Previously on Project Runway: Season 11, Episode 1

Wednesday, January 30, 2013
 aka. The Premiere

Previously on Project Runway, Season 11 kicked off with a surprise twist- this season will consist of nothing but team challenges (much to the dismay of the contestants). I've got a wait and see attitude towards this season. I'm sure that the team challenges will stir up a lot more drama this season, but I also worry that it'll be harder for each designer to stand out amongst the masses. I guess we'll see.

In this episode the designers were separated into two teams of 8 designers. Each team picked their own team name. The Dream Team was sent to the rooftop of the Atlas Apartments and was asked to take inspiration from the NYC skyline view from the top, and Team Keeping it Real was placed on a boat in order to take inspiration from NYC's view from afar. The teams were given a lump sum of money to use at Mood to use as they deemed fit.  And although the designers were on teams, they were able to create their own individual looks based on the theme and were encouraged to seek feedback from their team members. There would be a winning team and a loosing team and a winner would be selected from the winning team and a looser from the loosing team would be out.

A noticeable change this season was the lack of Michael Kors (I'm going to miss his commentary) and the addition of famed designer Zac Posen. Let's take a look at the designs:

Team Keeping it Real- Patricia, Richard, Daniel, Joseph Aaron, Stanley, Kate, Amanda and Layana
The Dream Team- James, Cindy, Emily, Tu, Benjamin, Michelle, Matthew, and Samantha,

Team Keeping it Real- was the winning team. This team seemed to collaborate with each other the best, offering more support and feedback to one another than the other team and their overall construction was superior.

Top  

Patricia is the odd one of the bunch. Patricia is of Native American descent and during the boat ride she let out a loud holler. When Patricia began to paint her leather fabric and cut it into squares, the rest of her team began to question her sanity. But her kookiness might also signal brilliance as the judges loved her inspired look and placed her in the top 3.
Patricia
Richard created an effortless jersey dress that looked like it jumped out of Heidi Klum's lounge-wear collection. He managed to create an asymmetrical look that was figure flattering and could be worn by a variety of women and I'm surprised he wasn't awarded the win. He's definitely one to watch.
Richard
From looking at his personal style (a bit like Salvador Dali) it would be hard to believe that this design could come from Daniel. It's hard to believe that he was able to create this fabulous suit on the first challenge in just one day. The were pleased and Daniel was awarded with the win. He's definitely set the bar this season. 
Daniel
The Others 

It's easy to see Stanley's inspiration in his design, but I feel like the fabric also cheapens the look. 
Stanley
I enjoyed the details in Kate's dress and I'm glad the team talked her out of the sleeves.
Kate
Amanda's outfit was well made, but it was a little boring for the first challenge. I hope she steps up her game in the future.
Amanda
Speaking of boring, Layana just created a boring, basic black dress. I would have liked to have seen some of her Latin flair.
Layana
Joseph Aaron's look was definitely the worst on the team. I appreciated his desire to think "outside of the box" but this just looked like a hodgepodge of fabric strips. I'm afraid that if his team would have lost, he would have gone home.
Joseph Aaron
The Dream Team- tended to work more independently and although Michelle attempted to establish herself as the leader of the team, she was unable to salvage the team from it's worst looks.

Bottom

James created a basic pencil skirt and tank top. James' first mistake was going against his team during the critique and refusing to add more to his look. The judges described the look as "boring" and his tank at "tortured". Hopefully James can step-up-his-game next week instead of being all talk.

James
Cindy had originally intended to create a tunic top over cigarette pants. However, her team convinced her to eliminate the pants and turn her tunic into a gown to show off her fabric's print, but no one told her that her fabrics didn't go together! Hopefully this former funeral director can take a quick lesson in pattern mixing before the next challenge.
Cindy
Emily was a big talker with no follow through. The team thought she had a great design on paper, but at the end of the first day, she had made nothing. On the second day, she asked some of her teammates to help her construct something for the runway, but her jacket looked like a mess and Emily was deservedly sent home.
Emily
The Others

