10x00 - Road to the Runway

[bunniefuu]

[Upbeat music]

Project Runway 10x00
Road to the Runway Season 10
Original Air Date on July 19, 2012



Welcome to Project Runway

Season Ten.

♪ ♪

This is the road to the runway.

♪ ♪

Tonight kicks off Project

Runway's tenth anniversary and

one of the most exciting seasons

in the history of the show.

I'm here to give you a sneak

peek at the workroom.

This space is designed to

celebrate and pay homage to the

ten great seasons of designers

and the drama on Project Runway.

Many designers' lives have

changed because of the work they

did in this very room.

Behind me, you see the nine

previous winners.

Tonight, you will meet 16

talented hopefuls, one of whom

will take the tenth title.

So how does an aspiring

designer get here to this very

room?

The selections process begins

with a nationwide casting

call, where thousands of

aspiring fashion designers

submit their portfolios and home

videos.

Hey, what's up?

From there, the most

promising designers are invited

to an audition for a coveted

spot on the show.

The panel of judges have their

work cut out for them.

Thankfully, there are moments of

pure comic relief.

G-o, go New York.

G-o, let's go.

[Applause and laughter]

I got rejected from every

school that I applied to in, um,

in New York.

My aesthetic is--it's like--

oh.

Come on.

I forgot my--

my girl name is Francesca.

Uh-huh.

Okay.

My boy's name is Raul.

I try to lift you up, get

your chi flowing, you know what

I mean?

Right. [Laughs]

'Cause when your chi is free,

you know.

You know?

This is not project lingerie.

Who would you fit that

thong on?

Project Booty Call.

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

Happily, on the opposite end

of the spectrum are 16

incredibly gifted designers

that stood out from the crowd.

Who are they and who has the

best chance of winning?

Two former Project Runway

designers, Nick Verreos and

Mondo Guerra will tell us

exactly what they think.

We'll even debate who our

top three of the entire season

are.

Nick, would you like to see

my top three?

I'll show you mine if you

show me yours.

Ooh, what's that about?

You know.

First up, designers with a

flair for drama.

They're gifted and they really

seem to know it.

Is their bravado due to a

healthy dose of confidence or is

it just c*ck?

You decide.

Hi, and welcome.

Is that stupid?

[Laughter]

Hi.

My name Christopher Palu and I'm



Astoria Queens.

Fashion is my life.

I'm constantly thinking of

designing and pulling things

from inspiration, from

everywhere.

Nothing feels more amazing to me

than seeing my clothes on a

woman and making her look like a

ferocious b*tch.

I love rendering fur.

I love just holding fur.

I wanna die laying on fur.

Christopher.

Nice to see you guys.

Oh, this is--this is cool,

though.

Tell me about this dress.

These illustrations are

wonderful.

This is black organza.

Thank you.

I had a dream of this dress.

I love this black dress by

Christopher.

His execution of the dress

coming from a dream into reality

just was really beautiful.

I was made fun of my entire

life for being g*y and

being, you know, flamboyant.

I have severe asthma, and I

actually had a heart attack in

senior year of high school.

Wild.

It was called myocarditis.

I caught it as a virus.

So hopefully I don't have a

heart attack on set.

[Laughs]

This is my--my gown.

[Laughs]

I'm really digging your

gowns.

So is evening wear, would you

say, your strong suit?

Do you do--

I do pants, like

ready-to-wear, yeah.

Yeah, and I just wanna be

a designer.

He seems like one of those

designers that's very confident,

very self-aware, and

self-assured.

I'm so ready.

I-I'm so competitive.

I have a great personality.

This is, like, my time to shine.

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

Hey, guys.

I'm Dmitry.

Welcome to my house.

I'm definitely a leader.

Like, it's in my blood.

I'm an alpha.

Hi, Dmitry.

Hi, Dmitry, how are you

doing?

Oh, you know my name already.

That's cool.

Yeah.

Uh, I was born in Belarus.

It's Eastern Europe.

It's a post Soviet Union

country.

And I was a very happy child.

And since I was a little kid, I

knew I wanted to be a designer.

I moved to the United States and

then I actually started modeling

a little bit.

But it wasn't for me because

if you wanna be a model, you

have to be a girl, and I knew

that I wanted to do something

else, and here I am.

I'm so ready for the next stage.

All right, cool.

So let's talk about your

clothes.

Show us what you--what you

brought us today.

I brought this coat, and it

has a surprise element to it.

So the lining, it becomes a

separate piece.

Dmitry, Dmitry from Belarus.

All I could think of was Paris

Fashion Week.

That coat that then turned into

a short-cropped bolero jacket, a

lining underneath.

I thought, yes, it was

conceptual, but at the same

time, it was modern.

He reminds me a lot of Albert

Elbaz of Lanvin.

I think this piece, it's,

um, the best representation of

me, who I am as a designer.

