S17.E13: One Elle of a Day

[AuntieDiane6]

Quote

 I understand what you mean and don't think you lack empathy.

Thank you.  Whenever I would feel down with caregiving for a cancer patient in my family, I always would remember the famous quote of Zulema to Kara in their Project Runway Season 2 team challenge:  "You can cry and cut but you're gonna cry AND CUT." 

[carrps]

12 hours ago, LucindaWalsh said:

Haha, I feel you since I am the lone Victor Newman/Eric Braeden fan (Y&R soap).  

Heh, in my household, we were fans of his back when he was still Hans Gudegast!

[Heathrowe]

On 6/11/2019 at 1:48 AM, violet and green said:

It is very tiring reading these threads without other Hester fans to balance things out.

I  hope she bloody well wins!

I'm a Hester fan. I posted upthread about what I like about her and Garo. Her clothes are not "for me" as I am another 50-something viewer. But I can appreciate how fun they are and that they have a youthful appeal, would look great in magazines (editorial!), and are not boring. I'm glad she made the finals over Tessa, as a full collection of that would have bored me to tears. I loved Bishme, and I wish they had let all four go to the finals, but he didn't finish his collection and to me that was worse than his hoody-dress. So I certainly don't feel like she stole a spot from anyone. There have been designers in past Project Runways who I could not understand how they were advancing, figured it was for drama....but there's not really another designer that was cut that I think should be in Hester's place this season.

Lastly, in defense of Hester-she seems kind and has remained pretty positive throughout the process. I enjoy watching her. I think win or lose, she's done a great job exposing her brand to a lot people who might never have heard of her otherwise. I think she would take that Fashion mentorship and really do something with it. 

So yes, all the Hester-hating hurts my heart, too.

[3jt]

I'm not defending Hester's propensity for drama, but it looked to me like the needle stopped in the down position. It looked like she was stuck on the machine and Garo was helping to back the needle out.

[IndyMischa]

7 minutes ago, 3jt said:

I'm not defending Hester's propensity for drama, but it looked to me like the needle stopped in the down position. It looked like she was stuck on the machine and Garo was helping to back the needle out.

Yep, that was my take as well. I also appreciated his very calm reaction to her (quite possibly understandable) shrieking. "Do NOT pull." in a very even tone, because if she had, the injury would have been much worse.

[Ubiquitous]

On ‎6‎/‎10‎/‎2019 at 10:42 AM, Special K said:

I liked the concept of the Nina challenge, the idea of a balancing piece was interesting to me.  But she definitely was trying to throw Garo under the bus.

I think the term is "throwing a monkey wrench into the gearbox". :-)

[Ubiquitous]

On ‎6‎/‎10‎/‎2019 at 1:15 AM, millennium said:

I wish there were some way to know what real designers and industry professionals think of the Project Runway farce.  

I am under the impression that, much like the winners in Who Wants To Be America's Next Top Model, we rarely ever hear from them after their season ends.

[carrps]

Just now, Ubiquitous said:

I am under the impression that, much like the winners in Who Wants To Be America's Next Top Model, we rarely ever hear from them after their season ends.

Except for "all star" seasons.

[Jobiska]

I can sit and watch Dr. Pimple Popper videos (better than the schmaltzy TV show) for ages, but there's something about wounds to nails that freaks me out.  I have sympathy for Hester.  Shudder.

[suetoo]

As a cancer survivor myself, I only wish that I had had a few weeks before I felt the effects of my treatment.  The crippling nausea set in 5 hours after my first treatment, and only by developing a special timetable of 3 different medications was I able to function as a human being.  Everybody's experience is different and we cannot presume to second guess how any family member might be dealing with a loved one's diagnosis.  I hope Bishme's sister does not have too hard a time and recovers quickly.

[FormerMod-a1]

I like Hester's use of color and find some of her stuff to have a sense of whimsy and fun.  I just don't like the placement of her bra-type cups, they always seem too low.  (and some of her designs I have not liked, but that's neither here nor there).  That said, I do prefer Sebastian's design aesthetic, but I do appreciate some of what Hester does.

[Eulipian 5k]

3 hours ago, Ubiquitous said:

On 6/10/2019 at 1:15 AM, millennium said:

I wish there were some way to know what real designers and industry professionals think of the Project Runway farce.  

