PR 18 Ep 14: Finally! The Finale!

TO BE CONTINUED … and no one goes home.

The Final Four is still the Final Four! Big surprise! All of the judges agree that all four designers deserve to present their final collections at New York Fashion Week. But first … edit, edit, edit … Geoffrey; and tailor, tailor, tailor … Nancy; modernize, modernize, modernize … Sergio; and lose the logo, lose the logo, lose the logo … Victoria.

And still take time out to head down to the Council of Fashion Designers of America [CFDA] and take a trip to Mood and pick models and recut, remake, retailer, rebuild your collections.

In.Two.Days. Let’s rip …

TOP FOUR

GEOFFREY

At the CFDA, Geoffrey gets some help from Sara Kozlowski, director of professional development for the CFDA, and Rachna Shah, a publicist KCD public relation, who represent Givenchy, Fenty and Victoria Beckham. They tell Geoffrey to ease up the over-styling, and the lead with his story of the Purple Heart Collection being about strength and survival. Geoffrey hears them and says:

“My mantra for the day is ‘Get it done.'”

At the model casting, Geoffrey nabs Thijin, quite possibly the best walker of the bunch, and models with “otherworldly” kinds of faces for his otherworldly collection. But who cares about that because he also nabbed Taurean Everett, Marquise’s hunky tuxedo model with amazing body. And then we get almost zero footage of him shirtless. I call foul!

Geoffrey wants to alter his purple dress with the sleeve boobs and sleeve dick and bring that back. I worry, because that was a lot of sleeves for no reason at all. He’s also taking some of the baggier looks,  which the judges called shapeless, and giving them some body. Better still, he’s reconsidering the cheeks studs, at least for his female models.

Karla Welch, the stylist who helped in the Upcycle Challenge, is back to assist in styling the finale collections. She loves Geoffrey’s very symmetrical looks and tells him not to go asymmetrical with the earrings; keep it simple. And when he opts for more dangles and bangles and baubles, she reminds him that his collection is very avant-garde and to not add more and more to what is already more.

And then, because Geoffrey overthinks and over-accessorizes, we get the usual meltdown:

“If this is my last show it’s because I need to go get a job. I’m afraid of making some type of mistake. I would never forgive myself.”

I so wanna shake him and tell him that he’s made it to the finale of the PR so that has to count for something. But then, at the show, he cannot find his bag of cheek studs and as his panic starts to rise, and then subside, I think he realizes the universe was telling him something. Less really is more.

WHAT HE SAID

I just feel like I couldn’t have done better. It looks expensive, high fashion and future forward. It’s everything I was hoping for.

WHAT I SAID

I loved the purple puffer with the sexier ‘sleeve’ dress. And I loved the edge his clothes have’ I don’t even mind the sleeve pants on Taurean—goddess, those pecs—because I might wanna put my hands in them and see where it leads. I did feel the second male look seemed like a member of the CDC off to a COVID-19 lab somewhere, and I still think the dresses with the open tops feel like a mistake. As for that last giant puffer, I don’t know if I wanna wear it or sleep in it.

WHAT THE JUDGES SAID

Elaine loved that Geoffrey ‘owns’ his work and his aesthetic; she called his collection “the Billie Eilish take on fashion” and loved his perspective. Brandon said Geoffrey has “the spark of an idea that can grow into something” and says the brocade look moved him emotionally. Guest judge Serena Williams loved the outerwear, and the trench coat—which we learned was a fabric Geoffrey made of paper over neoprene. Nina admires Geoffrey’s “modern” innovation with his use of fabric and volume, but she’s “concerned” that the looks were referential of Rick Owens who also showed puffer coast, albeit floor-length puffers. She did say his work can be commercial, because his big ideas will lead to more wearable clothing. Karlie thought it was “powerful” with details that speak and said he didn’t need the facial studs.

NANCY

At CFDA, Nancy tells Sara Kozlowski and Rachna Shah about her journey of the textile and that she doesn’t have a specific customer or client in mind, but lets the fabric speak first. They both think she needs more focus, and a more defined story of “empowerment.”

At the model casting, Nancy grabs an amputee who uses prosthetics … with Swarovski crystals, no less, and takes DD because they are her muse.

