Previously on Project Runway: Episodes 9 and 10

Monday, October 8, 2012
Season 10, Episode 9
aka Prints

Previously on Project Runway, the designers got to participate in the prints challenge sponsored by HP and Intel- but with a twist. The designers prints needed to be inspired by the designers individual cultural heritage and the designers received a special visit from a loved one to help them out. The final looks got to be judged by our panel of judges, with special guest judge Mondo Guerra. Let's take a look at the outfits.

Safe

Elena's print was fun and whimsical and inspired by Elena's happy childhood in the Ukraine. We got to see a softer side of Elena this week as Elena got a visit from her mother and confided that she is not always a bitch all of the time. I was glad to see that Elena continued to stay away from her 'suit of armor' style and in the end Elena was safe.
Elena

I thought that Fabio's design was the most 'Fabio like' (based on Fabio's Project Runway entry submissions) to date.  Fabio's choice of print inspiration was a bit odd as his drawing contained several penises (peni?), vaginas and fallopian tubes, but lucky for Fabio he was not asked to explain the print on television. Personally I thought this look was boxy, not flattering and the print could have been better utilized, but the judges kept him safe.
Fabio
Top

Melissa's look was inspired by her Polish ancestry and family blood bonds.While I appreciate that Melissa stepped out of her comfort zone to deliver a non-black outfit- I found the silhouette to be rather simple looking and bland. While I don't feel that Melissa's outfit was the worst on the runway, I also didn't feel it to be worth of a top spot.


Melissa


Sonjia attempted to combine the red, white and blue colors of America into an African inspired print. I thought Sonjia created a fabulous outfit that I would wear in a heartbeat. I totally loved her printed plants with that shirt with the surprise drop neckline back. I think that Sonjia probably could have won if it wasn't for that pesky Dmitry fellow.
Sonjia



There was just no stopping Dmitry from the win this week. Dmitry created a fabulous print inspired by his family and childhood experiences in Belarus and he paired it with a jacket that mimicked the pattern of the fabric and looked expensive.
Dmitry

Bottom



Ven's print was inspired by the hibiscus flowers that are prominent in Indian culture. The dress shown was actually the second outfit Ven designed that day as Ven started from scratch after Tim Gunn remarked that his original outfit looked like a Rorschach or exam or an ode to maxi pads. As expected, Ven was pissed by Tim's remark. Ven's final product was impeccably made, but the judges found this outfit to be too boring and told Ven that if they saw any more origami effect flowers that Ven would be out.
Ven


Christopher
really struggled with identifying his cultural heritage. After a lot of soul searching with his mother, Christopher decided to create a lady bug print, but then he struggled to choose a dress design. Ultimately, Christopher's dress was too simply designed and it was unfortunate that he chose to cover up his print with a dark colored tulle. Luckily Christopher remained safe.

Christopher


Gunnar
decided to create a print that related to Gunnar's childhood experiences with bullying by creating a print that has a bird surrounded by 2 jagged looking hands. Gunnar also decided to the inspiration for his design from his upper middle class family background and designed and equestrian style jacket. I thought Gunnar's print was really cool, but the judges felt that Gunnar's equestrian style jacket missed the mark and sent Gunnar packing. :-(
Gunnar


If it were up to me, I probably would have sent Christopher home this week because I felt that his design was too simple and he covered up his print. Who would you have sent home on episode 9?


Season 10, Episode 10
aka. Kickin' it


Previously on Project Runway, the designers got to visit Radio City Music Hall and see a special performance by the Rockettes. There was an added bonus to this performance as Heidi stepped out and finished the number with the ladies. The designers were asked to create a new costume for the Rockettes. The winning design would actually be worn during a future performance by the Rockettes. The biggest challenge for the designers was that they are making a dance costume, but they also needed to be fashion forward. Let's take a look at the designs.

Safe

Fabio
was the only safe designer this week which means that there aren't many designers left. I really liked his shiny design. It almost reminded me of a suit of armor. I thought it was an interesting dance design and if it were up to me, I would have bumped Fabio into the top 3 and dropped Melissa down to the safe spot.
Fabio
Top
Before this look came down the runway, Melissa seemed sure that her look was going to be in the bottom 3. And I'll admit that when I saw it come down the runway, I agreed with her. The outfit lacked a bouncy skirt and appeared to be super-short and there was the obvious accidental number 1 color blocked in black sequins on the front. However, the judges seemed to be in love with whatever Melissa makes as long as it's not all black- so they liked the hot pink color and thought it was a cute nod to the old fashioned cigarette girl. In the end, Melissa was safe this week.
Melissa
Dmitry
created a really fabulous dance outfit that was sleek, modern with the right amount of bounce which would not only make a great Rockette's outfit, but could also be great on Beyonce. I'm pretty sure that Dmitry thought he'd cinched another win, but unfortunately for Dmitry, Christopher's look had to come along.
Dmitry
Christopher's
outfit was the clear winner this week with it's nod to the New York City skyline. I feel like I would have loved it just a bit more if he would have added a little something-something to the skirt like some beading like Dmitry or kick pleats like Fabio, but the look was still fabulous on it's own.
Christopher
Bottom

Sonjia
really struggled to wrap her head around the idea of creating a dance costume and purchased a bunch of different materials to play with. I'm not sure why Sonjia thought feathers would be a good idea (can you imagine all of those feather's flying during a Rockette's performance). Nina Garcia even referred to this look as a little purple bird. Even though this outfit missed the mark, the judges kept Sonjia safe this week.

Sonjia
Incoming! Band leader coming through! Elena created a look that appeared to be more marching band than Rockette's outfit. Michael Kor's even referred to this outfit as "Vegas cheerleader" because it just kept sparkling. The judges did give kudos to Elena for staying away from monochromatic color and shoulder pads, but I still thought that this would be Elena's swan song. Instead, the judges decided to keep Elena safe.  
Elena
Ven!
What happened to you? I thought you were going to win, kid. I know that last week the judges told you not to make any more origami effect flowers, but they didn't want you to stop designing altogether! This week, Ven's design was boring and fell flat. Unfortunately, since there aren't many designers left, the judges decided that bad design was better than no design at all, so Ven was sent home.
Ven
Now I'm not sure who to cheer for. Sonjia, Dmitry and Elena have all piqued my interest in various challenges. Perhaps, I'll select them as my dream-team top 3. Did you agree with the judges decisions? Who is in your top 3 dream-team? Let me know in the comments below.

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