I figured it was a 50/50 shot between Austin and Mondo, with Michael there to provide the underdog aspect, so wouldn't have been surprised with either winning.

Of the two, I think the judges made the correct choice, although I can't imagine Mondo in the working world running a business and working at the magazine. I'm familiar with creative angst, but Mondo's seems really self-indulgent to me, especially considering that nobody forced him to enter a competition like this and the pressures come with the territory.

I liked Austin's wedding gown and the 'lacquered lace' dress, but overall his designs usually strike me as too "poufy" and not looks that a real woman wants to wear. Mondo's work usually looks like a well-made cartoon to me, (perfect for Jessica Rabbit) and in my opinion, he'd be great in costume design for theater, but I don't really read his looks as fashion-forward.

Don't forget it's a tv show, too, "characters welcome." I would have loved to see Rami win, but he comes across as well-adjusted and just a sweet guy, and to me, clearly the producers wanted to encourage "out-there" behavior and Austin and Mondo both are such characters, so flamboyant each in their own way, I think the producers probably encouraged their 'survival' in this show.

oh well, I'll be back to watch season 10, espec. since it'll have Tim Gunn, so maybe the next batch of designers will be interesting. And producers, if you're out there, bring us more design and less sniping!

So far, so good with PR all-stars. Finally, a runway with multiple garments that could have won, not just one or two obvious choices! In recent seasons there haven't been enough real contenders. I loved Michael's dress, but agreed with the judges on Austin's - it fit the criteria for the challenge better and was gorgeous.
Poor Sweet Pea - what happened to her? I liked several of the things she did in "her" season, but both of her looks this time around were just bad....I thought Kara's was just as bad, though, and don't know why the judges liked her black sash (with pastel flowers?) I thought either her or Sweet Pea bottomed out here, so either one was the right choice to send home.
One more vote for missing Tim Gunn here. . .altho I get why they started fresh.

I lived through the 70s in southern California, and my favorite outfits back then usually involved wearing embroidered peasant blouses or some version of beach-wear- inspired casual stuff, a lot of white shorts - although I had a few jumpsuits, too - (one of my memorable sewing disasters was a gray velour jumpsuit that I thought was going to be so chic but made me look like a six-foot tall mouse. . .all it needed was ears and a tail! Needless to say, I didn't finish that one.
At any rate, not much from this episode said 70s to me. . .I agree with the comment that Anya's designs look basicallyt good but very simplistic - sometimes the judges will tell a contestant "this doesn't look like high fashion, it just looks like clothes" and I wonder why they don't apply that to her designs. . .I think, though, that it will be her, Bert, and Viktor, and that the best will rise to the top when they have a chance to create their own collections.

Well, PR brought us the term "advertorial," how about a new genre, the "advertepisode" ??? This week's show certainly fit that bill - could they have slipped in any more references to Garnier styling products? Also, the band playing, and the "advertepisode" for them. . .too much product placement. How much do you want to bet the band is backed by money from one of the PR producers?

looking at the poor excuses for garments, all I could think of was how the musicians I know wouldn't be caught anywhere dressed in this stuff. . .

Another disappointing episode. . .I've been watching some of the reruns from past seasons, and have been struck by how much more talented those designers are. . .I think this is just an uninspiring group and I can't wait for the all-stars PR and the accessory version. The best things in this season would be the bottom three on past seasons. . .IMHO. . .past designers seem to be able to sew much better, too.

You know what? I take back my last comment. 2024 is very cute and different. . .definitely worth the two dollars! I will buy at least this one. . .

The "single-serve" approach is a great idea, although personally I have so many patterns already in my stash that can be adapted to what is current that I probably won't be purchasing any of these. For newer sewers, though, who don't have that stash, this is a good idea, and you can't beat the cost. I will say, though, that most of the time I liked having the various options available on patterns,so the main draw I see here is not wasting excess pattern tissue but the low-cost way to try a look out.

worst season ever! that's all I can say at this point, boo hiss.

