Girl Detective

Valentino: The Last Emperor is a dishy little documentary about European designer Valentino, the last of the big-name global fashion designers to run his own house. At 75, after 45 years designing, Valentino continued to work daily, even as his company was sold and then taken over, and rumors flew about his retirement. The film shows the events leading up to his last few shows, as well as the amazing 45th anniversary celebration that took place in Rome.

Fashionistas will delight in glimpses of insiders like Anna Wintour and Karl Lagerfeld, as well as celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow, Anne Hathaway and Uma Thurman. Valentino is a dynamo, but he shares the spotlight with longtime business and personal partner Giancarlo Giametti, as well as with his own stunning creations, brought into being by a hard-working team of numerous seamstresses.

An informal poll of friends, culminating with local fashionista and vintage maven MD this morning on the street, confirms that this is my bag for fall:

which I’ve accessorized with this scarf:

Confession: I picked the bag to complement the scarf. Like the bag; love the scarf.

Top American designer Michael Kors shared a dozen pieces of style advice in “Secrets of Style for Right Now” from the April Issue of In Style magazine. It avoids the “r” word for the economy, but subtly advocates versatility and common sense for shopping in hard times. Tips include: Buy clothes that can be worn throughout the year. Beware indulgence on trends. Instead, focus on the best basics you can afford. If you splurge, do it on a sure thing like a great trench coat, or a fabulous item like gorgeous sandals that won’t get dated. Link to full text of article is from The Butlers Front Porch. If you’re able, try to get your hands on the magazine for the real article. The Kors items used to illustrate the points are striking and lovely.

Lifetime and Bravo have finally settled their lawsuit over season six of Project Runway, which will air this summer on Lifetime.

Meanwhile, Bravo comes back swinging and doesn’t bother to pretend it’s not a rip off, with The Fashion Show, with judges Isaac Mizrahi and Fern Mallis.

For those of us left with a bad taste in our mouth after Top Chef Season Five, no date has yet been set for Season Six, though casting took place earlier this spring. Better yet, at least two Twin Cities chefs auditioned!

Meanwhile, though, Bravo keeps the culinary reality goodness alive with Top Chef Masters, kind of like an American Iron Chef a la Top Chef. (link from ALoTT5MA)

PAJAMAS are the other thing you can buy if you’ve gained weight and need some retail therapy. I try not to indulge these days, but am awfully tempted since I saw Robin wearing these Mandarin Hipster pajamas on How I Met Your Mother the other week.

It wouldn’t be the first pair of pjs I sought after seeing on the tube. I got the Yummy Sushi pajamas after I saw them on Buffy the Vampire Slayer years ago, and love them still.

I found OMG, Shoes at Big Brain Comics, and had to have it. It’s an illustrated ‘zine-style shoe memoir by Sarah Morean, in the manner of Ilene Beckerman’s Love, Loss and What I Wore. Morean uses pencils and watercolor to detail 44 pairs of shoes, with a sentence or two about their history.

It’s a charming little book, made even more so by its deliberately cute black faux-lizard soft cover and assortment of decorative bindings. I chose a simple pink bow, but there were faux pearls and other pretty, shiny options. At $5, it’s a bargain; I feel like I went shoe shopping in someone else’s closet.

I thought this year’s Oscar broadcast was a big improvement over years past, and I enjoyed it a lot. I thought Jackman’s opening number was funny and well done. The later one was over-the-top, which I think even creator Baz Luhrmann knew, since he looked sheepish when Jackman thanked him and the camera panned to him at the end. But anything that features an extended bit from “You’re the One That I Want” is OK in my book.

TV critic Alan Sepinwall has some suggestions for further improvement, like going back to showing the film clips for the nominations and removing more of technical awards. I agree that they should probably remove the sound awards, though cinematography could stay. I also think the shorts should go, both animated and documentary. I know they’re important, but few people see them and the show is too long.

I have a few other ideas, too.

One, have stylists urge their clients to wear color dresses. Light silver, white with silver, off white with silver, light gold, cream, ecru, off white, white, etc. are not colors, they’re neutrals. Do you really want to look neutral? Outlier was Viola Davis in burnished gold. Wow.

Two, have stylists urge their clients to do their hair. Jessica Biel looked like she just got out of bed, plus her no-color dress looked like it threw up on itself. Her later switch to purple didn’t improve things much. And Phillip Seymour Hoffman, I don’t feel bad for you even if the announcer did get your name wrong, because anyone who wears a knit cap indoors deserves what he gets. Your haircut in Doubt looked fabulous.

Third, Reese Witherspoon, wha’ happened? Did you get bitten by brooding, soulless, vapid, teen vampire Robert Pattinson backstage? Your black and blue dress with matching(!) eyeshadow made you look undead, and you’re usually rocking the show.

