10/27 Finale Discussion Thread *West Coast Spoilers*

[Bearcata]

I really thought Josh was going to win based on what the judges said. Also a couple of seasons back when Ule, I think her name was, the German lady who lived in Miami, was not voted as the season winner because she designed resort wear just like Anya does. I was very surprised Victor Luna did not win based on his work. The judges criteria seems to be so inconsistent on who should win and who should stay it drives me batty. They did the exact same thing on episode 1 of Project Runway, kept the one designer over the other because of her potential not what was created for the challenge.

[Bearcata]

Oh, don't forget to watch next week, they will be showing the decoy runway shows. I was way surprised how good some of them were compared to what I saw on the finale.

[Endit]

I was not really impressed with any of the collections. I felt that all the models were under accessorized for one. Too used to watching experimental designers and real couture. These girls just looked BARE.

And I think Joshua was robbed. Did I like his collection or him personally? Not really. However he was the only one left against Anya, who has supposedly been at this for like a year TOPS. $100,000 in her hands, it's just too much money and fame at a young "age". Reminds me of child stars. Joshua has been doing this much longer and has a better background. I feel that he "deserves it" just because of his experience. I feel he also knows what $100,000 is truly capable of too.

I would rather have 100 Wretchens win if the judges TRULY believed they had the best collection, not just the most potential or the best marketing/personality. But some can say that image is ultimately more important than skill because those who consume your product have to identify with you first.

[Dragonlady]

I'm really glad that Josh didn't win. His final collection was perfectly dreadful. I detested his behavior throughout the season but I would have completely understood his win if he had a wonderful collection. The show is not about who is to be Miss (or Mr.) Congeniality. I had previously thought Victor would win but all the black see thru clothes really negated the lovely ones with patterns.
Anya's win was a surprise but not unexpected...I think we all saw that she was being set up to win. Her prints were lovely. I totally understand why they were so flowy and loose due to her island life. But what bothered me was that she had not even begun to work on her collection when Tim came to visit...to me, that said a lot.
The other part I disliked was that with her type of clothing, besides draping, very little technical skills were involved...such as pants, sleeves, collars, jackets. I know others have said that this isn't Project Seamstress but part of the judging is based on their sewing skills and she didn't have it.
Personally, I was surprised at how much I liked many of Kimberly's designs, esp that gorgeous turquoise shift dress.
And why did all the models have such ugly shoes? I really disliked the look of a gown with clunky old booties.

[ryansmommy]

I still love this show! The final 3 all got exposure and will succeed on their own merit or not. Laura didnt win but has a thriving business and there are others. And even some who didnt make the final 3 are persuing their dream and supporting themselves. Chris got his own TV show. Many opportunities arise for these contestants. The winner gets about 50 grand after taxes. They don't get a ticket to success. Jay, winner of season 1, never did get off the ground despite winning.

This is an entertainment show with a pretty low cash prize in comparison to others, never mind all the work and skill involved. I loved it and will watch until they cancel it.

Jay McCarroll, season 1 winner, refused his prize money (and mentership with Banana Republic). Had he accepted, Project Runway's production company would forever own a piece of him ... as I remember, 10% of anything Jay created. Despite that, for a number of years, Jay had a line on QVC, teaches Fashion in PA and has a few other ventures in the fire. To say Jay never got off the ground is wrong, as he clearly benefited dispite no prize and his somewhat naturally bad attitude.

(Since, Project Runway no longer required rights to a small interest of winner's future work.)

[AZChristian]

Jay McCarroll . . . somewhat naturally bad attitude.

I just got to watch the show last night. I found it interesting that when they interviewed Jay about Josh, he commented something like, "I don't like the way he behaves, but I like his designs."

There's got to be something missing in my brain. How in the world could they have praised those horrendous green shorts with the strings hanging down, and that tight gray and black thing that made a size 0 model look huge?! Nina kept saying his stuff was "editorial." So they were not designing clothes for people to wear, they were designing stuff that makes interesting pictures in a magazine? That must me what I'm missing. Let's see how those in the "editorial" world like putting up with Josh's entitled attitude and general nastiness. His resume will include a long list of places where he was tolerated for 10 minutes before being fired.

And I agree with the poster above who commented on the clunky boots his models were wearing. They were NOT the correct footwear for all of the pieces. Consistency can be good, but not if it detracts from the primary purpose of the show.

[ryansmommy]

To some posting that Anya isn't qualified or hasn't anything important to offer, I say, boo...

Christian Siriano has star quality, and like him, and for the first time since (and, of course in my opinion), Anya does, too.

Anya has the background, the drive and has already been in the industry for a few years, now, and in fact, in Trinidad, she is a rising star in the fashion industry. She gets the business aspect of the fashion industry and its limitations, as she has been unable to produce her own line except on a made to order basis. In the course of a few months, she immerses herself in learning to pattern-make and produce clothing from scratch so she would be able to try out and, if lucky enough to be selected, compete at Project Runway. Unlike some others of the Project Runway cast, Anya is humble, and although she really wanted it, I strongly doubt she ever imagined she would win, until it practically smacked her in the face that she could.

Here is link to a very interesting 30 minute Trinidad television interview video filmed in March 2011, prior to her time on Project Runway --- she doesn't even mention Project Runway!

Within, she talks about herself as a fashion designer and her design career, says she always wanted to be in fashion and even traveled to NY to study fashion at Parsens, but became intimidated from 'the biggness and competitive nature' of fashion, and switched over and earned a graphic design degree --- something she, at that time, considered more practical for finding work in Trinidad. However, after finishing, she returned to Trinidad and eventually began to listen to herself a bit more, and began to design fashion.

Trinidad television interview in English ...
ONE on ONE with Anya Ayoung-Chee « ban-d-wagonist

[Shoepie]

Jay McCarroll, season 1 winner, refused his prize money (and mentership with Banana Republic). Had he accepted, Project Runway's production company would forever own a piece of him ... as I remember, 10% of anything Jay created. Despite that, for a number of years, Jay had a line on QVC, teaches Fashion in PA and has a few other ventures in the fire. To say Jay never got off the ground is wrong, as he clearly benefited dispite no prize and his somewhat naturally bad attitude.

(Since, Project Runway no longer required rights to a small interest of winner's future work.)

Thanks.

[cavendish]

I can't understand how Anya won. She's a lovely person, but it's disappointing that someone who doesn't seem to have any focus unless she's surrounded by other people who give her energy, and who flounders on her own, could be chosen for a prize that could be put to good use by a more advanced and mature designer. Just the fact that she had some pretty nothings when she went to NY, and was able to push and tweak things around to look flowy and colorful is not enough. She's been sewing for what== six months? The judges gave in to personal liking rather than exercising any critical judgment. Maybe no one blew them away-- but the good parts of the others far outweighed her whole collection.

I like Josh's collection and part of Victor's collection a lot. I'm not sure what pushed Victor into the last minute frenzy of revision-- it seemed a bit out of character. And I also like Kimberley's clothes. Anya's were the weakest of the four to me, although she does have a unified collection, which makes a complete impression, which may give her a foot up on Kimberley. But I just don't understand. The whole thing is quite a let down.

[beerbelly]

I was impressed with all 4. And couldn't agree more about the clunky shoes - it was a total distraction. So early 90s that aren't worth a comeback. I loved Josh's looks - really fun and funky. I feel like Anya was one note. A beautiful note however. I think that when the judges said "I can see any Anya shoe, an Anya purse etc' that sealed the deal.