S17.E08: Blame It on Rio

[Kdel1079]

I had to laugh when Garo was saying about Hester, that ‘she’s busy (in her look) and she’s busy’ (cutting fabric).

Man, her look (on herself) sure was out of this world 

[Glade]

I really can't get over Marni and actually focus on any of the "fashion" this week...she just rolled out of the tanning bed that is destroying her skin, tied up her dried out hair that she last bleached three months ago in the laziest topknot imaginable, and then made sure to wash herself out in a horrible, gold 80's prom/circus top, and she apparently could stand next to Karlie looking like that without dying of shame??   Was she Alyssa's stylist on PR All-Stars too?  She should have been out tonight.  And Hester's bathing suit was horrible too. 

[Aulty]

Those colours and fabrics, seriously? Did they all shop at the same unicorn slaughterhouse?

[ML89]

Have any of these people yammering about Breakfast at Tiffany’s actually seen it? Or just heard Moon River and seen the one dress. Also Kendall Jenner compared in any way to Audrey Hepburn...

They must be limiting these designers to one corner of Mood or they all have the most atrocious taste in fabric. At this point I could go either way. 

Hester is Gretchen 2.0. That wedgie bathing suit winning...Team Tessa was robbed. 

Normally I would have said Tessa was in the wrong for snarking at Hester but after that win and Bishme’s you should have been at the bottom nonsense, I see where she’s coming from.

Marni pushing down the straps on that dress and everyone oohing was parody, right? Also seriously, this ruffle stuff - Dmitry got all the praise in All Stars for it - I was wearing that 40 years ago. Why is it back?

[SuprSuprElevated]

This Marni person; yet another celebrity stylist who apparently fancies herself a clown.

Sidebar - Is anyone actually flattered by wearing that topknot thing?

<backs out of room>

[BusyOctober]

Maybe it’s because I had a really sh** day at work, and I was already in a foul mood...but this challenge was a crap festival carnivale

All 9 designers chose the same colors...and the ugliest patterns... and cheapest fabrics.  Did I miss the “celebrity” guest saying she loves washed out 80’s turquoise and orange-red palettes?  Did she expressly ask to look like an extra from Culture Club’s “Karma Chameleon” video? 

I do not like the female judge (Elaine?) who stepped in for Karlie.  Brandon, Nina and Christian are the voices of reason.  Karlie is no Heidi, but she’s doing a good job.  It has been driving me crazy trying to figure out who Karlie reminds me of when she speaks and I got it!  She sounds just like Alexis Rose from “Schitt’s Creek.

The stylist woman must have big time dirt on a producer or something.  Why is she on so much??  I am not a fashion maven by any stretch, but I know what hurts my eyes.  Marni’s and Hester’s looks make my eyes roll and blink uncontrollably. In my untrained, old fogey mind, “fashion” doesn’t equate to loud, obnoxious, costume-y, over accessorized, mis-matched items from the thrift store or grandmas attic.

[lu1535]

My husband just confessed that he likes Hester. He thinks she is the most talented and confident contestant this season. What am I going to do? Should this be considered a marriage breaker?😟😁

[SuprSuprElevated]

Just watched the episode.  What a comical array of junk they produced.  The winning look was a clown suit, culminating in a wad of butt floss.  I liked Bichme's (I know I'm not spelling that correctly, sorry) look, but again, the top would never, ever work on a woman with larger than 32AA breasts.  The pants (I'm old enough to remember when they were slacks) were very nice.

That Marnie The Stylist liked the fish catching, between the legs, faux bandeau swimwalkdresssuit says all that I need to know about her. (Most of which was known when she first appeared).

Oh goodie, another Bravo movie-promotion-nothing-to-do-with-actual-fashion challenge next week.

Yawn.

[TexasGal]

1 hour ago, BusyOctober said:

All 9 designers chose the same colors...and the ugliest patterns... and cheapest fabrics.  Did I miss the “celebrity” guest saying she loves washed out 80’s turquoise and orange-red palettes?  Did she expressly ask to look like an extra from Culture Club’s “Karma Chameleon” video? 

She did say she like turquoise.  I don’t know where they all got the pink/coral/neon orange color from though.  Although I will say, I was at Macy’s yesterday and INC had a bunch of stuff in those colors.  I laughed and walked away.