I am under the impression that, much like the winners in Who Wants To Be America's Next Top Model, we rarely ever hear from them after their season ends.

I suspect that the old boy's club is jealous of the fame from TV exposure. They all but ignored Christian after he won PR, but now lookee - he's IN. And who are the keepers of fashion anyway?; it's not like cooking (Top Chef) where a well cooked steak  is more or less defined.

Collars move, lapels widen, hemlines go up or down ; there is no standardization in fashion; it's "taste" or "trend". That's why Queen Tyra asked her hamsters to build a brand. Once you have a brand you'll be on every fashion mag cover and even cough, (Cardi B), cough, get to walk the red carpet and show up on Project Runway.

[millennium]

2 hours ago, Eulipian 5k said:

I suspect that the old boy's club is jealous of the fame from TV exposure. They all but ignored Christian after he won PR, but now lookee - he's IN.

He seems to be the only one who's made it big.   He's the Carrie Underwood of Project Runway.

[Jextella]

On 6/11/2019 at 9:39 PM, LucindaWalsh said:

Haha, I feel you since I am the lone Victor Newman/Eric Braeden fan (Y&R soap).  Just from the little bit we saw of Hester's collection in the last two episodes, I am finding myself intrigued by hers because it seems to be more whimsical/controlled chaos more than the RainbowBrite schtick. I go back and forth on her since the beginning.

I really enjoyed each of the final 5.  They all have very different and clear voices which has shown through in their designs in very strong ways.

I feel it will come down to Hesther and Sebastian.  From what I saw last week, I really like both. 

As different as they are, I'm a fan of both - especially what I saw last week.  I feel they might reward Hesther's work for its appeal to a younger audience, but I keep thinking about Sebastian saying he wanted his work to speak for itself during the art installation challenge.  I recall the guest judge saying something similar, i.e. she'd give it to Sebastian despite his horrible room given the design - and Brandon saying something similar.  

I think Sebastian is the one who makes true art.  It could be he pulls it out, but we'll have to see.

Hesther makes Etsy.  Although very good Etsy.

....and Garo is stuck in the costume zone - which he also does very well.

Edited June 15, 2019 by Jextella

[nb360]

5 hours ago, millennium said:

He seems to be the only one who's made it big.   He's the Carrie Underwood of Project Runway.

What about Michael Costello who has designed for Beyoncé and Michelle Obama? He was in the same season as Gretchen and I never hear about her.

[DaphneCat]

5 hours ago, Jextella said:

Hesther makes Etsy.  Although very good Etsy.

....and Garo is stuck in the costume zone - which he also does very well.

Etsy is the perfect description of Hester.  While I do agree she is genuinely creative most of the time you look at her creations and think "I could make that."  And yes costumes are really what Garo does best.

8 minutes ago, nb360 said:

6 hours ago, millennium said:

He seems to be the only one who's made it big.   He's the Carrie Underwood of Project Runway.

What about Michael Costello who has designed for Beyoncé and Michelle Obama? He was in the same season as Gretchen and I never hear about her.

I thought of him too.  I didn't even remember who won his season.

[millennium]

19 minutes ago, nb360 said:

What about Michael Costello who has designed for Beyoncé and Michelle Obama? He was in the same season as Gretchen and I never hear about her.

Maybe he's Kelly Clarkson.

[nb360]

1 hour ago, DaphneCat said:

  I didn't even remember who won his season.

Gretchen won - which is why Michael Costello’s success is so notable, because they... were not friends, so to speak.

Mondo was runner up.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

10 hours ago, millennium said:

He seems to be the only one who's made it big.   He's the Carrie Underwood of Project Runway.

4 hours ago, nb360 said:

What about Michael Costello who has designed for Beyoncé and Michelle Obama? He was in the same season as Gretchen and I never hear about her.

4 hours ago, millennium said:

Maybe he's Kelly Clarkson.

