Project Runway After Party

The cool thing about Bravo is that at 9 p.m. Wednesday nights they show the previous week's Project Runway episode, and at 10 p.m. they show that week's new episode. Last night, Bravo took the opportunity to run repeat episodes. Normally I'd be annoyed with this, but since I started with Episode 4 last week, I figure this is a great opportunity to play catch up.

Episode 2: The Clothes Off Your Back
This episode starts with the designers attending a cocktail party to welcome them to New York. As part of their next challenge, the designers had to literally take the clothes off their backs and create an entirely new garment, using only the material from their own clothing for the fabrication.

You could almost hear the designers' hearts breaking as they struggled with destroying their favorite leather jacket (Santino) or leaving some items out (Zulema, Kirsten).

Santino's brilliance - and ego - are revealed in this episode. He seriously must think that he is the judges' darling. After finding out Chloe won for her mini dress, Santino mutters - in front of Chloe, who must have felt like she was on Cloud 9 - "They just didn't want me to give me two in a row."

Meow. Now there's no question that Santino is a great designer. His Mad-Max-Meets-Dangerous-Liaisons garment was just so imaginative and really indicative of Santino's point of view. It wasn't necessarily pretty, or practical even - but it was definitely intriguing. To be sure, Santino's got some talent (lederhosen lingerie aside). But damn. No he didn't.

Kirsten's refusal to use her family heirloom scarf [Hermes? - M.] in her design proved to be her downfall. I'm sure she thought she'd have to cut it up - but really, she could have just tied it into a bandeau (as she wore it in her exit interview), or a halter. I mean, something. That Porsche t-shirt looked like a reject from the "Flashdance" costume department.

Andrae's emotional outburst regarding his clothing - I still don't even know what he was crying about - was he tired? was he apologizing for wearing the dreaded jean + jean jacket combo? was he ashamed that his denim cheongsam was unfinished? Regardless, Nina Garcia wasn't even trying to hear it. And neither was I. I half expected him to quit the show right there.

And I know I'm going to hell for this, but I was cracking up right there with Santino while Andrae's tears were flowing.

Episode 3: All Dolled Up
The designers were told they were going to design an outfit for a fashion icon. Who could it be? Grace Jones? Heidi Klum? Alicia Keys? Sarah Jessica Parker?

Not so, bitches. "My Scene" Barbie needs a new look.

And the winner of the challenge gets their outfit manufactured by Mattel and sold as a special-edition "My Scene" Barbie, complete with the designer's own photo on the box. Sweet.

Each designer received their own My Scene Barbie as their "muse," and back at Parsons, we learn that Kara freaked out because her Barbie's hat fell in between the escalators.

Whatever.

Daniel "Deadline? What Deadline?" Franco's obsession with detail starts to further reveal itself in this episode. While attention to detail is a great quality, there's a fine line between conscientious and wasting time.

Nick, my other favorite, won the challenge with a flirty, psychedelic, flouncy, colorful dress. It was perfect for Barbie. Very Telemundo, very Copacabana, as Nick says. Santino, never one to disappoint, player hated on his buddy, muttering to himself "I can't believe that shit" when he found out he didn't win.

Most of the designers tried to introduce a couture element to it. Some, like Chloe and Diana, pulled it off. Some, like Raimundo's "surfer girl" look, was way off the mark, and cost him the challenge. He was given the ol' auf wiedersehen.