I know Morena from early seasons of Gotham.  I stopped watching after 2 or 3 so I‘m not sure if she’s still on it.  Or frankly if it’s still on.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

19 minutes ago, TexasGal said:

I know Morena from early seasons of Gotham.  I stopped watching after 2 or 3 so I‘m not sure if she’s still on it.  Or frankly if it’s still on.

The series finale was last week. She was a regular for all five seasons. She looks exactly the same as she did on Firefly so she must have a portrait of herself locked in her closet.

[SuprSuprElevated]

On 5/2/2019 at 11:45 PM, SemiCharmedLife said:

They sent home a great designer, Renee, due to the immunity perk. Maybe it needs to be eliminated , so the worst designs will be out.

I've said this for a while.  Unfortunately, since the producers/sales staff either can't find sponsors to pony up some actual rewards like they used to (remember the $5k-$10k or use of a new Lexus for a year or computers etc. with each win?), or no one has any actual imagination, this is all they could come up with to acknowledge a win.  

I'll be honest, I didn't have lofty hopes for the return to Bravo, but they've managed to sneak under an already low bar.  I see no difference from the Lifetime iteration.

[SuprSuprElevated]

On 5/3/2019 at 12:13 AM, Lemons said:

The horrible fit with those pants looked like they were made by a middle schooler in sewing class.

Renee made pants, and poorly.  The needed to be fitted to the model, regardless of the model's size.  They were not.

[cinsays]

Yeah, I don't know why Renee insisted on making pants. That color and material still would not have worked great, but how about just a skirt? Would have to have been more flattering.

[SuprSuprElevated]

12 hours ago, HunterHunted said:

Marni's unusual personal style isn't necessarily a reflection of her skill is as a stylist.

Maybe not, but saying that Jamal's (?) fishcatcher swimtsuitdressmess was her favorite look of the runway, is very much a reflection of that.

[hookedontv]

2 hours ago, lu1535 said:

My husband just confessed that he likes Hester. He thinks she is the most talented and confident contestant this season. What am I going to do? Should this be considered a marriage breaker?😟😁

Oh my, this is a legit dilemma! Maybe you should dress like Hester for a few days, accessories and all. Walk with poor posture and scrunch your face. 

See what he has to say then? 

[Snewtsie]

13 hours ago, Stats Queen said:

While I felt like a lot of Renee’s previous designs were too similar, I also thought - wow I could wear these and look good...

Hester’s aesthetic sadly reminds me of my need in early high school to be different (this was in the early 80’s) when I actually looked like an idiot.

I co-sign on both counts.  While I felt Renee's looks tended to be too similar each week, I gotta admit her aesthetic had a cool factor for a grown woman that I could really appreciate.  And yes, the 80's comment.  That was me.  Oy.

(PS- I agree with everything else you wrote, too.)

[SuprSuprElevated]

I am not yet too concerned that Hester is an auto-win.  We've seen this before, when the judging seems to heavily favor one particular designer, and they do not win in the end.  The last time was a couple of seasons ago, the young man's name escapes me, (Brandon maybe?) but he too was a bit of a same-every-week designer.  He had long hair?  You guys are really so amazing with your memory retention of seasons and names.

I really need to stop drinking out of aluminum cans.

Edited May 4, 2019 by SuprSuprElevated

[HaaCHOO]

1 hour ago, SuprSuprElevated said:

Most of which was known when she first appeared).

'nuf said!  (and then I continue)  Her clients seem to look great but she's an attention-needing mess.

[izabella]

1 hour ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

The series finale was last week. She was a regular for all five seasons. She looks exactly the same as she did on Firefly so she must have a portrait of herself locked in her closet.

Yes, but is she wearing a My Little Pony Buttfloss bathing suit in that portrait?

[HaaCHOO]

On 5/2/2019 at 8:14 PM, Thumper said:

And she thought to pack that Carmen Miranda outfit???

Since there's NO WAY she was allowed to bring along that much luggage, how many FedEx "wardrobe" boxes did that nutcase send ahead?