For more snarky mayhem, visit Go Fug Yourself.

Fall color is not just for trees. I’m in the midst of my annual fall-fashion magazine binge, and my most-wanted color duo is dark plum and bright yellow. They’ll go great with dark brown or gray.

Purple patent ballet flats

Purple leather hobo bag. Both from Target.

Lincoln Park after Dark nail varnish by OPI, a favorite of my fashionable NYC friend, N, who bought me

the bright yellow flats I’m wearing today, as a gift for fall.

I’ve heard a lot of non-love out there for the current season, 5, of Project Runway. I’m having fun watching, though. I think this is an interesting crop of designers, and that the final three, and the winner, aren’t as obvious as they were last season. Project Rungay continues to be the best, and most entertaining commentary on the show.

A few thoughts: Blayne is playing to the camera, and trying to be Christian with his catchphrases. He’s only still on because his designs are more bizarre than plain bad. Stella became much more entertaining as the series progressed, and I’m sad to see her gone. I’d been thinking Terri was a shoo-in till Jerell made his fabulously bitchy comment that she’s got two faces and four patterns. Rowrr!

The Drag Queen challenge was one of my favorite episodes. I loved how the designers referred without exception to their clients using the feminine pronoun, since their clients’ gender was female. I loved how the drag queens came in decked out, then au naturel, and then a combination before the runway show. I thought Joe deserved the win. As Michael Kors loves to say, “He put the right girl, in the right outfit, styled the right way.”

Saturnalia: I was surprised first by Korto’s woven seat belts, since bags of that have been around for ages. But the end result was so beautiful and intricately done that she deserved her second-place finish. I’m also thrilled to see Leanne finally win, with her crazy, futuristic, perfectly executed, and bogglingly not-unflattering design.

DVF: Kenley continues to crusade for most annoying, though as long as Blayne’s around, she’ll lose. But her meltdown was entertaining, and her dress was beautiful. I’d wear it in a second. I own 2 DVF dresses, and they’re among my favorite clothing items, so Diane von Furstenberg as both challenge and guest? LOVING! Leanne wins again, and Korto is in the top. Joe is delusional, and it appears Terri is, too. Delusion usually signals an imminent auf’ing, as with Mormon Keith.

I’m a terrible prognosticator, but I think Korto and Leanne are going to be in the final three. Whether the third will be Terri or Kenley I’m not sure. Jerrell could be a wild card, but I think (and hope) Blayne and Joe are next to go.

I’m really enjoying Season 5. Last season it was pretty clear from the get go who the final three were going to be, and they were so talented that something of the joy of competition for a supposedly amateur prize got lost. This season, though, has a mad mix of personalities, from “leathuh”-lovin’ Stella to 3rd-person using Suede. The judges are so bitchy they sound like they might have been at the bar just before coming to judge’s table. Perhaps my only complaint is that Bravo has thrown in the towel with its marketing, spoiling all the surprises of what the challenge and who the guest judge is going to be, both on its site and in the previews.

Last night’s Olympic challenge was a nice variation on the ice skating challenge from season 1. Only Joe seemed to realize he was designing for people with muscles, but he still came in third, after Korto’s striking white outfit and Terri’s impressive, though boob-squashing, three-piece stunner.

Jennifer’s choice was baffling. She keeps saying she’s a surrealist, but I didn’t see it at all. Like Daniel’s, her outfit looked vintage, not modern, and definitely not sporty. Daniel is a pouty, anxious (remember Daniel Franco?) guy who I hope goes soon. Blayne really needs a smack upside the head about the dangers of tanning. He’s going to look 23 going on 45 sooner than he imagines. Terri, LeeAnne and Korto are the ones to watch, I think. And if Joe couldn’t win last night’s challenge, after insisting again and again that he would, he should just go home.

For more commentary on last night’s episode, visit Project Rungay.

The return of Project Runway, and was it me, or did Bravo run it an hour earlier (9pm Eastern, 8pm Central) to further confound fans?

A few observations. Suede has a silly name, freaked out at a challenge that had been done before, and refers to himself in the third person. Two contestants from my city of origin, Columbus, Ohio? Will someone tell Blayne that tanning is a bad idea that he’s going to regret in a very few years, and ask him if he has allergies or a coke habit. The two runners up last night did not look like gracious winners. I thought the mop top, the paper-towel dress and the pasta skirt should have gotten more love. I love how Austin Scarlett celebrates his femme-y self. All three of the losing dresses deserved their drubbing. Last night I questioned the judges’ decision and thought the goth trashbag was the loser. Looking more closely this morning, I am still horrified by Blayne’s whatever-it-was. Reviewing the serial killer/nurse outfit this morning, I applaud the judges’ decision.

