Project Runway 8/23: Mommy Dearest

Cafe Society
1

Wow, this was quite the show. Some impressions:

–Jefrrey is an ass. I can’t believe he didn’t get the axe this time. His dress was the worst. Also, the way he talked to Angela’s mother was unprofessional and rude. She is the client and he’s supposed to be in business to dress her. I don’t think she tried to embarrass him, only to express her opinion. If he spoke to my mother that way, I’d have kicked his ass. I think he’s only still on the show because him squabbling with Angela makes good TV.

–Robert got booted, I think, because of repeatedly boring the judges. The dress this time was too safe, and it screamed Plus Size Matron. That said, it was wearable, which Jeffrey’s was not IMO.

–Michael’s dress was the best. AGAIN. Fully reversible! I wanted to see the other side. It was hot. Has he ever not made something wonderful? He’s the Daniel Vosovic of this season, for me. And Robert’s sister is very cute.

–Vincent’s dress was definitely the second best. I was surprised that he pulled it out, but I think he had a great rapport with Uli’s mom and it showed. He did a nice job. Interestingly, Vincent won, but his sister was the model for the losing designer.

–Kayne was a pudgy little kid. Cute. He didn’t do Michael’s mom justice, but it wasn’t awful.

–I didn’t actually think Laura’s dress was that bad, but she needs to realize that not everyone looks good with a high waist.

–Angela totally missed on that one.

–Uli, good work again. She’s got another win coming up. It was nice that she got to see her mom after all these years.

I want to see menswear now!

2

I loved the task!!! It was a real challenge, involving REAL people! Bravo, PR!

That being said, Jeffrey should have hit the road because his dress was pure ugliness and he was purely ugly to his model, Angela’s mom. She was very brave to have walked the runway in it. (And it really doesn’t matter that Jeffrey is a recovering addict. That doesn’t give him license to be a putz!)

I loved Uli’s outfit. Very floaty. Very flattering. Wonderful colors.

I was disappointed in Kayne’s outfit for Michael’s mom. Those pants were HORRIBLE!!! And the top wasn’t all that flattering. Too bad. She looks like a cool lady.

I’m sorry to see Robert go. I don’t think he could have done much of anything for Vincent’s sister. The woman was enormous!!! And I think some credence should have been given to her comments about the outfit. She loved it!

As for Vincent, I thought the dress wasn’t as strange as some of his creations, but I didn’t get the front-only lapels that didn’t seem to have any relation to anything else about the dress. Peculiar.

Didn’t love Laura’s outfit. HATED Angela’s outfit for Laura’s mom. Michael’s dress was practical and clever, but he had an easier time with a more normal size model.

What could be the unusual thing about next week’s “jet setter?”

3

Jeffery’s an ass.

Michael is gifted. I thought his and Uli’s were terrific, but I liked Vincent’s as well. I hate to admit that I secretly root for Vincent- the underdog and all that.

My favorite moment?

When Vincent said that Uli’s mom has a European “air” about her… d’uh- She is European!!! :dubious:

Anyhoo- good episode!

4

Poor old Robert. He’s been living on borrowed time for the past few weeks, and it really wasn’t that much of a surprise when he got the boot. I tend to agree that Jeffrey’s dress was a bit worse, but i can’t really argue with Robert’s expulsion. Nice guy; boring designer.

Jeffrey is definitely a jackass. He went out of his way to be a jerk to Angela’s mother, and some of his comments were completely uncalled for. His mother tried to play the “recovering alcoholic” card to excuse his behavior, but just because you were a drunk doesn’t mean you have to be an asshole.

I thought Uli’s was the best outfit tonight. It really suited the client, it was flattering, and it also reflected Uli’s personality and design aesthetic. Michael’s reversible dress was awesome, but he had a head start with Robert’s sister; she was slim and young and attactive. Vincent did great, and i actually felt good for him. I’m starting to warm back up to him a bit, after a few weeks where i thought he was a dick.

Kayne’s dress for Michael’s mum was boring, Laura’s outfit was extremely unflattering, as was Angela’s dress.

I’m still missing Alison, and would have liked to see what she did with this challenge. I still think she’s easily one of the best two or three designers.

5

Vincent’s dress was nice, and was way better than anything else he’s pulled out of his ass, but Michael or Uli should have won. Michael’s model could have been a real model, so anything could have worked, but he still dug into the challenge and made something uniquely everyday.

