Here we go, kids - Der Ultimaten Heidi Klumische challenge! "Design something that a model would wear", and they did it! Most of the designers "showed up to the party", and thank goodness! I have to say, these folks presented this week some of the better dresses that I've seen on the show. Every design that was either safe, or in the top 3, delivered the ultimate end that all great clothes promise: a brief encounter with something unattainable, that people would love more than anything else to possess for themselves. In my opinion, this is what separates an "ordinary garment" from "true fashion".

But how do you know if the garment has that "unattainable something"? Well, you ask the pantheon what they would wear, and that's what we had this week. [ it would be nice to find a beautiful group shot, perhaps from MOPR, of the models all arranged elegantly in this week's dresses] Models are essentially ordinary human beings that we have lifted out of obscurity, and placed on the acropolis with our culture gods, all because they look so divine. As much as I give her a hard time for always saying it, whether or not Heidi is willing to wear something, or better yet, buy something, does actually indicate how fashionable that design is. This is a woman who's image is broadcast around the world every time she dresses up like an angel. It's very difficult to see her as anything other than a creature of the supernatural realm. And if you think I'm wrong, don't take my word for it, ask your husband what he thinks.

When Heidi says "I would never wear that" it is just as if Juneau, or Isis, or more aptly, Frigga has just hurled a bolt of lightening from the sky, reducing the dress in question to a pile of cinders. As a culture goddess, we see her each week, literally sitting in the high seat, deciding which clothes can accurately be deemed the raiments of the gods. That's why, when Heidi comes down from her throne and reaches up to bestow not one, but two valedictory kisses on the eliminated, it is incredibly poignant. She simultaneously elevates and rejects that week's designer in one symbolic gesture, all the while promising to "see them again". Dude. She giveth, AND she taketh away. Kneel mortals.

Before we get into the ins and outs of this week's challenge, let's take a moment to recognize the designers who didn't even make it to the banks of the river Styx this week. At the top of my list is Ra'mon You-Were-Robbed Lawrence. [image of Ra'mon's dress]. This was truly a stunning dress, and one that I think would absolutely turn heads at any influential party in Los Angeles. It has an incredible color and an astonishing focal point, that also wraps around the body. Not only does it have a well defined focus, but this design acknowledges the fact that clothing is sculpture, and must function in all three dimensions. Similarly, Shirin Ascari's design, [image of front of Shirin's design] gives the viewer something to look at when the model arrives, as well as when she leaves. Last, but certainly not least, we must recognize Gordana Gehlhausen's goddess mini dress, which adeptly evoked the immortals with it's golden hue, and her woven suggestion of a breast plate. [image of gordana's woven breastplate] Truly, it is a divine dress. But that is also why all of these designers didn't find themselves on the pillory this week. They clearly have more to show us, and so the gods have extended their life spans.

In defense of the winner, I'm sure that a lot of you bemoaned Althea winning with her sportswear ensemble this week. [image of Althea's outfit] The short answer is that this ensemble received the most "I would wear thats" from the pantheon. Remember, if you can get a majority of the gods to want to wear your clothes, then they qualify as fashion. More significantly, as we narrow down the playing field, we must remember that we are in search of a great American Designer, and the greatest American designers have always been sportswear designers. Yes, there are famous American gown-makers, like James Galanos and certainly Marc Bower. But they are outnumbered immeasurably by notable American sportswear designers like Calvin Klein, Halston, Ralph Lauren, and Donna Karan. And, that doesn't even take into account the American designers like Tom Ford, Marc Jacobs, and Rick Owens who are famous for their work in sportswear abroad. Our ability, as Americans to "make things work" comes from our dressing custom of "mixing and matching" and putting together outfits. It is a tradition that breathes life into any wardrobe, and one which ensures that stylists like Jen Rade will be gainfully employed throughout this Great Recession. This is why Althea won this week, and why the winner of the season will most likely be a gifted sportswear designer. Sportswear is what Americans do best, and nobody does it better.