I have to say, the clothes

themselves don't have a lot of

hanger appeal.

What's selling me is seeing it

on the model in your portfolio.

There's a sort of lack of

excitement for me.

Are you serious?

I'm sorry.

There's a lack of excitement,

but I have to say, you clearly

know how to make a garment.

If you're a good designer,

you can make a piece of [bleep]

look like candy.

I'm a maybe.

I'm a maybe for you.

Maybe?

Come on, guys, give me a chance.

Well, and you made this.

Yes, and this is--

the pants and the sweater and

the--that's all you.

Yes.

That's what selling me.

Mm-hmm.

I would wear that.

It's kinda elegant but

casual.

I love it.

I have big talent.

I have a lot of experience.

I have personality.

I'm so ready to be on the show,

and I think the show would be so

much more better with me.

[Laughs]

Hi, how are you?

I'm Lantie Foster.

Come on in.

This is my studio.

I just recently opened up a



the garment center, and I want

to take over the whole floor.

So you make your living as a

designer?

In the garment center.

How's it doing?

It's doing really well.

Since I Feng Shuied my desk,

even better.

Some girls might think I'm

pretty or something.

If I see, like, somebody who's

really talented and pretty

across the room, like, you're

instantly part of our group.

Come here.

[Laughs]

You're gonna join our

pretty girl group.

I grew up in Northern

California, and my father

wanted me to go to law school,

that I could get any car I

wanted, but when I told him

that I wanted to, uh, go to art

school, he called it basket

weaving and he, like, cut me

off.

[Camera shutter clicking]

But I went anyway.

I like to take the basic classic

shapes and, like, really ramp

them up with unusual textures

and things.

The front of this, it has spikes

here, detailed and pleating,

and this is metallic stretch

elastic.

So this is real python, and

this is water snake.

Again, one of my favorites.

This actually has, like, silk,

wool, and linen combined, and

then leather trim accent here.

You know, I think that some

of them are a little

over-designed.

They're not for me.

I understand your opinion.

I appreciate it.

I really like the spikes and

and then the bow.

To me, that's, like, one of my

favorite parts.

Lantie's clothes, I thought

they were pretty.

The--you know, what she had on,

the dress she showed with the

cut-out.

You can see that there's talent

there, for sure.

When it comes to my designs,

I get really, like, protective.

Kind of like I'm, you know, like

a mommy bird, you know, like

those are my babies, and I don't

really think you know you're

talking about.

[Laughs]

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

For me, it's like, I think

the reason why I'm competitive

is why I don't have too many

friends.

My name is Ven Sekhar Budhu.

I was born in a third world

country.

Like, no one even knows where it

is when I say it sometimes.

It's Guyana.

It's in South America.

I came to New York at age four.

I grew up in Queens, New York.

When I was about five or six

years old, the famous movie

Beauty and the Beast, I used to

watch the cover and draw Belle's

gown on the [indistinct].

I think, from that point, my

family really saw that there was

potential there.

It was always fashion,

and I pursued my dream.

But for me, I really do think

that I would really stand out,

not just because of my ethnicity

or the way I look, but I think

the work.

It's beautiful.

It's gorgeous.

Thank you.

Absolutely gorgeous.

Thank you.

My work is more geared towards

that modern, sophisticated

glamorous look, but it still

can be young.

So you obviously have a

favorite color palette here.

Obviously, red is my favorite

color.

Red?

But--red.

But I wanted to, um, create a

look that was very romantic but

als--at the same time, it had

very strong lines.

Mm-hmm.

This is where I sew,

and these are photographs of

the looks.

My aesthetic is definitely

sexy but it's sophisticated.

My customer, if she walks into

a room, she owns it.

Ven, I'm really impressed.

You're probably one of the

best we've seen.

Very strong.

Thank you very much.

When Ven walked into the

room, I was like, "Who is this

guy?"

Beautiful seam work and piece

and piece and piece and just--

just simple silhouettes.

Tone on tone, and it's just

beautiful.

The minute Nina Garcia

sees Ven and his designs, she's

gonna have a fashion Colombian

orgasm.

Everybody wants to be a

designer, but the reality is,

you either have it or you don't.

Last year, we did things a

little differently on

Project Runway.

We started off with 20 designers

and sent four of them home on

the first day.

Gunnar Deatherage was one of

them...

It was devastating,

devastating.

Which is exactly why this

feisty designer has returned

this season with a vengeance.

Welcome back, Gunnar.

Hello, Gunnar.

Hey, how are you?

I'm good.

This eyebrow goes up, I'm

a b*tch.

Nobody wants--nobody wants to be

around me when this brow is up.

I'm very competitive.

I don't like to lose.

That's why going home last time

was like--it blew.

I'm really on this vintage kick

right now.

I think that there's a lot to

learn from the vintage

categories in fashion.

