Project Runway 13, Episode 9
OMG DOLLS. CREEPY, CREEPY DOLLS.
Okay, now. I’ve posted on my doll phobia, right? Dolls seriouslycreeps me out.
Having said that, this was actually a really good challenge. Take an American doll's story and style, and update it for a 9-year old 21st c. girl. It worked out really well - for most of the contestants, anyway.
The American Girl Doll executive speaks - she is of course also a judge (along with Elizabeth Moss, which I never get why they throw in random actresses). They never sound natural, do they? Here I am, someone who just wants to promote her brand (and as T&L pointed out, AD never said it was going to actually produce the outfit in miniature, which brings up all kinds of "hmmmmm...."). And sounds more wooden than if one of those dolls came to life and entered my nightmares.
Okay, so the model is whatever little girl is carrying whichever doll. The doll’s outfit has to be a departure for the look. The dolls have books. Of course they do.
Kini has the Samantha doll. This is some wealthy New York type from early 1900s?
Amanda has Addy. This is a Civil War African-American character; she and her mother just escaped slavery. That could be interesting. Will it be Canadian fashion? ...I probably shouldn't joke about that.
Alexander: Kit. I have no idea, maybe I'll pick up the story later.
Korina has Josefina, who is a Mexican girl in New Mexican before it was American.
Sandhya has Carolina from the 1800s, the daughter of shipmakers. Oooh, I'm thinking Nantucket; that could be awesome. I'm also looking forward to how Sandhya will turn it into a massive "WTF." Maybe she'll dress the kid up as a whale. At least it will be interesting!
Char has Katya, a Native American “diva”? I think I’m getting this one wrong. She takes care of her blind sister. Hard to get up on your high horse (get it!? Another inappropriate joke!!) when you have to take care of disabled siblings.
Sean has the Julie doll. Again, I don't know but Sean bores me so maybe I'll pick it up later.
Emily has a Rebecca doll - she's from Jewish Russian immigrants. Ooooh, that could be awesome and all Ayn Rand-y!! (See now, I was kidding: like, Ayn Rand for kids? Bwah!! ...and then Emily actually did that, as you'll see.)
The workroom has the dolls when the designers return from Mood. They stare creepily. *shudder* The designers somehow ignore this and design.
It's Tim time!
Sean has Julie from the 70s. Ah, okay. He's doing a jumpsuit in a blech print fabric. Why is it always jumpsuits? Now, if Sean sort of departed from Halston without the sexy boob thing... okay, that would obliterate the look and anything sexy is going to be OMG WRONG for kids, of course. But seriously, look at the doll, the cool colors, he could use polyester bright lime and do a sort of derivative disco thing!
Emily has Rebecca, and she says this is a super traditional character. Oh, come on, I live in a Hassidic neighborhood, you want to talk traditional? She's making a sweater and a skirt. I dunno about the fabric - shouldn't Sean use that shiny shit? Tim loves the knit, okay, I can go along with that. Emily is making a tule-lined skirt. Tim wants to make sure the skirt is not too big for a little girl. I want to know why Sean isn't doing this cool purple-green color contrast (only in more lime/electric purple).
Kini has Samantha, an orphan adopted by her wealthy grandmother - he's making a super fast (of course) plaid dress and a houndstooth jacket. Tim is giving the look - it’s a bit mature. Kind of like Emily dresses up for high tea with a visiting Duchess at the Plaza, IMO. Cool for the story - is it cool for a 9-year old?
Amanda is discussing how Addy just escaped slavery. Tim thinks the textile is risky in a good way. I think she should stick to your basic 19th c. blends and go with a cool style, but what do I know.
Alexander: Don’t make it “Kids-R-Us.” Again, I still have no idea who his character is.
Char has what she calls a horseriding diva. I still don't get the diva part. The character is obsessed with fringe - Tim isn’t sure of all the fringe thinks it’ll look “cheap and tawdry… I fear this will flop.” Tim doesn’t want her in the elimination position again - Tim, she’s never been in the top, what did he expect? And he could have saved Fade! But the fringe is getting the thumbs up. Kids like fringe, right? I mean, I thought it was kind of Howdy-Doody when I was that age, but it was cowboy cliche back in the 70s, so I can't exactly judge 2014 to 1974, so.
Korina is doing a black, white and red tiered skirt, which Tim is a bit worried about in terms of construction. Korina mentions that in the story, the little girl carries a yellow bird thing to remind her of her dead mom (is this a Disney story?) and Korina has put flashes of yellow in the skirt. Now, I hate red and black alone, but red, black and white is amazing, and little glimpses of yellow is wonderful. What great eye-catching color! Hey, the thing is, kids like basic stuff - mac and cheese over fondu, for instance. All those weird colors are wrong - Kini and Korina have the right idea with the bright basics.