I would wear Matthew's look tomorrow. It was a fun look, but not innovative. I can't wait to see what he does next.
Matthew
Samantha's look was very cute and so is she! I loved the neckline. I think it could have made it into the top 3 if her team would have been on top. I can't wait to see what she does next.
Samantha
Tu's look was defiantly inspired by his Thai roots. His top had an interesting construction. I wonder if his future looks will continue with Asian influences.
Tu
I love listening to Benjamin's accent (he's Australian living in London). At first I wasn't sure about the construction and design of his dress, and his teammates also appeared to be worried. But when it came down the runway, I liked it better than I thought. I hope he goes far in the competition.
Benjamin
Michelle tried to be the team leader in this challenge and she had the best look of the team. Michelle identifies herself as "geek chic" which had me sold from the beginning and makes me want to buy up her collection already. Hopefully she can hold up her team better next week.
Michelle
What do you think about this seasons concept and designers? Do you have any favorite designers picked out? Did you agree with the judges decisions? Let me know in the comments below. And don't forget to watch Project Runway Season 11 on Lifetime this Thursday at 8pm CDT.
0

2013 SAG Awards Fashions

Tuesday, January 29, 2013

The awards season continues to inch closer to the Oscars and this week we had the 2013 Screen Actors Guild Awards (SAG). This year the SAG awards aired on the cable network, TBS, rather than on a major cable network. Luckily, I have cable again and was able to check it out. For this awards show there was a ton of black and white on the red carpet. Let's take a look at my favorite and least favorite looks. 
 
Best 

I thought Anne Hathaway looked stunning in her black ankle length gown and shear top. It was a dress fit for a princess.
Anne Hathaway

Michelle Dockery added the element of surprise by showing off a little side-boob action on the red carpet.
Michelle Dockery
Amanda Seyfried looked stunning in her Zac Posen dress in blue.

Amanda Seyfried

Worst 

Julianna Margulies hair and make-up looked fabulous, and although her dress wasn't horrible, the cut did make Julianna look as if she was sporting a baby bump.
Julianna Margulies
Although Sofia Vergara was wearing a million dollars worth of jewelry, the shiny texture of her dress made the dress look cheap.
Sofia Vergara
The worst look on the red carpet had to have been Morena Baccarin's green dress. Morena even wore a lizard hair clip in her hair, leaving me to question whether she really is a reptile alien like her character on V.
Morena Baccarin
Did you catch the 2013 SAG awards? Who were your picks for best/worst dressed? Let me know in the comments below.
0

What I Wore: Essie Nail Polish in Wicked

Monday, January 28, 2013

Oxblood may sound disgusting, but this close cousin to the color, maroon, has been the "it" color this winter. This week, I decided to jump on the trend by picking up Essie brand nail polish in Wicked. The color glides on in a rich, dark red color that makes my nails look fabulous. Check it out!
2

This Week on Instagram: January 20-26

Sunday, January 27, 2013
Cat plate
Horse plate
Dalek and Death Star
Pink limo- seen outside the Harlem Globetrotter's game
Strawberry Strudel and Ms. Molly donut from The Donut Whole
This week I took my mom to the Final Friday's art event downtown. Since I'm moving to the UK next month I called this outing my Final Final Friday's. We ended our night with donuts from The Donut Whole.
0

What I'm Listening To: Big Boi featuring Phantogram- CPU

Saturday, January 26, 2013

This week I stumbled upon this performance by Big Boi (best known from the group, Outcast) featuring Phantogram (best known for jiggly boobs previously posted here) and not only was I glad to see that the Phantogram singer appeared to have invested in a bra, but I liked the song too. Check it out! 
0

Previously on Project Runway All Stars: Season 2 Episode 12

Wednesday, January 23, 2013
aka. The Finale 

Previously on Project Runway All Stars, the final 3 designers were given 4 days to create a six to eight look collection. Luckily, they didn't have to do it completely on their own as Joanna Coles brought back the designers that were "out" this season and allowed the top 3 to select one former cast member to be their assistants. Joshua brought back some drama when he refused to be Anthony Ryan's assistant. Anthony Ryan chose to work with Kayne instead, Uli chose Casanova and Emilio chose Althea. Let's take a look at the collections.

