Project Runway

The long wait is over and at last we know who the winner of Project Runway 4 is. As Tim Gunn hinted, it ultimately came down to a matter of taste. All three of the final designers had elements to their designs that were beautiful, but none of the collections was without its flaws. In the end, the judges felt that Christian Siriano's theatricality was tempered by his preternaturally mature sophistication and taste level, and that his looks were the best offered in the finale.

Some viewers have wondered why Christian's collection was deemed the winner, while a similarly dramatic collection like Chris March's was auf'd?

I sense the difference between the two comes down to couture (in the sense of high fashion as opposed to the strict definition of couture, meaning hand-made within a set of guidelines) versus costume. Both couture and costume can be absurd, whimsical, theatrical and essentially impossible any woman who is not an Isabella Blow sort to wear under real-world circumstances.

So what's the difference, then? It's hard to define and might tempt one to use the famous Justice Potter Stewart quote about obscenity: “I know it when I see it.” For the Project Runway judges, who have spent ages in front rows at fashion shows, consuming every fashion magazine and have been steeped in that world for years, their sense of what works as couture and what simply seems like a costume might almost be too ineffable to be articulated, but they clearly felt that Christian's efforts fell into the former rather than the latter. Again, as Tim Gunn likes to say: it's a matter of taste.

Personally, after really seeing the collections in action last night (I had skimmed the photos but not really absorbed them), I have to say I think I agree. Jillian Lewis had the looks I liked all season, but I was a little disappointed, and, as Michael Kors likes to say, underwhelmed by her collection. There were certainly some of her usual quirky elements, but I felt it was missing the kind of subtly sexy feel her work had during the season.

Rami Kashou's had some beautiful pieces and a lot of range, but as Nina Garcia points out, his forte is evening wear. Had he created an entire line as breathtaking and exciting as his final two evening gowns, Christian would have had a lot more to worry about it. I also agreed with the judges that color didn't seem to be his strong point; The deep blue-teal was pretty, but in the context of the other colors selected, there just seemed to be no cohesion, except for, as Kors put it, a feeling of the “Brady Bunch.”

Christian's collection was once again too monochromatic and neutral for my tastes – he's so talented, I want to see what he does with color – but was overall so sophisticated and witty and somehow also captured some of Christian's haughty diva self-confidence. I totally understood why Victoria Beckham said it made her smile; it was a collection that perfectly reflected Christian as a person: fierce (I couldn't avoid finally using that word), fashion-forward and funny.

Nevertheless, I'm picking a Chic and Freak for each designer because despite any flaws, I think all three did so well and made it a great season of Project Runway.



Rami's vintage lace evening gown was simply breathtaking, and was also such a departure from the way we had grown so used to seeing him work with fabric on the show. Jillian's best look is nowhere nearly as flashy as the other two, but its subtly is part of its strength. Unlike the other two designers, her look could very easily move immediately to ready-to-wear, but the customer would still have the kind of little details (like the cowl) that make it fashion-forward. Christian's line was so consistent it was hard to pick a best. I was tempted to pick the outfit with the giant champagne-colored collar and large hat because it was so delightful I laughed out loud when I first saw it. But I think the rest of the outfit was a little plain and repetitive with some other pieces, whereas this one was unique and beautiful.



This look of Rami's just wound up looking so low-rent compared to the rest of his collection. I think mulberry pants are a hard look to pull off without looking cheap and he did not succeed. Speaking of costumes, Jillian's gold dress looks like it came from the wardrobe vault from Penthouse's Caligula. Christian's outfit makes his model look like a linebacker. I don't mind his use of volume in most of his looks, but the shape has to at least recall the shape of a woman's curves to be successful. This is just one big champagne-colored rectangle from the waist up.

Overall, though, it was a mainly Chic season...now how long do we have to wait until Project Runway 5?

- Leslie Seaton, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
(Image courtesy of Bravo)