Monday, November 20, 2006 by
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This one definitely deserves its own entry.
This dress is gorgeous and Nina was hitting the crack pipe just a little too hard this week.
Yes, there's a retro vibe to it, but no moreso than Wendy's dress and one of the themes of Banana Republic's collection that year was "Grandma's attic," so why come down hard on him for following the client's dictates? Besides, it was updated retro, with that split skirt and the criss-crossing bodice, unlike Wendy's somewhat more literal retro, which looked like it walked right off a movie set in 1962.
We have to agree, though, that the back of the skirt is a bit of a problem since we don't know any women in the real world looking for dresses that make their asses look bigger. So, okay. You win that one Ms. Garcia.
But overall, it's such a pretty little tea party of a dress that we were surprised that the judges didn't like it more.
Pfft. Stupid judges.
[Screencaps: projectrungay.blogspot.com]
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58 comments:
That is such an intensely beautiful dress. And one of the first I've seen from PR that I would actually try on if I saw it in a store; there have been many beautiful garments on PR but most look like you have to be a stick to wear them. I'm going to go stare and drool some more.
That dress was made for a gay man…pretty and easy rear access.
XXXOOO to the boys
THANK YOU! I loved that dress, thought it was gorgeous and playful and retro but young, and couldn't understand why the judges didn't have a good thing to say about it.
I loved this dress! I was at Banana Republic this weekend and one of their holiday dresses had... a crinoline underskirt. Hmmm, wonder where they got that idea from?!
I LOVED this dress. It's very pretty, ultra-feminine and romantic.
I would wear that dress in a heartbeat!
And Melissa again shows how she models each garment in a specific style.
The more I look at the detailing on the bodice, the poleats and everything, the more I wants it my precious!
I've always loved this dress, and in my opinion, it is one of the prettiest dresses of all seasons. I don't know, I like women looking very feminine, and that's what I see in this dress.
i loved it
so pretty!
pfft. stupid judges" indeed.
This is a perfect tea time or friend of the bride dress, and I loved its lusciousness and romantic air.
However, it was definitely not a holiday dress and that's where Austen failed. Did La Pepper design" anything remotely as stunning as this dress or Jay's? No way. She couldn't have come up with anything as lovely if she's been given two year!
My love for all things Austen was sealed from this moment on.
Melissa is a hottie and makes any gown she wears look awesome.
Speaking of models...My god, Melissa is fucking FABULOUS! She worked that dress like "her next meal depended on it."
I half expect Melissa to call in Wally and Beaver for dinner. However, I love, love, love this dress. It's fresh and young, but it just doesn't evoke the holiday dress theme.
I agree that this is one of the very, very best dresses I've seen in any episode of any season. Absolutely gorgeous. The judges are nuts.
I haven't decided if its more Lana Turner in "Imitation of Life" or Maureen O'Hara in "The Parent Trap"....
or maybe just Von Trapp...
....regardless, a lovely dress, pretty, elegant, and feminine. For a fashion director, Nina's taste is a bit, um, butch/ugly.
The dress fit Melissa like a dream and it was beautiful too.
I love Austin's dress! I want his dress! It's so feminine and romantic! I love his style.
I didn't really like the design of the material on Austin's dress though. It's so flowery, that on seeing it, the first words that popped into my head was "curtain cloth".
I really liked Austin's dress, but I understand what they said about his dress looking tired. I thought the colors were pretty and the top part was different.
I thought Austin's dress was perfect for spring, and would have made a wonderful addition to their line. Besides, as the PRG boys said, one of the themes of Banana Republic's collection that year was Grandma's attic.
I was really surprised that his dress was panned...I thought it was gorgeous.
Loved it until the moment she turned around; then, uh-oh. If he had just been able to restrain himself! But then he wouldn't be Austin, eh? You could hear Nina winding up to let him him have it. Bitch.
I still can't get over the judges' reactions to this dress. And the dress did NOT belong in the bottom three. It was absolutely gorgeous. I would totally buy this dress.