I'd argue that Christian Siriano is the Kelly Clarkson of PR. Both have had high profile mainstream success. Wikipedia summed up Kelly's success: "Clarkson has sold 37 million albums and 90 million singles worldwide. She has had 27 songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, with three number one songs and eleven in the Top 10. Her accolades include three Grammy Awards, three MTV Video Music Awards, four American Music Awards, and two Academy of Country Music Awards. Billboard has hailed Clarkson as one of pop music's greatest singers and honored her with the Powerhouse Award for her vocals. Clarkson became the first artist in history to top each of Billboard's pop, adult contemporary, adult pop, country and dance charts. She was ranked nineteenth on VH1's list of 100 Greatest Women in Music. Clarkson has also ventured into film, television, and writing children's books. She currently serves as a coach on the television competition series The Voice and will host her self-titled variety talk show in 2019." Carrie Underwood has sold more albums, but with the exception of two crossover songs (Before He Cheats and Jesus Take the Wheel), she's mostly known as a country artist. I think if you asked the average person, they could name more Kelly Clarkson songs than Carrie Underwood songs.

Heh, but hair splitting aside, Michael Costello has built a pretty solid career. He already had celebrity clients (including Celine Dion and Toni Braxton) before he did PR and since then he's added even more of them to his client list (Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Kim Kardashian).

I want to add Chris March to the list of successful PR alumni too. His clients include Madonna, Prince, Cirque du Soleil, Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, and Meryl Steep. He also had a line of costumes and accessories at Target.

I feel I should also mention that there are other designers who are running their own boutiques/fashion lines. You can be a successful designer without dressing celebrities. I think all three finalists have the potential to succeed after PR, even if their client bases are not totally mainstream. Of the three, I think Sebastian could have the most mainstream success. Garo and Hester are a bit more niche in their design aesthetic but they could still work this opportunity into something bigger. Hester could design a line for Hot Topic, Delia's, etc. or design for Katy Perry. Maybe Garo could do a line of corsets for Victoria's Secret or Frederick's of Hollywood.

[Ubiquitous]

11 hours ago, nb360 said:

What about Michael Costello who has designed for Beyoncé and Michelle Obama? He was in the same season as Gretchen and I never hear about her.

Was he the one who showed up on RHoA to give delusional Sheree advice on her She-By-Sheree clothing line?

[AwesomO4000]

10 hours ago, ElectricBoogaloo said:

I want to add Chris March to the list of successful PR alumni too. His clients include Madonna, Prince, Cirque du Soleil, Lady Gaga, Beyoncé, and Meryl Steep. He also had a line of costumes and accessories at Target.

And also Austin Scarlett, who is known for his wedding dresses.

[TexasGal]

4 hours ago, Ubiquitous said:

Was he the one who showed up on RHoA to give delusional Sheree advice on her She-By-Sheree clothing line?

No, that was Mychael Knight, who sadly passed way too young a couple years ago. 

Rami Kashou I think also has a pretty steady business dressing celebrities. 

[Stats Queen]

6 hours ago, Ubiquitous said:

Was he the one who showed up on RHoA to give delusional Sheree advice on her She-By-Sheree clothing line?

That was Mychael Knight who was such a wonderful person. He passed away in 2017 at the age of 39. Don’t know if they ever found the cause of death but apparently he had several health issues. 😢

[Ashforth]

On 6/11/2019 at 12:48 AM, violet and green said:

It is very tiring reading these threads without other Hester fans to balance things out.

I  hope she bloody well wins!

It was odd so much of the color palettes of the other designers was ochre, and orange, and reminiscent of Tessa's potter's studio look. Blech. I enjoyed the very brief visits by Christian, as opposed to awkward extended scenes with family and Tim. I thought his advice was good. And I also like the challenges Meana set, and seeing her so happy and in her element at work.

It was sad Bishme fizzled out like that, arriving with only 8 looks still, after so many months, and then that monstrous sequinned sack thing... but I would have been sadder if Garo left, he's worked like a demon and is so keen for the opportunity to show his million looks and have a chance at the main prize.

I think Sebastian will win, but I would be really genuinely more thrilled now with a Hester win.( It will be like the scene in the Exorcist where Linda Blair spews green stuff and her head spins around 180 degrees etc in here, though!)