With Gunnar, you know, he

walked into the room, I thought

he was very energetic.

His personality really filled

the room.

First thing I wanna point

out, and this is kind of my

pride and joy, is I handmade all

my buttons.

I sawed branches through, sanded

them, stained them,

polyurethaned them, so...

Wow.

The most memorable piece that

Gunnar brought in, for me, was

the capelet.

His clothes really speak

for themselves.

So I did this equestrienne

jacket.

It just curves in on the girl's

body that wore it.

It's a great shape.

Italian Vogue actually put

this look--they chose it as one

of their photos for the day

really recently, so that was

kind of like--

Amazing.

A pride and joy moment.

Yeah.

So I also made these little

jockey hats.

Those are cute.

I don't wanna to put it on

because it will mess my hair up.

It's kind of my take on the

jockey hat kind of meets the

aviation.

I'm trying to incorporate

that equestrian style meets that

kind of Amelia Earhart kind of

machine g*n.

That's exactly what felt from

this whole collection.

Awesome.

I'm pretty quirky.

Like, I have a thousand

different things going on my

head all the time.

Like, right now, I'm thinking

about, I want another Starbucks

mocha.

I mean, but that's just, like,

kind of, like, in the space

somewhere in my head.

Well, I'm not gonna waste

any more time here.

You're a definite yes for me,

and I think that, like, this is

so much different than what you

showed last year.

Thank you.

And I really respect and

appreciate that.

It's a yes for me, Gunnar.

Thank you, guys, so much.

Really good job.

Thank you so much.

Good job.

Okay, cool.

I guess I will see you guys

someplace here.

And I want one of those

little hats.

Well, you contact me.

You Facebook me, and I'll get

you one.

I will, I will.

I'll even let you pick what

you want on the inside.

Okay, and I want one of those

wooden buttons, a big one.

Okay, I'll work on that.

[Laughs]

Up next, four no-nonsense

women who may just give our

more flamboyant and dramatic

designers a good old run for

their money.

What kind of fashion crack

are you smoking?

'Cause I want it.

[Laughs]

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

Welcome back to Road to

the Runway.

I'm here in the season ten

designers' lounge.

Looking around at all of these

amazing moments is like a trip

down memory lane, a Project

Runway scrapbook of sorts.

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

Now, let's catch up with last

year's winner.

I sat down with Anya to see what

she's been up to since winning

Project Runway.

Now, tell us, what have you been

up to since all the excitement

of winning Project Runway?

Well, it's been quite a

whirlwind.

I'm now living in New York.

I'm working on my line.

What's the name of the line?

Anya.

[Laughs]

Of course.

It seemed obvious.

Now, I can't help but

notice, there's something

blinding me on your finger over

there.

[Laughs]

I got engaged, um,

January of this year.

Congratulations.

Is there any advice that you

took from the show that you

would be giving the contestants

of this season?

Just really enjoy it because,

otherwise, it will just

disappear.

Winning--I was really as shocked

as anybody else.

And exhibit one.

[Laughter]

That was in the finale.

I look exhausted, and I think

that's because we really

hadn't slept in days.

But you know what?

When I look back on it, I have

great memories about it, and

I have great friendships that

have come from it.

Thank you so much for coming.

Thank you so much for having

me.

Now, I'd like to introduce

you to four spirited women.

Their designs are a direct

reflection of their

individuality.

Be it casual, avant-garde or

just plain unconventional,

they are not afraid to express

themselves.

[Upbeat music]

Well, hello.

I'm Sonjia, and this is my home

in Boston, Massachusetts.

I'm gonna make it to fashion

week, I'm going to make it

to fashion week.

I just--I keep telling myself

that I'm going to make it to

fashion week.

I actually don't have a job

right now, so I don't wanna do

anything for money.

There's nothing else in the

world that matters to me but

designing clothes.

It's very much my style to make

pieces that are structured.

I'm all about lines and mixing

colors and patterns and fabrics.

I have something special to

offer as a designer that, you

know, I'll hopefully be able to

show while I'm on the show.

Good morning.

Hi.

Good morning.

I love the little dress that

you're wearing now.

Thank you.

Yes, this was one of my pieces.

And is it lambskin shoulder?

Actually, we were getting rid

of this chair, and it was all

leather, so I took--

Yeah.

The whole leather off the

couch.

It's a good use of repurpose.

Exactly.

Especially, when you're on a

budget.

A lot of people do think about

their budget, and so they want a

piece that's not something

that, "okay, I could only wear

this if I'm going to a gala."

Yeah, like, who goes to galas?

Like, you know?

This piece right here, it

has, like, these pleats in it

that, uh, give it a really nice

detail.

I'm very excited.

I'm very bubbly, and I think my

clothes show that.

I made all these pieces in the

past week, um, so I wanted to

show something very new and

current.

Smart.

I love these pants.