I wish the producers of the show would read the comments from this site, because as sewers/designers ourselves, I think the thoughts expressed here are particularly to-the-point, espec. compared to the average viewer who hasn't ever sewn anything.

I, too, love Tim Gunn, and wouldn't watch the show if he weren't in it. I also think the judges are overly harsh in their comments most of the time, and would love to see a show that was really more about what the premise of this show is supposed to be, finding a new great designer. . .

not just another version of backbiting so-called "reality" television, dumbed down to the behind the scene arguments - can't they give the viewer any credit for having some brains?
I'd really love to see more views of the garments and the creation process. Also, the runway show is even more jazzed up this year with quick-cutting film techniques meant to make the show look more exciting, but only make it harder to focus on the clothing.

I did love Kimberley's win this week, loved the outfit and thought it was the right choice for the challenge.
Someone on this site asked if people thought the outfit was remade for Nina. . .I wondered that, too, and think the answer has to be yes, since she doesn't appear to have the proportions of a runway model. I'll bet it wasn't Kimberley, though, as she would have not had the time, since it would be off to the next challenge. . .

I really want to say something positive. Really, I do. But they're losing me with this season. . . that chiffon outfit, the tan pants and turquoise top with all the tacky bling at the neck, was so matronly and ugly!Ugh! Just as bad as the horrible hair and makeup it was paired with, in my opinion. Yet it gets praised. . .

and Bryce dodges a bullet yet again even though he should have gone home - in past episodes, the judges have always held the team leader responsible for failing designs, and he clearly claimed responsibility for the entire bad look here, with Fallene at least making the only good part of it, the cute headpiece.

Still hoping Bert redeems himself this week. . .As of now, though, it looks like Anthony Ryan is going to be the standout this year.

actually, make that about four inches to add to the birdseed dress. . .two for the runway, but four for commercial sale. . .

I didn't agree with the winning choice - I felt it was not flattering to the model at all - and if it made her look frumpy, imagine how it would look on larger sizes.

Also, just cutting up a dog bed as fabric doesn't seem to meet the challenge - fabric is still fabric. I loved the birdseed dress, but agreed that it was too short. Two more inches and it would have been great. I liked the silhouette of Joshua M's - the swingy top over the swingy skirt looked very fresh to me and comfortable for hot weather.

I was disappointed in the first episode - maybe I've been looking forward to it too much and wanted too much!

For starters, why have 20 designers whittled down to 16 right away - we had no time to get to know them, so it felt to me like it does when you are waiting for your flight at the airport and people-watching, and you watch everyone go off to different gates and different destinations.....you don't miss them when they're gone because you never knew them.

I, too, would have picked Bert's outfit as the winner, and so far I'm rooting for him overall. As for the other two outfits in the top two?? Are you kidding - why oh why did the judges rave about the fit on Anya's pants? It was dreadful - all pouchy in the front - really really bad. Anthony Ryan's outfit was so bad I thought he was in the bottom three - I nearly fell off the couch when they started praising his outfit....so bad in so many ways, and what was that crazy panel on the front of the shorts?

Finally, I just found the whole concept of this challenge an "ugh" moment - sewing with your pajamas that you've been sleeping in and a hotel sheet? yuck. like pulling something dirty out of the laundry basket - maybe that's next. The only thing worse would be if they were assigned the laundry basket and then had to switch dirty laundry with the person next to them. . .

I first heard about this project through an interview I did with the president of the Kiwanis Club in my area (I'm a writer/reporter for the local weekly newspaper.) Her group sewed and donated over 100 dresses to poverty-stricken girls in Africa.

I really shake my head over the person who responded in this conversation that we shouldn't be going into other cultures telling them they need to be clothed. ..because as the Kiwanis president explained to me, the girls who receive these dresses are vulnerable to being taken from their families and sold into slavery, and if they are dressed, it looks like they have a family who cares about them, and makes them far less likely to be kidnapped.