Sandhya has put her shipbuilder progency in a jumpsuit with a nautical theme in cotton candy pink. Yep, WTF indeed. She’s sticking a bunch of nautical shit on the outfit. And it has a little tutu, er, peplum. Tim thinks the crisp tailoring and the flounce are competing. Tim doesn’t get it “but the judges keep loving your work.” Yeah, but I generally agree with Tim over the judges.
Sandhya’s whining because no one respects her. Well, I think she's fine but her work is just bizarre, but whatever.
ON THE RUNWAY:
Korina: Looks cute. I love the yellow panels, and the kid likes it, obviously. I’d wear that if I were a 9-year old.
Sean: Looks like pajamas. Jean-like jacket with peace sign on the back, too matchy, pajama-y. If I were 9, I might wear it to bed.
Amanda: I really like this actually, especially the jacket. I like the dress, but I think the creamsicle/faded yellow isn't the right color. Too much color/clashing print? If you have such clashing prints, something in the colors have to match (I keep wanting to tell Kelly Osborne that every time I see her on Fashion Police). It can't just be toss everything in and hope it goes. And I don’t like the shoes much. Plus, what does this have to do with the story?
Alexander: Meh. These prints are boring and overly juvenile, but okay for the age group. It's pretty basic. The top is too flimsy. And when she turns around, the zipper looks like a crack is going up her ass on the outside. Not cool on a 9-year old. But notice how the clashing print/matching color thing works here, where it doesn't on Amanda's outfit.
Char: Too much fringe for me, but it matches the dress well. And the dress is very cute.
Sandhya: Looks like a circus clown silhouette. Another zipper up the ass (nope, I need to point out here that T&L pointed out those are snaps up the backside of a 9-year old. Oh, oh no). No self-respecting 9-year old would wear this; even in the 70s, 9-year old me was not that fashion clueless. And trust me, I wore corduroys.
Kini: I like the prints together. The dress is gorgeous. And I love the jacket, but it seems pretty ragged in weird contrast to the finished dress. TBH, though, this is the dress my mom wanted me to wear for Christmas services. I'd be itching to toss it off when we got home, toss on Sean's pajamas and open my one Christmas Eve gift over a cup of chocolate.
Emily: Woah, way sophisticated. What the hell is with the veil? Ugh. Is she a 9-year old pretending to be 90?
Amanda and Alexander are safe. I’m actually surprised; I think Amanda should be in the top and Alexander in the bottom, but I guess Alexander's basic boring kept him from cutting remarks this time. I thought Char should be safe but maybe that's cuz I'm still stuck on fringe=cowboy, and I don't think that's what's going on. I haven't translated fringe for girls.
Judging:
So it's Elizabeth Moss, another actress, this one from Mad Men which I stopped watching three seasons ago. And of course the American Doll executive - and now a word from our sponsor!!
Sean: The peace sign is a huge cliché. And it’s missing a leg, so it's not really a peace sign. (Someone points out it's a Mercedes Benz sign, which seems really appropriate in this corporate age, y/y?). Heidi thinks it looks like a McCall’s pattern. The color sux, basically. And it blew all the cool 70's vibes.
Korina: Cute with the flaring skirt spin, the yellow is amazing. Nina loves the graphic element.
Sandhya: Heidi thinks this is for a one-year old. The back is snaps, NOT age appropriate. Sandhya “begs to differ.” Ugh, of course she does. Listen up, lady! Nina thinks it’s screaming telletubbies. Zac thinks she looks like a circus flamingo. Sandhya refuses to take the feedback. Okay, that's usually a kiss of death.
Kini: Heidi loves it; thinks it’s Chanel for kids. The dress is gorgeous. Very New York. Nina thinks it’s perfection.
Char: Ms. Moss thinks it’s very cute. Nina thinks it’s very updated - all kids love fringe. Heidi thinks the fringe is well cut. Very Native American signifier but not cliche, and updated well.
Emily: Heidi’s giving her the look. The color is drab and the silhouette is frumpy. Nina thinks there is no joy here for a child. The colors are too dark and she looks sad. Zac: “Oy voy.” Too much in the Russian Shetl. Rebecca is Zac’s fave - he knows the story in incredible detail. The veil is a bit much. The kid is ready to tear it off actually. Hey, I would be too and I'm somewhat *cough* older.
So, now we go up close with the outfits.
In the Top: Char, fringe is great, The dress is cute, good print, easy and happy and wearable. Appropriate for a little girl.