I know, these pants are

like--

I love this pattern.

Over-sized bow and--

I love it with the crop top.

That's beautiful.

It looks great.

They're absolutely gorgeous.

Yep.

I really thought that she was

fun.

She's not afraid of color.

She works it in classic

silhouettes.

Sonjia is very Tracy Reese

meets Trina Turk, and I was very

happy that she mitered all her

prints.

Those pants were so well made.

I'm gonna make it, I'm gonna

make it.

I just--I'm gonna be--I see

myself going down this runway.

[Upbeat music]

Hi, I'm Elena.

Welcome to my house.

My favorite things to do is

avant-garde.

I'm a junkie for the dramatics,

and it shows through in a lot of

my designs.

What are you inspired by?

I have very dark themes.

What's your favorite piece?

My favorite one is this one.

You made this?

Yeah.

Sewed it?

Yeah.

Look at me, straight in the

eye.

I sewed it.

Mm-hmm.

Where are you getting these

ideas?

You know, sometimes, I get

'em in my dreams.

My stuff breaks the barriers of

female/male.

You'll never see any flowers or

any butterflies.

That's not me.

This is a corset.

Okay, Elena.

And this is just a--

I can't breathe.

We might need CPR soon.

[Laughter]

I always take my inspirations

from very masculine, almost,

things--video games, anything

futuristic.

Oh, my God.

Oh, are you kidding me?

You need two people to put it

on, though.

You do?

You do.

Okay, I got it.

I got it, okay.

What kind of fashion crack

are you smoking?

[Laughs]

'Cause I want it.

You're going to get people in

the Midwest to start to shake,

and that's where I get excited.

[Accordion music]

I grew up in Ukraine.

My immediate family moved here

when I was ten years old.

It was really hard to adjust to

this culture, and kids were

really cruel.

The language, the culture, what

I wore--we didn't come here,

like, rich.

I wore the same thing almost

every day sometimes, and I got

teased a lot of about that.

My parents did sacrifice a lot

for us to come here.

[Techno music]

It's hard to do futuristic

or modern without being

gimmicky.

]]Hank you. Oh!

You're--wow.

All I could think of was Thierry

Mugler meets Claude Montana,

Lady Gaga.

She sculpted some things that

I've never seen before.

If I could show at fashion

week, it's my dream come true.

It's any designer's dream come

true.

If anybody says otherwise,

it's bull crap.

[Upbeat music]

Hi.

How are you?

Good.

Good.

Really nervous.

[Laughs]

My name is Beatrice Guapo.

I'm 29, and I live in

Los Angeles.

I would say my aesthetic is

mixed knits.

I do like linen, and I'll

mix it with, like, a different

fabric.

I always loved clothes.

My mom said I wouldn't leave

the house until I felt like it

was perfect.

[Guitar music]

Since losing my father, it was

really hard.

It's so unfathomable to really

grasp that you are really never

ever gonna talk to this person

ever again.

We're all trying to manage life

without him.

He was very supportive.

I've gone through a lot of

things in my life so far and,

uh, I think it's definitely

given me that kind of strength,

that really you can do anything

you want to do.

These are all different colored

jerseys.

Mm-hmm.

And I blocked them together.

Pretty.

That's really pretty.

It's slimming, you know.

Yes.

Comfy and fabulous, all at

the same time.

I love Beatrice.

I think everything on her rack

would sell out in a second.

This is another one of mine.

I did the scarf as well.

I designed all these scarves.

They can change your outfit

in a second.

I'm on the go constantly, and

that's my girl.

Like, she's on the go, she wants

to look great, and she doesn't

want to think about it.

I like to make things that can

do more than one thing.

It can be a poncho, and now it's

a vest.

And you sew all these

samples?

Yes.

It's cute.

I like this a lot.

Thanks.

They were modern, they were

directional, but at the same

time, young and fresh.

Good job, thank you so much.

Yeah, good job.

Thank you.

Yay.

You just made my world.

[Laughter]

[Upbeat music]

Hi, welcome.

I'm Andrea Katz.

Welcome to my apartment in

downtown Manhattan.

Hey, Andrea.

How are you doing?

Good, good.

Tell us about yourself and

what you think your point of

view as a designer is.

Well, I think I'm a little

different than other designers.

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

I call myself an

anti-fashionista fashionista.

I don't go for conventional.

I don't look to be totally

trendy.

I really don't fit in.

I am progressive politically.

I'm a radical feminist.

My values are just very

different.

[Cat meows]

I call my collection

architectural objects for the

body, and they're about

structure.

I want my garments to

look good on the body.

I want a woman to be attractive

in them.

I love vintage fabric,

so I try to find as many fabrics

that I could use that reminded

me of, you know, your mother's

tablecloth or my mother's

tablecloth, okay?

I like you a lot.

You remind me a lot of my

mentor.

