Project Runway Season Three: Recap of Finale Part Two - 10/19/06

Wow, this is it - the final recap of yet another excellent season of Project Runway.  Although this season had far fewer moments of psychotic villainy (from Santino) and far fewer hilarious impressions of Tim Gunn (from Santino,) it still rocked in its own way.

I have to say that the thing I loved MOST about this season was the far superior level of designers.  We needed to see at least four of the designers present at Bryant Park. Maybe more. I would have enjoyed seeing how Malan's work and Keith Michael's work looked in a final collection, too. And deep down, I know Robert Best is capable of gorgeous, non-boring designs. I would have liked to have seen him present. And maybe Kayne. Hell, maybe they should just allow everybody to present a collection, so many talented contestants are participating on the show.

But our Final Four this time were Jeffrey, Uli, Laura, and Michael, each tremendously talented in his or her own right.  And I was psyched to see each of their collections.

Here in my Mystic recaps I have been awarding points to the designers each week, based on my own whimsical sense of who is being cool or doing neat stuff.  These will be the "base points" that we start with as I judge each of the collections. So each designer starts out with the points already awarded to him.

In this case, headed into the finale, the score looks like this:

Michael Knight is in the lead with 10 Mystic Points

Laura Bennet has 8 Mystic Points

Uli Herzner has 7 Mystic Points

Jeffrey Sebelia has 6 Mystic Points

For the collections, here's how I will be scoring:

+1 point for any garment presented in a collection that makes me go, "OOOOOH!" as in "OOOOH! I JUST SAW SOMETHING PRETTY!"

-1 points for any garment that makes me go "EEEEEECK!"

And 0 or neutral points for garments that I neither love nor hate. If they inspire a reaction of "Meh, whatever," that design receives 0 points.

The points will be tallied up for each designer and then these points will be added to the prior scores that the designer has already accumulated throughout the show. I truly believe that final judging should be based on the body of work for that designer, and by "body of work" I also include things like how much that designer has been a team player, how cool and fun they've been, and other factors that show the person is likeable and not a complete psychotic (like Santino.)

After all, the winning designer is being awarded money to help them open a business, and I don't think we should be handing that moolah out to lunatics.   This is how the Mystic sees it, anyway.

Mel Gibson, you're not getting any money from me!

Although Jeffrey's behavior toward Angela's mom was tilting toward the psychotic in the Mom episode, everybody has had their client from hell, and it's never easy dealing with someone you really, really, really clash with.  You see that he already has the lowest score of all of the designers right now, and this is because I've already taken his past (Santino-like) behavior into account in the earlier episodes.  So he's been punished enough, already! And he still has a chance to come out on top if the scores for his collection are strong enough.

Now - let's get to the finale.

Tension is building in the workroom ever since Laura voiced concerns that Jeffrey might have outsourced a lot of his sewing work. She points out that Jeffrey employs a whole studio filled with sample makers and patterns makers as part of his Cosa Nostra business, so it wouldn't have been much of a stretch for him to ask for some help.

The Cosa Nostra Girls Hard at Work Anticipating Their Nightly Bowl of Lukewarm Gruel

This is a problem that really needs to be addressed in future seasons of the show. How can the producers ensure that the contestants don't resort to outside help?  I mean, Chloe from last season had, like six seamstress sisters who could have helped her out at her Lot 7 store. People who already have a viable clothing business are a little different than the Michael Knights who are sewing on a little sewing machine in their apartment or house or whatever.

Maybe we need an army of Tim Gunns standing guard at the designers' homes throughout the two month period when they're preparing their garments for Fashion Week.

"We have ways of making you talk about your outsourcing. Confess!"

As Tim Gunn and a staff of accountant types go over Jeffrey's receipts, looking for discrepancies, Jeffrey realizes he might be in major doo-doo. He already admitted that he had sent some shorts out for pleating, so he decides to create a new skirt just in case the shorts aren't allowed on the runway.  This is a good thing, as we don't want another bottomless model on the runway. We had enough of that last season with Zulema's gold dress.

Sure, from the front it looks okay. But in the back, it's all tooty!

We hear Jeffrey speaking with Tim on the phone about the receipt situation. Apparently, one of the pleating receipts is missing, and Tim needs Jeffrey to contact the company who did the pleating for him and have them Fax over a receipt. Jeffrey is a bit worried about this because he says "It's like Sanford and Son" over there.

Who knew that Redd Foxx had reincarnated and is now running a sewing outsourcing company?

"Things are pretty clean around here, if you don't mind the garbage."