Finally, farewell, dear, dear Qristyl Frazier. Boy was that tough! When I heard Jen Rade's biting retort that "thank god" Valerie "is not a designer" I realized that I had falsely assumed that if the models were willing to wear it, it must be a design worthy of the gods. What an extraordinary reversal it was when Rade's remark bluntly informed us that the models on this show are 'goddesses in training' and don't yet deserve a place on the acropolis. (at least not until they get that spread in "Marie Claire"). More to the point, what a clear example this dress is of the difference between "true fashion" and ordinary garments! Unlike the dress that Qristyl had begun in the workroom, [image of Qristyl's first dress] this dress was a functional garment that made Valerie presentable, but alas, it fell short in the surprise department. If only it was able to evoke that effervescent plus-something that Qristyl herself possesses, and which makes her someone I so desperately want to succeed! But, as I have said before, Qristyl always seems to learn from her mistakes, and looking at her most recent collection, I think she's made some smart advances. Furthermore, as with all veterans of this Wagnerian Cycle, remember that Qristyl is alive, well, and plus-searchable on the Internet. Give her a click, and buy something. Show her that you believe that there's room for plus-sexy in pantheon.

Ah, the "Team Challenge". It is certainly the most mesmerizing, of all the competition formulas on reality television. This is where Project Runway always gets completely "Wild Kingdom" and you see Darwinian Evolution in action right before your very eyes. On this show, the team challenge has been refined to an efficient plot and character exposition device that allows the viewers to really see what makes these designers tick. For most of the teams, it's a chance to share the workload, and to get to know better, people that they've already grown to appreciate. However, for the teams that have members who can't leave their egos outside the workroom, it makes for loads of the necessary drama that guarantees shows like PR have irreparably replaced show like "the Waltons" on TV for a very long time.

Having been in two of these team challenges myself, I've noticed how individual egos create an environment that dangerously multiplies the reasons for elimination, given the mutable criteria of the judges. Because it is a team challenge, it is impossible to know whether the judges will eliminate a team leader for a bad design, or whether a particular team member will be eliminated for poorly executing that design. Similarly, the team leader could be eliminated for "bad leadership skills" or the team member, for "not following directions". Then, there is also the issue of sharing the workload. Any member of the team can be eliminated for not working hard enough". And, you should never forget the damning distinction of having created something that "Heidi would never wear". [image of Heidi in the cheetah print from the pregnancy challenge] Since the team challenge multiplies these elimination criteria, negotiating a path to success then becomes next to impossible.

Certainly the best plan of attack is to work together to come up with a creative solution to the design problem, and to allow the "team leader" to have the final say in any dispute. We see this happen in varying degrees with all the teams, except for Mitchell's team and Qrystal's. Gordana, dutifully forges ahead, helping to execute both of Nicolas' crotch-centric designs without opposition. [image of nicolas' avant garde design on the mannequin] She's "in for a penny, in for a pound", to the point of complimenting his freehand pleating technique for silk organza while they are on the chopping block. [image of the collar of the avant garde piece] Logan and Cristopher are even able to come up with outfits that blend their individual aesthetics together. The girls that can sew already get along. So what goes wrong with the others? Basically, you have two situations where people have decided to put the "i" from "design" into "team".

At first glance, I thought we had an identical situation between Mitchell and Ra'mon, as we have between Qrystal and Epperson: essentially, a leader with weaker sewing skills being usurped by a stronger sewer, afraid for their reputation. But there is a fundamental difference between the two teams. Poor Mitchell was treading water in the deep end of the swimming pool from the beginning of the competition. We learn that as team leader, his strategy from the get-go is to find a sewing star to hitch his wagon to, hence his choice of Ra'mon. Since he has cast Ra'mon as "savior" of the team, from the start, the hierarchy is understood from the beginning, and they should have been successful. But then, they added that other avant garde look to the challenge and all hell broke loose. If Mitchell had the sewing skills to be able to sew without Ra'mon in the room he might have lasted another episode, but this was not the case. Ramon picks up the gauntlet, saves the day, and gets rewarded for doing so. Ironically, I think that if Mitchell was a trifle more clever he would have chosen Epperson, himself, and not only survived the challenge, but learned a few things about construction, considering the "teacher and student" dynamic that Epperson seems to fall into naturally.

Qrystal, on the other hand, is not looking for a "savior", and she "ain't no damn student", either. She demands to be treated like an equal, and rightly so. Soon, we start to see that she has plus-limits, and I'm not talking about her plus-sewing skills, but rather, her plus-patience. She has chosen Epperson out of her respect for his sewing virtuosity, expecting to glean the benefit of a more technically savvy partner to help her execute her vision. Sadly, it seems like she never gets to articulate this vision, and Epperson's ego hijacks the creative process of the team, beginning with his control of the research conversation with the surfer girl. Their relationship devolves as he vetoes her fabric choices at Mood, and treats her with general condescension for most of the rest of the episode. Now, I myself have to admit that my own taste doesn't agree with most of Qrystal's choices in fabric and color. She does seem prone to emphatic fashion statements, when it comes to prints and color, and if she has an achilles heel, it would be that her work lacks subtlety. However, with such a pleasant nature, she seems reasonable, and I think that dissent, when expressed respectfully, is taken into plus-serious consideration. You can see this in her casting video where she thoughtfully accepts critique from Tim and the audition panel with grace and deference.

