Jillian Lewis' thoughts on Season 5 at Bryant Park

We cornered (stalked?) Jillian Lewis after the "Project Runway" fashion show at Fashion Week on Friday and got her thoughts on what she just saw. We also asked for an update on her designs. Watch the video below.

Christian Siriano Spring 2009 collection

Christian Siriano has been busy since winning season 4 of "Project Runway." He's designing costumes for a movie, "Eloise in Paris," has been on "Ugly Betty" and other TV shows, will be at the Emmy Awards next week, is working on a maternity line, has a book coming out, and of course, he's been finalizing his Spring 2009 collection, which he showed at Fashion Week Thursday night. "I'm doing so many projects! It's crazy," he said.

We caught the show and had some face time with both Siriano and "Runway" mentor Tim Gunn, who raved about the designer. (See photos here)

And what's Siriano's take on this season of "Runway"? He likes the girls, wishes them the best at Bryant Park and is "ready for fabulousness."



Click here for "Project Runway" Season 5 Fashion Week videos

Jillian Lewis designs LIer's prom dress

For the third straight year, Newsday ran its "Project Prom" feature, where teenage girls enter to win a prom dress and all the necessary accoutrements. The winner chooses a few dresses and readers get to choose which one she'll wear.

This year, Newsday scored a coup and got Jillian Lewis to design three dresses for our winner, Amanda DeAngelis of Center Moriches.

Below, you'll find the video of their first brainstorming session, along with links to the story and the poll so you can help choose Amanda's dress.

'Project Runway' moves to Lifetime

from the AP . . .

The Peabody Award-winning “Project Runway” is walking to Lifetime, and NBC Universal Co. responded Monday by suing the hit reality show’s makers to keep the series on its Bravo network.

Lifetime announced that it had reached a reported $150 million deal with the Weinstein Co. to televise five seasons of “Project Runway” beginning in November. The show just completed its fourth season on Bravo last month, drawing nearly 5.2 million viewers to its finale.

NBC Universal complained that Weinstein violated an agreement to give Bravo the right of first refusal to the series after the initial five-season run concluded.

The company, in court papers, said Weinstein went elsewhere with “Project Runway” because NBC Universal balked at its attempt to bundle the series with other Weinstein properties that the company wasn’t interested in.

The Weinstein Co. said that there was no right of first refusal in the contract. NBC Universal was offered the deal and was outbid, said Weinstein Co. lawyer David Boies.

“Now they’re just trying to distract attention from the fact that they lost this program,” Boies said. “They’re embarrassed and looking for somebody else to blame.”

The fashion series with Heidi Klum is Bravo’s top-rated program. Production is under way on the fifth season, which will air on Bravo before the Lifetime deal kicks in.

Lifetime President Andrea Wong said she wouldn’t comment on the dispute between the Weinstein and NBC. She’s confident the network has a legal, binding deal for the series.

“We moved quickly and jumped at the opportunity to get this show,” Wong said. “We all love the show here.”

“Project Runway” is a hit with young viewers and that makes it particularly valuable to Lifetime, which is moving away from a once dowdy image.

Lifetime did agree to acquire TV rights to other Weinstein properties as part of the deal to get “Project Runway,” Wong said. They include the movies “The Nanny Diaries” and “The Great Debaters.”

It Ain't Over....

Just when we thought that Project Runway was done for the season -- finis, kaput -- we find out that there was one last Bravo on-line challenge, called “Sew Not Over,” where fans browsed through 12 of the 15 designer collections (Victorya, Sweet P and Simone sat it out) and chose their fave. And guess who won it? None other than Jillian Lewis, our own girl from Selden, who not only received the popular vote, but got a cool $10,000 as well. We caught up with Jillian who said that though not winning the whole shebang hurt, this “feels really great. And the $10,000 is pretty nice too.” Uh, yeah. – Anne Bratskeir

VIDEO: Christian Siriano wins 'Project Runway'

What's the first thing Christian said he'd buy with his $100,000 prize for winning 'Project Runway?' If you watched the episode where Tim Gunn visits the finalists homes, you'll realize why he naturally said -- a bed!

Watch video from the screening party and hear Christian's first thoughts after taking the top prize.

VIDEO: Scenes for the 'Project Runway' finale party

We got early access to the 'Project Runway' designers for a little Q&A before the finale screening. Watch the video below:

Q & A With Christian Siriano, The Big Winner

Newsday gets some private time with the Project Runway winner.