For more dissing and dishing, visit Project Rungay and Blogging Project Runway.

Project Runway Season 5 starts tonight on US television. This is the show’s last season on Bravo, and the network is acting rather pouty; Bravo did hardly any marketing for the season, then dumped a ton of info at their site a few days ago, including a list of the challenges and guest judges. Part of the joy of watching has been the weekly surprise of what the challenge is, and who will be sitting with judges Michael Kors, Nina Garcia, and Heidi Klum.

So while Bravo is messing with the marketing, mentor Tim Gunn talked to Time magazine and answered some questions. My favorite comments:

Pear-shaped women should make friends with their shoulders. Not wear shoulder pads, but rather avoid tanks and sleeveless tops. Wear things that cover the shoulder to visually balance the look from head to toe.

Worse shoe trend? Crocs–”they look like plastic hooves.”

And, finally, on the comfort excuse: “If you’re going to dress like you just got out of bed, please, stay in bed.”

For more PR news and nattering, visit Project Rungay and Blogging Project Runway.

Sorry if the title offends; it’s a quote from the adorable Daniel V. of Season 2.

Christian and Tim have a walkoff on the roof. Why wasn’t this on the show? (Link from the fabuloso Tom and Lorenzo at Project RunGay.)

Democrats do have an historic race going, Hillary Clinton vs. Barack Obama. Normally, when you see a black man or a woman president, an asteroid is about to hit the Statue of Liberty.

–Jon Stewart, from the opening monologue

What is happening?!

–Diablo Cody, on winning Best Original Screenplay

Fair play to those who dare to dream and don’t give up.

–Marketa Irglova, co-winner for Best Song, brought back onstage by Jon Stewart after being rushed off by the orchestra

Mazel tov to the Coen brothers, who scored a hat trick with No Country for Old Men. Did you know they’d only won one other Oscar, for the original screenplay for Fargo?

Did you notice how The Bourne Ultimatum won all three awards for which it was nominated? I think the Academy members were trying to give that film, one of my favorites of last year, more of the love it deserved from Oscar.

Overall, I was disappointed in the fashion. Black, red, and blage. Where was the color? Where was the joy? Oh, I sound like Michael Kors on Project Runway. Hated the peekaboo shoulder bullseye on Katherine Heigl’s dress; was she promoting for Target? And who did her makeup? Hated what Jennifer Hudson’s dress did to her should-have-been voluptuous chest. And while Tilda Swinton is weird, there are quirky dresses that are pretty; she didn’t have to choose a velvet garbage bag and forgo her bra. For more fashion dishing and dissing, Go Fug Yourself.

In a grievous lapse in taste, this week’s Project Runway episode, Raw Talent, challenged the designers to make wrestling costumes for women of the WWE. Absurd and entertaining, yes, but a showcase for the contestants’ ability to design a women’s fashion line? No. Just no.

Like the avant-garde challenge, this one was suited to Chris. Also like that challenge, he and Christian fully embraced it and produced spectacular ensembles. Jillian’s was good, Sweet P struggled, Rami thought that draping an ample bosom in brightest pink was an OK idea, but Ricky missed the mark by creating a bathing suit, not a wrestling costume.

Five are now left. Most fans I talk to predict that the final three will be Rami, Christian and Jillian. The latter’s utter lack of emotion (last night’s example, the flate restatement of her client’s exuberant reaction, “She loved it.”) does not have me looking forward to that. Sweet P and Chris are far more vibrant and interesting, though probably not as skilled as Miss J.

Check out Project Rungay, and Manolo’s recap for more snip-sniping.

I’m with Tom and Lorenzo of Project Rungay on this one: Christian was robbed. Yes, he made the same 80’s era shrunken jacket, but he did the most with the most. The jeans, especially with the sleeve detail, were more impressive to me than Ricky’s or Sweet P’s, though both of theirs were probably more retail-able.

My favorite moment was Jillian’s weird meltdown where she whimpered, “I’m bleeding everywhere.” Rami came over and said, “I don’t see anything,” then Sweet P told her to hold it together till midnight. Her “breakdown” was barely above a whisper.

Readers at A List of Things… hijacked a comment thread till they got their own.

Has anyone else noticed that Heidi Klum is dressing as if she’s hiding a bump? Any rumors out there that’s she’s pregnant?

I caught Road to the Runway, the prologue to Season 3, and was interested to see Simone, Jillian and Steven auditioning. Were they Season 3 also-rans, I wonder, or did circumstances prevail against them?

