Your final 3 for Bryant Park

Last week, we threw down our Season 5 predictions on who the final three designers would be. We went with Stella, Terri and Joe.

Our dear readers rode with me for two of three, which is quite a nice show of support for my limited knowledge. After last week's episode, perhaps our readers will be 100 percent correct while I wallow in 67 percent accuracy. Sure that's great if I'm on a professional baseball team, but that's not even a passing grade at the high school I attended.

Readers chose Korto, Terri and Joe. Below are the final poll results.

151 - Korto Momolu
116 - Terri Stevens
96 - Joe Faris
84 - Kenley Collins
48 - Leanne Marshall
30 - Suede
28 - Stella Zotis
27 - Jerell Scott
9 - Keith Bryce
6 - Blayne Walsh

Guess the final 3

Let's start with some basic math:

Project Runway's show at Fashion Week at Bryant Park is Sept. 12 at 9 a.m.

Today is Aug. 25.

That leaves us with 10 contestants and three more episodes before Fashion Week.

Barring some crazy double switches, rule changes or whackings at an Al Capone pace, we're going to be left with some interesting decoys on Sept. 12 (unless Bravo decides to just say "Screw it" and gives away a week or two worth of suspense by only having one or two decoys).

So here we go with the second annual "Guess the Final 3" contest. We made our predictions and listed them below. It's now your turn. Use the poll in the upper right area of this blog and vote for the final three.

Stella Zotis

She is just whacky and wild enough to make it through to the final.



Terri Stevens

Solid mixed with funky and creative makes for a legitimate spot in the final three.



Joe Faris

A bit of a wild card here, but after careful consideration, he edged out Korto Momolu and Kenley Collins for the final spot on my list.


I may be 100 percent wrong on these predictions (likely, since I was 100 percent right last season), but that's the fun of it all. Let's get your thoughts on the matter at hand.

- La Monica

5/6 THE TRANNY DIARIES

Talk about a niche market. Tonight’s challenge? Create a new look for a drag queen. Hearty boy and owner of perhaps our favorite guffaw in the universe, Chris March (from Season Four), presented the mission -- you must remember the wonderful laugh and in the finale, his human hair adorned clothes – yes? In Viking garb complete with sci-fi sequin bosoms and horns, well, our fellow Chris was quite a sight.

The “models,” too, were something else with names like Hedda Lettuce, Farrah Moans, Sweetie, LeMay, Miss Understood and Annida Greenkard but far more bizarre than how they looked in drag, was seeing them sans costumes. Yeesh, they aren’t the prettiest gals, and without the glitz they’re regular, in some cases, nebbishy, guys.

Winner Joe got it right on the money when he decided to design a Halloween costume – like he would for his daughters -- though he went totally Pepto-Bismol pink on his model Varla Jean. His gal was going for an Ann-Margret meets Love Boat vibe and his cute sequined jumpsuit with belt that guest judge RuPaul said, um, “hid the candy,” was really charming and fit the persona. “It was a match made in heaven,” said RuPaul. Look, sometimes fashion must entertain, and this well-fitting bon bon did it.

As for Daniel, who was aufed for his dullard, normal, bad dress shop Flamenco style gown, well, we haven’t loved his attitude one bit during the show – hence the moniker Prima-Daniel – but we felt sorry for him in this particular challenge. He withers when criticized and had he been a little open to suggestion – well, it could have been Keith who got the axe for his tangled, sloppy Tina Turner wannabe rag that once again featured patches and strips. Michael Kors called it a “sad chicken.” Keith weeps uncontrollably when Daniel is booted, but we had to wonder if perhaps these were tears of joy, because he was saved for another day. Daniel is probably a sweet guy; hope he lightens up in real life.

