Project Runway: Therapy Through Textile Design

1. The Challenge.
 Tonight's episode, aka  "Therapy Through Textile Design", starts with Val being shocked that she's still in the competition. We're not arguing with her on this point, particularly after her creation last week. After a few more thoughts on the competition thus far, our remaining seven designers head to the runway where Heidi announces that their challenge this week will require them to start from scratch. After Heidi's cryptic challenge description, the designers head to the workroom and are greeted by pictures of themselves as children. And for the first time (but certainly not the last time) this episode, the designers all start weeping about missing their families.



After our contestants settle down a bit, Tim enters the workroom with a very special guest from HP to announce--you guessed it--the HP challenge. As you may recall, last season the designers were required to create a textile design on their HP computers, which would then be transferred onto fabric to be used in their designs. In addition, Tim informs them that this season they will also be required to use their family photos and memories as inspiration for the design. As Tim talks, we find ourselves totally distracted by  the odd shade of neon orange lipstick Gretchen is wearing. Once we are able to focus on what Tim is saying again, we hear him say that the designers will have two days for this challenge.

Paris Fashion Week: Rochas

We've had a very busy couple of days in the real world, dear hearts. As such, our posts have suffered a bit. However, to tide you over until we can really get back into the world of blogging, we did take notice of the Rochas show at Paris fashion week. To us, it was a bit Fiddler on the Roof meets the Forties. And we like. Very much. 

The Root of the Matter: Katherine Jenkins

Today, we learned a couple of things about Katherine Jenkins. First, we learned that Ms. Jenkins is a Welsh mezzo-soprano and a classical-popular crossover singer. Second, we now know that Ms. Jenkins
has either (1) not been to the beauty salon in a couple of months to get her roots touched up or (2)  is taking the ombre hairstyle to new heights of ugh.

Roberto Cavalli Party: Heidi Klum

Can you believe it? Heidi's wearing something past her knees again! Unfortunately, it's a bit amorphous and we wish there was just a bit more structure around the middle.Overall though, we think the color is really beautiful on her.

amfAR Milano 2010 Red Carpet: Heidi Klum

Stop the Press. Heidi Klum wore a dress with a hemline more than an inch below her crotch at the amfAR Milano 2010 Red Carpet during Milan Fashion Week. We are quite proud of our Heidi as she must have watched the tape of last week's Project Runway, decided to take her own advice, and realized that showing both boobs and legs can be a tad vulgar. However, we hate to say it, but this look on Heidi is not as flattering as we would like for it to be. Dare we say that she looks a little big around the hips? And we're not sure that ruffle is doing her any favors either. On the other hand, the dress is pretty enough and she's looking very old Hollywood. In other words, we are really loving how classy and glamorous Ms. Klum is looking here. So, overall we're definitely leaning towards an "IN" for Heidi with this look.

However, what do you think dear readers? Is Heidi in or is she out?

Clooney & Canalis in Love

Ciao amore mio, let's prove our love for one another by wearing identical outfits.

Elisabetta, Elisabetta, we know this was your idea. In the future, however, we ask that you keep your perfect happiness to yourselves, George and Betty, unless, of course, you've finally decided to take that road trip with us to Sicily.

Arrivederci.

The Great Pumpkin at Milan Fashion Week

Just in time for the Halloween season, we present the Great Pumpkin. In all fairness to Raf Simons who designed the 2011 Spring Jil Sander Collection, we actually loved several of his looks recently shown at Milan Fashion Week.  In the collection, Mr. Simons played with both volume and layering of garments in unexpected ways with fantastically bright colors. This look, however, was not one of the looks that we loved. The proportions of this dress are, in a word, enormous.We can't imagine how a normal person would ever wear this, except of course as a halloween costume.

Continually Disturbed by Willow Smith

Jada Pinkett Smith and her nine-year-old daughter, Willow Smith, have been making the rounds at Milan Fashion Week. And we don't mean to be sticks-in-the-mud or anything, but we can't help but be incredibly disturbed by Willow's Rihanna-styles at such a young age. On the other hand, at least her outfits (costumes?) are not revealing or anything. But, there's just something so utterly excessive about it. Of course, we know that Little Miss Thing fancies herself a pop star or something and so these ensembles are somewhat appropriate in that context, but still, but still, we kinda wish she was just wearing a sweet little dress from Gap Kids. Age aside, the kid is a pretty hip dresser. I mean we could maybe get on board with the skunk hair, newsprint, boxer look ... for someone ten years older than herself? Or perhaps there's a futuristic Rocky musical, starring a female child as the lead, in her future?

Please god, no.