I don’t have much time to devote to last night’s show, “On Garde.” There were a few surprises, one of them the designer who was auf’d. Also, how is Ricky’s teflon butt escaping being kicked out each week? Mostly, though I’m left with the question of whether Jillian and Victorya have one emotion, between them? They’re not women, they’re FEMBOTS! The only time I saw V. look animated was when Team Fierce won, and it was almost as if her processor told her, “You are human, yet must be a good loser. Look happy when others win.”

Why did she look happy then, and as if she were sucking lemons the whole rest of the time? And why did the design seem so much of J, and so little of V?

Oh, how I wish I’d been on the couch chez Project Rungay.

SPOILERS AHEAD!

I loved this week’s challenge–to work with a high-school girl and design her prom dress. Christian’s snippy comment that prom was awful and tacky and horrible made me laugh out loud. It’s both true, and yet so snobby of him. Then to see him and many of the others in their prom photos? Priceless.

Christian also nailed it when he said that it was a ridiculously hard challenge–make a dress, please the client, make it representative of him as a designer, plus make it age and event appropriate. Seeing him struggle, both with his demanding client and with the dress itself, endeared him to me, finally, as did his many attempts to hold back tears. His youthful bravado took a big hit this week.

I suspected Ricky would be the one to go when they did the bit with him on the phone to his mother, and how poor they were when he was growing up. He was delightfully self-deprecating when he noted that he’d made his date’s prom dress in high school. Chris played it safe, I thought. Rami may be a one-trick draping pony. Jillian’s effort was surprisingly uninspired, given her general excellence at girly designs. Sweet P’s was great; I wanted her to win simply because she’d so much more likeable then the weirdly animatronic Victorya. Victorya was vindicated from finding out she was the last one chosen with her deserved win. It was a good dress, in a striking color with good detail.

Ricky got off easy, and Christian had to sweat, but it was Kevin who went home, and deservedly so. Ugly color, ugly dress, sloppy execution. So no more of him protesting too much his straightness. I’m glad Christian is in, and hope he learns some humility along the way.

They guys at Project Rungay disagree with me; they think Kevin was unfairly auf’d and that Victorya unfairly won. And I can see their points–Kit’s awesome dress never even got mentioned, and Ricky’s was worse than Kevin’s, and Ricky’s been doing consistently low level stuff. But there it is. Life’s not fair, certainly in fashion.

I’m beginning to suspect that Project Runway has indeed jumped the shark. I’ve recently watched Season 1 and most of Season 2. They feel so much more compelling than the season 4 group. Perhaps there are still so many designers that it’s hard to separate any from the pack. The Eye Candy challenge seemed fun, though contrived. More contrived than season 2’s plants and season 3’s recycling? Probably not. Elisa and Sweet P both deserved the boot. It had to be Elisa, though, because as soon as someone makes a statement like, “I wanted to be here so I could prove myself after that horrible car accident that cracked my head wide open,” well, that’s tempting fate. Christian’s arrogance and haircut are both ridiculous. Perhaps he’ll end up as the deluded crazy of the season. Is it just me, or do best buds Rami and Jillian seem far too talented and reasonable to be much fun? I did think Jillian deserved the win for doing something more difficult and using the Twizzlers. Oh, and I loved her comment that her model smelled good, too.

Tim Gunn’s blog entry about the ep is good, and check out Project Rungay, where they have fewer nice things to say about Jillian’s Twizzler dress.

Last night’s “What’s the Skinny?” was a great challenge, I thought. The “models” are all women who have lost a lot of weight; take their former favorite garment and make something new and chic for them to wear. In the meantime, add a splash of drama when poor Jack gets sick and has to quit to seek medical treatment. This seems awfully harsh–couldn’t PR spring to bring a doc in for him? And to up the contrivance, last week’s eliminee, Chris March is brought back on short notice, just so he can round out the losing trio on the runway. Unkind, but not as unkind as some of the things the judges said in front of the women. “50’s Paris hooker, totally.” Oh, Michael Kors, you are the king of the cutting phrase, but you were referring to this women’s former favorite outfit. Ouch! “Like a french maid, going to a funeral.” That comment, though, on loser Steven’s design, was deserved by him, and vindicated the poor woman whose wedding dress he snubbed. Nina correctly called him on the carpet for the huge opportunity he missed. Again, as I noted last week, Steve’s snark seemed much more honed than his design skills, and he deserved to be off. Now if only one of the other, better, nicer designers would take a crack at the wedding dress, we could all have a happy ending.

In my opinion, Jillian should have been chided, not lauded for not using her raw material. I thought both Rami’s and Ricky’s outfits were better within the confines of the challenge.

I am fervently wishing for fewer tears. Since Jack is ostensibly gone, and I think Ricky is likely to go soon, perhaps things will dry up in the next few weeks.