Project Runway All Stars 1/26/12--"Good Taste Tastes Good" summary

Previously on Project Runway: Muppets were involved. Everyone had to make a dress for Miss Piggy. No one had to account for the fact that Miss Piggy is essentially a plus-sized woman with no neck and a giant head. Or the fact that she is made out of foam. Instead everyone pretended she is a real person and made loud dresses, which is fine, I guess. Michael actually won, as he made a fairly creative shiny dress with interesting loops. I couldn’t find a picture of the dress being worn, so who knows. Mila didn’t match the “client”, but in the end, Gordana made a nightgown and was sent home. (click for more)

In the apartment everyone cheers Michael for winning. Kenley seems extra happy for him. Michael knows this does not guarantee he will win anything else.

Rami is wearing a tank top. A small tank top. Not small as in tight but small as in lacking fabric. Somehow this challenge is inspired by taste. Not taste like Nina and Kors are always talking about taste, but “taste itself”. You must make a “tasteful” outfit inspired by the colors/flavors of “a seriously tasty dessert”. I know that’s a lot of quotes but I feel they’re needed. And now there is a gelato cart. Do they get to eat gelato? Tasty. Everyone will get a flavor and also a fabric swatch to match colors. Mostly you can tell what the colors will be, except for “Fruits of the Forest” might be anything. Michael gets to pick first for winning and he picks grapefruit. He hopes for ruby red grapefruit but gets pale pink. But he DOES get a cone of gelato. Gelato in a cone?! Jeez. Then each person picks their color, and the next person in the line. Everyone seems pretty happy with their colors, as I think each person had a color they really wanted. The designers are different enough that they don’t seem to have overlap. Kara gets stuck with chocolate and cayenne pepper, which I must say, would be my favorite to eat but not to make an outfit with. The gelato place near me lets you mix flavors and I like to mix the chai with chocolate. Delicious.

Now Diane von Furstenburg is here! She’s cool. Michael completely freaks out. And now Andrea and Diane tell them they have six hours. Why? Six hours? First of all, it’s not like no one has ever made a dress in under six hours, because if you account for all the people who have changed course last minute, I’m sure someone has made a dress in less than that. And second, is this because someone said “Hey, we can’t have too many “make a pretty dress” challenges, let’s screw them in some way”?

People sketch and talk about impressing Diane. Except Kenley, she doesn’t want to think too big or too risky, so she can finish. Apparently we’re in such a hurry they dragged a bunch of fabric to the lounge so they don’t have to go to Mood. April can’t find the black jersey she wants, so she’s already in trouble. Mondo runs out of time and doesn’t get to buy everything he was going to.
Now there’s a stupid countdown, because of course the half hour of sketching and the half hour at “Mood” counted as part of the six hours. Now Austin is in his wife beater. Weird. Everyone is freaking out already. April references Willy Wonka, as she has blueberry. Mila doesn’t have any black. Crazy! Michael lays his fabric on the floor, and discovers he’s measured wrong so it’s about 8 inches shorter on one side. That’s not good. Kara runs around. Anthony announces to the sewing room he wishes he had a cocktail. Austin is kind of freaking out.

Joanna time! She brings everyone little cups of their gelato flavor, which is nice of her. Kara seems to have a lot of white and pink in her dress. Joanna likes it. April tells Joanna she’s sticking with what she’s comfortable with, and Joanna is not impressed, you can tell. Mondo has a great orange color, and Joanna talks to him about accessorizing. Not in a “you don’t do that well” way. Austin uses the word “blouson” in a sentence and Joanna tells him not to do bridal. She also asks Rami outright if he is sucking up to Diane with his wrap skirt. Heh. Mila must remember to be creative. Joanna asks Michael what his secret is, because he’s so fast that he is mostly done. He’s been sewing forever? I think that’s what he said.

Model fitting. Anthony says something very true: this challenge has nothing to do with being a designer, and everything to do with being a fast seamstress. Austin is hot gluing things and is ashamed. Mondo has made a caftan, but it’s pretty cool looking. April’s dress doesn’t’ fit her model, so she has to add panels, but she might not have enough fabric. Mila has a sheer fabric, so she’s had to layer it. Guess who ended up with fruits of the forest? Jerell, who is making a belt or something with fruit buttons. Fruits of the forest I guess is just berries? Different berries? Let’s go with that. Kara has taken Austin’s sewing machine, which is weird, because shouldn’t there be enough machines for everyone?

