Project Runway Season 9 Designers: Part 2

Yesterday, I covered the first batch of Project Runway designers. Here are the rest.

Gunnar Deatherage
Age 21, Louisville, KY
Favorites
Fabrics: Leather, baby! But I use a lot of silk. It takes a certain person to wear a lot of leather, so I don't end up using much of it.
Designers: Rodarte, for sure. How fantastic that two sisters who were completely self-taught, and were the weird kids growing up, grew up to blossom into a fashion revolution
Colors: Black, gray and white. Bland, I know, but if your personality shines, your clothing should just frame it.
Style Icon: As cliche as it is for a gay male to say Lady Gaga, I have to hand it to her. She has opened the door to pure creativity.
Snap Judgment: He is a self-taught designer, which kind of showed in his casting video, but the pieces in his portfolio show otherwise. I don't know why he focused on gowns and prom dresses for his casting because his day wear is a lot more fun. I hope he doesn't think he needs to do gowns for all the challenges because they are a little too Southern Belle. He did show some interesting techniques though so he could bring some really fun ideas to the runway.
Links: Website / Deatherage Facebook / Lookbook.nu / Myspace / Twitter / Facebook
Joshua Christensen
Age 29, Snohomish, WA
Favorites
Fabrics: Cotton shirting.
Designers: Armani, Tom Ford, Christopher Bailey, Kean Etro.
Colors: Red, black, white
Snap Judgment: He does menswear and womenswear, which means he has an excellent grasp of tailoring and structure. He seems rather innovative, yet he keeps his designs very clean. I'll be interested to see if he can create at this level with the time constraints on the show. His menswear is also far superior to the small selection of women's clothing he has online (save the dress pictured here) so I hope he can translate his awesome menswear for Project Runway.
Links: Website / Alastair Grey Facebook / Twitter / Facebook
Joshua McKinley
Age 25, Sunnyside, NY
Favorites
Fabrics: I love neoprene and leather!
Designers: Jean Paul Gaultier, Viktor and Rolf, Gianni Versace.
Colors: Neons, yellow in particular. And monochromatic is always safe and easy to wear and a favorite of my fellow New Yorkers. Remember, black is the new black!
Style Icon: I look to Franco Moschino and Gianni Versace when in need of a boost! But my hair icons would definitely be a Cary Grant and James Dean mix!
Snap Judgment: He works with womenswear by day and menswear by night. His construction and attention to detail will do him well (as long as he works quickly). I love that he designs as his day job then comes home to design some more. He shouldn't be whining about the long days during filming. I'm not really a fan of his style from what I can see so far, but I think he might do pretty well on the show.
Links: Website (Coming Soon) / Facebook
Julie Tierney
Age 35, Grand Junction, CO
Favorites
Fabrics: Wool
Designers: Pierre Cardin, Givenchy, Christian Lacroix, Jean Paul Gaultier, Alexander McQueen, John Galliano, Vivienne Westwood, Valentino, YSL, Balenciaga
Colors: Colors that vibrate next to each other
Style Icon: Madonna
Snap Judgment: She's got this southwest, snow bunny thing going on in her casting video. Her ideas seem really fresh, and she has a distinct style. (She also seems pretty funny). I love her parka made out of a comforter, as did the judges. She doesn't have much that would work as evening wear in her portfolio so that could be a weakness. Otherwise, I expect to see some good things from her.
Links: Website / Facebook
Kimberly Goldson
Age 35, Brooklyn, NY
Favorites
Fabrics: Interlock cotton knit and wool. They are so substantial and generally natural fibers
Designers: Oscar de la Renta, Alice and Olivia, Marchesa, Monique Lhullier, Christian Siriano.
Colors: Magenta, all purples and gold
Style Icon: Sarah Jessica Parker
Snap Judgment: Her clothes are cute. Other than the pants in her casting video, I don't know that I'll remember them later though. She says she likes to work with reclaimed fabric so that challenge may go quite well for her. She has good construction skills for a self-taught designer, and the judges really like a lot of her ideas. I think she get through the beginning weeks fine, but we'll have to wait to see if she can turn up the volume when she needs to make an impression.