[jacksgirl]

2 hours ago, lu1535 said:

My husband just confessed that he likes Hester. He thinks she is the most talented and confident contestant this season. What am I going to do? Should this be considered a marriage breaker?😟😁

My hubby finally truthfully told me who he voted for in 2016. He is in such big trouble. Still thinking Hester will be beat out by a much more talented Sebastian.

[Gothish520]

2 hours ago, lu1535 said:

My husband just confessed that he likes Hester. He thinks she is the most talented and confident contestant this season. What am I going to do? Should this be considered a marriage breaker?😟😁

20 minutes ago, hookedontv said:

Oh my, this is a legit dilemma! Maybe you should dress like Hester for a few days, accessories and all. Walk with poor posture and scrunch your face. 

See what he has to say then? 

Get yourself some crazy, girl, and just go with it! 

All kidding aside, I do think Hester is cute, love her hair, and I like a lot of what she wears - I just wouldn't necessarily wear it all at once. 

I also think her attitude and confidence are great - it's not like she is a mean or devious person. My guess is that the reason she rubs viewers the wrong way is because many just do not like her style or her work. If people loved her clothes I dont think they'd have any real issues with her personality.

Edited May 4, 2019 by Gothish520

[HaaCHOO]

4 minutes ago, jacksgirl said:

Still thinking Hester will be beat out by a much more talented Sebastian.

Crossing my digits...and Hester caused my eyes to cross.

[SuprSuprElevated]

11 minutes ago, HaaCHOO said:

'nuf said!  (and then I continue)  Her clients seem to look great but she's an attention-needing mess.

Yeah, I'm guilty of watching, commenting, then reading the thread, lol.  Makes for a lot of redundancy doesn't it?  lol

[HaaCHOO]

3 minutes ago, Gothish520 said:

My guess is that the reason she rubs viewers the wrong way is because many just do not like her style or her work.

Or her vocal fry--especially her vocal fry (it's so last year).  Her "confidence" is off-putting.

[hatchetgirl]

Marni... how old is that lady? I'm an old and she looks crazy over than me. She needed a touch of eye shadow or something. She has lizard skin. Did you guys catch her "skirt"?  It was a Jean jacket tied around her waist! WTFWT?

Hester... i want to drown myself. She's so "quirky" and not like anything we've ever seen! Except in the rave scene '96. I died laughing when she said she was making a mallet suit. 

Tessa. You are an a-hole. You are not special, you are not the wonder you think you are. 

I do hope sebastian goes to the end. I like Garo, but his esthetic is getting tiresome. Lela is a bore.  Please judges, stop trying to make club kid fashion a thing. 

I would have gone for a very diane von furstonberg print drape dress for the challenge in brick red. A nice statement color instead of that coral and blue. How did they all get the same color and fabric story?

[HaaCHOO]

On 5/2/2019 at 8:29 PM, Marmiarmo said:

I can not believe that tacky, ill-fitting, neon MESS of Hester’s  won!!!

Put a cover-up on it--THAT takes care of the fit, Morona!

[HaaCHOO]

On 5/2/2019 at 8:30 PM, Ashforth said:

So, it seems that Tessa really is the turd in the punchbowl.

Whaaaat?  No!  Not our perfectly groomed little fashionista/talking (snarking) head, Tessa!  She knows it all, says it all, LEADS it all, teaches it all, judges* it all, and is STUNNED every week  that she's not the winnah!  She's a cute enough girl with great hair who has NOT done well on television--because of her poisonality.

*Because she's the prettiest, the most talented, the most educated little girl in the world...just the best!

Edited May 4, 2019 by HaaCHOO
Had to add "teaches"

[Snewtsie]

On the fabric choices in general... We can all criticize what the designers selected, but 30 minutes is not enough time at Mood for anyone to pick great fabric, let alone an entire team.  I think most designers gravitate toward solids over prints because picking a good print is really difficult.  Prints are very personal, and what works for a dress might not work well for sportswear.  Then solid fabric has to be selected to support the print, and the right shade, weight, weave has to be considered.  ...Now in this case it was just weird each team chose the same color palette, and it would have helped if the teams chose better prints to pull the colors together.  Sebastian's stripe (pants) was the most successful.  I think his team would have won if Tessa had chosen a print for her top (not the same as Sebastian's stripe because that would have been too matchy-matchy)- but I doubt time allowed for them to even consider it.  I think her model looked like a big ball of coral & that hurt the team overall.  I also think Lela's dress wasn't sexy enough for a night out in Rio.  But I still think their team produced the best collection and Sebastian deserved the win. 