AB: You’re always so confident and cocky but in that last episode, you seemed kind of nervous. Were you?
CS: I was nervous. I worked so hard, and once I saw Rami and Jillian’s work, well, I got kind of scared. Their work was so good.

AB: Did you have an inkling that you were going to win?
CS: Maybe the last few minutes. I really didn’t get any criticism, and then there was what Victoria Beckham said (she loved it), and I was thinking, am I going to win?

AB: What did winning mean to you?
CS: If I didn’t win, what would I do? I have no money, no job, zero. I didn’t plan for not winning. I needed it more than I wanted it.

AB: Did you have doubts about your collection?
CS: I was so exhausted and tired and I had many problems backstage. I wasn’t as confident as I am normally, and I started to worry that the clothes were too outlandish.

AB: So when Heidi said your name on that final runway….
CS: When she said Christian, I just felt it, and knew it at that moment. And when she said I won, I really thought about Rami. It was weird. I didn’t want to be crazy like and rub it in his face. He worked so hard. Normally, I’m sassy and I’m a diva. I wish there was a second place.

AB: What’s next for you?
CS: Well I am going to take a vacay. I’m going to LA this next weekend, and I’m going to have some fun and enjoy the weather. I want to go to Africa and South Africa to get some inspiration. I’ve traveled all through Europe, but I’ve never been there. And I’m going to show in the tents at Bryant Park next season. There will be more wearable simple things, but it’s going to be crazy too, so many couture gowns.

AB: Um, are you sick of using the word fierce yet, and do people say it to you?
CS: It’s crazy. People everywhere say it to me. I really don’t say it that much when I’m just talking.

AB: You were a big personality on the show, and some people thought you were a little annoying. What do you have to say on that?
CS: The thing is, that no offense, a lot of the other designers were so serious. They didn’t show a lot of personality and I’m sassy and fun. When I was making comments, I wasn’t being nasty but funny and cute. And what they didn’t show is that I helped a lot of the other designers with their work.

AB: Do you think you were in good company with the final three?
CS: Of course, I respect the other designers but by day two, I said it was me, Rami and Jillian, and then at the museum challenge they asked us who should go to fashion week and I said them. I thought their final collections were amazing. His had so much cohesion. Hers was technically flawless.

AB: And yours?
CS: I was out to win, so every look was a look.

AB: Off the subject, one last thing. Our friend Jillian told me that you and she had quite a laugh over Chris March’ use of human hair on his garments. True?
CS: Oh my God, I called his collection ‘Tranny Velvet Nation.’ Jillian pretended to call the Animal Rights league about the collection. We had the best time and laughed so hard that we nearly peed on the floor. – Anne Bratskeir

Q & A With Tim Gunn

TIM CALLS IT LIKES HE SEES IT

Newsday got some one-on-one time with Tim Gunn, Project Runway mother hen and mentor. Here he lets us in on some inside info from behind the scenes.

AB: So Tim, what were your thoughts going into the finals?
TG: I will tell you, I had some concerns about Rami having to do with textile choices and color choices. I loved the silhouettes and proportions but I felt the textiles and colors were limiting and a little dour and that translates as old.

AB: Did you have a heads up on what the judges are thinking in terms of the winner?
TG: I never knew where the judges would fall out this season. For all the designers, I felt the point off view was so strong and the level of work so impeccable. I was not concerned about Jillian. I thought she could win. I thought Christian and Jillian were neck and neck and I was pretty sure about it.

AB: So it wasn’t like Christian was a shoe-in for you?
TG: Oh, no. Did you know at first I didn’t even want him on? I turned to the producers and said, ‘Why are we seeing this kid?’” But they saw something in him. And then I swooned after looking at his work.

AB: Everybody knows the Tim Gunn lines, but we noticed you started using another word on the show. Do you know what we’re talking about?
TG: Ha, fierce. I only use it with him. And more frequently I’m asking him a question, ‘How fierce is it?’

AB: Do you think Victoria Beckham being guest judge had something to do with the final outcome?
TG: Victoria Beckham tipped the scale. Christian’s sensibilities were hers. She said, ‘I would wear anyone of those looks.’ I find that extremely limiting and not useful.

