L’Oreal Paris is Throwing Down a Project Runway Challenge

by Ruth Anne Boulet

Kenley thinks that Leanne tried to sabotage her by not selling her hip-hop outfit. So Kenley’s not going to talk to Leanne. So there. Jerell is officially starting to lose his mind, now that no other guys are left & he’s got the fabulous apartment to himself. He has a ‘conversation’ with a Tim Gunn bobblehead, an apple with a face on it, and a syrup bottle whose logo has been obscured so we have absolutely no idea what kind of syrup it is.

So Tim takes the designers to the botanical gardens for the next challenge. In the garden is Collier Strong, who’s here to tell the designers about the challenge. They are to make an evening gown, using nature as their muse. It’s kind of like last cycle’s museum challenge, only outdoors with flowers. But no Chris March, laughing in a big marble space. We do get Leanne ooged out about the bees. It’s ok, Leanne, bees are our friends. Unless you’re allergic. Kenley thinks the challenge is perfect for her. As she says this, the editors selected a close-up of a bee. Hmmm. Wonder why.

We’ve got 30 minutes to pick a flower & sketch what they’re going to do. Then it’s the flurry of shopping at Mood. I’m finding it interesting that Korto picked up a piece of ivory lace when her flower is a gradation of oranges and yellows. Nothing about it said lace to me.

Kenley appears to have lost a bag of tulle from Mood. Probably the same tulle the camera guy zoomed in on at the end of the shopping excursion. That’s a shame. The other designers really feel for her in that ‘tee-hee, suffer!’ kind of way. All the other designers have tulle that they may, or may not, be using. None of them offer up their leftovers to Kenley, no matter how much she sighs & looks longingly at it. Tee hee! Comeuppance! So, of course, the next morning Kenley is all distant & in a bad mood.

Tim tells Kenley she can go back & get the tulle, if she can prove that she paid for it. Jerell thinks Kenley’s dress is killing the Dragonslayer. It’s at this point that we get a close-up of the fabric. Yep, it’s a lizard print. It is very Dragonslayer / Conan / Beastmaster / He-Man / She-Rah / Xena. We get a L’Oreal commercial, I mean, a great consultation with Collier Strong about all of the things makeup can do for one’s outfit.

Kenley then gives us a little bio about why she’s so difficult. There is no real reason, other than she was a kid once. She claims that she has to go to Bryant Park because her collection will be the best. Sorry, Kenley, you did go to Bryant Park, and your collection wasn’t the best. Tonight we find out if it even counted in the world of Project Runway.

The designers get more Tim feedback. He’s way concerned about Korto and where she’s at. There’s a lace thing going on that’s a bit weird. Tim is concerned that Kenley’s dress is looking more like scales than petals. She’s complimented by this. Great, Kenley. Tim thinks Jerell may blow everyone’s socks off, but he’s got a lot of work. Tim sees Hello Dolly in Leanne’s dress. So now all of the designers, except Kenley, are stressed about the state of their dresses.

Then Jerell breaks down, and Korto breaks down. It’s the day of the final runway show & the stress of the competition has caught up with all of them. Kenley tells us that she doesn’t like anything else any of the other designers do. Thanks for the reflection, Kenley.

Time to start the show. One day you’re in, and the next day, most of America is hoping Kenley is out. Ok, Heidi didn’t say that, but everyone I know is thinking it.

Time for ‘judgment.’ Leanne used lavender as her inspiration. She gets good marks on most things. Korto’s dress gets called pageanty and not fashion-forward, which gets her to cry. Nina thinks she just went too far trying to impress the judges. All Korto can do is cry.

Jerell gets dinged for the bodice being too low. He explains what he would’ve done if given more time. Nina also tells Kenley that her dress looks scaly, which Kenley loves. Nina says ‘that’s not a good thing.’ Heidi finally calls Kenley on her attitude, which causes Kenley to give more attitude.

The real waterworks begin when Heidi says each designer should say why they should go to Bryant Park and who else should go. Naturally, Jerell, Leanne and Korto all cry and all say that they, as a group should go to Fashion Week. Jerell adds a little ‘in the tent’ to emphasize his point. Kenley selects Leanne and Jerell to come with her as Korto is too classic. Korto and Kenley have to continue having their spat in the back room.

The judges, as always, talk behind the designers’ backs. We get a little bit more of that. Negative comments about one; positive about the other. Then negative comments about the same person who had positive comments. It’s very confusing, but that’s ok because the drama will end in about 10 minutes. There will be a lot of ominous music and cuts from one designer to another. High-drama stuff here.

Apparently this was the closest runway show they’ve ever had to judge. That’s because in seasons past, they simply added another person in. Which is what they did again this year. Jerell has ‘won’ the challenge. All of them will create a collection, and one person will be booted out after doing all that work. Just like in seasons past. Sorry, Todd. She’s not out. Yet. Based on her runway show, she should be.

Next week, part one of the Project Runway finale. Drink it up while you can, kids. With the Lifetime drama, not sure when we’ll see the next season.

1 Comment

  1. None of the designers impressed me much this week. No one put an amazing dress down the runway. And then everyone was crying about it, tears of stress I guess.

    I’m glad Heidi called Kenley out on her attitude. And then Michael Kors comment in the judges panel was great – what will she do if a buyer doesn’t like something, get out a knife and stab her? Kenley’s work does not justify her smug arrogance.

    Yes, Kenley, Bryant Park wants to see a show. But they want to see beautiful clothes in that show, not trashy reptile skin that looks like a sexed up version of a dinosaur costume my mother made for Halloween one year.

Comments are closed.