Tim shows up in the workroom and asks everyone to gather round. He gets a bit misty as he realizes that this is their last "Gather round." Sniff!  He has to go over some things with them. The receipt was never found for the pleating of the shorts, so he tells Jeffrey he'll have to lose that garment for the presentation. Also, Jeffrey is about $295 over his $8000 budget, and that needs to be brought in line. But the good news is that the producers have decided to give Jeffrey the benefit of the doubt about his other outsourcing and are letting him present at Fashion Week. 

Yay for Jeffrey! What an emotional roller coaster ride.

He's momentarily overcome by the drama and breaks into tears, comforted by Earth mother Uli.  Everybody gathers round, and Laura has a big smile on her face. She says she never wanted to beat him in the accountant's office. She wants a chance at him on the runway. She's glad he's still in the competition.

Jeffrey is suprisingly forgiving of Laura, his accuser. He says it was all due to her inexperience (again with the dissing of everybody who doesn't yet have their own fashion line - that's Jeffrey for you.)

Jeffrey had brought along some truly atrocious blond milkmaid wigs that he planned to use on all the models, but thanks to him being overbudget, he decides to lose the wigs. They would have worked fine if he had planned to call it the Cindy Brady Collection.

"And there was rejoicing throughout the land at the death of the horrible blonde fright wigs."

Tim gives them their last pep talk before they head into the presentation the next day.  He's very verklempt and proud of all of them. He tells them that they're all winners.

The next day everyone is psyched as they head into the tent where they will be presenting. Everything looks all shiny and white.

Lots of past Runway winners and competitors are in the audience. We see Chloe, Daniel V., Vincent Libretti, Angela Keslar, and all of the designer's parents. Jeffrey's girlfriend and adorable munchkin child are there. Michael's parents are there. Uli's German parents are there, beaming with pride over their little krapken.

Vocabulary Review - krapken: a tasty German pastry

Heidi Klum comes out, glowing like she always does. The judges for the runway will be Michael Kors, Nina Garcia, and Fern Mallis. Fern is the creator of Fashion Week and she also runs a fashion company.

Jeffrey is the first to present.

I won't post all the photos, but you can view them at this link.

You can't really tell in these static images how nicely his designs moved. His designs were bright, youthful, and unusual.  Several of the pieces fell flat for me, but on the whole, I liked more of his designs than I thought I would.  I liked his final blue flowing dress (which the judges hated for some reason.)

Another highlight was the green striped minidress and some of the looks with the red gingham type farmgirl print. Here are my scores for Jeffrey's designs:

Four designs that did nothing for me and each earned 0.

Six designs I really liked, each earned +1 point.

Two designs I thought were total clunkers which earned -1 each.

Final tally of Jeff's scores:

He started out with 6 Mystic Points from prior weeks of the show.

Subtract 1 point for each of the two uglies; that leaves him with 4 Points.

Add 1 point for each of the six designs I liked. 4 + 6 = 10 Points.

So Jeff's final score is 10 Mystic Points.

Uli presented her collection next.

Uli really surprised me with her color palette and her silhouettes. This wasn't standard Uli fare. Although some of her print dresses were in the collection, and each was lovely, she did some funky and elegant things with silver fabrics and beige and orange.  I really felt that this was a cohesive and fun and interesting collection. 

See photos of Uli's collection here.

There were three designs that did nothing for me and earned 0.

There were two designs I didn't like at all, each earned -1.

And there were seven designs I liked very much. Each earned +1.

Uli started out with 7 Mystic Points heading into this competition.

Subtract -1 each for the two icky garments. That leaves her with 5 points.

And add 7 points for the wonderful designs. That leaves her with a total of 12 Mystic Points. This is Uli's final score.

Uli's final score is 12 Mystic Points.

Laura presented her collection next. She had gotten rid of the "chartreuse popsicle" coat/dress that Tim hated, so that wasn't in the collection. I think it would have been a nice piece. But Laura decided to go with a simple color pallette of nude fabrics, blacks, and silver sparkles.

See Laura's collection here.

The nude dresses didn't really wow me. And she had one monstrosity in the middle that was a black halter top and black pants beneath some kind of sheer cover that was one of those "Oh no!" designs, as far as I was concerned.

But her black evening dresses were GORGEOUS. Each of them outstanding. And her final silver sparkling beaded gown was a vision in loveliness. Overall, I thought the first part of her collection wasn't as strong as the second part, but it was very elegant and very Laura, and women will definitely wear her designs. Heck, I want to wear them! Make me a black dress, Laura, pretty please!

In Laura's collection, three designs inspired a neutral reaction and rated 0 points each.

Two designs garnered a "How much kitchen sherry was she drinking when she made these?" reaction. They earned -1 each.

Seven designs wowed me. I have to say, I love Laura's work overall, and I could totally see her elegant dresses in high end department stores around the world. Each of these seven designs rates +1 each.

Laura came into the finale with 8 Mystic Points.