And she takes a wee hint form the judges to lighten up her dark color palette and buys a lighter print at Mood, though I think she used it to make her own finale outfit, and nothing for her collection. As much as we, well, I, dog Sergio, Nancy seems just as stubborn and unbending.

Karla Welch loved Nancy’s messaging but felt the message wasn’t unified in the collection; she also demanded Nancy throw out all her bags and wine totes and superfluous kitschy nonsense.

WHAT SHE SAID

I worked really hard, and it’s paid off. I don’t have a woman in mind, [my clothes are] for people, [and] for this journey there could not have been a better muse than DD.

WHAT I SAID

I loved her fabrics and the way they reflected light, but they seemed a bit stiff and formless. And some of those looks seemed a little too similar, though the last look, with that faux fur coat, was amazing … because of the coat. That said, the jumpsuit and the suit, in prints, were the most tailored of all, and the strongest.

WHAT THE JUDGES SAID

Karlie thought both her clothes and models were inspiring. Nina called the collection a “beautiful moment on the runway with a powerful message about sustainability and inclusion that proves it can be fashionable” and loved the short purple dress with back draping. Elaine dubbed it “low-key spiritual” and raved about the faux fur coat. She also admired Nancy’s ‘come from behind’ journey to The Tents. Brandon appreciated that Nancy thought of how the fabric would look under the lights but wanted more structure … a bustier … something. Serena also wanted more construction and seaming and tailoring; she thought it all similar and simplistic.

SERGIO

Sergio was told to ‘fuck’ his collection up, and so we’ll see how that plays out.

At CFDA, after hearing his “message” Sara Kozlowski and Rachna Shah wonder if it comes through in his ten looks if he doesn’t spell it out on the runway; the short answer is ‘No’. And, again, when he talks about his 46- to 60-year-old client, they tell him not to get stuck on that idea because it limits his buyer pool.

At Mood, he does buy a new fabric for a sweater idea he has but doesn’t appear willing to “farkakteh” it up—and before anyone goes off, that is the correct Yiddish spelling of that word. Christian again calls his looks a little bit county and notes that one of his form fitting white gowns looks “like underwear, but not in a cool way.” And he admits to being scared about the amount of alterations he has to do and for a brief moment seems almost humble.

But then Karla Welch appears and while she loves his looks, though doesn’t quite see the message in them, she suggests he change a fringe jacket to a t-shirt and he says, “that’s not the planet I live on.” But then humble Sergio reappears, and he says he’ll do it, though he turned it into a sweater-style, see-through mesh turtleneck because a t-shirt is so not Sergio.

And the universe, to prove its point that Sergio not take himself as the only expert in the room, at the very last minute, before the final runway, sends a hole to the elbow of that last-minute sweater-style, see-through mesh turtleneck.

WHAT HE SAID

It’s such an emotional experience seeing the collection in such an amazing space. It’s coming to life on the runway. The looks are super chic with a twist of modernity.

WHAT I SAID

The first look is nightgown, followed by country,  and off-the-shoulder-country, and mirror ball and drapery and a gorgeous embellished gown, followed by more country, and then a Bollywood dream dress and the ruffled showstopper which was gorgeous. And none of it said polar ice caps.

WHAT THE JUDGES SAID

Nina thought his collection was “the most skilled execution and polish” and loved the off-the-shoulder baby blue number; that said, she also felt his looks were “frozen in time”—maybe that was the ice cap reference—and hoped for a more relaxed version of the collection. Brandon encourages Sergio to take more risks and give more than gowns because in coming years all people will come to Sergio for are gowns and that does not a long career make; he did love the last minute sweater-style, see-through mesh turtleneck. Elaine loved his color story and the collection, especially the sheer ‘Bollywood’ number, but wants  Sergio 2.0. Serena loves classic design, so this collection was right up her alley, while Karlie did say it was “technically” perfect.

VICTORIA

Victoria’s stubborn streak also gives Sergio a run for his money; she listens; she says she hears; but then she goes her own way, and that might not be good.

At CFDA Sara Kozlowski and Rachna Shah like Victoria’s signature details, the pleats, the proportions and layering, but they’re also worried about her brand appearing everywhere; a brand is earned. Victoria says she will take the advice, but then might have too much work to do to remove the Kheops off her clothing.