Our main concern, dear readers, really, is that the Smith kids are going to grow up to be the most insufferable little socialites that ever hit the celebrity circuit (there's not much hope for brother Jaden, either, we fear). We certainly hope their nanny is paid some serious cash.

Only time will tell, we suppose. But the writing is most definitely on the wall (or in this case, on the clothes).

Part 2: If We Were Rachel Zoe in London...

And, finally, one of the hottest trends at London Fashion Week was lace. And, not surprisingly, London really managed to do lace in a prim and proper, but often unexpected, way.

1. Afternoon Tea. At LFW this year, Christopher Kane showed lacy ladylike looks in neon shades of yellow, pink, orange and green fit for tea with a queen. Below is one of his fashion forward frocks in neon green. We could totally see Gwyneth Paltrow having tea with Madonna (if the two of them ever reconcile, that is) in this getup. Plus, the suit is a little edgy like Ms. Paltrow likes.

Part 1: If We Were Rachel Zoe in London...

Now that London Fashion Week is over, dear hearts, we thought we'd put our Rachel Zoe hats on, and play stylist to the stars once again. And, in honor of England's Union Jack, we have chosen our fave ensembles from LFW in shades of red, white and blue. 

 Red. We noticed quite a few red frocks at London Fashion Week this year, but this Jaeger dress we found too cute to ignore. We love the way this look positively bounces and the pleating at the bottom gives it some interest. We could see many a young starlet in this dress, but we think Kristen Bell could look scrumptiously girly in this. And judging from the photo below (on the right) from the premiere of "You Again", Ms. Bell needs a little help in the wardrobe (and hair) department. Plus, we think she'd look great in red.

Project Runway: Death of the Little Mermaid

Hello gentle people! It's time once again to recap this week's episode of Project Runway, aka Death of the Little Mermaid


1. Val and Ivy are Bosom Friends. Tonight's episode begins with Val and Ivy expressing their feelings of love and friendship for one another. OK, we were not aware of that, but it doesn't bode well for either one that they are going on and on about how great the other one is. Cut to the rest of the gang...talking about how much they can trust each other and love one another. OK, what's going on here? Does Lifetime feel like our PR crew has been too mean to one another lately or something?


Cut to Heidi on the runway. Hello. Apparently, the winner of this challenge will not only be winning the love and respect of the judges, but also a big chunk of change. We wonder if Heidi knows what that means. What's the catch? Apparently, there's no catch (other than taxes, of course). After the designers return to the workroom, Tim comes in, with the Loreal guy, and explains that the designers will be creating a high fashion, couture look to complement Loreal's new eyeshadow duo. The winning design will be featured in a Marie Claire advertorial for Loreal AND the winning designer will win $20,000! Everyone oohs and aahs.

Tim next explains that the designers must also incorporate one of the eye shadow duos into their design.Tim warns the designers that they should all avoid velvet like the plague (we're wondering if there's been a recall on it or something) as it is impossible to work with. Mondo chooses "bright" (shocker) as does Ivy (double shocker), Christopher and Val choose "crystal", April chooses "matte", Mike C. and Andy choose "metallic", and Gretchen, the rebel hippie, chooses "velvet". After the selections are made, Tim lets the designers know that they will have $300 and, wait for it, two whole days for this challenge. The designers fall over themselves in joy. How naive our young designers are.

Katherine Heigl: Attack of the Black Pantyhose

Poor, poor Katherine Heigl, what has happened to your hair? It's the most unnatural and strange shade of Barbie blonde we've seen in awhile. And, honey, couldn't you have stopped the photographer from taking your photo from that angle? Only models who weigh 90 pounds can handle it. The rest of the population knows to run screaming in the other direction whenever they see a papparazzi chasing them from below.

Milan Fashion Week: Prada's Minimalist Take on Carmen Miranda

So, dear hearts, we have ignored Milan Fashion Week for far too long. And who better to make us take notice than Miuccia Prada herself. We love this most recent Prada collection. It's all bananas, monkeys and stripes in all the colors of the rainbow, while maintaining the simple lines Prada is known for. So, grab an umbrella drink, relax and enjoy.

Catholic Chic: Heaven Sent or Fashion Sin?

After perusing dozens of fashion week photos, we noticed a surprising trend in which designers from around the world seem to be inspired more by the Vatican than by Coco Chanel. And, oddly enough, we are both intrigued and think these Catholic Chic looks could be cute, if done the right way...