[HaaCHOO]

9 minutes ago, hatchetgirl said:

I died laughing when she said she was making a mallet suit. 

My closed-captioning actually spelled it correctly: maillot.    Weird.

[SuprSuprElevated]

38 minutes ago, HaaCHOO said:

My closed-captioning actually spelled it correctly: maillot.    Weird.

The transcriber wasn't ignorant.

Edited May 4, 2019 by SuprSuprElevated

[Ashforth]

6 hours ago, ML89 said:

Have any of these people yammering about Breakfast at Tiffany’s actually seen it? Or just heard Moon River and seen the one dress. Also Kendall Jenner compared in any way to Audrey Hepburn...

The "Breakfast at Tiffany's" story cracked me up because even though you can't really tell it in the film, Hepburn's character Holly Golightly is a prostitute. Following the use of "Lady Marmalade," a song about a prostitute, in Jenner's perfume ad a while back, one has to wonder if it's coincidence...

6 hours ago, ML89 said:

Normally I would have said Tessa was in the wrong for snarking at Hester but after that win and Bishme’s you should have been at the bottom nonsense, I see where she’s coming from.

Tessa was obviously stung by Bishme's comments. I had to laugh that Hester's reaction to Tessa's declaration that she didn't like Hester's winning garment was to just say, "I don't care."

Edited May 4, 2019 by Ashforth

[mightysparrow]

14 hours ago, HunterHunted said:

I know that Karl wasn't a stylist. I think most of the stylists who put most of their efforts into their work and not their own outfits aren't well known enough for me to cite, which is why I deleted an entire paragraph on those individuals and decided to focus more on the weirdos because that seemed the most germane and they are better known. My larger point was that fashion abides people who dress and look unusual so Marni's unusual personal style isn't necessarily a reflection of her skill is as a stylist.

Marni's personal style is atrocious and has a lot to do with my disdain for her.  Throw in her reference to 'Breakfast At Tiffany's' for Kendall Jenner and it's clear she not only knows nothing about fashion, she's probably never seen the movie or knows who Audrey Hepburn is.  She's probably never been to Tiffany's or even eaten breakfast. 

These days, being 'better known' is no measure of ability.  See:  Kardashians.

I have to agree with those who question the fabric choices being made.  I would be like a kid in a candy store at Mood, spending somebody else's money.  I don't understand why these folks seem to be spending all their time in the bargain basement.

Edited May 4, 2019 by mightysparrow

[mightysparrow]

I agree with the person who said that it was interesting how Hester gets immunity just before a challenge where it's a sure bet she'd do poorly.  I said the same thing before the 'Elegance' challenge.  The fix is definitely in for Hester.  The judges should be ashamed of themselves for continuing to praise the cheap, tacky, common, find-in-any-fastfashion-store-at-the-mall TAT, that she chucks down the runway and basically ignoring more talented designers, especially Sebastian.

[dleighg]

and how did they go all mushy on Garo with his hideous dress with the "waist cincher." The color combo was awful. I cannot imagine any woman with any taste wearing that thing. 

[Token]

Three thoughts on this episode:

1. Fuck, Hester really is going to win, isn't she???  I thought she was the joke inclusion for the season, but she keeps on bloody winning.  She sent garbage down the runway in this episode and she still won!!  I just can't.

2. None of the designs today were any good.  They were all awful.  These designers have no taste level at all when it comes to fabric colours & choices or their design decisions.  They just all seem to have no talent whatsoever.  I know we've had All-Stars seasons in the past... is this the All-Losers seasons??  People can blame the models as much as they want.  The models aren't designing this garbage.

3. Marni needs to stop existing on my TV screen.  Because she is awful to look at and manages to have even worse taste than these crappy designers.

[Gothish520]

2 hours ago, hatchetgirl said:

Marni... how old is that lady? I'm an old and she looks crazy over than me. She needed a touch of eye shadow or something. She has lizard skin. Did you guys catch her "skirt"?  It was a Jean jacket tied around her waist! WTFWT?