Korina: Fabulous and the yellow is cute. Great movement, styling is good.
Kini: Everyone just loves this. Very American girl. The back is gorgeous. All the pleats in the coat. Another fast sew (when did fast sewing set the standard? When they stopped giving anyone enough time to produce anything decent?).
Char: All about the fringe! Oh, the dress is cool too.
Bottom:
Sean: Tim says they had a long discussion about the 70s. But the outfit's STILL boring. Even the doll’s dress is much better - he should have checked that out.
Emily: There are parts that are good - but for a child, the skirt is just wrong, esp. color. The sweater’s nice, but it’s all grown-up and not very modern.
Sandhy: The kid model thinks the tutu thing ruins it completely. Nina thinks it looks like a onesie. Elizabeth thinks it’s better than Emily’s, Heidi disagrees. See, this is the problem with actresses. Everyone knows they're all crazy.
So, I’m betting on Kini, as soon as they said, "It's so American Girl!!" and we all know the sponsors dictate this show nowadays. I’d say Emily should be out given the track record, but I think Sandhya deserves it for this particular outfit. It really is ridiculous on pretty much every level, and Sandhya just won’t take any suggestions. But Emily’s been so far behind Sandhya in the season’s history, so was betting Emily to going home. Both are dreadful for different reasons, I'm fine with either.
Kini wins! No surprise there.
Sandhya or Emily? ... Oh, wow, they actually eliminated Sandhya! Yeah, that was right, but I’m surprised. But glad. I didn’t get her whole thing, not at all, the entire season through. And while I’ve warmed up a bit to Amanda’s looks more towards the end here (maybe I've juts been thoroughly brainwashed), Sandhya remains a WTF designer.
Well, the creepy doll factor aside, I really liked this challenge. And the judges judged right basically, though I liked Korina's yellow pop better - it was surprising, and Kini's just wasn't. So, let’s keep this up!
So, for those left - I know people love Kini but I don’t much. He’s too… production line feel? Is that what I’m trying to say? He feels very paint-by-numbers to me. I’m still not a fan of Amanda, and Emily is too heavy metal/goth. Ugh, who's left? After Fade, I don't really have a horse in the race. I guess I'll see if anyone pulls ahead in any way soon. This week, Korina's out in front. Knowing her, that won't last.
What do you all think?
Okay, now. I’ve posted on my doll phobia, right? Dolls seriouslycreeps me out.
Having said that, this was actually a really good challenge. Take an American doll's story and style, and update it for a 9-year old 21st c. girl. It worked out really well - for most of the contestants, anyway.
The American Girl Doll executive speaks - she is of course also a judge (along with Elizabeth Moss, which I never get why they throw in random actresses). They never sound natural, do they? Here I am, someone who just wants to promote her brand (and as T&L pointed out, AD never said it was going to actually produce the outfit in miniature, which brings up all kinds of "hmmmmm...."). And sounds more wooden than if one of those dolls came to life and entered my nightmares.
Okay, so the model is whatever little girl is carrying whichever doll. The doll’s outfit has to be a departure for the look. The dolls have books. Of course they do.
Kini has the Samantha doll. This is some wealthy New York type from early 1900s?
Amanda has Addy. This is a Civil War African-American character; she and her mother just escaped slavery. That could be interesting. Will it be Canadian fashion? ...I probably shouldn't joke about that.
Alexander: Kit. I have no idea, maybe I'll pick up the story later.
Korina has Josefina, who is a Mexican girl in New Mexican before it was American.
Sandhya has Carolina from the 1800s, the daughter of shipmakers. Oooh, I'm thinking Nantucket; that could be awesome. I'm also looking forward to how Sandhya will turn it into a massive "WTF." Maybe she'll dress the kid up as a whale. At least it will be interesting!
Char has Katya, a Native American “diva”? I think I’m getting this one wrong. She takes care of her blind sister. Hard to get up on your high horse (get it!? Another inappropriate joke!!) when you have to take care of disabled siblings.
Sean has the Julie doll. Again, I don't know but Sean bores me so maybe I'll pick it up later.
Emily has a Rebecca doll - she's from Jewish Russian immigrants. Ooooh, that could be awesome and all Ayn Rand-y!! (See now, I was kidding: like, Ayn Rand for kids? Bwah!! ...and then Emily actually did that, as you'll see.)
The workroom has the dolls when the designers return from Mood. They stare creepily. *shudder* The designers somehow ignore this and design.
It's Tim time!