1. Father Ralph Forgot His Pants. This look, apparently inspired by the saucy Father Ralph in the epic (and steamy) 80's mini-series the Thornbirds, is from David Delfin's 2011 Spring Collection shown recently at Cibeles Madrid Fashion Week. We almost think it works, too. Almost. Except for the fact that Twiggy here has forgotten to wear pants. However, if it became more clear that the black overlay was a jumper/ dress, we think it might be cute?

Keeping Up With the Kardashians at Oktoberfest

Watch out Munich. The Kardashians are taking over your town.

We'll be the first to admit that we totally watch Keeping Up With the Kardashians and its sister show Kourtney and Khloe Take Miami. Gosh darn it, if those Kardashian gals don't just seem like the most down to earth likable girls in the world (don't even get us started on Scott).

And we also love the fact that when Kim and her mom travel to Munich's Oktoberfest, they keep their fashion wits about them. In the photo below, Kim's keeping her traditional German dress on trend by pairing it with nude heels. And Momma Kardashian's even rocking black tights with black ankle boots, which seems to be a thing lately with celebs.http://fashionistainhydepark.blogspot.com/2010/09/red-carpet-report-card-town-premiere.html#more.

Madrid Fashion Week: Christmas in September

Some people prefer turkey legs for Christmas dinner. Others prefer breast.

Juanjo Oliva 2011 Spring Collection at Madrid Cibeles Fashion Week

Tattoos, Leather and Lace at London Fashion Week

The recent Marios Schwab 2011 Spring collection shown at London Fashion Week was an unlikely collection of leather, lace and mystical tattoo prints. And, amazingly, it all worked remarkably well together in an edgy, feminine, and chic way. We plan to save our money to buy one of these adorable get-ups (the first dress is calling to us) because, let's face it, it's the closest we'll ever get to the tattoo parlor. Enjoy.

SJP at Burberry Show

And in other HBOish news, Sarah Jessica Parker attended the Burberry show at London Fashion week, looking a bit like a bobblehead. We love the jacket and the skirt and her hair and her bag. In particular, we love both the color on her and the structured leather jacket with the soft, feminine skirt. But we also think the proportions are just a bit off. In particular, we think her jacket requires just a bit more skirt or maybe a little less skirt? Don't get me wrong, she looks terrific, we just think she could look even more terrific with slightly different proportions. Or as we've thought for awhile now, maybe she just needs to gain a few pounds.

Boardwalk Empire and Flapper Fashion!

Michael K. Williams, who played Omar on "The Wire", is Chalky White on "Boardwalk Empire"

Well, dear hearts, we don't know if you watched Boardwalk Empire on Sunday night or not, but we sure did. Much to our dismay, we had been hearing a bit of damage control already regarding this show and were really concerned it wasn't going to be any good.

The adorable and talented Michael Pitt.

Wow. Were we ever wrong! First of all, Steve Buscemi is a fantastic actor, as everyone knows, and we can not wait to see what happens to his character Nucky Thompson. Second, we have loved Michael Pitt, the actor who plays Jimmy Darmody, since he wooed Michelle Williams on Dawson's Creek as Henry Parker. And, finally, the costumes are to die for!

In fact, we are really, really hoping that we see some 1920s styles hit the fashion scene soon as a result of this show (just as Mad Men is inspiring designers now). But, until the 1920s craze makes its way onto the pages of Vogue, we'll have to settle with the few 1920s-inspired fashions we can find now...

Breakfast Club Reunion

Dear hearts, you may or may not remember the tribute to John Hughes at the Oscars this past year. At the time, Mr. Fashionista and I were a bit upset, because, well, our fave teenagers were now seriously middle-aged.

Well, recently four of our fave brat packers (Anthony Michael Hall, Molly Ringwald, Ally Sheedy, Judd Nelson) reunited once again for the 25th anniversary of the Breakfast Club and tribute to John Hughes held by the Film Society of Lincoln Center and we were either prepared to see the Brat Pack in their forties or they were looking better than they did earlier this year.

As seen in the photo above, Anthony Michael Hall is looking pretty messy here, but he doesn't look ancient, so that's good at least. Judd Nelson has (thank god) shaved all of the offensive facial hair he had at the Oscars, but has still committed a horrible wrong by wearing that atrocious tie.

Chanel Suits in Bangkok

There is something about this look, by Ana Locking seen recently at Cibeles Madrid Fashion Week, that we think we might love (assuming you add some kind of nude slip or lining under there).  On the other hand, we kind of imagine this is how the ladies wear their Chanel suits in the red light district of Bangkok.