The models then come back, I guess because this is a one day episode: get the challenge, make something, runway show. All in the same day. Gratuitous shots of the accessory wall. That six hours includes hair and makeup? This is rough. Everyone likes to badmouth everyone else but I must include Jerell’s comment about Kara, and that her model looked like “a pregnant cupcake”, because that is an excellent snarky confessional quote. Austin sews his model into his dress, which I get the feeling he never does.

Isaac is back, and Diane obviously, and then model Miranda Kerr, for no reason. Oh, because she’s going to wear the winning design to an “industry event”. Whatevs. Mondo: a cantaloupe caftan with light green sleeves and a thin black belt. It does really say “cantaloupe”. Deep V in the back. Anthony: full beige skirt and a halter top in green with a bunch of folds and stuff. He had green tea. Kenley: a Kenley dress in dark pink with yellow polka dots and a yellow Peter Pan collar. It’s not terribly exciting or “passion fruit”. Rami: a sleeveless top that looks like one piece of fabric slug over her shoulders with the ends crossed at her waist. The two sides of the top are different shades of green, and there is also a shiny skirt in green. And a big black belt. It’s not that great, sadly. And there are patches of another fabric over her hips? Something. Mila: color blocking, but in red and white, with long sleeves. It’s interesting but she put the poor girl in heavy black wedges.

Jerell: super-Jerell outfit. The top has horizontal straps and a straight cut to the bodice, then it’s loose all the way down to the hem in front, and then a train in the back so it’s a mullet hem. Why is there a black strap across her shoulders? It’s weird. And two prints. Kara: white sleeveless top, and then a ton of tiers of ruffles in the skirt shading from white to pink to brown to red at the bottom. Oh, that poor model really does look pregnant. Michael: very dramatic pink caftan. This girl looks huge because while it’s belted, there is a TON of fabric in this dress. Huge sleeves, practically a train, it’s ridiculous. April: strapless dress with a full skirt that seems OK in the front, but is very short in the back. Austin: short white dress with a swath of fabric over one shoulder with flowers or something. The swath dangles down in the back. Eh.

Austin, Rami, Jerell, and Kenley are safe. Kara talks about the layers of flavor in her gelato and the dress. Georgina thinks she spoke well when she explained herself, but the dress falls short. And it’s not flattering. Isaac says the minute the word “pregnant” shows up, you know you’ve missed. Anthony used beige because he liked the way the gelato looked melting over the cone. It’s messy, and the top is very worked. The concept is good, but it needs tweaking and there are back panels that are not working. They love Mila’s look, but I wish Isaac would stop saying “ice cream”. Gelato is not ice cream. Diane says Mila’s dress looks like it was done in little time. BECAUSE IT WAS. Whatever. The lightness of the sheer fabric got weighed down by all the black accessories. Michael wanted to do something beautiful, but also something he could finish. They love the dress, but maybe not the color. Really? Crazy. What woman is wearing that thing? April has a nice color, but the top looks wonky and then of course the back of the skirt is scary. It doesn’t look finished. Of course not. Andrea says she has good ideas, but they don’t tend to come through. They make her take off the belt and say how good it looks. Of course everyone loves Mondo’s caftan, seeing as how it’s far superior to Michael’s shiny pink giant thing. Andrea complains about the color, as if he had a choice. Someone would have ended up with that bright orange. This is stupid. Did they buy some crack off Kors?

Anthony’s design had to be perfect if he was going to pull it off, and he didn’t make it perfectly. Georgina wishes he had made the skirt the same color. Kara just fumbled and wouldn’t work with brown? Or something? I am not really following this argument. Her dress is unflattering but she at least had a good explanation for it. April should have gone for more Halloween? I have no idea what these people are talking about. They love Michael’s dress, the movement and elegance, and the giant arms. But they don’t like the fabric. Mila’s dress looked easy, although her styling was heavy. Isaac says this was his favorite. Mondo gets praise from everyone but Isaac. The model says she is thinking about how if they pick Michael’s dress she’ll have to wear it without a bra and she doesn’t particularly want to. Ha.

Mila is in. Michael wins, which is bullshit. Miranda claims to be excited to wear that shiny thing. Didn’t this happen on his season, everyone thought his clothes were so great and they weren’t? Mondo is in, but he feels the judges are recognizing his talent. Anthony is in. April should have fixed her dress. Kara made a maternity dress. Kara is in. April is losing it on the runway. She’s only 22? Wow. She’s going to keep at it as she’s only 22. I was so pleased with the judging, too.

Next week: go to the park and be inspired, accost some people for clothing, Austin has a sweet Sunday church hat.