I'm not a fan of Hester's designs for the most part, and I'm certainly not her target audience, but I have found the level of vitriol and name-calling here to be distasteful to say the least. To me, she seems to be a hard-working person who has a genuine vision in her work, whether I like the vision or not, and a dedication to her craft. The judges have commented about her strong construction skills (not apparent to me, but hey! they are the ones who are there, and Tessa was present as an unfinished foil LOL). She also seems to be nice and well-liked, despite the early editing attempt to make her a villain.

Despite some conspiracy theories, I think Hester made it to the final fair and square.  Right now, I lean toward Sebastian for the win, but his collection could be too muted and lacking in excitement compared to Hester's very (VERY) colorful aesthetic. And then again, maybe Garo will surprise us all to take the prize.

On 6/11/2019 at 10:04 AM, ItsHelloPattiagain said:

And I went down a brief rabbit hole and found a bunch of stuff that Hester wears is on sale on her own website. So she's pretty much just a walking advertisement for her own stuff, whether she wins or not. 

I see that as smart marketing.

For those who think that Hester exaggerated her pain and panic when she accidentally sewed through her thumb, come on over to my place and I'll be happy to drive a big sewing machine needle through your thumbnail and the pad of your thumb. Good times will be had by all!

As an extra bonus, if you also think the infamous "McDonald's Coffee" verdict was bullshit, I'll pour a cup of boiling water on your genitals. 😉

[ItsHelloPattiagain]

2 hours ago, Ashforth said:

For those who think that Hester exaggerated her pain and panic when she accidentally sewed through her thumb, come on over to my place and I'll be happy to drive a big sewing machine needle through your thumbnail and the pad of your thumb. Good times will be had by all!

As I mentioned a couple of pages back, I have driven a big sewing machine needle through my second finger twice. Once was at a workshop using my big old industrial Juki sewing machine. And I managed not to scream or cry. I wrapped my finger in a handful of paper towels from my lunch bag and high tailed it to the bathroom. In fact, I doubt anybody at the workshop knew what was going on until my table mate came into the bathroom and saw me bleeding into the sink. Took about 20 min to stop the bleeding because I have a bleeding disorder. Perhaps I'm a stoic. I will skip the coffee, however. 

[kirklandia]

2 hours ago, Ashforth said:

For those who think that Hester exaggerated her pain and panic when she accidentally sewed through her thumb, come on over to my place and I'll be happy to drive a big sewing machine needle through your thumbnail and the pad of your thumb. Good times will be had by all!

As an extra bonus, if you also think the infamous "McDonald's Coffee" verdict was bullshit, I'll pour a cup of boiling water on your genitals. 😉

After that, please head on over to the Masterchef Junior thread, where some bozos criticized an eight-year-old's tears (when boiling oil splashed on his hand).

[Nordly Beaumont]

It happens all the time on the Top Chef threads when someone cuts themselves. Tons of stories of how "I cut my finger and not only finished dinner, but also had a baby then went outside and cut a cord of wood!" Well, that's nice, but not everyone reacts the same way. Hester was in a time crunch, hurrying and stressing, she jabbed the needle in her finger and panicked. I feel like she gets to have her own feelings about that! Did anyone notice Sebastian panicked too? I laughed when he wailed "I don't know what to do!!" - that would SO be me! Thank goodness Garo was strong and calm. I wish I liked his aesthetic more, he seems like such a nice guy.

Edited June 14, 2019 by Nordly Beaumont

[Fellaway]

1 hour ago, Nordly Beaumont said:

Did anyone notice Sebastian panicked too? I laughed when he wailed "I don't know what to do!!"

I did.  Hee!  That would be me, too, but Sebastian did end up helping in some way.  I couldn't see exactly what was happening, but it looked like he cut something away from Hester's hand, then Garo took over checking out the damage.

I agree, Garo, heck all three of them seem like nice folk.  For me, I wish I liked Hester's aesthetic better, but, yeah, no.

[HunterHunted]

On 6/12/2019 at 2:27 PM, Eulipian 5k said:

I suspect that the old boy's club is jealous of the fame from TV exposure. They all but ignored Christian after he won PR, but now lookee - he's IN. And who are the keepers of fashion anyway?; it's not like cooking (Top Chef) where a well cooked steak  is more or less defined.