Jeffrey is an ass, and his design wasn’t good this week, but it wasn’t the worst. He does what he does really well; in fact, as much as I think Michael is the best designer on the show, I thought Jeffrey should have won last week. (For that matter, I thought Kayne should have won the week before. But Michael is the most consistent, the most thoughtful, and the most likeable.)

It was time for Robert to go. That outfit wasn’t anything that a woman of his model’s proportions couldn’t buy for herself at Fashion Bug. If you can’t do better than that, why bother?

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Laura’s outfit would have been a lot better if the waistline had been, you know, somewhere near the waist. Laura only really has one look, and it’s a good one–it certainly looks good on her–but it doesn’t work for everyone. Similarly Angela, except that her one look isn’t that good.

Uli, on the other hand, has a consistent style, but she is able to work that style into something new every time. She’s the only one left who can challenge Michael for the win, IMO.

7

Uli was robbed! Robbed I tells ya. Vincent’s dress was good (for Vincent), but just OK otherwise.

I want Michael’s reversible dress.

Joan Kors adorable! Her son looks just like her. But more orange.

Did anyone catch what Heidi and Heidi said to each other on the runway?

Jeffrey went from unlikeable to complete asshole in this episode. What did Angela’s mom do to him anyway? Someone needs to give him a step ladder so he can get over himself.

I heard it’s flight attendant uniforms.

8

And a favorite gets voted off next week. I wonder who?

Truthfully, I didn’t like any of the clothes this week. If I had to pick a winner, it would be Uli.
Michael’s dress was second best and fair. It was very old fashioned looking and dated. What saved him was the reversable thing.

Jeffery’s was the worst! OMG, did you see how crooked the sleeves were? That was one of the ugliest dresses I’ve ever seen. He should be gone. His clothes are as ugly as his personality is.

I figured crazy Vince would pull a win out of his butt if he lasted long enough.

It was a difficult challenge.

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We said that she looked like a slightly more masculine version of Michael.

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If I had to take a wild guess, I’d say Kayne. He’s a lot of fun but he hasn’t been doing well lately. His wild side hasn’t translated too well since the Miss USA thing. It better not be Michael or Uli, because they make the show worth watching IMO.

How about Laura, pregnant with #6 and outing it on the air before telling her husband? Her mom seemed… less than thrilled about the news. Maybe it’s Laura’s “throw it on the pile with the rest of them” attitude towards her kids that inspires this lack of excitement in her mom. She’s a weird chick.

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I was looking forward to Vince giving Ulli’s mom a vacant crazy look and saying something like, “This…you…is really turning me on.”
The vote in my house was that the collar on Vincent’s dress looked stupid because it jutted out and that Ulli should have won. I would have broke both of Jeffrey’s hands if he would have talked to my mother like that with me in the room.

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Jeffery’s dress was hideous–what was with that random blue triangle on it? And it fit like a potato sack. I don’t care if he went to AA unless it’s Assholes Anonymous–he needs an intervention there.

I’m not getting the Vincent love–decent idea, but the fabric was wrong. It looked like a heavy twill and wrinkled and bulged–a skimming polyester or a stretch fabric for the dress would have looked 100% better. I would have given Uli the win.

I’m sad to see Robert go, but he really could NOT break out of his dull rut. Still, Jeffery should have been gone, not him.

I’d wear Micheal’s dress, but he had it easy. I liked the belt, I thought it gave it a bit of kimono flair.

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This was filmed months ago, of course, so it’s safe to assume she’s told him by now. If not he’s one unobservant fellow. :wink:

14

While I thought Jeffrey’s dress was the worst, Robert’s was just nothing at all. I would have liked to see Jeffrey go for being an ass, but I think there can be no complaint about Robert going.

I thought Michael’s was the best , but I thought Uli did a better job on the challenge, because of their respective models, if that makes any sense.

15

I liked Vincent’s dress. It looked good and fit well. Still don’t like him, but that was a good dress - and I liked it better than Michael’s (I hate belt loops - and who wears reversible clothing?) or Uli’s.

I liked Kayne’s outfit. I liked the idea of Laura’s outfit - but the execution was not good. I have no idea why they complimented the tailoring, that shirt & skirt did not fit. It was tailored for an entirely different human being. Angela’s was just weird.

Jeffrey is/was/will be an ass and that thing he put on Angela’s mother was hideous. It didn’t fit, it wasn’t well sewn, the colors were bad, and the design was non-existent. There’s no excuse for him to still be on the show. Robert was dull again, but - between the client cooperation & the sheer awfulness of that dress, Jeffrey should have been Auf’d.