According to MyLife.com, she's 47. She's very thin, which does tend to show age on the face over 40. That age makes sense, because if she was in her 30's like I was thinking, then yeah that would've been some rough 30s!

[hookedontv]

48 minutes ago, Gothish520 said:

According to MyLife.com, she's 47. She's very thin, which does tend to show age on the face over 40. That age makes sense, because if she was in her 30's like I was thinking, then yeah that would've been some rough 30s!

Marni is really tough to look at. I hate to skinny-shame but here I go: She doesn’t seem to have enough skin to allow her mouth to close comfortably. Her face looks like a skull! 

That, on top of her crazy Teletubby topknot (no shade meant for the Teletubbies, I think they are cute) silly clothes and general spaziness, she can just go away. With Hester. And they can lock the door behind them. 

[DaphneCat]

1 hour ago, mightysparrow said:

I have to agree with those who question the fabric choices being made.  I would be like a kid in a candy store at Mood, spending somebody else's money.  I don't understand why these folks seem to be spending all their time in the bargain basement.

YES! $500 and 1/3 of it was for a couple yards of lycra!!  They didn't even need to be in the same color palette.  Yes, it was for the same person to take on vacation, but was the instruction to make it cohesive?  I understand, someone who dresses very severely in black and white for daytime is not likely to go all out with flouncy pastel ruffles, but seriously, when was the last time you made sure your evening outfit went with your bathing suit?  If that was a criterion, Sebastian's strap element that they all used would have been enough to call it a "collection."

[dleighg]

1 minute ago, DaphneCat said:

but seriously, when was the last time you made sure your evening outfit went with your bathing suit? 

EXACTLY! The idea was that it was supposed to be for the same woman/same mood. 

[carrps]

19 hours ago, caitmcg said:

She has a pretty steady list of TV gigs, though the only thing I've seen her in is Homeland.

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1072555/?ref_=nv_sr_1?ref_=nv_sr_1

Yeah, when they said her name, I thought "Who the hell is that?" But when I saw her, I knew her face. Took me halfway through the episode, but I yelled Damien Lewis' wife on Homeland!

19 hours ago, hoosiermom said:

I thought Marni looked like a Munchkin from the Wizard of Oz in that first outfit she showed up in.

All she needed was a giant lollipop.

When Karli interrupted their work session to say she wouldn't be judging....why??? She said the wedding had been planned for a year, so surely she knew about it when she introduced the challenge, right? Was it just an excuse to swan in and be all lady of the manor? In any case, off-putting.

[ML89]

42 minutes ago, carrps said:

When Karli interrupted their work session to say she wouldn't be judging....why??? She said the wedding had been planned for a year, so surely she knew about it when she introduced the challenge, right? Was it just an excuse to swan in and be all lady of the manor? In any case, off-putting.

Agreed.

My thought was....you're wearing THAT to the wedding? Also, why stop the designers in their mad 1 day dash to tell them this? 

[shksabelle]

Random observations:

Tessa is a major bitch

I have a crush on Bishme

I am loving Christian 

Whenever I think of Audrey Hepburn, I immediately think of a Kartrashian. 

[Jsage]

I am a little confused...many people are mentioning Breakfast at Tiffany's here but didn't the team say their vision was Roman Holiday? Two different Audrey Hepburn movies, no?

[hatchetgirl]

4 hours ago, Gothish520 said:

According to MyLife.com, she's 47. She's very thin, which does tend to show age on the face over 40. That age makes sense, because if she was in her 30's like I was thinking, then yeah that would've been some rough 30s!

Ok that age works. I don't remember her looking this old in a previous episode.    

[Ashforth]

16 minutes ago, Jsage said:

I am a little confused...many people are mentioning Breakfast at Tiffany's here but didn't the team say their vision was Roman Holiday? Two different Audrey Hepburn movies, no?

Marni told the teams that she had used Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany's as her inspiration for dressing Kendall Jenner for some kind of event. Then when pressed to come up with a "story" for their collection, after everyone looking like deer in the headlights, Lela said her team's inspiration was Audrey Hepburn in Roman Holiday. Totally original.