Oh, I thought you were gonna

say your mother.

No, my mentor.

I think I have an advantage.

I'm older.

I'm more confident.

And I--and I have brass ba*ls.

I have been up against the

business already.

I had my own design studio and

retail store, and then the

economy tanked and so did my

business, and I lost everything.

I was in debt up to my eyeballs.

I was homeless for a year.

I lost my savings, credit

cards--you name it, everything,

and so now I'm in the process of

pretty much putting my life back

together.

This is Gaston and this

uncooperative cat is Gielle, and

they're brothers.

They were so cute, and I had

to have them.

And now I'm an old woman with

cats, which I never thought I

would ever be.

[Upbeat music]

This selection has

experience.

Right.

It's colorful, it has

character, and you look at it

and you want to know more.

What Andrea is giving us is

wearable art.

She had taken poetry that she

had written and she applied it.

She actually silk-screened it

onto her garments, and I thought

that was really cool.

That's something I have never

seen.

I have this, I don't give a

flying [bleep] attitude.

If you don't get it, you don't

get it, you know?

Up next, a group of designers

who embody the true heart,

soul, and spirit of an artist.

My uniform is sequined shorts

with ripped up leggings.

I wear these in the winter,

I wear these in summer,

I wear these to bed.

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

Welcome back to Project

Runway Season 10 casting

special, the Road to the

Runway.

Weird, wacky, and wonderful--

these designers tend to zig when

you think they're gonna zag,

they're unpredictable, and

they're offbeat.

But the one thing you can always

depend on--their personalities

are just as colorful as the

garments they design.

[Upbeat music]

My name is Kooan Kosuke.

[Camera shutter clicking]

Not everybody in Japan is like

me, just so you know.

Hi.

[Laughter]

I'm from Japan.

Mm-hmm.

I came here, 2001,

and I learned English and I went

to a school here, graduated.

And now I work as a freelance

designer.

[Camera lens clicking]

I like jumpsuits that they can

just wear.

Very cute.

What's next?

I have "a stage frightening."

I have to go to the bathroom,

so the whole time when I was in

front of the judges, I was like,

"I want to go to the bathroom.

I want to go," so I didn't think

about trying to be shy at all.

My thing is more about fun.

Also this is not a costume.

It's--I like something that is

movable.

You can dance in the club.

It's sparkly.

It's just really a traditional

kimono.

I wanted to bring something

that would represent my culture.

Is my English understandable?

Yes.

Okay, that's good.

I liked Kooan's style.

I liked his sort of hip, cool,

young fashion artsy kid in

Tokyo.

I think that he'll do well in

the kooky challenge, you know?

Or maybe avant-garde.

He might surprise you.

It might be like a samurai

warrior goddess couture.

This is in Queens.

Come on in.

[Asian-sounding music]

Ta-da.

Rice cooker.

Eeehh.

My father's side is mad

conservative.

My mother's side is kind of

crazy.

And my mother is a graphic

designer, but my mother died.

I got the notice by email

because my phone was dead.

It's really weird, but now that

I say "we," but I really feel

like she's in me right now.

I like mixing fabric because

it's like mixing cultures.

Camouflage leopard.

It's interesting.

Almost looks liquid.

Oh, oh, oh.

[Laughter]

I really like your stuff.

I think it really has a fun

sense of humor and a lot of

spirit.

He has a really strong point of

view, and it's a different point

of view that we've ever seen

from any of the contestants.

I don't think we've seen this

kind of aesthetic walk down the

final runway, and I think that

he has a really good shot to

make it to fashion week.

'Cause I came all the way

from Japan to learn this [bleep]

English, you know what I mean?

Oh, I shouldn't curse.

Thank you so much.

Thank you so much.

Ehhh, I have to go to the

bathroom.

Ah-ah!

Nnn-mmm, hmm hmm hmm.

[Gong sound effect]

#makeitwork, Kooan, I love

you.

[Upbeat music]

Hi, I'm Buffi, and I'm going

to walk you through my wardrobe.

I love mixing prints together.

You're thinking right now,

sequins, animal, skulls, big

no-no.

Big yes, actually.

My uniform is sequined shorts

with ripped-up leggings.

I wear these in the winter.

I wear these in the summer.

I wear these to bed.

I don't think you can ever have

too many tutus.

Hi.

Hi, Buffi.

My clothes are, you know,

fun, entertaining.

I like to wear things that make

me happy.

Should we get into it?

Um, I brought my famous--it's

gonna be famous--famous circle

top.

It's reversible.

It can be belted.

It can be loose.

This is fitted along the bottom

like this.

Star trek, huh?

Yeah, it's like, um,

Barbarella.

It kinda--it kinda looks

like that on the hanger,

but when you see it on, it--

It looks--

Doesn't look so techy.

And the problem with my

clothes is, they don't hang well

on a hanger, which is, like, a

bit of an issue.