AB: Was Christian as annoying as he seemed?
TG: He’s polarizing. People love him but some people can’t abide him. I alternated between wanting to give him a big hug and a big smack.

AB: When you saw Chris March’ final collection with the human hair, you said you had to stifle your gag reflex.
TG: I still get it when I think about that collection. I couldn’t fathom it. I told him, ‘this is just such a distraction. Why would you do this to potentially derail yourself? Deep down in his core, he’s a costume designer.

AB: So, do you still think our Long Island girl Jillian is going to go far?
TG: I think she has an incredibly bright future ahead of herself. Do I think she has some maturing to do? Of course, but I have the most unbridled confidence in her.

-- Anne Bratskeir

Q & A With Nina Garcia

Some call her Meana Garcia because they think she’s such a tough judge on Project Runway, but not us. We think Elle Magazine’s Nina Garcia is a cross between sugar and spice with the added benny of being a major fashion plate – she is such a glamster. So we simply call her “The Nina,” for being the fashion force and fair-minded judge that she is on Runway. Here’s what really went down in the final judgment.

AB: So Nina, was choosing Christian as the winner difficult for the judges?
NG: No, it was clear. I don’t know if that’s politically correct to say, but it really boiled down to Rami and Christian and we think that Christian had a stronger collection in the end.

AB: Did Victoria Beckham weigh heavy in your decision and help Christian?
NG: At that point, he didn’t know Victoria was going to be a judge. Would she be able to wear those clothes? Yes. She felt strongly that he was a good winner.

AB: You sort have had a love-hate with Rami. What’s up?
NG: He’s an amazing designer. I do like his clothes very much. I appreciate that he is very sophisticated. But I’ve struggled all through the season with Rami giving me something else, more than a draped dress, which, he was able to deliver.

AB: So you do like his work?
NG: I would die to wear that polka dot dress in his final collection. If I saw it hanging on a rack in a store I would buy it. I would love to wear it and shoot it. He’s very sophisticated and won’t have a problem having a good clientele.

AB: What do you think of Jillian’s talent?
NG: She’s a great designer. Jillian is extremely professional, meticulous, fantastic. She needs to find her voice and once she does it will be amazing.

AB: Some people said that Christian was a little annoying. Did you ever get to see him that way?
NG: We don’t get to enjoy them on such a personal basis but from seeing him and the interaction with the other cast members, he’s just adorable, and a little bit of a rebel. Christian showed fearlessness. He has a lot of ideas and he’s got that creative energy. At Crhistian’s age, that’s very important. When you’re that sure of yourself, you need that kind of energy and talent.

– Anne Bratskeir

Christian Siriano wins Project Runway

He’d be the first to tell you that he’s “sew faaabulous.” And the Project Runway judges agree. Pint-sized Christian Siriano, 22, of Annapolis, Md., and Bird of Paradise hairdo fame, who is equal parts peacock, personality and talent, won the Bravo TV hit show, beating Rami Kashou and our hometown gal Jillian Lewis.

“If I didn’t win, what would I do?” Christian said.

More importantl, what would we do if "fierce" didn't return to our vocabulary. Siriano turned the word into a household adjective.

“I didn’t plan for that. I have no money, no job, and I needed it more than I wanted it.”

Christian, the youngest winner in the show's four seasons, put out a stunning final collection presented during Fashion Week at Bryant Park in February. Signature stylings included piles of ruffles, sculptured jackets, and the piece de resistance . . . a dress of feathers.

“I was out to win, so every look was a look,” said Siriano emphatically. He plans on showing his own label, Christian V. Siriano, during Fashion Week at Bryant Park next season.

Judges Michael Kors and Nina Garcia, were joined by guest judge Victoria Beckham, aka Posh Spice, who thought Siriano’s collection was best. “It made me smile, and it takes a lot to make me smile,” the famously stone-faced Beckham told Siriano.

It was Beckham who “tipped the scale,” in Christian’s favor, according to design mentor Tim Gunn. “I thought Christian and Jillian were neck and neck. Then Victoria said, ‘That collection is me.’”

Even if preaching to the choir helped him win it, Gunn says the kid’s got talent. “He’s the only fashion prodigy I’ve ever encountered.”

Garcia, Elle Magazine’s fashion director, said, “The choice was clear. Christian’s fierce and fearless. He’s got that creative energy and that’s very important especially at his age.”

