Project Runway: The Case of the Pumpkin Disco Ball

Heidi introduces this week’s challenge, or rather she cryptically passes it off to Tim.  Something about being colorful.  Tim passes it off to Martine Reardon of Macy’s who says something about a blue clothing line through INC, Macy’s in-house brand.  Anyway, they are to design two blue outfits, working in pairs.  The winner gets to design a winter dress that will be featured in limited Macy’s stores and on their website.  Anyway, they need to sketch and present to Ms. Reardon, who will pick the five team leaders, and they are Irina, Althea, Carol Hannah, Christopher, and Louise.  And then they pick their partners: Althea and Logan, Christopher and Epperson, Louise and Nicolas (and his immunity), Irina and Gordana, and Carol Hannah and Shirin.  Mood scramble, yadda, yadda, yadda , no wait, something happens this week: Louise can’t find her money envelope.  Oh there it is . . . next to her sketches.  This, when coupled with working with the guy with immunity and being featured early on in the episode, does not bode well for Louise.

In the workroom, Epperson and Christopher are all bosom buddies and we get flashbacks of his last disaster team challenge with Qristyl.  We then learn that Louise makes bird calls and other cartoonish noises while she works (so do I!), but that doesn’t include the cat calls the ladies and guys are making at the dreamy Logan, probably because he’s not wearing a Smurf hat this week.

Tim’s Take, but don’t get him started on leggings.  He thinks Carol Hannah is 80% there already, provided those leggings go.  He’s excited by the potential of Louise (whatever that means), as well as the modern suit that Althea is making.  In talking with Irina and Gordana , they’re disagreeing on somethings so he backs off.  His conundrum with Christopher is the different textiles, and then Christopher and Epperson talk about reinventing the shirt dress.  How bold, now send in the models!

Before the next day, Nicolas gets sick by Louise’s ruffles and it sounds like he may throw her under the bus if need be. which is interesting because he has immunity.  Irina and Gordana are still having communication issues but at least they’re being polite about it, or maybe that’s passive aggressive, I’m not a psychologist.  So Macy’s Accessory Wall (with new INC brand shoes), final fittings, and we’re off to the runway.

Runway.  Heidi introduces the judges: Michael Kors is back (yeah!), Zanna Roberts (Marie Claire), and Ms. Reardon.  She starts the show by warning that “one or more may be out.”  Interesting.  Also interesting: Gordana’s model is showing a lot of breast and Logan’s model is showing way too much pootie.  So far, these outfits stink as we get two ruffly things in a row from Althea and Louise.  Carol Hannah’s first outfit is very stewardess, circa 1960, and I agree with Tim on why leggings are evil.  Christopher’s shirt dress is great . . . for a shirt dress, and it’s really the only thing I liked.  But what do I know?  Logan and Althea are sent back immediately as neither good nor bad.  And for some reason Christopher and Epperson are in the bottom.

The good.  Carol Hannah and Shirin: They like the tunic and the stewardess number.  And Irina sort of calls out Gordana for not contributing more, but the judges don’t care because they like the outfits and they’re both staying in the competition.

The bad.  Louise and Nicolas: Heidi is not a fan of ruffles and Kors describes one as “a bridesmaid’s dress with a shower loofah ruched up the middle of it,” and apparently no modern girl wants to wear that.  Heidi twice points out how lucky Nicolas is for having immunity.  With Christopher and Epperson, Heidi thinks the non-shirt dress outfit looks like the woman was eating lobster and left the bib in.  Kors rips a new one into Christopher by talking about how bad both designs are, how they don’t go together, and how the shirt dress is for a 1979 librarian.  And Christopher starts crying . . . a lot.  (And I’m a total bastard because I can’t stop laughing while I watch.  I know it’s sad and disappointing for him but it’s the brutal honesty of Kors and Heidi that always set me off–he should be really glad Nina wasn’t there.)

Privy Council.  I’ve got nothing to say except Heidi debating which of Christopher’s is worst: “the pumpkin disco ball” or “the shower curtain nightie.”  With the good outfits, none of the judges are terribly excited about anything, well I’m inferring that from their comparatively mild comments.

Results.  Irina wins!  Shirin, Carol Hannah, and Gordana are in.  Epperson is in and Nicolas has immunity, with Heidi reminding him for a third time that he is very lucky.  It comes down to Louise and Christopher.  Per Heidi it’s down to Louise’s ruffled dresses were poorly made, not sellable, and dated, and Christopher’s outfits had nothing in common except for cluelessness.  Louise is out and after a very long stare and pause, Christopher is in (and makes a sad puppy noise).  So, I was right with my prediction, for a change.

We get a preview of Irina’s holiday dress, which looks too slutty for my holidays.  And next week they get new models and I can’t figure out what the challenge is going to be.  But at least Michael Kors is back.  I can’t handle it when he’s not on.

For another take on this episode, read Blue? Really? by Jaimie Campos.

Listen to The J Factor with J.B. and Jaimie here or on iTunes.

Season 6, Episode 7: The Sky’s the Limit (originally aired October 1, 2009)

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