[Laughter]

Slightly.

So I brought these, which are

called angry mittens.

They're little, uh, gloves.

Mm-hmm.

And I like mixing in--

that's cool.

Some colors and stuff like

that.

I'm not crazy about all the

metallic fabrics.

You aren't?

Because they can easily read

as sort of cheap.

I do agree that the metallic

does kind of look tacky but, you

know, I am a little bit tacky,

like, you know?

I am half-Indian,

half-Australian.

I was born in England just so I

got the passport.

Such a good passport.

I grew up in Dubai in the

Middle East.

MTV followed me around for Dubai

Fashion Week.

So everyone on the show will be

like, "Buffi think she's a big

deal in Dubai."

I'm so single.

I have a really bad habit of

dating the same guy over and

over again.

I'm a huge fan of Buffi.

We had a lot of hopefuls come

into that room with this kind

of kooky, kitschy kind of

aesthetic, but Buffi did it

really well.

I really liked her look.

She impressed me by her

presentation.

She looked funky.

She looked cool.

It was sort of like, "oh, look

at pat field 20 years ago."

This isn't an actual outfit.

Please do not be horrified.

And I would give you a yes.

I like the fact that you're

wanting to send out a signature.

"This is my thing.

This is what I want to be known

for."

No one we've seen has that,

so I applaud you for that.

I'm gonna say no just because

he said yes.

[Laughter]

No, it's a yes for me too.

Oh, God, don't freak me out.

[Laughter]

You know, I said I was famous

in Dubai, didn't I?

[Laughs]

Okay.

[Upbeat music]

Hey, guys.

My name is Fabio Costa,

and I live in New York City.

I have frames on my wall that

don't have any image in them.

An empty space means that I can

put whatever I want in it.

I wear hats almost every day.

I am a freegan.

Being a freegan means that you,

um, do your grocery shopping

at dumpsters at any supermarket.

I'm gonna wear this on the show

for sure.

I love wearing dresses.

I love wearing skirts.

And I love the shape of this.

[Upbeat music]

Hey, Fabio.

My influences are very

Japanese, and I like the

structure, and I like the way

of pleating, and I like

juxtapositions and contrasting

proportions, so if it's short,

it's wide, and if it's long,

it's slim.

And then, for the top bodice, I

call it dissecting, so it's

almost like you dissect

the back piece so it's not like

typically joined at the front.

With this piece, I like to play

a lot with, like, seaming.

It looks beautiful.

It looks almost very come what

may, you know, but, you know--

oh, thank you.

That's a great compliment.

I would totally agree with

that.

I really liked his designs, I

have to say.

It looked intellectual, a little

conceptual, but at the same

time, elegant.

I would love to get into

Fabio's head for a day while

he's working in the workroom.

He has so many great ideas,

and he's so fearless, and he has

a very distinct voice.

If you bring the neck piece

down, it gives you a very

monastic feel about it, you

know?

What I like about you is--and

your clothes say it too, is that

you're not afraid to get really

involved in your process

and experiment and really

approach it in an organic,

artistic way.

I'm from this small town in

the southeast of Brazil,

and my family, being very

Catholic and very, like,

narrow-minded, and being that

I wanted to go to fashion

school, but my mom is like--

she's like, "I'll pay for it,

as long as you don't turn g*y

on me."

I'm like, "Well, I--you can't

be turned any more 'cause

I'm already g*y."

And then the phone dropped on

the floor.

"What did you just tell your

mother?

She just fainted."

I was like, "oh, I just came

out."

If I make it to fashion week

and if I have a fashion show,

if I get on that runway before

I have to, like, explain my

collection, I would faint.

Up next, the out-of-towners

take on New York.

You know what they say.

If you can make it here, you can

make it anywhere.

I'm not scared of, like, any

other designer.

Like, I just wanna kick some

a*s, and that's my biggest goal.

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

New York City has a special

kind of energy.

You will not find it anywhere

else in the world.

Making your mark here as a

fashion designer really does

mean you've arrived.

This next group of talented

designers hail from the

Midwest, but don't let their

small town charm fool you.

They are in it to win it.

Take one.

[Board clacks]

Hey, Project Runway fans.

My name is Alicia.

I'm originally from Kentucky.

I grew up there.

I was always really creative as

a kid.

I liked to draw and color, and

now I'm working on my thing.

Alicia?

Yes, I'm Alicia.

I think where my aesthetic comes

in to make it different is the

silhouette, is the shapes.

I think all of that comes

together and creates something

different.

Is this one of yours?

Yes.

It's called original tomboy.

I loved what Alicia was

wearing.

It was practical, it was

functional.

That's really cool.

That's cool.

I would wear that.

It's groovy.

Yeah.

This shirt, I actually

designed for a company

not too long ago.

We have the zipper trims here.