Uli- "Mystical Winter." Uli tended to gravitate towards whites this season, so it was only natural for her to play up her strengths and grab fabrics in whites and ivories with embelishments and furs. I loved her use of textures and felt that her collection looked the most "high end" of the bunch. However, Georgina said that she felt Uli's use of faux fur made the collection look inexpensive and the judges crowned Uli as second runner up.


Joanna Coles and Liv Tyler both loved this vest
I loved the fur detail on the neck. Liv Tyler thought this dress was Oscar worthy.


Emilio- "Urban Plantation" Emilio created the most political collection of the bunch as his looks were inspired by women from "the 1840s Aunt Jumima to the 1940s Rosie the Riveter." Emilio gravitated towards fabrics in Americana colors (red, white and blue) and plaids, cottons and denims. I thought his collection told the clearest story, but I thought the styling and sillohettes made the collection look too young. The judges tended to agree with me and they awarded Emilio the first runner up.

This was my favorite Emilio look. I love the print and tailoring on the suit.

The judges agreed that this jumpsuit was awesome.

Anthony Ryan- "The Thin Line" Anthony Ryan stuck with his strengths and created a collection with bold colors, clean lines, and flashes of skin. Although the judges were not happy with the puckering hem on Anthony Ryan's final look, Isaac Mizrahi went ga-ga over the pocket placement on Anthony Ryan's opening look. I guess the two canceled themselves out. As I predicted the judges crowned Anthony Ryan the winner of Project Runway All Stars Season 2. I guess it's good that he won since Anthony Ryan declared that he did not believe he could afford to continue on in fashion without the win.


This dress definitely had wow factor



Anthony Ryan's last dress was NOT a show stopper with it's puckered hemline
Although Anthony Ryan was the winner, I think Mondo would still remain supreme in an All Stars winner face off.

Do you agree with the judges decision to declare Anthony Ryan the winner or were you cheering for someone else? Which look was your most/ least favorite? Who do you think would win in a Mondo vs. Anthony Ryan face off? Let me know in the comments below.
0

The 2013 Golden Globe Fashions

Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Last Sunday celebrities and fashion were on full display on the red carpet for the 2013 Golden Globe Awards. Tina Fey and Amy Pohler were the hilarious hosts and showed that ladies do it better when hosting the awards. To make the show more interesting, I made an attempt to predict the winners and accurately guessed 14 of the 23 categories correctly (Jessica Chastain for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture Drama, Daniel Day-Lewis for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture-Drama, Les Miserables for Best Motion Picture- Musical or Comedy, Jennifer Lawrence for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture- Comedy or Musical, Hugh Jackman for Best Performance by an Actor- Musical or Comedy, Brave for Best Animated Feature, Amour for best Foreign Film, "Skyfall" for Best Original Song- Motion Picture, Homeland for Best Television Series- Drama, Claire Danes for Best Performance by an Actress In a Television Series- Drama, Damian Lewis for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series- Drama, Lena Dunham for Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series- Musical or Comedy, Kevin Costner for Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television, and Maggie Smith for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television). There were several noticeable trends on the red carpet. I've listed my favorites and not-so-favorites below.

Hot

Best of Blush
Jessica Alba
Best of Floral
Lucy Lu

Best of Red
Claire Danes
Best of Black
Kate Hudson
Best of Lace
Michelle Dockery
Best of Pastel
Rosario Dawson
Not 

I thought that Hallie Berry's dress had an interesting print, but I thought that the bodice of the dress made Hallie appear to have lop-sided boobs.
Hallie Berry
Even thought J Lo has a rockin' body, I thought this dress gave the appearance of showing too much skin for the red carpet.
J Lo
I thought Eva Longoria's dress was both matronly and showed too much boob and leg. I would have loved to have seen Eva in a bold colored gown rather than this black number.
Eva Longoria
The dress I'd most likely wear...

Anyone who knows me knows that I love myself all things black, retro and polka dotted, and the bow belt is just the icing on the cake. If I could afford it, I'd totally wear this dress.

Daniel Craig and Rachel Weiz
What was your favorite Golden Globes trend? Who did you think was the best/worst dressed on the red carpet? Let me know in the comments below.
0
Powered by Blogger.

Disclosure

These posts contain affiliate links which may generate a revenue for the site when a purchase is made. You can read more at my Disclosure Policy page.