Links: Facebook
Laura Kathleen
Age 26, St. Louis, MO
Favorites
Fabrics: Chiffon - PRINTED! And I love slinky jersey.
Designers: Balenciaga, Christopher Bailey, Akris, Cartier, Narciso Rodriguez
Colors: Green, magenta, yellow, black, white, ivory
Style Icon: Mixture of Marilyn Monroe and Sarah Jessica Parker.
Snap Judgment: Her dresses are wearable and somewhat interesting. The dress on the right below has a lot of detail work, fabric layering, play on prints and full, exposed zippers. She says this is the directions she wants to take her feminine, wearable clothes, and I like it. She seems to have some good ideas brewing.
Links: Website / Twitter / Facebook
Olivier Green
Age 22, New York, NY
Favorites
Fabrics: I love fine wool and textured, melange fabric
Designers: Raf Simons, Miuccia Prada, Neil Barrett, Alexander McQueen, Iris van Herpen, Hussein Chalayan.
Colors: Beige, grays
Style Icon: Kate Moss
Snap Judgment: He is yet another menswear designer. His use of shapes and geometry had all the judges coveting his jackets. (The women demanded he make them for females). Seth Aaron looked he was going to see the pieces right at the casting. As I've said with others, if he can translate his menwear into womenswear, he could really create something incredible for the show. I do wish he had at least a little women's clothing for us to see, but I guess we'll have to wait for the premiere.
Links: Facebook
Rafael Cox
Age 27, Atlanta, GA
Favorites
Fabrics: Knits
Designers: Alexander McQueen, Proenza Schouler, Phillip Lim, Alber Elbaz
Colors: Black, black, black
Style Icon: The Olsen twins
Snap Judgment: He uses geometry and architecture in a fun, rock n' roll way. He had a garment made from old jeans that used them playfully where he left pockets in tact and didn't just use the material but the old garment in the design. I think that will play well during some of the reuse or unconventional challenges. While I liked a lot of his designs, I do worry that he is referencing current rock n' roll designers a little too heavily.
Links: Fashion Uncorked / Twitter / Facebook
Serena da Conceicao
Age 31, Brooklyn, NY
Favorites
Fabrics: Silk
Designers: Jean Paul Gaultier, Christian Lacroix, Madeline Vionnet, Alexander McQueen, Issey Miyake, Claire McCardell, Rodarte
Colors: Gray, black, fuchsia
Style Icon: Don't have one
Snap Judgment: She uses a lot of varied techniques, fabrics and treatments. However, it seemed like all together it was too much and without focus. She has the talent and ideas to create some very interesting pieces, but I'm not that impressed yet.
Links: Facebook
Viktor Luna
Age 30, New York, NY
Favorites
Fabrics: Neoprene, spandex, chiffon, tulle, silk georgette and cottons. Also I like to experiment with unconventional materials at times.
Designers: McQueen, Boudicca, Cristobal Balenciaga, Prada, Marchesa, Zero+Maria Cornejo, Comme des Garcons, Thom Browne.
Colors: Orange, black, white, navy blue, bright yellow, gray, purples and many more.
Style Icon: Daphne Guinness and Bjork.
Snap Judgment: Viktor is another early favorite. He creates a lot of his own prints and plays with interesting fabric and structure. He has a lot of ideas, but he still seemed to have a core aesthetic. I love, love, love the butterfly dresses and suits he made from prints he created. I can't wait for the "design your own print challenge" because I expect something amazing from him. He does menswear and womenswear with equal success in his portfolio. I see him doing well.
Links: Blog / Consulting Site / Designer Profile / Youtube / Twitter / Facebook
Who are your favorites now that you've seen the all? And who do you think should be going home quickly? How do you feel about having 20 designers this season?