This piece here is sort of

emblematic of my style--

a long-sleeved knit top.

It's simple but modern with a

fresh new take.

I've actually been telling my

family since I was young that I

didn't want to get married and

have kids, and then it wasn't

till college that I figured

out why.

[Laughs]

This is my girlfriend Lauren.

We've been together, I think

it's been four years.

♪ ♪

The jeans are amazing.

I love them.

Yeah, those are really cute.

Alicia's design aesthetic was

very Williamsburg l*sbian chic.

I love the little well pocket

on the inside.

Oh, yeah, it's like--

You could carry your knife in

there.

Exactly, lipstick, knife.

Everything that she was

showing was her lifestyle.

There's a tomboy look in

fashion that comes in and out,

you know, and I think right now

is a good time for it to hit

big.

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

Hi.

I'm Melissa, and welcome to my

flat in San Francisco.

♪ ♪

I was born and raised in

Michigan.

I remember my mother, uh,

growing up.

She saved all her clothes from

the '60s, um, so I would

dress up in her clothes, just go

around in my house.

Hi.

Hi.

Hi, Melissa.

Hi.

Tell us about yourself.

Well, I just finished my MFA

at the Academy of Art in

December.

Okay, and who is your girl?

She's independent.

She likes to travel.

She likes to wear a lot of

black?

Yeah.

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

This is my closet.

My favorite color is black, and

I wear it almost every day.

I would say my look has somewhat

of a Gothic edge to it without

being too Gothic in a way.

So this is my prized

possession.

This is my--it's called the

"vute" perfecto.

Mm-hmm.

Here comes this blonde, sweet

girl.

You almost expect leggings and

Southern California Boho chic,

but then you look at her rack,

and it was all black, and it was

like, "who are you?"

♪ ♪

Your rack is--I love it.

You've got a definite style.

And I would wear your own

clothes.

Instead of that vest, put

that vest on.

See?

Yeah.

Hi.

Better.

'Cause you're selling

yourself, you're selling your

line.

No one's gonna sell you

better than you sell you.

This is now--this is

believable.

Like, I get it.

It was a simple, "take off that

vest and put on that vest that

you made," and it completely

changed the entire picture.

She really does have a shot to

make to fashion week.

The universe has spoken.

It's my time.

This kind of fell in my lap and

I'm ready to do it.

Hello.

Welcome, come in please.

[Thud]

Oh.

Hey, what's up?

Welcome to my New York

apartment.

I'm Nathan, come on in.

My name is Nathan Paul McDonald

II.

I was born in Zanesville, Ohio,

and it's this very small, small,

kind of backwards, I think, kind

of town.

There's around 40,000 people

there.

Hi, how are you all?

Good.

Good, how are you?

I'm good, thank you.

Tell us about yourself.

] I would classify myself as a

social occasion designer.

This is actually a square piece

of fabric that I've taken and

pleated and tucked so that it's

just one piece that wraps around

the body.

I really liked Nathan.

You could just feel it that he

loves what he does and that he's

born to do fashion.

[Laughter]

I was raised in Ohio.

My father, being a pastor, he

always had this notion of how we

were supposed to look.

I wore suits to school.

And so it was good growing up

in a big family.

We went to school, we came home,

we ate dinner, and we went to

church.

You go to the bowling alley,

you're going to hell.

You go roller skating, you're

going to hell.

We had to wear a full--go to the

beach fully clothed.

My father didn't really

understand fashion and all of

that.

I had moved away, and Project

Runway actually came on TV, and

he called me up and, for the

first time in my life, he's

like, "Nate, this fashion

industry is a real thing.

This is like a real business."

Project Runway restored my

relationship with my father, and

now he's like my number one

supporter.

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

I'm designing to win,

and so I don't think it's always

about who is the best designer

but who plays the game the

smartest.

I think I could definitely win.

I think he was the whole

package, and he designs really

well.

He doesn't over-think and he

doesn't under-think,

and he doesn't underestimate

himself or his work.

Tell dad I said hi.

I will.

[Laughter]

He'll probably know who you are.

[Laughs]

You've got that attitude.

[Laughs]

Your bitchy attitude.

[Upbeat music]

Hey, I am Raul, and this

is my house.

Um, welcome.

So this is my place.

It's in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

This is my closet.

My style is a little bit, um--

like I said, there's an

influence of midwestern.

I made this one.

This shirt is just fun to wear.

Every time that I wear it,

people ask me where I got it

from, and I'm like,

"made by me."

Hello.

Hi.

How are you?

This is a very simple, hot

dress, some front slits.

I try to keep things a little

provocative, but also I want it

to be classy.

I don't want it to be vulgar.

This is a part of a show that I

did called, "the little

black dress."

[Laughter]

Um, and, uh, we were

supposed to, like, have our own

interpretation of what the

little black dress should be.

Right.