Love the hell out of this blog.
The dress is phenomenal. Austin is phenomenal. Banana Republic is so two seasons ago. That's it.
OMG, you guys are blogging season 1? Where the hell have I been? Fabulous!
I think the the scoop back gives this dress extra appeal.
That dress is seriously amazing. It radiates beauty. :)
Yeah, screw Nina and the Duchess! I love the gown, I think it's aboslutely precious. Totally would catch my eye.
Yours in sparkles,
Maddie
This dress was gorgeous--front and back. I would have purchased it immediately when I was 24. Should have been THE winner or 2nd place.
I thought this was fantastic, and if not strictly Banana Republic, it was BR enough. . . or would've been if they'd been willing to do something special and just a little outside their box. What's so scary about a pretty print dress-y dress, for God sake? Wendy's was good, but it's just so BR. Austin's is a winner, and I can imagine it selling like crazy.
Melissa. OMG. Melissa.
I absolutely love this dress. Yes, the back, not so much, but it's a beautiful dress.
I was beginning to think I might secretly have the heart of a Banana Republic customer, because I would have worn a LOT of those dresses. This is a gorgeous dress.
I adore this dress. My only quibble about it is that it really looks much more "spring" than "winter" to me.
Still, this or Jay's would have been my choice for the win, with Kara Saun coming in third.
Oh, and I would absolutely wear this dress, which is more than I can say about many of the things I've seen in three seasons of PR.
Just a reminder to all: please don't spoil future episodes from this season. Many of our readers have not seen them yet.
This is a beautiful dress, but as others have said, it's a dress you'd wear to a tea party, not a holiday party. That's why it didn't win. All you need are gloves and a hat and you're all set.
fergus said...or maybe just Von Trapp...
The hills are alive with the sound of music! lalalalalala
I adore that dress. I also thought the judges were INSANE. Okay, I can see them going for Wendy's for the win, because Austin's dress was a bit elegant summer picnic on the grounds, complete with a hamper from Marks & Spencer. Not *quite* holiday dresswear, but dayum, that was still a pretty little number (and yes, that goes for Melissa as well.) Much more creative and younger-looking than Wendy's, which, although well-made and inoffensive enough, was dull. DULL! There, I said it. Like most of Wendy's stuff, it showed little imagination. Much better executed than some of her other designs, but still, a big snore.
I do know that on BRAVO's "rate the runway" section, Austin's dress received the highest score.
You guys, I think this dress is what made me a true lover of PR. I think this is my favorite dress out of all the seasons, it so beautiful. I totally covet this dress and I hope sometime in the future I can find a dress just like this one. Every time I see this dress I drool. Love love love
hmm...is this even pretty?
this one seems like a country-gril outfit.
country road~~~~
You guys are on target as always. Beautiful dress. Austin robbed.
As for the big butt, well, I've got one and to tell the truth, a dress like that actually disguises it a bit.
C'mon guys, when is Nina NOT hitting the crack pipe?
The dress is sweet and feminine without the frou-frou! That's the only part I don't like about it.
I love that dress and would have bought it in every color. The back doesn't make your ass look bigger. It hides a big butt, not that I have one, not that there's anything wrong with that. I will be making this dress for myself when I find suitable fabric.
Without a doubt, one of the best dresses.
Dunno if I would call this pretty. The lines were good, but the flowered tablecloth look IS tired. Also the split butt look isn't universally appealing, nor is this complicated dress likely to be one that can be manufactured at an acceptable price point for Banana Republic.
It did not deserve to win. It didn't fit with Banana Republic's line, nor would it have been easy to mass-produce. Only Wendy really listened to the challege, hate to say.
I disagree that this dress makes your ass look bigger. This type of dress, with the crinoline, actually camouflages saddlebags and chubby thighs.
--Gotham Tomato
I'm sorry, but I think you guys are totally off the mark with this one. For this challenge, this dress was completely off. I mean, try to picture it: office party? In that huge crinoline with that big ol' print slapped everywhere? Nope. Cocktail party? The print's off. Christmas dinner with the family? Good luck sitting down. And I just don't see "holiday dress" there anywhere.