16

As bizarre as I thought Jeffrey’s garment was this time around (What on earth was he smoking?), I can see where the judges were coming from. When it’s “Commes des Garcons goes to Amish Country” versus “Look at this swell outfit I got at Fashion Bug!”, Commes des Garcons is going to win, because it’s “editorial” and “has a viewpoint” and all of that. Robert is a great guy, and early on he did beautiful work, but this was just… it wasn’t designed. It looked like he just grabbed some Simplicity patterns on his way out of Mood.

Jeffrey, Jeffrey, Jeffrey… I don’t know. I really don’t know. You could feel, to a certain extent, that he was trying to be diplomatic with Angela’s mom, but it’s obvious he doesn’t have clue one what “diplomatic” actually means. He just didn’t get it. There was no sensitivity there, there was no attempt made to listen beyond more than just the basics, there was no tact, there was nothing. On the other hand, it was adorable to see him light up like a Christmas tree every time his mother was in the room, and he obviously felt like shit that Robert was leaving. On the other other hand, he was freaking out at someone’s MOM, and ruining what should have been a real treat for her. You’ve got the moms and sisters there, people are reuniting and hugging and smiling and now we’re going to dress the moms and sisters up and give them pretty makeup and send them down the runway. It isn’t that hard. Just be nice.

This was kind of a disappointing challenge, all told. Ulli did a beautiful job. Vincent and Michael made gorgeous dresses, but then they kind of picked the easiest models to work with. Everyone else made their models look dumpy, the clothes were unispired… it was just bad. Maybe it was the time restrictions, maybe it was just fear of upsetting someone else’s family member, but it just wasn’t up to the level it could have been.

17

My favorite moment was Jeffrey’s mom showing his childhood picture to everyone. Light brown hair, braces, and a big grin!

I hope Laura was kidding when she made the “throw it on the pile with the rest” comment. It’s hard to tell. I got a better look at her home in the video clip they showed (again). There was a projection of some words on the wall, her kids were running around like maniacs, and there was a heavy bag in the middle of the room. What’s up with that?

Vincent seemed so much more normal and calm this time. His dress was fine, but I would have given the win to Uli. It was cute when the two Heidis had their little conversation on the runway. Vincent looked so eager to find out what she was saying. “She likes the dress.”

It seemed like Jeffrey was taking his contempt for Angela out on her mom. That outfit made her look misshapen. Angela’s wasn’t much better. This time it was yards of lampshade fringe instead of rosettes. And that giant green handbag!

If Uli or Michael goes next week, I may stop watching (okay, probably not). They’re obviously the two to beat.

18

I am every bit as enormous as Angela’s mom and I think Robert and Jeffrey were equally bad.

Robert because his design was boring and “safe”. I use kimono jackets a lot just like Robert did, to spruce up a boring black T-dress. But the kimonos I buy are brightly patterned and interesting. Bright solid red over solid black looked like he was afraid to try anything different. Like all his designs for the last few weeks.

Jeffrey because he didn’t design for this model. If you took off the black extensions on each side, it would have sewn together as a tiny dress for a tiny model. As it was, it didn’t lay right and looked uncomfortable.

The largest women both had the same look on their faces, “I came all the way to New York and I look like I bought this at Wal-Mart!” Fashion Bug Plus actually would be a step up from these dresses.

19

I listened to Tim Gunn’s podcast this morning, and according to him, Robert’s model (Vincent’s sister) was “intractable” about what she would and wouldn’t wear. He gave the impression that if Robert didn’t give her exactly what she wanted, she would refuse to go down the runway in it. At least Angela’s mom sucked it up and walked the runway in that godawful mess Jeffrey created for her.

As for Jeffrey’s treatment of Angela’s mom, there are no words. Way to go, asshole – now you get to do a Ninth Step to the whole country for offending not only Angela and her mom with your treatment of her, but every single person who watched the show, too! His own mom should have been slamming him up against the wall and demanding that he behave better; instead, she was making excuses for him? I think not. And I’m honestly surprised Angela didn’t just go off on him. If he’d treated my mom that way, he might not want to be in the same room with me and a bunch of sharp scissors!

I thought Uli was robbed. She made Kayne’s mom look terrific – proportioned, figure flattering, and just everything right. I can sort of see why Vincent won, but I still didn’t like the collar. But at least he treated Uli’s mom so nicely, plus he was so realistic about how if you want to make it, you have to learn how to work with real women, that I actually didn’t hate him for a change.

All in all, an iffy episode. And from the preview:

Is Tim going to be substituting for Heidi next week?

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Apparently, she was fat in his presence. Both he and Robert seemed to have a problem with that.