People are free to have their

own opinion.

I'm not designing for the whole

world.

I'm designing for a very vain

woman.

Like, she doesn't care.

She's very secure.

She will go to the grocery store

wearing it.

Like, she doesn't care people

will think that she's

overdressed.

♪ ♪

Years ago, I used to be

very shy.

From a previous relationship, I

felt, like, very tiny.

You know, like, very little.

After that was done, I decided

that I was gonna concentrate on

making myself the best designer

that I could be, 'cause this is

the only thing that I actually

have is my, you know, the

talent.

I'm not scared of, like, any

other designer.

Like, I just want to kick some

a*s, and that's my biggest

goal.

I think that Raul definitely

has a good chance in the

competition.

He talks, his clothes talk, and

that's what we need walking down

the runway.

The fashion world is huge,

but this is Raul's world, and

I'm the one who's doing it.

Up next, 16 designers in less

than five minutes--your final

recap before Project Runway

Season Ten begins.

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

So now you're privy to all



To help you keep track, we leave

you with a brief recap of each

designer.

But first, Nick and Mondo have

some very definite opinions

about which designers will be

placed in the top three.

Here are my top three.

Okay.

Are you ready?

I'm ready.

Ven.

Okay.

Dmitry.

No.

Melissa.

Eehh.

Oh.

My top three, I agree

with you, Ven.

Technically, I think he's the

strongest designer here.

Yes.

I love Fabio.

Thank you.

That's a great compliment.

Who's your third?

Beatrice.

I know.

Really?

Yes.

But don't you think that

she's a one-note knit girl?

One-note knit girl?

Yeah.

[Laughter]

I just made that up right now.

Well, maybe.

Listen, they all have their

point of view.

Right.

It's really just about

getting the challenges done.

That's true.

All right, now, that we've

completely confused you guys,

here's a scorecard to get you

back on track.

[Upbeat music]

♪ ♪

I wanna do my best

and I wanna win.

I wanna show Nina Garcia,

Michael Kors, and Heidi Klum,

and Tim Gunn that I am the next

big thing.

I'm influenced definitely by

the '80s, and I love putting

together, like, prints in

different loud, fun colors,

and I do think outside of the

box.

I love clothes.

I live for it.

I breathe for it.

I'm on the go constantly, and

that's my girl.

Like, she's on the go, she wants

to look great, and she

doesn't wanna think about it.

I think I can totally win

Project Runway.

[Laughs]

I have big talent.

I have lot of experience.

I have personality.

I have what it takes.

I call myself an

anti-fashionista fashionista.

I think I have an advantage.

I'm older, I'm more confident,

and I--and I have brass ba*ls.

I've always been a little,

you know, a little bit of a

black sheep in terms of fashion,

so I've been used to,

like, going against the grain,

you know, pretty much since high

school.

I think I could produce some

really cool stuff.

It makes me emotional, and

it makes me, like, choke up

a little bit when I think of the

possibility of, like, showing on

fashion week, 'cause it's

something that every designer

dreams of.

My whole resume is just

winning.

My aesthetic is sexy but it's

sophisticated.

I feel like the talent is there,

and I've worked really hard to

be where I am.

I like to take the basic

classic shapes and ramp them up

with unusual textures and things

that people wouldn't normally

even consider doing.

I definitely think I'll be one

of the top three to finish, for

sure.

At the end of the day, I'm an

evening wear designer.

I view fashion as an art, and I

feel that I have a voice, I have

a message to give to the world,

and I want to have a platform to

do that.

I have a unique point of

view that, you know, honestly,

not to toot my own horn, I

haven't seen before.

If somebody is trying to

sabotage me in a way, my claws

will come out, and they will

feel the wrath of Elena.

Yeah, I can become, like,

that kind of crazy artist,

I think, sometimes, where I just

start pacing and getting in the

zone and trying to problem

solve, and I guess it just

becomes my life in a way.

The universe has spoken.

It's my time.

Clothes is a great way to,

like, empower people, and

that's what I like, I work

to do.

The fashion world is huge,

but this is Raul's world.

You know, I made everything

that I did in a week.

I did--you know, there wasn't

much sleeping, there wasn't much

eating.

There was a lot of coffee,

you know, and a lot of

cigarettes, and a lot of tears.

Sometimes it's a fight to death.

I'm coming back.

This is my year for redemption.

What I wanna do is, uh, make

clothing that makes people happy

when they wear.

So I make some love, right?

That's what I think I do.

I made a love.

There's nothing else in the

world that matters to me but

designing clothes.

I see myself going down this

runway.

Like, my clothes are

gonna go down the runway.

I'm going to make it to fashion

week.

I just--I keep telling myself

that I'm going to make it to

fashion week.

What a diverse and

fascinating group.

I cannot wait to see how they do

on the show.

Happy tenth anniversary,

Project Runway.