Project Runway 10/22/15--"Roll Out the Red Carpet" summary

Previously on “Project Runway”: everyone had to make an “avant-garde” outfit inspired by bridges and using 3D printing. I guess this replaces the “make your own print” challenge? It's too bad because I liked that challenge. Also this show and “avant-garde” don't really go together but whatever. Merline made a skirt that had been made more than once on this very show (Kini I think most recently) and no one said anything to her about it until the runway. Ashley is still exhausted and she never seems sure of herself. Kelly made a literal bridge/skirt/pannier thing and she won. I don't care because it had a weird silhouette and that's the fastest way to be “avant-garde” but I could have done without everyone praising her imagination. Merline was finally sent home because her outfit was “too boring” to compensate for her crap construction. (click for more)

We're down to four people. Heidi comes on a red carpet and then claims she needs Tim. They all get tickets to LA, which seems weak when you know in previous seasons they went to Europe. The designers will be making red carpet looks. LA is the inspiration, and they'll make the looks while in California. Ashley says she is excited to think out of the box, which is a nice change from her gloom and doom of the past several weeks. Kelly doesn't travel. There's a cute confessional where she says she just works in her deli, and then says “It's not my deli, I make it sound like I own a fucking deli, I just make the sandwiches.” Heh.

So I would like to know what red carpet this is. The VMA's require a radically different look from the Golden Globes, which is different from the Oscars, which is different from the Met Gala. They all go to Best Western, who is the sponsor and Best Western is not that exciting. I mean it is to me, a person who spent her childhood vacations either in Motel 6 or camping. But that's sad. The winner of this challenge gets “one hundred free room nights.” Wait, 100 free nights? That's a pretty good prize actually. Tim collects everyone from the pool area to a mansion in the hills, which is INFINITELY better than their crappy hotel. Seriously. They will sketch up here, and then Keltie Knight comes out. She is a correspondent for “The Insider”. I guess she qualifies as a red carpet expert. I know I'm making fun of them, but having a celebrity wear your design on a red carpet is a big publicity boost. Do not play it safe. Two day challenge, so twist alert in effect. $400 at Mood, which is a lot. Spoiler: this is the last you will see of Keltie Knight.

Lifetime keeps putting buzzwords on screen. Why, Lifetime? I can hear them just fine. They still haven't promised that someone will wear the winning look, or any of the looks, or what red carpet exactly they're designing for. I think everyone is making long gowns and they keep telling them not to play it safe. Edmond has color. Ashley finds some sequined fabric that is copper, but if you run your hand in the other direction it's silver. Candice buys black fabric and gold trimmings. I'm not sure what Kelly bought.

I think they just recycled the same places from that one season they were in LA. And maybe the twist alert is not in effect because this “first day” is only 4 hours of work. Ashley has a couple of plans in case Tim doesn't like something. Edmond rubs his fabric and says it's not talking to him. It's like, hot pink and electric blue sequins. It's...maybe not the most tasteful fabric. BUT for like VMA's or Teen Choice it could work. See this is why they needed to be specific. Kelly is cutting a million triangles. Candice has some cool mesh going on. It has a linear geometric pattern on the back of the dress. Edmond is afraid to cut his fabric because he can't fix it, so he says he's scrapping the pink and blue sequins. At the end of the day he seems to have nothing done.

Day two. Ashley does a lot of ready-to-wear so she actually is feeling out of her element. There's her insecurity. Clearly the judges want to keep her around, so it's not like she's making crap probably. She talks about believing in herself. Kelly says today's plan is triangles. Edmond suddenly has a pink-purple halter top dress with a lot of rouching.

Tim Time! Candice has a black gown with gold trim and a really high neck, but it's like a strapless dress with sheer from there up to the neck, with black stripes. Tim wants her to edit: no gold trim and no train. Suddenly Edmond, Kelly, and Candice are all eating while Ashley gets her consult. Tim hates her Plan B, which is kind of boring. So her Plan A has the sequins, that change color depending on what direction they're facing, one sleeve, and a narrow strip of skin diagonally across her chest, and a corset. Tim claims to have a “responsibility” to be direct, and he says she's over designing. There are too many things going on. The corset part (on the non-sleeve side) was going to be satin, but Tim points out that there are already so many sequins you might as well put some more. He then gives her a pep talk, which, I guess that's happened a million times anyway so whatever. They keep cutting to Candice sitting on the couch right behind Tim totally eavesdropping which is so weird. So Kelly's triangles are a reference all the way back to the Hallmark unconventional materials challenge and the top she made. Tim likes what it looks like, and then tells her to make a pantsuit. If she can make an elegant pantsuit he promises her a place at Fashion Week. I don't think you can promise that, Tim. Edmond has one dress that's a halter top with a poofy skirt, and a sleeker idea for his sequins. I am laughing because Tom and Lorenzo are on Twitter saying it is some Drag Race fabric and Nina is responding “Shantay you stay” which is hilarious. Also it's not addressed how Edmond is clearly not designing for the same event as Kelly who is not designing for the same event as Candice. I think Candice and Ashley's designs could both work the same carpet, but Edmond's sequins would be super tacky and no one would wear a pantsuit there. Maybe Edmond and Kelly are designing for the same place.

So the logistics of this challenge suck, because they're flying back to New York in the morning, then they won't have a model fitting until the day of the runway show. I'm not sure how much time they'll have to fit anything. Kelly designs tight pants, which is a problem because she thinks she might only get half an hour to fit anything. Edmond cuts his sequined fabric and the editors would have you believe he is performing brain surgery with how dramatic it is. Ashley asks Candice for advice on the corset construction. Actually Candice might have volunteered “help” but Ashley certainly seems to be accepting it. Edmond makes a long gown and stares at it for a really long time before grabbing the biggest pair of scissors possible and chopping the skirt off to make a short mullet hem. Kelly puts her triangles on the pants which means they don't stretch and possibly will not button or zip up. Edmond's dress has a short skirt and long bell sleeves and no back and a deep V. Many things happening. Candice seems to be done and is happy with it. Everyone else has a bunch of work to do.

