Project Runway S7 Ep5: Cover Girl

The designers got to dress Heidi last night. (My first thought was, "Make sure her boobs look good. She's obsessed with boobs.") The winner would get their dress on Heidi on the April cover of Marie Claire. Since this was the largest award in the history of Project Runway, the winning designer did not get immunity (begin the "anyone could go now" portion of the show). The editor of Marie Claire was the guest judge, and she was delightfully mean. I like her.

The six designer than sewed their way to safety were actually all quite good this week. Amy went against the advice of Marie Claire editor, Joanna Coles, and made a lovely print dress. It was a bold move and a very pretty one. Seth Aaron made the best look I've seen from him yet. The silver suit was nicely tailored and interesting. It made his punk styling look more like fashion and less like upscale Hot Topic. Jesse produced a unique basket weave dress. He impressed me with such construction on that time schedule. I liked the color a lot, but given the challenge, a brighter color could have landed him in the top three.
Jay made a lovely flowing look. I like the shoulder detail, but, again, a brighter color would have served him better. Johnathan's pale romper was my least favorite of the passing looks. The pale color didn't stand out. It was just meh. At first, I wished Maya's had made it in the top three. Her look had an airy feel, perfect for spring. I love the collar. But with a closer look, I can see that it didn't do anything for the model's boobs, and Heidi won't stand for such offense to her bosoms.
Instead of Maya, Jay, Amy, or Jesse, Emilio snagged a top three spot. I think the lacing detail was kind of pretty, but it reminded me too much of the laces they put on everything when I was in high school. Actually, Michael Kors called the whole very juniors. He asked Emilio to take away the straps for a better look. He earned major bonus points with the judges by producing scissors and cutting off the offending pieces. They liked his flexibility and the fact that he carried scissors everywhere.
Ben made his first appearance in the top three (and before the judges period). I almost though the judges would choose his dress to win. I would love to own this dress. I love the colors, and Ben's construction is always perfect. I do think the colors are what lost him the cover, since it is for spring. (Although, I like bold colors for spring).
Anthony won! I was pretty exciting for him. His personality has grown on me, and I actually found myself routing for him. His dress was perfect for the challenge. He made a lot of comments about not making this one for the judges and doing something he liked. I wonder if he's been holding back to try and please some strange idea he has of the judges. I hope we see more like this from him. The shoulder detail would even be interesting if they did a super close crop on the cover. It deserved the win.
Mila is a darling of the judges, but that didn't save her from the bottom three this week. Michael Kors had some pretty harsh words for her--"Lets' be honest. That peach comes off like an ace bandage." The judges also called it an odd bra top when they thought about cropping it at the waist. Mila looked rather surprised, but made it through to the next round.
Janeane predicted early that she would be in the bottom two, and she was right. Her dress was bridal looking and far to sweet/costume-y for Heidi to ever be seen in. The judges ripped it apart. They also said it had too much going on with the shoulders and seaming for words to look good across it. Janeane claimed she had been inspired by the ocean, but Coles said her sea looked polluted at best.
Anna, however, was sent home. She was my top pick for at least the bottom three. She didn't have enough range, and while she could design for JC Penny, I would probably fall asleep during her fashion show. The judges did praise her construction, but wondered why anyone would make that for Heidi. I'm pretty sure Anna only makes things she wears, and she's not an interesting dresser. Farewell, Anna. Try to be daring in the future because you know how to make clothes, which is a huge step ahead of me.
Next week the designers will have children for clients. These wacky challenges can go any way so it's hard to predict who will snap under the pressure of little princesses squealing and make something awful. I don't expect to see much more of Janeane. Even though the judges like him, I don't care for Emilio. I forgot Jonathan existed. Jesse worries me sometimes and impresses me other times. My top picks are still Amy, Maya and Jay. I want Anthony to do well too, but we'll have to see how that goes. Who do you think will be in the top and who are you getting ready to say goodbye to?