Although, to be fair, Wendy's said more "funeral" to me than anything else. That's the dress I'd wear to Jackie O's funeral or somebody famous like that, but a little glitter would have jazzed it right up.
I think Kara would have won this one if she had gone for a deep purple, sapphire blue, or dark emerald green. WTF is up with that banana color?
Anne
Can't agree with you guys on this one. The print alone would make me instantly dismiss this dress if I saw it in a store.
And the teacher in me says - he didn't follow directions.
that dress was sooo beautifully made! god i love austin!
I guarantee that if all these models wore all these dresses to a holiday party I was invited to, I (and everyone I know) would be talking to this girl, not Wendy's and not Kara's. Since when does a party dress have to be boring black? That print is freaking GAWJUSS.
" Steve Thornton said...
I guarantee that if all these models wore all these dresses to a holiday party I was invited to, I (and everyone I know) would be talking to this girl, not Wendy's and not Kara's. Since when does a party dress have to be boring black? That print is freaking GAWJUSS. "
I agree 100%. That dress is stunning!
Yeah, absolutely loved this dress! (the only thing I didn't like was the striped part at the bust). Yes, it's not a dress you would wear to a winter holiday party, but if it were toned down just a tiny bit I think it would sell at Banana. My friend just last weekend bought a dress there with a crinoline (though it was a full crinoline and not just in the back).
Fashion Cur':
I agree that the dress didn't really fit the challenge; my issue is not that the dress didn't win, but that the judges panned it. Jay certainly got high praise (deservedly so) for his dress, which would never show up in a Banana Republic store -- far too unconventional for BR, far too expensive to mass-produce. But it was very, very well done. Austin's dress wasn't as creative or original as Jay's, but it was, I think (and so, clearly, do many others) quite lovely, and surely didn't deserve to be dissed like that.
And I personally didn't think the print was tired, even if it did resemble a tablecloth maybe a tiny bit. Jeffrey's green & white striped lawn chair (or perhaps shower curtain?) motif drew raves about his "fashion forwardness" -- what, are tableclothes less trendy than shower curtains? Who makes these decisions?
LOVE THIS DRESS!
Love the fabric - reminds me of my Grandma's 1950s wallpaper, love the back (perfect disguise for extra baggage) and love the white fabric in back.
The back reminds me of those monkeys with white rears. It's meant to be a come-hither that appeals to the opposite sex. Damn, if I wore it, I guarandamntee that I would work that tail until I could find a time to quickly flip it up for a quickee. It is hot in an ice princess -- come quick and do me kind of way.
Okay one more comment, Neenah just can't be Latin! She would know all the sex possibilities for this dress and she'd be dripping to have it.
The low bustline makes it easy to pop out the boobs to be held while ...um...coming from the back.
Who knew Austin knew how to present a holiday dress that presented so many possibilities for a quick private visit to the loo?
Oh my, I'm all a tither now.
I absolutely loved that dress. I want it to be my bridesmaid dresses if I ever get married....
Actually, I kind of want to get married so that it can be my bridesmaid dress.
Three seasons later, and I still cannot stop thinking about this dress. I would buy this dress in a heartbeat, even if I had to save for it for months.
When I saw this dress, I sprung from the couch and said "YES!" It's flirty, fun and feminine. I keep hoping that Austin will make this dress again so that I can buy it. If anyone knows if he has, speak up!
I would wear this to a cocktail party, to an office party, to any party marked festive. I admit, it would take a woman who can't be overshadowed by a dress to pull this off, but I am that woman, and I want that dress.
Austin! Make this dress for us!
This is the dress that made me love the show.
I plan on tracking Austin down someday in the future and asking him to recreate this dress for my future bridesmaids dresses, and then (because I, of course want one for myself!) creating perhaps a white with maybe offwhite flowers on it dress for my reception. I adore this dress. My fave in the history of project runway! Those judges made me so mad about this dress!
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