Christians scores $100,000 seed money, a 2008 Saturn Astra (red -- he deemed it “fierce,”), a spread in Elle Magazine and a chance to sell his line on bluefly.com.

Jillian, who seemed slightly shell-shocked when she was “aufed” first by show host Heidi Klum, said, “I just felt really bad for my boyfriend and my family who were really hoping and praying for so long.” But she adds that the experience “launched my career and allowed people to be aware that I’m a designer with talent and vision.”

At the end, as Kashou and Siriano waited for final judgment, tears welled up in Siriano’s eyes and his lip trembled. But his trademark bravado shortly returned. Upon exiting the runway a winner, he imperiously waved a hand at Posh Spice and said, simply, “We’ll be in touch.”

- Anne Bratskeir

Watch their Fashion Week collections
• Christian Siriano
• Rami Kashou
• Jillian Lewis

The final poll results

Just a few hours away from the airing of the Season 4 finale and we can feel your excitement.

As does Jillian, who won our final reader poll of Season 4. Here are the final results:

53% Jillian Lewis (374 total votes)
39% Christian Siriano 272
6% Rami Kashou (48)

Regis, Kelly and . . . ?

Whoever is revealed as the winner of Season 4 of "Project Runway" on Wednesday night gets a ton of swag, no doubt.

And they also get to sit next to Regis Philbin and Kelly Ripa on Thursday morning's "Live with Regis and Kelly" on ABC at 9 a.m. EDT.

Set your DVRs and TiVos, people. As much as we're rooting for our local gal Jillian to win it, we can't exactly hide the fact that it would be absolutely hilarious to see if Christian calls Regis a "hot tranny mess" on morning TV.

- Mark La Monica

The marathon will be televised

For those of you with room on your DVRs and TiVOs or for those of you considering taking a sick day or personal day on Wednesday, the "Project Runway" marathon begins at 9 a.m.

Happy viewing.

Jillian Lewis: 'I will create a fashion empire'

One more week and we will know: Is she in or is she out? We checked in with Selden native Jillian Lewis to find out her latest thoughts on Project Runway and even find out – sort of – what she’s wearing to the finale party.

AB: You really looked radiant on last night’s episode, did you feel good?
JL: I felt really good. It was the sunniest New York day, the East River was blue and I felt good about everything. I was back to being healthy because the regular part of the series was so stressful it took the humanity out of us. I had gained all the weight back (she lost 8 pounds) and it was shot around Christmas time.

AB: So you brought Tim Gunn to Long Island. Did you drive together? And how long did it take?
JL: We drove to Long Island in a Saturn, there was traffic and it took an hour and a half. Normally it takes about an hour but it was rush hour and there was a lot of traffic.

AB: Well, that’s nothing new. Was Tim antsy?
JL: Tim was totally cool about it. He’s so nice and low maintenance.

AB: Tim seemed really comfortable with your family, what did they think of him?
JL: Oh my god, they were so excited. Everybody was definitely star-struck. They wanted to brag about Tim Gunn coming to my house. My father is so shy that we didn’t even put a mike on him, but he was talking to Tim. He wore his “My Daughter’s On Project Runway,” hat. My mother had it embroidered for him and he wears it all around town.

AB: How was Tim?
JL: He was so sweet. He really liked everybody. He’s just an easy person. When I meet person I forget their names. But he would call people by name and not have to ask anybody’s name twice. He just has such great manners and is so lovely.

AB: So are you, as your mother’s psychic predicted, the famous child?
JL: I don’t know. I wonder is this fame, or is this being lucky enough to be on a show that documents my talents. This is just the beginning of my life, I can’t get comfortable with this fame stuff, the autographs, and it feels fake still and doesn’t seem real. There are benefits. My friend was able to get reservations using my name. I just feel it’s not really it yet. Maybe I know it’s reality TV --people come and go. I’m not insulting the experience. Now my life is completely changed and so different, and I’m getting really nice feedback. Before I walked around anonymously and now people know who I am.

AB: I actually almost felt you said this for Newsday, the thing about all great American designers coming from Long Island…Michael Kors and Donna Karan and Jillian Lewis. Do you think you’ll end up there?
JL: I know I will. I’m not trying to be conceited, but I know I’m going to make it happen. I’m a very determined person and when I want something, I’ll get it. I will create a fashion empire.