Part 3: Road to Scotland with Russell Brand and Katy Perry

Russell Brand may have recently attacked reporters at LAX, but to the left, we see Russell and his fiance Katy Perry at LAX in happier, less violent, times. And, since Russell and Katy are already at the airport, we've convinced them that a hop across the pond would be a guaranteed blast for all. Russell is crazy. Katy is fun. And so, where else should we go with these two
than Scotland, the land of lake monsters and moors?




1. Edinburgh. Our tour begins in Edinburgh. Russell and Katy, who are wearing matching kilts, meet us at our hotel, the Glasshouse. http://www.theetoncollection.com/content.aspx?pageID=450.

Edinburgh Castle.

 Russell explains that we won't need any transportation for getting around the Royal Mile in Edinburgh's Old Town. We start off at Edinburgh Castle, which served an important role in the Scottish War for Independence, which we mainly know about through Mel Gibson's portrayal of William Wallace (prior to Gibson's psychotic break, of course) in Braveheart.  Speaking of Mel, Russell Brand spots the William Wallace statue in front of the gatehouse and does his best  they-may-take-our-lives-but-they-can-never-take-our-freedom speech. We are pretty worried the vivacious Mr. Brand will offend the many Scots milling about the fortress (we've heard more than one conversation regarding Scottish independence during our stay in Edinburgh). As such, we decide to escort Russell out of the hallowed castle ASAP and move on to safer sites before he starts reenacting any further scenes from the film.

The Cheshire Cat Makes an Appearance at Madrid Fashion Week

Ladies and gentlemen, we present the pantless Cheshire Cat collection.

Juana Martin and Nicolas Vaudelet Spring/ Summer 2011 Collection at Cibeles Madrid Fashion Week

Living In Mr. de la Renta's Fifties Fantasy

"Only You", which was a major hit when it was released in 1955, played during Oscar de la Renta's recent Spring 2011 Fashion Show. http://runway.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/16/fifties-prom-at-oscar-de-la-renta/. 
Apparently, Mr. de la Renta was trying to let us know that his collection was inspired by the decade in which that song was released, just in case we didn't recognize that from the silhouettes, fabric choices, and styling (complete with dainty little gloves and polka dots) of his garments, most of which could have been worn by extras from Back to the Future.

While Oscar's collection may have been too literal for some, we are more than willing to explore the fifties fantasy with the maestro. In fact, we found a dress for any situation the female living a stereotypical fifties lifestyle might encounter. And so friends, let us hop into our DeLoreans, hit 88 mph, and travel back to the decade of pastel kitchen appliances and convertibles.

Senior Prom 1955. Here we are at your senior prom, darling.Your mom actually made this dress. She is, in fact, a spectacular tailor and has modeled your gown after the latest Parisian fashions. We know your steady, Johnny, will love it!

Inappropriately Draped Dresses

I'll take the vagina dress, please.

Marchesa 2011 Spring Collection

Marchesa 2011 Spring Collection: A Work of Art

Marchesa. Drop dead gorgeous. We thought we were tired of Marchesa, we did. How could we be so very silly dear readers! Here are our three favorite gowns (which we would happily sell a kidney for) from the recent exhibition of Marchesa's Spring 2011 collection at the Chelsea Art Museum. 

Julia, Please Act Your Age.

Speaking of dressing too old, we had to look up Julia Roberts' birthday when we saw this dress. We actually love this dress, we do, and we think it would look fantastic on...Helen Mirren.

Javier Bardem and Julia Roberts at the Rome premiere of Eat Pray Love

Why, Kristin Scott Thomas, Why?

Actress Kristin Scott Thomas recently appeared at the premiere of her new film "Sarah's Key" at the Toronto International Film Festival, wearing this. A blue sack.

Project Runway: Michael Drummond's Waterloo

Hello dear hearts! It's time for a recap of tonight's Project Runway, aka "Michael Drummond's Waterloo." 

1. Jackie O Today. We begin tonight's episode with Ivy giving herself some daily affirmation. Today's another day. I'm a strong woman. Gag. Cut to Mike C. who takes her down a peg or two (we think?), explaining that Ivy uses the same colors again and again, and explains that "opaque is not a color." We are about 99% sure that Mike C has no idea what opaque means, since we haven't noticed any of the designers using a lot of transparent fabrics thus far.

The Muse: Jackie O.

Next, Tim presents tonight's challenge: Create your own contribution to American sportswear, using Jackie O as your muse. Andy immediately worries because his aesthetic is more Asian than American, so he decides to just go with his aesthetic on steroids, since Jackie O liked to make statements with her attire. Val says she has no idea what she wants to do.

