Tiki in the City

I confess that I'm a little behind on my blogging for Project Runway. So I'm going to attempt a shorter post today to cover the last two episodes. Try to keep up!

OK, so when we last left our new group of designers, Heidi had said "Auf Weidersehen" to Simone, who was sent home for poor time management and also poor taste. Ricky was allowed to cry another day, and Elisa was allowed to continue saying things like "haiku cut," whatever that means.

The designers meet Heidi and get their first chance at picking models. Which appears to be more of a big deal this season considering how many bad models there are. Ricky's model gets sent home. Heidi mentions that the challenge will be big, as they will be meeting a modern fashion icon.

Fast forward to the workroom, where Tim introduces the icon - Sarah Jessica Parker! Oh, how the gays swoon over her. Chris even cries! Then SJP announces the challenge. They will be designing an outfit to go with the new fall line for SJP's company, Bitten. The catch? Her line emphasizes good fashion at an inexpensive price. So the designers will get next to nothing to spend - $15! Eek! Anywho, they each meet with SJP to propose a design, because she'll be picking 7, and then they all will team up.

SJP picks the 7, and I should mention who picks who as partners in case it becomes gossip fodder later. Marion chooses Steven. Ricky takes Jack, and Victorya takes Kevin. Kit picks Chris, and Rami chooses Jillian. Christian chooses Carmen, and then Sweet P is all, "Aw, shit." Yep, because she is stuck being chosen by Elisa.

They go shop at Mood. (Hey, Mood! Missed you!) Work ensues. Most of the teams work well together. But Steven is concerned that he and Marion have far too much to do. And Sweet P is a little freaked as Elisa marks a garment with...chalk? Oh no - that was SPIT! Ick.

So, garments are constructed, and Tim stops by for a visit. He is particularly concerned that Christian's outfit looks too 1980s. Surprisingly, Elisa and Sweet P have found a happy medium. (I believe they rendezvoused on the Moon.)

Runway! Rami and Kit's design are both rather dull in basic black. Ricky's outfit is a bit more interesting in burgundy with an interesting black belt. They are all in. Our top two designs come from Victorya (a gray baby doll dress with an interesting plaid vest) and Elisa, yes, Elisa (a simple turquoise dress covered with a nice woolly gray cape). They both are interesting, but it's not surprising that Victorya's is chosen, as it seems to fit better with what we've seen of the Bitten line.

The bottom two are Christian, who insisted on this ridiculous leather Members Only-type jacket over a turquoise turleneck dress (it's right out of a Robert Palmer video) and Marion. I enjoyed Marion last week, but his problem is that the gray woolly burlap-looking material he selected is not good for a whole dress. In fact, it starts stretching as the model is standing on the runway during judging, and just looks progressively worse. Anywho, Steven is in, as is Carmen with her histrionic crying. And then Marion is out. Too bad - I was ready to dump the little bitchy sister Christian.

As we open on week 3, Jack informs us that he's HIV-positive and has been for 10 years. This has been pretty widely publicized, but I didn't mention it sooner in case you'd think it was a spoiler. In other news, our opening shot is Jack and Kevin in their underwear in the bathroom getting ready. Ahem. Let's just say that's a sandwich I'd be interested in tasting! Anywho, they all go select models, and then are told to meet Tim for their next challenge.

Tim is waiting with Tiki Barber, former NFL star and now a correspondent for the Today Show. The challenge...design him an outfit to wear on the air. Yes! Menswear! I'm still holding out for the maternity wear challenge some day, but this will be exciting.

As you might expect - mass panic. Most of the designers don't usually do menswear, and they all acknowledge that it takes a lot longer to sew. (You can't do a single seam dress like Elisa had in week 1, y'know.) So they go shopping at Mood in extreme agitation.

Slightly controversial moment in the workroom. Jack asks Tim if it is acceptable to use a garment one is currently wearing as the basis for a pattern. Tim says yes, which I think was probably a gift from the producers who knew how tough this challenge would be for everyone. So Jack uses his own shorts, and spends the rest of the day walking around in a muslin sarong, which is funny. But the controversy stems from the fact that he shares that pattern with Victorya and Carmen. Rami and Sweet P both call foul, but Jack calls it "a collaborative pattern." Kit chalks it up to the overall tension. There is all kinds of chaos and improvisation (such as Chris having Rami try on his jacket).

On day 2, the madness continues. It's at this point that we see Christian is extremely fast with a sewing machine, a skill which is an obvious asset at the moment. Tim comes in after a couple hours and announces that he will be bringing them all their models - a huge relief for them, as they really need measurements and a chance to see how the clothes will drape. In come the models. While Kevin makes a point of telling us how he was focused on his work, because he's so straight, Steven (who really has an annoying creepy voice), makes the most hilarious comment. "I'm finally understanding straight guys when they say, 'Oh my God, I can't believe you have all these chicks standing around in their underwear.' OK, fine. You win, guys. I get it." Ha! I mean, most of the models they get don't toot my horn, but I totally know what he means.

Much later in the day, Tim comes back to do his roving evaluations, but brings along Tiki's wife, Ginny. She really only gives positive feedback, so it's not clear what we'll learn. But Tim does have to tell a couple folks that they are going to have time problems (such as Ricky). Ginny saves the one negative comment for Carmen, saying her look is too casual. Carmen's in a bind, as she doesn't have enough fabric to fix it.

As they make final preparations, Ricky actually asks his model to help sew on buttons. Oh good grief. Also, he's crying. Again.

Runway! As you can imagine, a lot of the designs are less than stellar, and most of them had to scale back their plans. What's really bizarre is the choice of shoes in many cases. Anywho, let's just fast-forward to say that Christian, Jillian, Rami, Steven, Victorya, Chris (I really liked his sleek all-black ensemble, actually) and Elisa are all in.

The top 3 are Jack (who managed to do a well-structured contrasting striped shirt over black pants), Kit (who did a more casual black jacket over a white shirt and camel pants) and Kevin (a lavender shirt and dark pants, with a black vest and a purple tie/pocket square). Kevin is in, as his was good but not the most well-made. Jack wins! And Kit is of course in.

With the bottom 3 we have Sweet P (a very messy pale blue shirt with a lousy collar over black pants and with a striped tie), Ricky (a white shirt with a really ill-fitting dark suit) and Carmen (who did a dark coat over khaki pants, but couldn't even manage a shirt - so she sends her model down the runway with a blue scarf covering his chest instead). Sweet P is in. And then Carmen is chosen to be out as she couldn't even do a shirt. Which is too bad, as Ricky is a ball of annoying tearful emotion.

Next week - teams of two again! Prepare for drama with Ricky and Victorya. The claws, they are out!