AB: I want your true reaction to Chris’ human hair fringe.
JL: I didn’t feel comfortable with what Chris was showing. I just think it’s not nice to put hair on a woman’s body. It was like saying that she’s an animal, she’s not evolving she’s devolving. I was reading it was hair growing out of the back of her body. Though I though some of his other work was really nice.

AB: Rami seemed really panicked pre-runway presentation. Where you all there for him as a support system and do you think you helped him get through it?
JL: That was the edit. He wasn’t at all panicked. There was plenty of time, more than enough time. He needed it to be perfect. We’re the brother and sister act, we worked together a number of times and I wanted him to be in the final three.

AB: What is the most important thing you’re taking away from this experience?
JL: The exposure and the feedback, that was for me the main focus of the experience. The best compliment I could have received is, ‘I want to wear what you make.’ As a designer, it all comes down to dressing people. I’ve gotten the momentum and a collection people will recognize.

AB: Have the stores been in to see the Jillian Lewis, Inc. fall collection yet?
JL: All the buyers are in Europe right now. I’ll probably show it the second week in March. It’s a little late but I felt like it was missing something and I really filled in with passionate pieces.

AB: OK, well, our Newsday gang is coming to your finale party and we’re really looking forward to it. So what are you wearing?
JL: Every time I have an event to go to I have to make something so I’m still deciding. I was going to make the pleated pants, but my boyfriend told me they made my hips look big which I appreciate. So what I’m thinking right now is very wide legged pants and an off the shoulder tissuey blouse. We’ll see.

- Anne Bratskeir

Episode 13: Designer duel

So here we are, after 13-weeks we have arrived – almost — at the final episode. Last night father hen, Tim Gunn, makes home visits, and we learn who, between Rami and Chris, wins the last spot in the final three. Of course, we already know that Christian and Jillian clinched awhile back. And let’s not mince words, Rami takes it. Chris is out.

But lets start with home visits. It’s a good thing that Christian is about 5’2” because he lives in one of those Hobbit-sized apartments in NYC. Each night he lays a skinny mattress down on his closet floor which, by day, doubles as his workroom. It is incredible that this kid has developed such sophisticated work in this pint-sized space. Tim warns him that some of his looks are costumey – “a lot of look,” -- and he takes note.

Next up, it’s Jillian’s glam NYC pad with miles of view, and her sophisticated set-up. “All of the great American designers are from Long Island…Michael Kors, Donna Karan and…Jillian Lewis,” says our girl. Inspired by her challenge at the Metropolitan Museum, Jillian looks to 15th Century armor and works to combine femininity and strength. Tim likes it. It’s “really compelling,” though he feels it has a “cloudy day palette.” And, Long Island, guess where Tim goes next? To Jillian’s house in Selden where her whole brood is hanging including her hunky boyfriend/business partner. Her mom reveals to Tim that she saw a clairvoyant before she was married who told her she would have three children and one was going to be famous. Yes, indeedy.

Onto Los Angeles, where Rami has a real showroom. We learn that the guy was a closet designer until 12, that his mom, a beauty, was Miss Jordan, and that he’s inspired by Joan of Arc. His collection, he says, celebrates the female form. Tim thinks some of it is a little heavy duty (he comes close to using the f-word).

And there’s Chris, who calls his collection sleek and dark and daring, “95% fashion, 5% costume.” Some of it causes Tim’s “gag reflex to kick in,” because Chris uses a lot of human hair...as in for real. It’s scary. But Chris is into the idea of beauty with a quirk though to us it's more like beauty with a scalp. Now don’t get us wrong, we think Chris is fab, and some of his work on the runway was really terrific – but the hair…yikes.

On judgment day, Jillian assists Rami, and Christian help Chris prepare. And the judges seem pretty impressed with both collections – Rami, for his commercial viability and the line’s organic qualities, and Chris for his usage of unusual materials (uh, yeah) and creativity. And in this challenge, well the judges were pretty kind though Michael Kors called one of Chris’ looks, “a velvet condom.” He exits like a gentleman – “I really didn’t expect all the love the universe would send my way. Would I do it all again? Yes.” And then the maniacal laugh.

Jillian will weigh in with us later today, and next week, Newsday is going to the Tresseme finale party where we’ll hang with all the players and bring every juicy detail back to you. – Anne Bratskeir

Tim Gunn's real take?

