FASHIONABLE FAIRY TALES

Dom's look: Don't call her 'Tink.'

Once again, it was all about fairy tales Thursday night on Project Runway All Stars.

It was only last September when the regular Project Runway (as opposed to the various Lite and Unleaded versions they now show pretty continuously between seasons) featured a challenge inspired by the hit musical Finding Neverland—a challenge won by a designer riffing on CaptainHook!

So, Thursday night, the challenge for each designer was to take a "literary heroine" and design something modern and fashionable inspired by that character's persona and backstory. 

Character names were drawn out of a bag, with one given to each designer. And it quickly became apparent that all these literary characters were all fairy-tale protagonists.

Which is fine with me; I've been adulterating fairy tales for years! And I applaud any pop culture institution that keeps these eternal tales in the limelight.

Kini's Alice: party in the back.

But it was also just as apparent that all these characters were specifically the Disney version of fairy-tale heroines. How do I know? One of them was "Belle," which was never used as a proper name for the heroine in Beauty and the Beast until the Disney version.

(French versions called La Belle et la Bete, like the Jean Cocteau movie, don't count, since "belle" simply means "beauty" in French.)

As usual, designers responded to the challenge with varying degrees of success. My favorite was Dom Streater, who was given Tinker Bell, described as a punky, impish girl hanging out with a bunch of London street boys. Dom nailed it with patterns and attitude (above). 

I wouldn't wear it, but she totally got the challenge.

I also liked Kini Zamora's riff on Alice in Wonderland—decorous in front, with that demure white collar (wait, isn't that what's usually called a "Peter Pan collar?"), but a crazy touch of Wonderland absurdity in the back with that outrageous, pink-lined ruffle. (One judge called it a "dress mullet.") 

What I really love about it is the white ankle socks in black heels—so perfect for Alice! (A too literal rendition of the classic Tenniel illustrations with white stockings and black flats just wouldn't have had the same panache.)

Neither of these won, of course; I remain undefeated in my inability to think like a PR judge. The winner was Asha Daniel's take on Rapunzel. Not a bad design of itself, but she didn't glom onto the potential of the challenge with the same verve as the other two. 

Asha's look: Towering.

(Although her outfit's columnar shape does sort of look like the tower itself, especially from the back, with Rapunzels long blonde braid hanging down.)

Btw, the dress for Belle didn't really work; nor did designer Layana Aguilar's explanation that she designed it so Belle could wear it when she was whisked off to Argentina to watch a polo match. 

In embroidering this scenario, Layana once referred to Belle's "husband" taking her off on this jaunt. But I think (and I'd have to watch the replay to be sure) that the second time, Layana called him "Beast."

And if "Belle" and Beast (not the Prince he turns into, but Beast himself) jet-setting off to Argentina together as a couple is an acceptable concept, I may be onto something in my own upcoming novel—where Beast gets to be the hero in his own tale!

PIGGY IN PINK

I really do try not to clutter up this blog with too many of my Project Runway opinions, since everybody and his Great Aunt Lucretia already blogs about PR. But, seriously, what were they thinking last night on PR All Stars?

They had a simple enough challenge: design a cocktail dress for a pig. And not just any pig, but that international style icon, Miss Piggy, who also appeared on the dais as a guest judge. Since the designers are always being scolded to design for the client and not let their personal style aesthetic run away with them, I was sure designer Rami Kashou had hit one out of the park with this pink polka dot confection.

"That's the most ridiculous, outlandish thing I've ever seen," cried the diva of porcine pulchritude herself. "It looks like an explosion in a candy factory. I love it!"



So did Rami win for reading his client so perfectly? He did not. The prize went to Michael Costello for this couch-brocade sheath to which someone seems to have thumb-tacked one of those huge, ready-made, accordion Christmas bows.

I suppose it's chic enough in its way (except for that idiotic bow). But it's not s much fun as Rami's dress, nor does it capture the spirit of the flamboyant farmyard fashionista in quite the same way.




And as long as we're strolling down the runway, what about the Red Carpet looks at the Golden Globes? The prom-dress look was in: fitted top over big, voluminous skirt (often involving dyed feathers or other flouncy stuff). There also seemed to be a lot of nude-looking fabrics, sequins, and versions of the mermaid look.

But what happened with poor Kate Winslet? She looked like one of those PR models sent down the runway by a designer who didn't have time to finish the dress. The black satin bodice looked like it was still being pieced together over a white skirt that looked like a sheet grabbed at the last minute to cover her up.




This was so disappointing, since once upon a time, Kate absolutely rocked my all-time favorite awards dress ever.


Then there was Niciole Kidman, in a silver sheath fitted so tight and apparently soldered together with so many brass bolts, she looked like Robot Maria—and not in a good way. Iron Maiden chic.


What I loved was Laura Dern's simple, sleek emerald green sequined waterfall of a dress. In a word, yowza.