The Spielster: Project Runway Recap - Episode 12 - And then there were three.....

Oh Project Runway, why do you make me so angry? Last week I was defending the judges’ actions with keeping all four designers until Fashion Week and now I think they made a big mistake kicking off Jerrell. Now don’t get me wrong, his dresses were weird, not cohesive and over the top in a dated way, but since he won the “final challenge” last week, I think it’s kind of crummy that there was no immunity for the man. While I love the finale episodes of this show probably more than the program as a whole, I was just bored by last night’s episode. First, we got to see the designers at their homes in the interim between their departure from NYC and return for Bryant Park. I usually love this part because you get a true sense of where they came from, their aesthetic and really what their overall thoughts behind design are. I mean this is the part of the show that made me LIKE Wendy Pepper, so you know how good it is usually. And who can forget when we got to meet all of Chloe’s bazillion sisters and hear about her journey to America. Yes, I know not everyone has some amazing story about where they came from, but yesterday’s episode even bored me when Korto was discussing her family having to flee Africa because of the Civil War. I don’t know, but I just think all involved parties really phoned it in while editing this show. An interesting point brought up by Tanner at Entertainment Weekly was that all of the designers introduced Tim to a family member, friend, boyfriend, i.e. somebody important to them other than Kenley. She discussed everything with Tim alone in a small Brooklyn apartment and explained that her grandmother, who she was quite close with and had recently passed away, was a calendar girl in 1940’s, so we can only assume this is truly the inspiration for her designs. I just thought it was awfully sad to see this girl, blocks away from one of the busiest enclaves of young hipsterhood in NYC, alone and crying. Anyways, Jerrell story was compelling enough and I just really got a sense of his family and support and their rise above struggle, but again I thought could have been presented in a much more moving way. Leanne’s was typically normal and simple, exactly what I assumed it would be. And Korto’s story should have been incredibly inspirational, but again I am not sure what happened there other my feeling of time constraints really stopped them from getting overly involved in anyone’s story or even collection. Is this just me or was it much shorter than most other “meet and greet” sessions with Tim?

Anyways, let’s get to the fashion!!!!! And to back up a bit, before any of the designers left to go home, they were asked to redeem themselves from the final challenge and create a wedding dress that speaks for them and their design aesthetic. Once they returned to NYC and were to battle it out to figure out which three of the four designers will be legitimately presenting their designs at Fashion Week, they were asked to create a bridesmaid dress to go with their wedding gown and present those to the judges. They were all whining and complaining, but only someone who had never seen the show before would not have seen this or something equally trying coming around the corner.

Leanne’s wedding dress was spectacular and simply put breathtaking. Her accompanying bridesmaid dress was equally beautiful, simple and the two went perfectly together. Those two dresses I think expressed Leanne’s point of view to a T and I can fully imagine the beautiful pieces she will put forward on the runway. After seeing those two dresses, I can’t believe the judges didn’t just award her the prize right away. Kenley’s fun feather/taffeta wedding dress is fun and playful and what I can assume is right at home with the rest of her collection. Michael Kors believed it looked exactly like an Alexander McQueen dress, but I have seen the dress done tons of times within ballet, so I don’t believe Kenley was ripping him off. Korto’s and Jerrell’s dresses were, to be nice, messes. I didn’t hate Jerrell’s, and I think it actually carried a lot of his aesthetic. It was over the top, but I think if he had edited it just a bit more, he would have been in the final three. Both the wedding gown and bridesmaid dresses felt romantic and whimsical, but heavy. I am not sure if it was the exaggerated bust or over the top accessorizing, but it didn’t feel expensive. And Korto’s dresses were, well horrible. I didn’t really see her in either of them other than the “ethnic” necklaces and excessive pleating on the wedding dress. The colors were beyond bland and seemed way to drab for anyone to wear on a special day. The wedding gown was overworked and heavy feeling throughout and the bridesmaid dress looked like a faded dress bought off the rack. It was a hot mess and the decision on who stayed and who was auf’d was obviously not only from those two dresses because Korto would have deserved to get the boot.

I am mad that Jerrell was kicked off, but I think Korto has such an interesting and strong style that the judges would have been crazy to kick her off at this point. But if her two dresses were any indication of what’s to come, it’s obvious someone suffered from some design blockage when they returned home. Or it could just be that gowns/dresses are simply not her strong suit. I will add in photos but the stinky butts at Bravo didn’t even put up full and standard photos of the runway, so all we have is the photographs from the final runway show. And as I have done with the last two contestants given the heave ho, I checked Jerrell’s finale collection from the Bryant Park show and I can definitely tell that it’s his collection, which is a positive. But this boy needs to learn to edit himself. A lot of the pieces are great, but overly embellished, overdosing on detail and seem dark and dreary for a Spring Collection. I know there will be a lot of people angered that Jerrell was kicked out before Kenley, but I think this race really only has one person left in it – Leanne.

What did you think of last night’s elimination?

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