Subtract two points for the "What was she thinking?" dresses, which leaves her with 6 points.

There were three dresses that inspired a neutral reaction for 0 points.

And add seven points for the great designers. 6 + 7 = 13 points.

So Laura's final total is 13 Mystic Points.

Last to present was Michael, clearly the crowd favorite, and a man who occupies a special place in my heart, too. Brandy of Moesha and singing fame was sitting in the audience, eager to see Michael's designs. Or was she really there to chat him up?  He's reportedly dating her now. Way to go, Michael!  Make use of those hidden benefits of appearing on Project Runway.

See Michael's designs here.

Michael had gone with a street safari theme, and I have to say, with some of his designs, he appeared to be trying too hard. He seemed to be showing the Daniel V. problem. Daniel V. and Michael are both brilliant, sweet guys, but they are both still very young. Daniel seemed to have troubles editing his pieces last year, and Michael also had that problem here.

Some of the designs were standouts. I liked what he was doing with the white laced up sporty dress. But then he took this same look and did some "Meh, whatever" variations on it. I wish he had done something completely different instead of repeating that look.

He suffered from the same problem with his hot shorts series. He was working off the fantastic hot pants in pink look that worked for him in the Pam Grier challenge. But here, these outfits just looked costumey.

Some of his minidresses were cute, and I loved his swimsuits. They had interesting geometrical forms going on that were very complimentary to the female body. The man knows women's bodies, that's for sure.

Some of his animal print safari dresses at the end were fun, and I could totally see women buying them, and I loved those looks.

Michael had already accumulated 10 Mystic Points over the course of the show, and I thought this would make him a shoe-in for a final winner.

Let's see.

He starts with 10 points heading into the runway presentation.

Subtract -1 point each for three designs I really didn't like.

There were five designs that garnered a neutral reaction from me. These were mostly his "retread" dresses where I felt he was spinning his wheels, repeating old themes.

And unfortunately there were only four designs that I liked, which earn +1 each.

So Michael's final score is 11 Mystic Points.

So, my final tallies are:

Jeff's final score is 10 Mystic Points.

Uli's final score is 12 Mystic Points.

Laura's final total is 13 Mystic Points.

Michael's final score is 11 Mystic Points.

This makes Laura the winner!  She earned the most Mystic Points, with a grand total of 13.

A big congratulations to you, Laura Bennett, and cake and streamers and party hats to you, too!  You deserve them!

Now, let's briefly discuss those OTHER judges and their scoring.

When the designers head back to Parson's for their final evaluations from the judges, the judges are hard on Michael's collection. They were clearly disappointed with what they saw from him - and sad about it, too, because they do like him.

All of the judges are pleased with Jeffrey's collection and find it to be very cohesive. Michael Kors especially feels that this collection represtents the same woman going about her day with different looks, and he finds this all very believable as a collection.

Overall, the judges emphasize that all of the designers are great and that women will wear their clothes and that it is a hard decision to choose just one as the winner.

Although they say Laura's collection looks like she had a $30,000 budget instead of a $8000 one and that everything is meticulously put together, Nina expresses that she isn't very innovative in this collection.

The judges also really love Uli's collection. She pushed herself to do something different and made clothes that women will really want to wear.

They tell Michael that they believe in him as a designer but that they feel he needs more time to grow and mature in his vision. They tell Michael that he's out.

Sniff. Don't fret over it, Michael!  You're still loved by everyone and we all look forward to seeing what you design in the future.

Next they tell Laura that they love her stuff, too, and Fern Mallis says there's nothing wrong with her beautiful black dresses, which women will want to wear. But Laura is still out.

It's down to Uli and Jeffrey, who look at each other and laugh and briefly hug. Who will be the final winner?

They applaud Uli for mixing things up and doing some different things in her collection and reiterate that women will want to wear her designs.

They also tell Jeffrey that his collection showed range and it was imaginative and cohesive.

And then they announce. . .

Jeffrey is the winner!

Wow!

Jeffrey is in shock, and I am too, watching it.

How do I feel about Jeffrey's win?

Pretty good. I liked his creative sense of fun that was shown in his collection. It wasn't nearly as dark or Goth as I expected from him, and I liked it.  I liked Uli's collection better, but I know that she and all of the others will be going on to great things.

Nina Garcia mentioned to the other judges that she had already had requests from people about how they can get in touch with Uli.

So expect to see work from all of these fabulous designers up ahead.  We love you all! A big, heartfelt thanks to each of you for entertaining us, exercising your grand sense of personal vision with your designers, and -- perhaps more importantly -- putting up with us annoying bloggers commenting on your every move!

Jeffrey's girlfriend and his little boy join him onstage in a group hug, and the judges are all crying, and everybody is moved and happy.