We think Jerell’s sequin dress for LeMay with its fab pop-up lizard collar was clever, but the judges said it was a “yawn.” They kvelled over Terri’s Gene Simmons-meets-Diana Ross Kabuki job – for us, not so great. Korto really captured fire for Sweetie in her boom-laka-laka red confection – there was a real Divine quality there, and Stella’s Vivienne Westwood-dominatrix number was great.

The gang is getting sickalicious of Blayne’s overused suffix, and he was lucky to be spared tonight for his malfunctioning ensemble which Tim said looked like a “pterodactyl out of gay Jurassic park.”

It’s nice that these dresses will be auctioned off for charity by Broadway Cares and the proceeds will go to fight AIDS, but we’re wondering who’s buying.

Here’s the question of the night posed by Bravo. Who would you rather see in drag?
Michael Kors (he got 46% of the votes) or Tim Gunn (54%). We’re absolutely dying to know what you think. Let us know.

– Anne Bratskeir

Season 5/Episode 3 NEW YORK CITY IS THE MUSE

Who is in and who is out?

The judges, and if you beg to differ, please do, got it wrong on both counts.

Not the most original of challenges: create a look of your choice inspired by New York for a night out on the town. Er, anyone ever heard of Donna Karan, who each season pays homage to the concrete, glass, steel, graffiti and electricity of New York?

Comedian Sandra Bernhard, um, funny yes, fashionista, questionable, sat in as guest judge. So, okay the winner, Kenley for what Michael Kors described as an 80’s, Joan Collins, power bitch dress. The Nina thought it was “adorable.” But it was a weird little pouf – part fabric, part tulle. Fun – one night on the town only -- then back to the dress-up box. Bernhard pointed out, not many girls could wear it.

What they could wear was Leanne’s architectural little skirt inspired by the lines in a metal planter paired with an easy top. “I would wear that in a heartbeat,” Heidi said.

But Leanne isn’t a colorful character . . . Kenley whose style, she says, evokes modern day calendar girls, is. High marks went to Terri for her backless dress-over-pants ensemble inspired by walls of posters and graffiti. Bernhard called it “fierce, sexy and in control." It was spicy but also evoked a Baby Phat/Kimora Lee Simmons vibe.

Out is waify Emily for her dress inspired by lights. Granted the ruffled neon appliqué was fairly bad, though the simple black dress was okay. Far, far worse was Keith’s scrappy (and we mean scraps) shmata that Kors said, “literally looked like toilet paper caught in a windstorm.” C’mon guys, it was a no-brainer. But again, Keith is more fun than Emily.

Show highlights

• The kids in ponchos and rain boots following Tim like a line of duckies onto a double-decker bus to view the city. Even jaded New Yorkers Stella and Suede dig it. Suede’s third person problem continues.

• Blayne’s “Timlicious,” greeting. His quest for a tanning salon in Times Square. And finally, him teaching Tim a new phrase, “Holla at your boy.” Intrigued and amused, Tim bids adieu to the group in a new way. “Make it work. Carry on. Holla’ at your boy.”

Other notes


• Blayne’s dress is clowny
• Jerell’s sort of Rami-ish (remember Rami?)
• Joe’s stunning
• Stella’s total and complete Stella.

In the category of too much information: Stella in the morning, Jerell in a sleep mask.

– Anne Bratskeir

Photos from BravoTV.com/runway

Season 5/Episode 2 IT AIN'T EASY BEING GREEN

The challenge: use environmentally responsible textiles to create cocktail dresses for clients who are…the models. The bummer: The models, armed with $75, shop for fabric and trim and have absolutely no idea what the heck they’re doing.

A bunch bought this vile, glossy brown organic satin, which was the undoing of one contestant. Poor, sweet Wesley got the boot for his overwrought, ill fitting number that Michael Kors said looked like 27 hands had been all over it. Leanne’s loopy, too-many-tricks mini was second to worst. So sad… speaking of which…the water works were on tonight with Korto’s near breakdown when her darty dress was criticized, to Leanne’s girlish sobs, when her model didn’t back her up, saying that the dress she created was not really what she wanted.