Sean has Julie from the 70s. Ah, okay. He's doing a jumpsuit in a blech print fabric. Why is it always jumpsuits? Now, if Sean sort of departed from Halston without the sexy boob thing... okay, that would obliterate the look and anything sexy is going to be OMG WRONG for kids, of course. But seriously, look at the doll, the cool colors, he could use polyester bright lime and do a sort of derivative disco thing!
Emily has Rebecca, and she says this is a super traditional character. Oh, come on, I live in a Hassidic neighborhood, you want to talk traditional? She's making a sweater and a skirt. I dunno about the fabric - shouldn't Sean use that shiny shit? Tim loves the knit, okay, I can go along with that. Emily is making a tule-lined skirt. Tim wants to make sure the skirt is not too big for a little girl. I want to know why Sean isn't doing this cool purple-green color contrast (only in more lime/electric purple).
Kini has Samantha, an orphan adopted by her wealthy grandmother - he's making a super fast (of course) plaid dress and a houndstooth jacket. Tim is giving the look - it’s a bit mature. Kind of like Emily dresses up for high tea with a visiting Duchess at the Plaza, IMO. Cool for the story - is it cool for a 9-year old?
Amanda is discussing how Addy just escaped slavery. Tim thinks the textile is risky in a good way. I think she should stick to your basic 19th c. blends and go with a cool style, but what do I know.
Alexander: Don’t make it “Kids-R-Us.” Again, I still have no idea who his character is.
Char has what she calls a horseriding diva. I still don't get the diva part. The character is obsessed with fringe - Tim isn’t sure of all the fringe thinks it’ll look “cheap and tawdry… I fear this will flop.” Tim doesn’t want her in the elimination position again - Tim, she’s never been in the top, what did he expect? And he could have saved Fade! But the fringe is getting the thumbs up. Kids like fringe, right? I mean, I thought it was kind of Howdy-Doody when I was that age, but it was cowboy cliche back in the 70s, so I can't exactly judge 2014 to 1974, so.
Korina is doing a black, white and red tiered skirt, which Tim is a bit worried about in terms of construction. Korina mentions that in the story, the little girl carries a yellow bird thing to remind her of her dead mom (is this a Disney story?) and Korina has put flashes of yellow in the skirt. Now, I hate red and black alone, but red, black and white is amazing, and little glimpses of yellow is wonderful. What great eye-catching color! Hey, the thing is, kids like basic stuff - mac and cheese over fondu, for instance. All those weird colors are wrong - Kini and Korina have the right idea with the bright basics.
Sandhya has put her shipbuilder progency in a jumpsuit with a nautical theme in cotton candy pink. Yep, WTF indeed. She’s sticking a bunch of nautical shit on the outfit. And it has a little tutu, er, peplum. Tim thinks the crisp tailoring and the flounce are competing. Tim doesn’t get it “but the judges keep loving your work.” Yeah, but I generally agree with Tim over the judges.
Sandhya’s whining because no one respects her. Well, I think she's fine but her work is just bizarre, but whatever.
ON THE RUNWAY:
Korina: Looks cute. I love the yellow panels, and the kid likes it, obviously. I’d wear that if I were a 9-year old.
Sean: Looks like pajamas. Jean-like jacket with peace sign on the back, too matchy, pajama-y. If I were 9, I might wear it to bed.
Amanda: I really like this actually, especially the jacket. I like the dress, but I think the creamsicle/faded yellow isn't the right color. Too much color/clashing print? If you have such clashing prints, something in the colors have to match (I keep wanting to tell Kelly Osborne that every time I see her on Fashion Police). It can't just be toss everything in and hope it goes. And I don’t like the shoes much. Plus, what does this have to do with the story?
Alexander: Meh. These prints are boring and overly juvenile, but okay for the age group. It's pretty basic. The top is too flimsy. And when she turns around, the zipper looks like a crack is going up her ass on the outside. Not cool on a 9-year old. But notice how the clashing print/matching color thing works here, where it doesn't on Amanda's outfit.
Char: Too much fringe for me, but it matches the dress well. And the dress is very cute.
Sandhya: Looks like a circus clown silhouette. Another zipper up the ass (nope, I need to point out here that T&L pointed out those are snaps up the backside of a 9-year old. Oh, oh no). No self-respecting 9-year old would wear this; even in the 70s, 9-year old me was not that fashion clueless. And trust me, I wore corduroys.
Kini: I like the prints together. The dress is gorgeous. And I love the jacket, but it seems pretty ragged in weird contrast to the finished dress. TBH, though, this is the dress my mom wanted me to wear for Christmas services. I'd be itching to toss it off when we got home, toss on Sean's pajamas and open my one Christmas Eve gift over a cup of chocolate.