And thus ends Season Three of Project Runway!

Whatever will we do with our Wednesday nights now?

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If you missed my earlier Runway recaps, you'll find them here:

Articles index

Final Scores of Lipstick Mystic Points:

Vincent Libretti:      1 Wacky Mystic Point from first week; 3 Mystic Patience Points from second week; grand total: 4 Mystic Points (eliminated - and then eliminated again tenth episode!)

Alison Kelly:       1 Cute and Kittenish Mystic Point from first week; 1 Enthusiasm Mystic Point from third week; 2 Sweet Ingenue Mystic Point from fourth week; 1 Sweet Moonbeams and Fairy Dreams Point from sixth week: Grand Total: 5 Mystic Points (eliminated)

Robert Best:       2 Funny and Fabulous Mystic Points from first week; 1 Remember You're Fabulous Point from fifth week; 1 You Rock Mystic Point from sixth week; 1 Sweet Soul Point from seventh episode; (eliminated) Grand Total: 5 Mystic Points

Malan Breton:       2 Mysterious and Villainous Mystic Points from first week; 2 Mystic Patience Points (for not killing his evil mother) from second week; sub-total so far: 4 Mystic Points (Eliminated second episode; we'll miss you, Malan!)

Laura Bennett:       1 Cool Mom Mystic Point from first week; 1 Well-Dressed Pup Mystic Point from third week; 2 Taming the Rosette Mystic Point from fourth week; 1 Mystic Pregnancy Point from seventh week; 2 Mystic Taste Points from tenth week; 1 Pink Dress Loveliness point from eleventh episode; subtotal of 8 Mystic Points headed into final challenge; -2 for two not so good dresses; +7 for some great dresses; GRAND TOTAL: 13 Mystic Points

Laura Bennett wins the Lipstick Mystic Competition!

Michael Knight:       1 Fierce Talent Mystic Point from first week; 1 Underappreciated Genius Mystic Point from third week; 2 Taming the Rosette Mystic Points from fourth week; 1 Zen Master Mystic Point and 1 Well-Deserved Recognition Point from fifth week; 1 Mind Over Matter Mystic Point from sixth week; 1 Wickety Wack Intervention Point from tenth week; one Using the Force Wisely point from eleventh episode; 1 Mantra Point from eleventh episode; sub-total of 10 Mystic Points head into final challenge; -3 for some "off" designs; +4 for some great designs; GRAND TOTAL: 11 MYSTIC POINTS

Jeffrey Sebelia:       1 Pageants Are Weird Mystic Point from first week; 2 I Finally Get You Mystic Points from fourth week; 1 Villain Point from fifth week; 1 Ugly/Beautiful Mystic Point from sixth week; 1 Spiritual Warrior point from this week; sub-total heading into final challenge: 6 Mystic Points; -2 for "off" designs; +6 for pretty designs; GRAND TOTAL MYSTIC POINTS: 10 MYSTIC POINTS

Keith Michael:       1 Model Strategizing Mystic Point from second week; grand total 1 Mystic Point (eliminated fourth episode)

Uli Herzner:       1 Dining Mystic Point from third week; 1 Model Strategizing Mystic Point from third week; 2 Uli Love Mystic Points from sixth week; 1 Party Girl Mystic Point from eighth week; 1 Uli Love Point from tenth week; 1 model stealing point from eleventh episode; sub-total 7 Mystic Points headed into final challenge; -2 for some "off" designs' +7 for some gorgeous designs; GRAND TOTAL: 12 MYSTIC POINTS

Bradley Baumkirchner: 1 Trust Your Vision Mystic Point from third week; 1 Best Roommate Ever Mystic Point from this week; total 2 Mystic Points (eliminated fifth episode)

Angela Keslar:       1 Dr. Evil Mystic Point from second week; 1 Incomprehensible Aesthetic Mystic Point from third week; 1 Wow You Have Talent Point from fifth week; 2 Mystic Patience Points from episode seven; grand total: 5 Mystic Points (eliminated - and then eliminated again tenth episode!)

Darlene, Angela's mom: 2 Mystic Patience Points from seventh episode

Tim Gunn: 2 Adoration and Worship Mystic Points from fourth week; 1 Hip-Hop Know-How Point for using "bling" in conversation from this week; sub-total 3 points. GRAND TOTAL 3 POINTS! YAY TIM GUNN!

Kara Janx: 1 Viva La Janx, Long Live the Janx Mystic Point from sixth week

Kayne Gillaspie: 3 Mystic Weight Loss Points from seventh week; 1 Country Star Mystic Point from eighth week; 1 Pretty Design Point from tenth episode; total: 5 Mystic Points (eliminated)

Jia Santos - 2 Grace and Beauty Modeling Mystic Points