Thursday, August 30, 2012

PR: Lord & Taylor

We see at Lord & Taylor mannequins with looks by previous designers, which will become a collection, with one of our new designer's looks.  I like this.  I like the shout out to past designers and the practice in commercial design is important. 
The looks must be reproducible and will be sold for 200-300 dollars, and the fabric is coming from the production company, so no budget.  But still a one-day challenge. 
I appreciated seeing more of the sketches this week.  I wish they'd do this every week.  I like seeing a close-up during the show that I can remember and see how well the final look represents that initial vision.  It gives you a good idea of who can edit, who is doing too much of the same thing, and who has poor time management.
We had an awful lot of meltdowns this week!  On the other hand, dresses!

Fabio:  The dress was too simple, though it was sleek. I'm not a fan of the v back and glaring zipper.  I like the hang of the sheer on the skirt, but I wished for more.  Respect for Fabio wearing a garland, though. 
Melissa: This dress actually worked out pretty well.  It's a little off-kilter for Lord & Taylor but I appreciate that.  It's pretty, though still firm.  The asymmetrical hem is too long or too short...I can't decide. (Michael Kors agrees with me on this.)  I am kind of tired of that style of hem anyway. I also like that it's kind of coppery brown.  While that doesn't look good on everyone, it's a color that I'd like to see more. 
Gunnar loves that short and lace.  I appreciate that there are some sleeves.  The dress, though, didn't feel that special.  It has the shape of any number of black, lacy cocktail dresses.  (I wish to point out at this time that I wrote this comment before the judges' panel took place.  That they said exactly what I said was a little creepy.)
Elena: The fabric is a little strange structurally.  The shape is interesting, but the fabric seemed all wrong for the skirt.  Or perhaps it wasn't cut in a way conducive to its inherent structure.  In a different fabric, I think this dress would have worked better.  The construction also didn't seem strong, with some crazy seams.
Christopher:  You know I love ballet pink.  I would wear this dress, though I might have liked some sort of belt at the waist, something satiny, maybe.  Just something to give it some sheen.  I'm glad the judges liked the dress.  I actually think that they could get more than $300 for it at Lord & Taylor.  It was right for him to get called out for overusing a technique, though.
Alicia: I'm not a fan.  It is different, but it didn't look well crafted.  It actually reminds me of a dance costume I had once.  We were flappers, but our dresses were black with a little glitter, and a slashed skirt.  They looked a bit like garbage bags because they were, indeed, baggy, too much so to see the fabric had some glitter, which it needed more of.  Also, it had a high neck.  As soon as I saw Alicia's look, I went back to that recital.  She is not, however, Amish, Michael Kors.
Sonjie: Peplums.  Oh, peplums.  At the same time, it is a really simple dress, not one that has much to it.  I thought Sonjia might land in the bottom because of that oversimplified look.
Ven:  I might have liked this better if the top was a color.  A real color, like a stunning green.  I still like the pretty folding, and any number of women would love to wear this dress, but this technique is all he does, in much the same way.  I don't see Ven stretching himself.
Dmitry: This is a pretty good dress, sleek with some seaming detail.  The hem looks a little sketchy, though.  Not his best work in construction.

The judges did four up and two down this week...and the fourth up was unexpected.  I was really curious about what dress they would pick.  I think I'm glad they picked Christopher's.  It made the most sense for the challenge parameters: Pretty, marketable, makeable, expensive-looking, good for a window, good fit with the others...a logical choice. 
Then we got a surprise.  Gunnar is in, because "everyone met the bar of this challenge."  So we have solved the problem of having had two people disappear and only one cut designer come back, which sets us up for...
Teams next week.  Again.