The "old boy's club" didn't ignore Christian when he won. Christian is a talented interesting designer, but his real brilliance was how well he understood the business side of the fashion industry. He hit the ground running when he won in 2008. He did the interviews and the press. He also did a couple of capsule collections. The first was for Puma. It gave him some quick cash, kept his name in the press, and helped him gain more connections to companies that could manufacture the clothing. The second was for Payless. They would produce his runway shoes and they'd sell slightly stripped down version in their stores. Christian got a cut. Christian was announced as the winner in March 2008. He had a full collection ready to show at fashion week in September 2008. He also has the means to manufacture and sell the clothes too. He had a fair number of celebrities in the front row, but he also a number of editors and fashion writers too. That's the difference between Christian and a lot of the other winners, he was paying attention and was able to leverage every last cent and connection to turn this into a sustainable business.

Christian has continued to show at fashion week and he continued to get pretty good reviews. He has continued to build his business steadily. He was never going to have the meteoric rise like a prince of Manhattan like Zac Posen. Zac Posen is another precociously successful designer. However, Zac's family has money and connections. People first took notice of Zac in his teens when he made a dress for a friend of his, who is Julian Schnabel's daughter. Come the fuck on. And really they're  both kind of remarkable because for the last 20 or 30 years, the most notable designers with eponymous labels have done a stint as the head designer of some other label like Chanel, Dior, Chloe, Fendi, Gucci, or Louis Vuitton before starting their own labels. 

[doodlebug]

17 hours ago, Stats Queen said:

That was Mychael Knight who was such a wonderful person. He passed away in 2017 at the age of 39. Don’t know if they ever found the cause of death but apparently he had several health issues. 😢

I don't believe his cause of death was ever released publicly.  He had irritable bowel syndrome, but that isn't fatal.  In the months before his death, he lost a lot of weight, complained of fatigue and pain; but, at the time he died, his family and friends seemed to not have an answer as to what his cause of death was.  He seemed like a sweetheart and was a talented designer.  Gone way too soon.

[doodlebug]

58 minutes ago, HunterHunted said:

The "old boy's club" didn't ignore Christian when he won. Christian is a talented interesting designer, but his real brilliance was how well he understood the business side of the fashion industry. He hit the ground running when he won in 2008. He did the interviews and the press. He also did a couple of capsule collections. The first was for Puma. It gave him some quick cash, kept his name in the press, and helped him gain more connections to companies that could manufacture the clothing. The second was for Payless. They would produce his runway shoes and they'd sell slightly stripped down version in their stores. Christian got a cut. Christian was announced as the winner in March 2008. He had a full collection ready to show at fashion week in September 2008. He also has the means to manufacture and sell the clothes too. He had a fair number of celebrities in the front row, but he also a number of editors and fashion writers too. That's the difference between Christian and a lot of the other winners, he was paying attention and was able to leverage every last cent and connection to turn this into a sustainable business.

Christian has continued to show at fashion week and he continued to get pretty good reviews. He has continued to build his business steadily. He was never going to have the meteoric rise like a prince of Manhattan like Zac Posen. Zac Posen is another precociously successful designer. However, Zac's family has money and connections. People first took notice of Zac in his teens when he made a dress for a friend of his, who is Julian Schnabel's daughter. Come the fuck on. And really they're  both kind of remarkable because for the last 20 or 30 years, the most notable designers with eponymous labels have done a stint as the head designer of some other label like Chanel, Dior, Chloe, Fendi, Gucci, or Louis Vuitton before starting their own labels. 

Christian was also right up front waving his hand to be picked anytime a celebrity woman said she couldn't find a dress because she wasn't model-sized.  He developed a very faithful celeb following and got tons of wonderful PR for his willingness to step up and design beautiful dresses for regular women.  His business savvy and work ethic have helped him achieve success beyond any other former winner on the show.  Not that his design skills aren't outstanding, too.  Christian's willingness to associate with companies like Payless and Puma, not known for their high end fashion chops, as well as his ability to fill the void for women with curves on the red carpet; has served him well.  He has been game for anything and created his own opportunities because of it.

Edited June 14, 2019 by doodlebug

[Eulipian 5k]

56 minutes ago, HunterHunted said:

The "old boy's club" didn't ignore Christian when he won. Christian is a talented interesting designer, but his real brilliance was how well he understood the business side of the fashion industry.

