Brow Beat

Project Runway, Week 7: Orange You Glad He’s Back?

After a run of vague challenges, this week’s assignment was pleasingly precise: Design two looks that are blue and consistent with Macy’s INC International Concepts brand. The designers worked in teams of two—but unlike Week 3’s tempestuous pairs challenge , the collaborations were relatively drama-free.

Irina won for a blue-and-white dress that Heidi declared “flirty and feminine.” Louise was sent home after she and Nicolas—who had immunity—sent two ruffle - heavy garments down the runway.

The highlight of the show was the return of much-missed judge Michael Kors, which is a sad commentary on the bland designers.

Stats
Number of times Tim Gunn said, “Make it work!”: Zero. That old, tired catchphrase is but a distant memory.

Number of crying contestants:
One. Christopher was so verklempt that he couldn’t defend his garments against Michael Kors’ vicious onslaught . Louise’s eyes were slightly damp, but she seemed relieved to make her exit.

Logan sex object watch: Mr. Neitzel didn’t get much air time—but enough for Gordana to confess: “We all think he’s hot. The boys like him as well.” At this point, Epperson is the only human being in greater Los Angeles who hasn’t declared his lust for Logan.

The Contestants
Strangest revelation: Louise makes chicken noises while she works.

Irina’s audition for the role of “bitchy guest judge”: “[Carol Hannah and Shirin’s] stuff looks like it was bought in a discount store. It’s very ’$10 shirt on sale for $5.99’ kind of thing.”

The Judges

Michael Kors was back and oranger than ever! Sitting alongside the top American designer were Marie Claire ‘s Zanna Roberts and Macy’s executive Martine Reardon.

Those five weeks in spray-tan seclusion brought out Kors’ mean streak. But give the man his due: Every barbed arrow was right on target.

How Kors saw the outfits: “looks like a bridesmaid’s dress with a shower loofah ruched up the front of it”; “looks like a tablecloth”; “looks like a librarian’s shirt dress from 1979”; “looks like a teal charmeuse disco pumpkin.”

Not to be outdone, Heidi harshed out. Her most devastating critique was of a detail at the neckline of Christopher and Epperson’s disco pumpkin top : “It’s kind of like she was eating lobster, and she put this in there, and she forgot to take it out.” (For me, it was more like the ruffs that Justices Sandra Day O’Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg pulled from the Supreme Court accessories wall.)

The Results
Garments of the week:
Althea and Logan were ignored in the workroom, so it was clear they were safe, but why? The tarty business suit with the skirt that slowly insinuated itself into the model’s butt crack was the tackiest and most inappropriate outfit of the challenge, and their ill-fitting trouser look stretched the dictionary definition of blue.

Should Irina have won?
Absolutely. She combined textiles and fabrics to create a gorgeous pattern, and she made a well-cut dress that looked fresh and seemed appropriate for the INC brand.

Should Louise have been eliminated?
Yes. Her designs didn’t reflect the brand aesthetic. After noting that the line was simple almost to the point of austerity, she produced a ruffle-fest .

Bold prediction for who’ll be auf ‘d next: Gordana. The “next week on Project Runway ” teaser showed her on a tearful phone call with her family, which is often a foreshadowing of doom. Nicolas deserves to go, but the producers love his demon dishing.

Previous Project Runway Recaps: Week 1 , Week 3 , Week 4 , Week 5 , Week 6

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