Onward to happier fashions and moments: Kenley’s lean, ladylike cocktail number in champagne was elegant, but Suede’s girlish tulle skirted frock of ivory satin and red strips won. Guest judge Natalie Portman, who is an environmental activist and a designer for vegan shoe line Te Casan (pricey but very stylish) as well as a fashionista (and did we mention, a Long Island girl), loved, loved Suede’s confection. Beneath the blue Mohawk and the overuse of the third person, “Suede is a bisexual Sagittarius…. Suede rocks…” well, we sorta’ like him, and thought the dress was really cute.

Stella redeemed herself tonight imbuing her rocker chic attitude into an asymmetrical shoulder silky mini. Her model loved it. But, um, Long Islanders, was it us? Or were the contestants making fun of our famous accents? We forgive, because Stella of Astoria speaking the Queen’s English is sort of hard on the ear as in “letha” this, “letha” that (yes, that would be leather). But Blayne really went to town…you don’t hear us speaking Leprechaun, do you Blayne? Stella was a good sport about the ribbing.

Truth told, we’re kind of liking Blayne too – what a character – but we must question his judgment. Is it wise to call Heidi Darth Vader? As he put it “all shiny on the outside, but Darthlicious inside.” Hats off to him, Terri, Daniel, Joe and Emily for the good work, while we’re thinking Jennifer did shmata and Jerrell did hoochie mama.

– Anne Bratskeir

(Photos from BravoTV.com/runway)

Episode 5/1: Gristede's and tablecloths

It’s baaack.

The first episode of Project Runway had it all – the pretty, the weird, the nerdy, the Goth, the over-inflated ego… you name it. To be honest, we found ourselves missing our curly-haired girl, Jillian Lewis, from Selden, and the entire cast of Season 4, but we know, we know, we’ve got to move on.

The challenge: create a look from items purchased at a grocery store with a budget of $75. The problem: many of the contestants bought tablecloths . . . not risky enough for Tim or the judges, who included Season One contestant Austin Scarlett who came off frothier than a double latte, but in the end was quite a good judge.

In terms of geography, Stella, billed as the rocker chick, from Astoria, is our girl. But she came close to being the first designer to go. She feared if she were, she would be known, and we quote, as “the biggest jackass of the nation.” Stella chose cheap trash bags to do her version of something leather. It didn’t work. For a while we thought she was just going to quit, but she pulled through with a pretty unimpressive trash bag dress that evoked, well, a trash bag. Heidi said it was “butt ugly.”

Jerry of Montana took the bullet and unfortunately took the phrase, “dressed to kill,” literally in an outfit of shower curtain and rubber gloves that prompted Michael Kors to say it looked like something out of “a slasher movie.” Bye, bye fella.

Who do we love… already? Kelli, whose tattooed arms conjure last season’s Sweet P, and whose clever vacuum cleaner, coffee filter, pushpins dress was the winner. Nerdy Leanne, who is way out of her element but created cuteness with candy -- Daniel who molded royal blue plastic cups into a bombshell dress -- Joe whose pot holder-pasta dress was adorable -- Terri for her mop top cropped sweater -- Jerell for his paper umbrella embellishment -- Korto for using lettuce and tomatoes as a necklace, and Emily for her spunk and bouncy ball collar.

Christian Siriano wannabe? Yeesh, the overly tanned Blayne, who is trying to trademark his “girlishess” exclamation a la Siriano’s “fierce.” Forget it. His weird bustier type thing of jump rope, drawer linens and windshield wipers prompted Kors to comment that his model looked like she had “an old diaper pushed in between her legs.”

And although we’re withholding judgment because his work is good, Keith gets suck up award of the night for telling Heidi that he always designs with her in mind. Heidi, credit to her, doesn’t really buy that jive, and on another note, is wearing micro minis and looks better than ever.

– Anne Bratskeir