Her stubborn streak also reared its head at the model casting when she wanted to grab all the beautiful girls before anyone else had a chance; I was surprised, though, when she took a model who was missing ana rm because that was so in Nancy’s wheelhouse, but cynical me thought maybe she took her so Nancy couldn’t?

Christian sees Victoria putting her looks in order and tells her he hates a white knit dress—that never made it to the runway—and the cheap boots paired with it. And Karla Welch wants Victoria to dial back all the accessories, the different shoes in different colors, but says she loves Victoria’s last-minute look.

WHAT SHE SAID

I don’t want to close my eyes for even one single minute. I want to see everything…in my collection. It’s me. It’s myself. It’s my aesthetic. It’s my color palette.

WHAT I SAID

Beige. Hats. Pleats. Oh my. Bo-ring. And the branding! And that pop of lime green appearing just twice; in the second look it looked like a designer butcher’s apron to keep the blood off your hideous beige dress. Now, the hot pink trench was hot, but was not at all new or innovative. And the glittering hoodie I just loathed. But then that last dress; simple, and chic and elegant and without a stitch of branding. Perfection.

WHAT THE JUDGES SAID

Nina says Victoria has a good “grasp of proportion and silhouette,” and she liked the pink leather dress with the cutouts. Serena loved the cutouts, too, though on the second look, and called the beaded jumper “unique”—Serena-speak for ugly?? Elaine says Victoria creates “fresh” looks that women want, but again loathed the abundance of branding. She did love the Look-In-A-Day white gown, though, as did all the judges. Brandon thought that was the only look in her collection that made a point, while Karlie again told Victoria she needed to learn to edit.

I was waiting for the calling of a name followed by a “You’re out,” but Karlie just said the winner was the person who pushed fashion forward:

Geoffrey Mac!

I wasn’t thrilled by any one designer’s collections. I thought Nancy and Geoffrey had some really nice pieces, and thought Sergio’s looks were … ahem … well-made, if dated. I didn’t like Victoria’s collection at all because it was a lot of the same and then two dashes of color and something entirely different. That said, I’m glad Geoffrey won, because I think his ideas can be mainstreamed for those who don’t want sleeve pants or puffer coats as big as a Mini Cooper. I’d wear a big long puffer coat and turn heads all over Smallville.

And Geoffrey, even though he’s much younger than Nancy is the oldest winner—at 42—in PR history! And the cheers from his fellow designers who had been eliminated all through the show, proved even they thought he deserved it.

Now …the men. Taurean Everett was back and they didn’t show him fully undressed? I have lodged a complaint with Bravo. Designer Fernando Garcia was back and looking hot in the crowd. And both of Nancy’s sons were very handsome indeed. I scoured the internet for pictures of them, but my efforts failed. So, look at Taurean and Fernando.

LINES OF THE NIGHT

Geoffrey, after his win:

“All the counseling in the world wouldn’t have done what ‘Project Runway’ has done for me. I’m gonna take four days off … in a row.”

And then he calls his dad, who is thrilled at his win.

Christian, to Sergio in Mood, saying he’ll make a modern sweater:

“So, you took some advice? That’s good. That’s a first. We made a breakthrough. It only took the whole season.”

Yup.

Elaine, as Taurean Everett walks the runway:

“Yessssssssss. All right.”

Elaine? I love you gurl, but step back!

Nancy, when Taurean came to the model casting:

“Oh, how can we forget? The six-pack … or eight-pack … or ten-pack. Whatever that was.”

Um, it's mine, Nancy. Mine.

Karla Welch, convincing Geoffrey to leave some accessories off his models:

“Clean! She’s wearing a massive chainmail puffer.”

Words to live by.

Geoffrey, to Christian after a critique:

“I love you, Christian.”

Christian, in reply:

“I know.”

I kinda love Christian, too, in that keep him in your pocket and take him out for advice when you need it kind of way.

Now, for the designers: Sergio’s proposal was sweet, and he appeared almost life-like. I am glad he humbled down in the last two episodes. Maybe after hearing himself on TV, or having people talk about his arrogance, hit home. Victoria? I think she’ll continue to make cut-out power suits, though she may add crocheted baseball caps to all of them. Nancy? I think if she refines her POV she’ll be able to make a name for herself.

What did YOU think?