As for the snooty-ness about sewing with a pillowcase, for one thing, it's just the idea of having pre-hemmed fabric (the pillowcase opening is the hem of the dress) to encourage a sewer to know that they can make these very quickly. (You're basically just attaching the pillowcase to the bottom of a tee-shirt.) You could use your stash of fabrics if the idea of a pillowcase offends your aesthetic sensibilities. . .but why would it?

Linens are available in beautiful high-thread count fabrics - a few years back, I bought an extra king-size sheet when I bought new linens, and used it as a large expanse of fabric to make coordinating pillows and such for my bedroom - and it looked a lot nicer with my custom touch than the store-bought alternatives that were offered.

I thought Mondo's designs should have won - maybe the judges didn't want to give him another win on the heels of the last few weeks, to keep it more interesting as to who will win the whole thing. Andy's designs were interesting to me only on the runway - aesthetically they went together, they were graphically striking, and made a strong presentation as a mini-collection, but to actually wear? And to the grocery store? I think not. . .I think Laura Bennett says it best in her blog on the project runway site: "Zebra on crack in aisle 3!"

Personally I like close-fitting clothes, especially when running errands like going to the grocery store - the last thing I want when I reach in for raw meat is a voluminous sleeve -

Gretchen is so tiresome - when the show began I thought she was going to be the clear winner, but I think this week she's going to be out. I think the final three are going to be April, Mondo, and Michael C. as the underdog, with Mondo winning. April has a distinctive aesthetic, albeit somewhat 'Frederick's of Hollywood' as has been pointed out, but given her penchant for black and the runway's need for color, I don't see her winning overall.

Hands down, Mondo should have won. He took an ugly dress and totally transformed it into something chic and fresh - I loved it. The winner. . .ugh! so 80s and with the lace on top, not that far removed from a bridesmaid dress ! The only thing non-bridal about it was the short length. Many more of these odd wins and they've lost me. . .I watch to see what the designers do with the challenge, and to think what I'd do in their place, but even allowing for the short time frame, I'm not too thrilled with anything I've seen this season, and most of the winning designs. . .blah. I think the judges were overly influenced by Michael having been 'thrown under the bus' last week - overcompensating him by rewarding a really dated looking design.

One more thing. . .although Kristen's was awful, April's diaper/men's underwear design was far, far worse and I was completely surprised that she didn't get sent home for that.

Really disappointed in this week's efforts. . . I thought very few of the garments had even the slightest correlation with the hat they were meant to reference, including the winner. The judges all praised Michael C. for bringing in an iridescent sheen to tie the hat to the outfit, but to me that was the only commonality. The colors of the dress and hat together were so off-putting that I couldn't believe the judges praised the combination, and the shape of the hat wasn't echoed anywhere in the garment.

A lot of comments get made about the wearability of the outfits presented by the designers, but in this case I think the challenge was all about theatricality and artistic statement. The hats are obviously over the top, meant to be perceived as 'wearable art' for only the most select situation - in a runway show to add drama, or worn by a diva on a red carpet for effect. I expected to see 'art to wear' to match the hats.

It seems to me elementary design class that when you are supposed to relate one thing to another you find the thing they have in common - Peach was given a confection of feathers, and could have come up with something light and airy, something with a circular movement to it, similar to the movement in the hat. Mondo was given one of the more wearable hats, and that spiralling motion could have been really played with in his garment, but instead he sent out an outfit that had absolutely nothing to do with the hat. Color choice was mystifying to me, as well. . .

Same thing with Ivy - what the heck does that outfit have to do with the hat she had, either in color, design, or texture? The hats are so theatrical that the designers' first instinct shouldn't have been to calm the hat's impact down, but to play off of it (especially with Philip Treacy there to judge!)

Michael D. was one of the only designers to see that he could echo the opening on his hat, and I thought the most successful designer was the much reviled Gretchen, who thoroughly tied her entire look together, and even made something wearable. I would have given her the prize hands down, not because I want to dress like Diana the Huntress, but because her outfit was a complete expression of her own style tied throughly into the hat she had to work with in color, texture and design. It was also the theatrical runway version of an outfit that could be wearable when brought to market.