Runway day, back in New York. It's the last runway day! Everyone is sad but I say Hooray! The season is almost over! They will have half an hour for fitting and then an hour for hair and makeup. Kelly is terrified her zipper will break, but with Candice's help she gets it zipped up. Ashley's corset is not fitted correctly, so it seems like it will fall forward and flash everyone. She has to put a strap on it. Edmond continues to take his giant scissors to his dress. Ashley doesn't think it's appropriate, and I agree it's not appropriate to the red carpet SHE is designing for, but there are red carpets it would work for.

Guest judge is Christian Siriano. Hi Christian! Apparently the Tim Gunn Save is still in effect. Ashley: long copper gown, very slim, with one sleeve. The sleeve continues over that shoulder and up to a mock turtleneck. The other side is bare with one strap and then a diagonal opening on the bodice. It's maybe the width of a hand. The skirt looks really great though. I wish the strap wasn't there. Kelly: very tight jumpsuit with a triangular cutout at her navel. The top is a halter neckline and there is no back. It's a kind of turquoise gray with a triangular pattern all over. Those pants fit like a glove. Candice: long black gown with some sheer fabric on the chest and back. So like a strapless gown with sheer black fabric with a geometric pattern in sequined stripes. The sheer is a high mock turtleneck and no sleeves. It almost looks like a button down shirt. Also a long train. Edmond: very short dress with long bell sleeves. The sleeves are so loose that actually they might be just pieces attached to the shoulders and then open all the way down. I don't think there are cuffs at the wrist. There's no back and a V in the front and it's in those pink and blue sequins. Kind of tacky but perfect for certain venues.

Heidi says that dumb thing about how these four have the highest and lowest scores, like, duh Heidi. Obviously. Candice talks a big talk about how her whole time here there was “a piece missing from my puzzle” and she needed to show them elegant or something. Heidi loves it. Zac says it's safe, but it is tasteful. OK that's a good point. Nina says no one will care about your gown, but it's pretty. Consensus seems to be that it's boring but at least not a trainwreck. Kelly was going for “Katy Perry VMA's” which is actually perfect for a skin-tight jumpsuit with no back and triangles all over and a cutout over her stomach. It's cool and you can see how it's for a specific person and the fit is amazing. Zac thinks Kelly has grown as a designer and this design has surprised them. Nina is like, I didn't think you'd make it this far, which is nice but also kind of rude? Edmond is taking a risk but does not do like Kelly and describe who is wearing this where. I think that might have helped. Heidi says she's worn a dress like this many times (not the praise she thinks it is) and that it will be photographed a lot (also not the praise she thinks it is). The fabric is doing a lot of work. Nina is disappointed but at least he took a risk. Christian is like “well at least you used color unlike everyone else”. Hee. Yeah no one is pleased. Ashley talks about her sequins. Christian likes it despite the fit in the bodice. It is glamorous, but Zac thinks that it's not the best choice for the real world. If anyone on the actual red carpet brushed up against her it would be a problem. Heidi loves gold (unlike Zac) and thinks her boobs look great.

Now it is time for everyone to beg for their finale spot. Kelly did things she didn't think she could do and she wants to show more. A dream come true. She would take Edmond and Candice with her. Candice wants people to have opinions about her work (?) and she could put on a show. She would bring Kelly and Edmond because Ashley is ready-to-wear and “I just think the dynamic of the show, that's why I would choose the three.” OK at least Kelly said nice things about you and Edmond, instead of saying random nonsense about Ashley. Have you not been watching this show? They WANT ready-to-wear. Edmond loves fashion and is passionate. He wants to tell his story. Also he wants to bring Kelly and Ashley. So there, Candice. Ashley wanted to push herself (but she fell apart whenever she had to do that!) and she wants to go to Fashion Week. She picks Kelly and Edmond. So everyone wants Kelly.

Candice didn't use darts in the bust, which is guess is not something done a lot? I'm not up on construction. Anyway Christian is impressed. Nina claims this is not the moment to “get crazy” except that Tim told them to take risks. Everyone is impressed by how Kelly made the fabric herself by sewing triangles to the base fabric. And it's perfect for the venue and celebrity she named. Tim tries to defend Edmond's tacky look by saying he knew it was a risk. Heidi is like “How hard is this silhouette?” and Christian is all “I can make this in ten minutes.” Hee. The sleeves are not really sleeves, like I thought,and are just rectangles sewn to the shoulders. Ashley's strap to hold her bodice on is attached to the neckline. It's weird and that's a problem but they like the rest of it, it seems like. The judges discuss how Edmond made a trainwreck but they don't want to get rid of him because he's so good but they are only supposed to look at this week and blah blah blah.

Candice is going to Fashion Week. She cries and is thankful. Kelly is the winner! Nice. She's so excited. Ashley is in. Wow. So I guess they really hated Edmond's look. Or, they are taking all four of them with the next episode having the last elimination. Nope, he's out. Wow again. Heidi is like “Well we have to be fair and make our decision based on this challenge” which we all know isn't automatically true but fine. I don't care that much. They do not show Tim telling him goodbye and clean up your space so I am calling it right now that he Saves Edmond. He never says goodbye, so there isn't any footage to show, which is why the show just ends with Edmond talking about how he wished he could go to Fashion Week or whatever.

Next week: they only get seven weeks to work. Tim visits Kelly's deli which is hilarious. Also clearly there's another challenge.