booted - she was talented, sweet, and drama-free (she was also painfully pretty, but that's neither here nor there). Her outfit didn't set my world on fire, but I thought most of the stuff on the runway was crap. I thought Christina's pants were particularly hideous, but she's had some strong showings, so I guess I"m ok with her staying. 

I went back on forth on whether I thought BIddell's look would be on the top or bottom. It was definitely a "look" (probably the only thing that stood out on the runway), so I'm good with the judges rewarding it. It doesn't hurt that he's been underrated all season. And I hate to say it, but the other outfit I would have given a high score was Anthony Ryan's (shudder).