I enjoy watching 'Runway' mainly because it reflects my sewing sensibility - I've always enjoyed using unusual materials in a (hopefully) interesting way. . .vintage fabrics and old kimono in modern designs, hand-painting elements, all of that. The challenges using unconventional materials are the most fun for me to watch. . .although nothing the designers came up with in this episode thrilled me. It was a difficult one, though - I'd much prefer to be given the hardware store challenge that previous contestants had.

So far I'm not seeing any standout talent this season to really root for - Gretchen's work is the most interesting to me, but she is so 'full of herself' that I know she'd be driving me crazy if I were in that workroom. Still, however, hers are the designs that I really check out. Casanova should be sent home soon, but I think he's still there because it's a tv show, and they need "personalities" - his is the most memorable (like him or not, and I don't particularly)

Anthony in previous season was a good example to me of someone who lasted mainly because he was fun to watch - they need a mix of "types" on any show like this, and you can almost see the casting directors saying "ok, we need an eccentric loner, choose Mondo; we need a mature woman for that demographic, choose Peach (I'm all for that, btw! I'd love to see someone over 40 win - unfortunately, Peach is too much the 'ladies-who-lunch.') Casanova will be there as long as the judges feel like they need him there for ratings. . .I'm sure Heidi and Michael Kors are cognizant of that as much as they are of design capability. Without memorable contestants, there is no show.

Ok, I stand corrected. . .in episode two, Gretchen doesn't say she's never made a pair of pants, she says it's the first time she's made pants without assistance. . .

Didn't Gretchen say that she'd never made pants before? I was just looking at her portfolio of previous work on the project runway website, and there is a photo of what is clearly either the twin to the black jumpsuit, or a pair of black pants and black top that add up to a jumpsuit. I don't fault her for falling back on a style she's worked with before, just that it's a little disingenuous to say "I've never made pants before" when clearly, she has. . .

I thought Emilio's dress was nicely constructed, but the color palette he chose didn't do anything for me. IMO he deserved to win this week, but only because the other choices were awful.

Costumey in the extreme! The collar on Mila's was a fright. Even though I personally am not a fan of the circus, the possibilities for inspiration from it were much greater than what they came up with. I know they have limited time, so you have to cut some slack for that, but when I saw what the inspiration theme was, I expected more than a trio of stiff ringmaster jackets.

Anthony's personality is fun, and makes for good tv, but his design was deservedly dismissed. I think Mila will edge out Jay (I haven't liked much of anything he produced, actually)I think Seth Aaron will win in the end, because of his superb tailoring (I loved that black and white striped jacket he produced for the mom in the mother-child episode) and because his aesthetic is both interesting and unique enough to appeal to the judges as a signature style. His aesthetic lends itself to the theatrics of a runway show, but has elements that can be toned down when the line is produced for the market.

I meant Maya, not Mila! oops.

I, too, didn't care for Seth Aaron's remark, telling the viewers to. . .well, you know. How rude. . .and I like his work, so that made it doubly bad.
Besides, my reaction wasn't to condemn Mila, but to remember how many times in my own life I've pushed myself past my comfort level and what I thought I was ready for, and then found that I was able to rise to an entirely new level of accomplishment simply because I had to - it was 'sink or swim' -
as an artist, particularly, you have to push through that fear and challenge yourself to do what you think you can't. . .The old saying used to be "feel the fear and do it anyway. . ." Mila is talented, and I think she would have been in the final three. She's so young, too, that if she hadn't liked the presentation of her final collection, it wouldn't have ruined her life, she could have just changed directions as she found her focus, and gone on in the future with a different look.
Does anyone else think the little bow sticking up on Emilio's dress looked odd, or that Anthony's dress wasn't as fabulous as Jessica Alba went on about? I would have voted for Emilio's dress, but without the shape that stuck up on the bodice.