Reality TV and the effects of talent shows in various media is a 21st century phenom the "old boy's clubs" took a while to accept. Project Runway came from Project Greenlight in the film industry and AI in the music industry, but at best these shows are a foot/toe? in the door.

As noted, you still need to persevere and know to hit the bricks yourself. From a Jezebel, 2011 article online:

Christian Siriano's Boyfriend Says The Fashion Media Is Biased Against Reality TV

"Christian Siriano's boyfriend, the musician Brad Walsh, wrote a long and impassioned blog post about what he perceives to be the fashion establishment's bias against Siriano's work because he came to prominence on a reality show. Noting that many writers still place Siriano's collections in the context of Project Runway, a show that taped nearly five years ago, mention his Payless shoe collection disparagingly, and at best make back-handed compliments about how Siriano is "shak[ing] off his reality-show roots," Walsh asks, "is it mostly, as I suspect, that he's accomplished all of this without their help?"

[meep.meep]

But he makes Christian sleep in the closet!  :-)

[HunterHunted]

6 hours ago, Eulipian 5k said:

Reality TV and the effects of talent shows in various media is a 21st century phenom the "old boy's clubs" took a while to accept. Project Runway came from Project Greenlight in the film industry and AI in the music industry, but at best these shows are a foot/toe? in the door.

As noted, you still need to persevere and know to hit the bricks yourself. From a Jezebel, 2011 article online:

Christian Siriano's Boyfriend Says The Fashion Media Is Biased Against Reality TV

"Christian Siriano's boyfriend, the musician Brad Walsh, wrote a long and impassioned blog post about what he perceives to be the fashion establishment's bias against Siriano's work because he came to prominence on a reality show. Noting that many writers still place Siriano's collections in the context of Project Runway, a show that taped nearly five years ago, mention his Payless shoe collection disparagingly, and at best make back-handed compliments about how Siriano is "shak[ing] off his reality-show roots," Walsh asks, "is it mostly, as I suspect, that he's accomplished all of this without their help?"

Most of the press still mentions the show in reviews and pieces about some of the  more successful Project Runway contestants. This is actually true for most of the more successful Top Chef contestants and winners. However, there is a much more pervasive culture of "selling out" in the restaurant business. It helps that the first big wave of this predated Top Chef. That first wave was chefs like Emeril and Wolfgang Puck having cooking shows on TV and selling cookbooks, knives, cookery, spice blends, and what have you. When Top Chef premiered, there were derisive  comments about a chef game show. I think a handful of things helped cement the show's semi-prestigious reputation: 1. Tom's very vocal willingness to get rid of Cliff, Elia, Ilan, and Sam in season 2 after they assaulted Marcel (there are very few competition shows that are willing to tank the show on a matter of principle), 2. the fact that the contestants disproportionately have worked in Michelin starred restaurants or are James Beard nominees and winners, and 3. that the show can still get culinary luminaries as guest judges.

I think there is such a huge amount of delusional snobbery in the fashion industry and press. No one wants to admit that ready to wear isn't particularly profitable and is largely a loss leader for the things that actually make money like cosmetics, perfume, accessories, and bridge and diffusion lines. It's only because some of the more candid folks like Michael Kors and Isaac Mizrahi have talked about the realities of the business that we know this. Couture is a straight up loss. It's always been obvious how hard Viktor & Rolf and Proenza Schouler were grinding until they were deemed worthy of creating perfumes and accessories. I think the fashion press and industry aren't willing to shine a light on how broken the industry is. Those invested in the brokenness are quick to deride competitive fashion shows, fast fashion, direct sale sites like etsy, and collaborations with mass market retailers until they discover all of this shit themselves and Missoni for Target in 2011 is suddenly brilliant.

I also think how Project Runway kept chasing diminishing returns with weirder challenges that had nothing to do with fashion and mostly to do with money, weaker guest judges as the show's reputation declined, and just atrocious casting that seemed to be more about story than skill (there were far too many conceptual and performance artists who happen to use textiles cast) meant that talented former contestants who wanted to move beyond the show never could because there was this shitshow that reminded critics, journalists, and buyers that you were an exception rather than the rule.

Edited June 14, 2019 by HunterHunted