After the designers return to the workroom after their field trip to Mood, Tim Gunn decides to make nice with Gretchen for those mean comments he made a few weeks ago by giving her a pep talk: "Gretchen, Remember you're a leader." Tim's comment seems to give Gretchen her voice back... to critique every other designer in the room. Gretch first worries about Mondo's look because she thinks the fabrics, which include a purple and black houndstooth and a black and white stripe, are all wrong.

Michael Drummond  is worried about this challenge because he enjoys making dressy designs. He proceeds to talk about making a Puritan garment and quickly admits he is losing his mind. Not a good sign.

The Perfect Barbie Dress

Dear hearts, we would describe the particular shade of pink in the Zang Toi dress below, which made its debut today at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, as "Barbie pink." Indeed, this gown speaks to our inner 8-yr-old so strongly that we can see ourselves wearing it while talking to Ken in our Barbie Dream House or cruising down the highway in our pink convertible with Skipper by our side after shopping at Claire's Boutique. In other words, we loooooooove it.

"Barbie" at House of Toi Spring 2011 Fashion Show

We can also so see someone like January Jones wearing this gown. But since we know JJ refuses to wear any clothing that looks even remotely retro (even though she looks ten times prettier in her wardrobe on Mad Men than in anything she wears in the real world), we've decided that we get to keep this one for ourselves. Oh. We've also decided we get to keep the Ken dolls they were passing out at the show as well.

"Ken" at House of Toi

No Love for Taylor Momsen

As you may know, Tim Gunn is making a cameo apperance on Gossip Girl. You may also know that he had nothing nice to say about Taylor Momsen, at all, while he was there, even calling her "pathetic." See http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/15/tim-gunn-taylor-momsen-is_n_717534.html

Of course, why would Tim Gunn have anything nice to say about her? At best, Little Miss Momsen is, well, a zombie hooker.

Part 3: If We Were Rachel Zoe...

And finally, gentle people, we conclude our Rachel Zoe segment with one trend that will never really go away...


Sparklies! Sparkly dresses have been quite the thing lately, haven't they. Clare Danes was positively radiant at the Emmys.  But Claire shouldn't get to have all of the fun. As such, we have also found some gowns for the following lucky actresses.


Zoe Saldana or Carey Mulligan in Dennis Basso. We're torn on this. We think this dress would look great on both of these two ladies. Both are tiny enough to still look tiny in such a voluminous dress. We also think both ladies can pull off the size of it. We know Zoe can, a la Givenchy, Oscars 2010 (see pic below). Carey, on the other hand, could really bring a '60s/ '70s vibe to this with her Mia Farrow haircut that would be killer.

Dennis Basso.

Part 2: If We Were Rachel Zoe...

As we have already explored ombre dresses for some of our clientele, we must now move onto other dresses and other trends for other notable clients.

Floral Prints. Call us crazy, but we kinda think that Christina Hendricks could look gorgeous in this dress below. We weren't entirely sure though, so we felt the need to do a little side-by-side comparison of Ms. Hendricks' recent red carpet appearance in Zac Posen with this Monique Lhuillier dress.We will now tell you, dear hearts, that we absolutely hated Chrissy in this Zac Posen gown. Why? One word (ok three): the atrocious sleeves. She looks like an extra from Moulin Rouge. Not good. However, we like the sentiment of the dress, which is soft and feminine. As such, we think this the Monique Lhuillier gown would have been much more successful, which would expose the narrowest part of her body, her shoulders. Plus, the rouching at the waist and flowing skirt would have been very flattering on her body, and the sweetness of the floral print would have been offset by her utter sauciness. We also think her red hair would have picked up the pinks and gold tones in the print beautifully.

Monique Lhuillier

Part 1: If We Were Rachel Zoe...

In a perfect world, we would be stylists to the stars, would we not? And as stylists to the stars, we would be required to attend all of the shows at NY fashion week (thus far) to beg the designers to send us their dresses for our esteemed clientele. We would also most certainly want to choose dresses reflecting the most current trends.As such, I, Mrs. Fashionista, have chosen the best of the best of the trends we have noticed in designer gowns at fashion week this year.

Ombre Dresses. Ombre dresses, like ombre hair have made a splash of color on New York runways this week. We think anyone would look totally gorge in this first, turquoise and green Monique Lhuillier gown, as it looks like the kind of dress that would be flattering on many body types, but in particular, we think Drew Barrymore could look amazing in this gown and her green eyes would p-o-p on any red carpet as a result of the sea foam colors of this dress. There's also an easiness about this gown that mimics Drew's carefree spirit. Plus, the ombre details of the dress match her ombre hair (although we might make her get her color done as there is such a thing as too much ombre).

Monique Lhuillier