Project Runway: A Power Trip

November 18, 2016 4:43 AM - Season 15, Episode 10

The designers take a majestic helicopter ride high above New York City for inspiration for their next challenge: to create an editorial, high fashion look for Marie Claire Magazine. Guest judges Anne Fulenwider and Camilla Belle join the panel.

It's "The City As Inspiration Challenge". The designers struggle with the concept of powerful woman + editorial fashion and most fall short.


EW recap including Final Looks

Top Three (although it was hard to tell sometimes): Mah-Jing, Cornelius, Erin. Cornelius wins.
Bottom Three (ditto): Rik, Nathalia, Dexter. Both Nathalia and Dexter go home.

posted by TWinbrook8 (9 comments total)

I had walked away when they explained the challenge, and it was hard to pick up based on how the designers talked about. It's editorial! It's the working woman! It's jumpsuits, it's gowns, it's work wear. I don't think they were wrong to be confused, this one was kind of all over the place.

I did not understand the judges' love for Erin's outfit; I thought it looked clownish.
posted by ThePinkSuperhero at 4:51 AM on November 18, 2016 [2 favorites]

Prairie/nightgown reflective flounce on a tweed dress is a look no woman would wear. But it did bring us the very best moment of this season to date, Nina throwing death shade at Erin: "Is it the best dress up here? No. Is it the best dress from you? Absolutely not. But it's a safe dress." Nothing could be more wounding to that rampant self-involved ego, because it doesn't let her rest in "they just didn't understand my vision". Nina understood it, and she judged it pedestrian. Delicious.
posted by donnagirl at 7:38 AM on November 18, 2016 [9 favorites]

This season, I have agreed with Nina on everything.
posted by Lil Bit of Pepper at 6:09 PM on November 18, 2016 [1 favorite]

Yeah, I didn't get the love for Erin's dress either, anything with a bottom flounce is an automatic loss in my book so I thought she was in the bottom three. I loved the pink tweed material and I liked the fringed neckline and armhole treatment. But despite her recent abysmal offerings, she is still my favorite along with Laurence. I think she should've stayed with her coat or at least worked that scalloped front into something more tailored. That was at least as innovative as Cornelius's dress. I am sad she's getting the Gretchen edit because I loathed her aesthetic and I really like Erin's.

Laurence started out great, the bodice with the leather skyline at the waist was inspired but then she put that poof skirt underneath and although the proportions were okay and it looked good enough, the detail at the waist was completely lost.

It was a confusing concept for a challenge and I thought for sure Rik and Roberi would be in the bottom for designing foofy chiffon outfits. Nathalia was past due for elimination. The girl can't construct a garment to save her life. That jumpsuit was embarrassing.
posted by TWinbrook8 at 11:25 PM on November 18, 2016

Erin was in the top three but almost everything they had to say about her dress was negative, it was weird. I really hope she doesn't win, to be honest. The most consistent designer so far to me is Laurence. Rik and Roberi have their moments as well but Laurence and Mah-Jing are really talented. Erin's partner-in-crime (Dexter) is gone and so now has no one to keep telling her how amazing her designs are, even when they aren't. Cornelius smartened up and listened to Tim this week, and it paid off. I don't think he has the talent to win this but you never know, maybe.

I was surprised but also happy about the double elimination.
posted by the webmistress at 7:41 AM on November 19, 2016 [4 favorites]

I'm delighted Cornelius won this week. I've not liked much he's done up to now (apart from last week's suit), but that dress was wonderful, smart and sassy, and he got the styling just right too. He started the season badly, got worse and now seems to be getting better. At least for this week.

I also don't get the Erin love from the judges. That dress was hideous. Who would wear that? It reminded me of those awful 1970s Laura Ashley dresses, but minus the ric-rac braid and lace trim.

I thought Mah-Jing did a great job with his tweed/denim dress. The grid pattern of the tweed referenced the view of Manhattan from the sky, and the denim was the water (although I know he said his inspiration was shipping containers, but the map grid is how it struck me). But the judges were right that the bustline was too high.

Rik's dress was weird, and I didn't see anything of the Statue of Liberty in it.

The two aufs this week were deserved. There is some irony, though, in the judges criticism of Dexter for repeating something we've already seen when Erin and Laurence have done that week in, week out (albeit Laurence does it with great skill).
posted by essexjan at 11:59 AM on November 19, 2016 [1 favorite]

Prairie nightgown is EXACTLY what I said.
posted by bq at 3:31 PM on November 19, 2016

I got Dexter's point that other people have their "aesthetic" but I think he seriously screwed up by basically leaving the model to cover her own bits. Her underwear choices contributed to the look; if she had made different choices, like say if she had shown up in black granny panties and a nursing bra the look would have been different; therefore that makes her a contributor to the look. He definitely deserves to go home for that. He should have been finishing his dress instead of messing with those weird ears. A dress with the wearer's private parts completely visible can't be considered finished.
posted by bleep at 12:33 AM on November 20, 2016 [2 favorites]

I just loved Mah-Jing's dress and would have picked that for the win. But I was fine with Cornelius's win. I would have put Roberi in the top over Erin. (I just did not get that dress at all.)
posted by SisterHavana at 3:21 PM on November 20, 2016