Of course, as pointed out upthread, the story for the collection was in the directions for the challenge. I wish that a team had had the chutzpah to say "our 'girl's' story is that she's a Brazilian actress who works in the US and is going home to Rio on vacation and needs a beach look, a daytime look, and an evening look. Plus she wants three different really bitchin' hairdoes that use these really specifically branded products."

Edited May 4, 2019 by Ashforth

[dleighg]

3 minutes ago, Ashforth said:

Of course, as pointed out upthread, the story for the collection was in the directions for the challenge. I wish that a team had had the chutzpah to say "our 'girl's' story is that she's a Brazilian actress who works in the US and is going home to Rio on vacation and needs a beach look, a daytime look, and an evening look. Plus she wants three different really bitchin' hairdoes that use these really specifically branded products."

Nailed it

[Calamity Jane]

I have to thank Hester for calling up a long-ago memory of my husband singing the Chiquita Banana song for our son, including the admonition never to put bananas in the refrigerator, in his inimitable, glass-shattering, off-key voice, and trying to dance like Carmen Miranda. 

I thought everything that came down the runway looked cheap and ugly, sad to say. I was imagining what Ulli would have done with this challenge.  Miss those talents and personalities from the first years. 

[meowmommy]

On 5/3/2019 at 1:23 PM, njbchlover said:

I think it is because something about "their girl" or "their girl's story" is mentioned to the designers at the description of every challenge. 

I'd like someone to ask if the client is fifteen, because that's about when it's appropriate to stop calling a young woman a girl.

11 hours ago, BusyOctober said:

I do not like the female judge (Elaine?) who stepped in for Karlie.  Brandon, Nina and Christian are the voices of reason.  Karlie is no Heidi, but she’s doing a good job.

I thought Elaine did a much better job being Heidi this week than Karlie has done.  She didn't sound like she had memorized her lines.  And she seemed genuinely gracious to Renee at the end.

With any luck, they'll stop offering immunity soon.

I don't remember anyone mentioning if the final three are going to Fashion Week or just showing in front of the judges.  With Heidi, that was every other sentence out of her mouth, and every sewtestant drooled at the prospect.  

I know I'm always coming up with ways to make PR not PR, and I know a lot of people hate Last Chance Kitchen and its copycats, but I think I'd like to see a Last Chance Sew-off, similar to the 1 hour challenge the twins had to do, and that Dom had to do against Jeremy and Ken.  Not only are they kind of fun to watch and really showcase the sewtestants' ability to create on their feet, but they would help compensate for sad or unfair outcomes, better than Tim Gunn's save ever did.

And speaking of which, I'm also probably in the minority in thinking while this is clearly a design competition, and the production values have certainly improved, it doesn't feel very much like Project Runway to me.  In fact, I'm always slightly surprised to see Nina every week.

[Calamity Jane]

4 hours ago, meowmommy said:

I'd like someone to ask if the client is fifteen, because that's about when it's appropriate to stop calling a young woman a girl.

I thought Elaine did a much better job being Heidi this week than Karlie has done.  She didn't sound like she had memorized her lines.  And she seemed genuinely gracious to Renee at the end.

With any luck, they'll stop offering immunity soon.

I don't remember anyone mentioning if the final three are going to Fashion Week or just showing in front of the judges.  With Heidi, that was every other sentence out of her mouth, and every sewtestant drooled at the prospect.  

I know I'm always coming up with ways to make PR not PR, and I know a lot of people hate Last Chance Kitchen and its copycats, but I think I'd like to see a Last Chance Sew-off, similar to the 1 hour challenge the twins had to do, and that Dom had to do against Jeremy and Ken.  Not only are they kind of fun to watch and really showcase the sewtestants' ability to create on their feet, but they would help compensate for sad or unfair outcomes, better than Tim Gunn's save ever did.

And speaking of which, I'm also probably in the minority in thinking while this is clearly a design competition, and the production values have certainly improved, it doesn't feel very much like Project Runway to me.  In fact, I'm always slightly surprised to see Nina every week.

I liked Elaine much better, too. Karlie seems like a pretty close approximation of a human, whereas I thought Elaine had some actual charisma and genuineness.