I'll play $27 to hear Tim Gunn's actual thoughts after walking out of Chris March's friend's place. No cameras. No quoting, either. Tim, call us. I gotta know. I promise I won't publish your real thoughts.

- Mark La Monica

Holla at some geographic designer lovin!

"All of the great American designers are from Long Island,” Jillian said on tonight's episode.

And the Selden native is out to prove she’s one of them. Lewis, who, along with Christian Siriano, 21, of Annapolis, Md., clinched one of three finalist spots weeks ago, is in the final stretch of Project Runway. If Ms. Lewis wins it, she scores $100,000, a Saturn Astra, a spread in Elle Magazine, and a chance to sell clothes on Bluefly.com.

Rami Kashou, 31, of Jerusalem, and Chris March, 44, of San Francisco, Calif., had a bit more stress to deal with in this episode. They waged a fierce designer brawl to claim the remaining finalist slot. It didn’t surprise us a bit that Rami trumped Chris.

Rami’s collection had “a lot of ingenuity, was organic and had commercial viability,” agreed judges Michael Kors, Heidi Klum and Nina Garcia. On the other hand, Chris, a costume designer by trade, produced several pieces that incorporated real human hair . . . scary. He’s definitely “auf.”

Who wins the whole shebang? The final episode airs March 5 at 10 p.m. and we'll be there with pens, pads and video cameras.

– Anne Bratskeir

We both got it right

Way back, we predicted Jillian, Rami and Christian would make it to the final tree. Remarkably, the readers agreed.

Then two weeks ago, we guessed Rami would beat out Chris for the final spot. Remarkably, the readers agreed, but by a narrow margin.

In our reader poll, Rami eeked by Chris, 213-208.

Now it's time for the final poll. We've asked it before, but now that we know the final three and have seen all their collections (in these videos), we can make educated guesses instead of random guesses.

Who's gonna win? Vote in the poll on the top right part of this blog.

Episode 12: Designer Reunion

“Gather round designers and let’s have some fun,” may have been the directive for this week’s fluffy, air-filling “Designer Reunion,” show, where aufed designers and finalists chewed the fashion fat with Heidi, Tim, Michael and The Nina. This was not scintillating TV to say the least, mostly because there was a distinct lack of chemistry in the room and lordy, we’ve waited soooo long for the end. That said, there were a few stellar moments:

1) The outtakes of Michael Kors uncontrollably cracking up at the WWE Diva’s ensembles. Kors is one cool cat, but he just lost it and it was infectious and fun to see.

2) “The Crying Game,” starring Ricky, of course. We don’t even think he realized that he was such a crybaby on the show, but the composite proved the point. “I didn’t realize I was going to cry like a woman,” admitted the Rickster. For the record, he told us recently that he makes all his own hats, and the ruby patent leather job he wore on the show was created about a month ago. Did somebody say Village People?

3) Heidi’s fairly raucous imitation of Chris’ crazy laugh and the ensuing takes on it.

4) Again, Heidi, and even dignified Tim’s attempted outing of Kevin’s true sexuality. As you may remember, Kev’s claim to fame was that he was the only straight guy on the show. Finally, Kevin concedes, “Maybe I was gay in my former life.” And Tim says, “If being on Project Runway doesn’t turn you gay, nothing will.” Word to the wise.

5) Elisa happily accepting her portrayal as a nut job. Gotta love that girl because she is, as Simon Cowell might put it, “authentic.” The spitting, the writing backwards – all that aside, she’s sweet. Though we loved Chris’ line, “Keep your brainwaves off of me.”


Some observations: Victorya is a hater. Man-oh-man, she did not crack a smile and even Heidi told her she was uptight. Also, Carmen – ouch, we’re talking shoulders of misfortune on that horrid ensemble she wore tonight. We think and hope she made it, because it does not belong in a store. And she was grandstanding a little with her hurt feelings…enough.

Christian won $10,000 as the fan favorite – he seemed surprised. He also seemed surprised when last season’s fan favorite Michael Knight presented it to him because we’re thinking he had no idea who he was.

Finally, our Jillian. She looked fantastic in her sassy black dress and patterned tights…no? Plus, she seemed cool, calm and collected -- entirely self-assured. Hmmm. – Anne Bratskeir