Epperson, on the other hand, appears very outwardly motivated in this episode. It almost seems like he believes that if he follows Qrystal's lead, or surrenders to her taste, that he'll come under fire. Perhaps he never saw the episode of Season 2 where they send home Daniel Franco for his faulty vision, and allow his team members to stay for their hard work. I was also reminded of something else from Epperson's Pre-Runway "Closet Tour". Both he and Qrystal were the only designers that reference the labels of the clothes and shoes in their closets. With Qrystal, it seems like the brands help her distinguish the garments of quality from the others. Conversely, Epperson appears to rattle off the names on the labels as an endorsement of his own taste. (BTW for the record, it's pronounced "CHEH-zah-ray-pah-CHIO-ty") By the end of the episode, we see the team's entire relationship unravel into anarchy, and it appears as though they "divorce" creatively. Epperson, reworks the surf look, while poor Qrystal quickly fashions an avant garde overdress to layer over the body suit that we see Epperson sketching earlier in the show. [image of epperson's sketch and the final runway suit, once the vest comes off] As Nina says, it was "a recipe for disaster" and thank goodness, neither of them is punished for their faulty judgement. I do hope though, that they find a way to apologize and patch things up, because this is certainly not the only team challenge we are going to see.

After 5 seasons of Project Runway, and all of those Klum/Seal pregnancies, we are finally getting the maternity challenge! This week, our designers set out to create a pregnancy ensemble for "sophisticated mama" Rebecca Romijn, who is pregnant with twins! They are given the charge to design for an occasion of their choice, but they still have to achieve a look that is chic, and that flatters Romijn's "new shape".

As is often the case, these designs fall into the age old fashion debate between the dressmakers and the tailors. To add some intrigue, Shirin, Epperson, and Gordana successfully raise the stakes of this battle, combining both traditions, by embracing sportswear separates for their creations (image of Gordana's model, and maybe epperson's without the coat). In the end, it becomes a "Ladies' Night" and "the feelin's right" as Heidi, Nina, Rebecca, and guest judge Monique Lhuillier identify Shirin, Louise, and Althea as the front runners. Ra'mon, Mitchell, and Malvin come in at the bottom. Shirin wins the challenge for her innovative use of lattice smocking (detail image of waist) and it's general wear-ablility, while Malvin goes to the guillotine for a concept that is "too bizzarre". Oh, what a night!

Now, if you are not setting your tivo to catch "Models of the Runway", you need to start doing so, because the models are all watching the show just like we are, and it's very satisfying to see them articulate all the questions that you are probably yelling at the screen like, "How can they send Malvin Home? Mitchell can't sew! And it's true, considering all of the shirring he's done so far, I wonder if his tailoring skills are not as strong as the other designers in the cast, or if he's never sewn on an industrial machine before. We do know that he is returning to fashion after a two year hiatus in retail, so i wonder if it's been that long since he has done any concentrated sewing. The judges on Project Runway have always had a low tolerance for poor construction, and this season is no different than any of the others. Heidi says "Just because we sit [all the way over] here, it doesn't mean we don't have a good eye". Also, this year, I think it's possible that we could have three women in the final show at Bryant Park. Of the weaker sewers, it appears that at least five of them are males. Shirin, Louise, Gordana, Irina, Carol, and Althea, all possess rather strong technical skills and if they can avoid boring the judges, they all have a likely chance of carrying the day.

Finally, if Mitchell's outfit was just sewn poorly,(image here of his shorts at the hem) what is it about Ra'mon's outfit that put him in the bottom three? Frankly, both Malvin and Ra'mon committed an unpardonable design sin of the maternity market because both of them created garments that exaggerated the size of their model's belly. Basic color theory reminds us that warmer colors advance toward the viewer, while cooler colors recede away from them, into the distance. This is why it seemed to Nina that Ra'mon's dress had arrows pointing out at the viewer to tell them where the baby was.(image of the 'arrows') Similarly, if Malvin had perhaps considered suggesting a white silk organza chicken, sitting atop his egg, his creme sling might not have protruded from the body with such vehemence, making it look like the baby had already been delivered.(Image of Malvin's Sling and chicken)