Emily: Woah, way sophisticated. What the hell is with the veil? Ugh. Is she a 9-year old pretending to be 90?
Amanda and Alexander are safe. I’m actually surprised; I think Amanda should be in the top and Alexander in the bottom, but I guess Alexander's basic boring kept him from cutting remarks this time. I thought Char should be safe but maybe that's cuz I'm still stuck on fringe=cowboy, and I don't think that's what's going on. I haven't translated fringe for girls.
Judging:
So it's Elizabeth Moss, another actress, this one from Mad Men which I stopped watching three seasons ago. And of course the American Doll executive - and now a word from our sponsor!!
Sean: The peace sign is a huge cliché. And it’s missing a leg, so it's not really a peace sign. (Someone points out it's a Mercedes Benz sign, which seems really appropriate in this corporate age, y/y?). Heidi thinks it looks like a McCall’s pattern. The color sux, basically. And it blew all the cool 70's vibes.
Korina: Cute with the flaring skirt spin, the yellow is amazing. Nina loves the graphic element.
Sandhya: Heidi thinks this is for a one-year old. The back is snaps, NOT age appropriate. Sandhya “begs to differ.” Ugh, of course she does. Listen up, lady! Nina thinks it’s screaming telletubbies. Zac thinks she looks like a circus flamingo. Sandhya refuses to take the feedback. Okay, that's usually a kiss of death.
Kini: Heidi loves it; thinks it’s Chanel for kids. The dress is gorgeous. Very New York. Nina thinks it’s perfection.
Char: Ms. Moss thinks it’s very cute. Nina thinks it’s very updated - all kids love fringe. Heidi thinks the fringe is well cut. Very Native American signifier but not cliche, and updated well.
Emily: Heidi’s giving her the look. The color is drab and the silhouette is frumpy. Nina thinks there is no joy here for a child. The colors are too dark and she looks sad. Zac: “Oy voy.” Too much in the Russian Shetl. Rebecca is Zac’s fave - he knows the story in incredible detail. The veil is a bit much. The kid is ready to tear it off actually. Hey, I would be too and I'm somewhat *cough* older.
So, now we go up close with the outfits.
In the Top: Char, fringe is great, The dress is cute, good print, easy and happy and wearable. Appropriate for a little girl.
Korina: Fabulous and the yellow is cute. Great movement, styling is good.
Kini: Everyone just loves this. Very American girl. The back is gorgeous. All the pleats in the coat. Another fast sew (when did fast sewing set the standard? When they stopped giving anyone enough time to produce anything decent?).
Char: All about the fringe! Oh, the dress is cool too.
Bottom:
Sean: Tim says they had a long discussion about the 70s. But the outfit's STILL boring. Even the doll’s dress is much better - he should have checked that out.
Emily: There are parts that are good - but for a child, the skirt is just wrong, esp. color. The sweater’s nice, but it’s all grown-up and not very modern.
Sandhy: The kid model thinks the tutu thing ruins it completely. Nina thinks it looks like a onesie. Elizabeth thinks it’s better than Emily’s, Heidi disagrees. See, this is the problem with actresses. Everyone knows they're all crazy.
So, I’m betting on Kini, as soon as they said, "It's so American Girl!!" and we all know the sponsors dictate this show nowadays. I’d say Emily should be out given the track record, but I think Sandhya deserves it for this particular outfit. It really is ridiculous on pretty much every level, and Sandhya just won’t take any suggestions. But Emily’s been so far behind Sandhya in the season’s history, so was betting Emily to going home. Both are dreadful for different reasons, I'm fine with either.
Kini wins! No surprise there.
Sandhya or Emily? ... Oh, wow, they actually eliminated Sandhya! Yeah, that was right, but I’m surprised. But glad. I didn’t get her whole thing, not at all, the entire season through. And while I’ve warmed up a bit to Amanda’s looks more towards the end here (maybe I've juts been thoroughly brainwashed), Sandhya remains a WTF designer.
Well, the creepy doll factor aside, I really liked this challenge. And the judges judged right basically, though I liked Korina's yellow pop better - it was surprising, and Kini's just wasn't. So, let’s keep this up!
So, for those left - I know people love Kini but I don’t much. He’s too… production line feel? Is that what I’m trying to say? He feels very paint-by-numbers to me. I’m still not a fan of Amanda, and Emily is too heavy metal/goth. Ugh, who's left? After Fade, I don't really have a horse in the race. I guess I'll see if anyone pulls ahead in any way soon. This week, Korina's out in front. Knowing her, that won't last.
What do you all think?