If you’ve ever wondered what happens between a fashion designer’s imagination and the catwalk, Bravo’s addictive “Project Runway” is for you.
The reality series has become such a hit that Bravo is extending its run with a one-hour recap of the entire season at 8 p.m. Wednesday; the finale, originally set for Wednesday, now airs Feb. 23.
It’s not surprising that the fashion-centric show has caught on with viewers. Not only will its finale arrive in the middle of Hollywood’s awards season, when gowns and glamor are on the minds of many, but it also gives TV audiences a fascinating peek into the design process, from rough sketches to pattern creation to late-night sewing-machine crises.
All of the “Runway” competitors (Kara, Wendy and Jay are the finalists) came in with serious fashion ability and experience, said Tim Gunn, chair of the fashion department at New York’s Parsons School of Design and the on-screen adviser to the aspiring designers. “There’s a level of true seriousness and purpose here,” Gunn says, adding that producers went out of their way to avoid the usual reality cliches of hot tubs and hookups. The focus is on sketching, sewing and creativity — and ability to follow the design brief given at the beginning of each challenge.
“At the end of the day, the clothes on the runway are judged,” says “Runway” fan Stephanie Sack, owner of the Chicago boutique Vive La Femme. “It’s not about who said or did or drank what. The clothes are judged.”
But the road to fashion fame is not always as smooth as hand-woven silk. Here we run down some of “Runway’s” highlights and lowlights.
THE CHALLENGE: Design a wedding dress
The parameters: Designers had to consult with one of “Runway’s” stable of models and create the catwalker’s dream bridal dress, with a $300 budget and within two days.
What worked: When Kara’s model walked the runway in Kara’s simple but elegant creation, “she looked how a bride should look, she didn’t look like a model,” Sack notes. “That’s what clothes should do — bring out who you are and what you are.”
What didn’t: Contestant Nora’s traditional rose-accented gown disappointed the judges. Gunn says her lackluster look was an example of how the physical and mental stress of several challenges in arow ended up “affecting the design work.” “It was as though she was saying, my time is up, this is my time to self-destruct.” Nora was eliminated a few weeks ago (this sentence as published has been corrected in this text).
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Trivia note: None of the wedding dress designs included sleeves. “Mere coincidence? No. Time constraints,” Gunn wrote in his weekly “Tim’s Take” on the Project Runway Web site.
THE CHALLENGE: Design a new postal uniform.
The background: Designers delivered mail for a day and talked to postal workers about what they like and dislike about their uniforms; they then got $100 to spend at a fabric store and a day to create a new letter-carrier look.
What worked: The uniform created by Kara got high praise from the postal worker on the judging panel, who said she’d love to wear the outfit’s trendy yet comfortable drawstring pants. The hat looks warm too.
What didn’t work: “Wendy only seemed to do well given very heavy-handed constraints,” says Gunn. “When left on her own with very few parameters, she just foundered. She would overdesign and given the time constraints, [her designs] couldn’t be reeled back in time.”
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Trivia note: When Jay’s model didn’t show, fellow designer Austin walked the runway in Jay’s creation and won plaudits from judge Michael Kors for his catwalk skills. (Austin was eliminated earlier (this sentence as published has been corrected in this text).)
THE CHALLENGE: Design a holiday dress to be sold in select Banana Republic stores.
The parameters: Designers got to meet with Banana Republic’s head of design, who explained the chain’s current retro-flavored aesthetic. With armfuls of free B.R. fabric in hand, they got a day to create their looks.
What worked: There were raves all around for Jay’s intricate, Art Deco-inspired creation, which Sack calls “the dress of my dreams — gorgeous, classy.” The sleek look was all the more surprising coming from Jay, who’d produced more vintage-y, street-influenced designs up to that point.
What didn’t work: Vanessa’s skin-baring piece might work for the red carpet, but not for Banana Republic’s more conservative customers.
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Trivia note: Though the judges raved about Jay’s gown, Wendy’s sweet dress-and-capelet combo won the challenge because it was easier to put into mass production.
THE CHALLENGE: Design a dress for a rock singer.
The parameters: After meeting with recording artist Sarah Hudson and getting ideas from her about the “little girl gone crazy” look she was after, the designers were divided into three teams. Each team got $150 and a day to create Hudson’s dress, which she planned to wear on stage.
What worked: Kevin (eliminated two weeks ago) and his team created a slightly trashy rock look that Hudson loved, which was the point of the enterprise (this sentence as published has been corrected in this text).
What didn’t: Austin, who led one of the teams with “a heavy hand,” Gunn says, let himself be led more by his retro aesthetic than by Hudson’s design brief. The result: Austin’s Little Bo Peep gown wasn’t rock ‘n’ roll enough to make the cut. Though he loves the consistency of Austin’s vision, Gunn says, sometimes “I see costume, I don’t see fashion.”
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Trivia note: Though he lives in New York, team leader Kevin got his fashion education at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
