Project Runway

So I totally missed the boat on this one, but thanks to last week's snow-in, I was able to settle in on the couch and catch the last five episodes of Season 2 of Bravo's "Project Runway."

Naturally, in my continual effort to always be "in the loop" when it comes to anything pop culture (note: my definition of pop culture does not encompass celebrity culture), and after receiving a Project Runway mini-mag with a recent Banana Republic purchase, I just couldn't ignore it any longer! I finally gave in after being part an engaging e-mail chain that exchanged thoughts on the show; whose designs sucked, whose were amazing; who should win, who will win, and so on and so forth.

So this is like a much better, more interesting version of the now-defunct "Apprentice," except Heidi Klum is a far more attractive host than is Donald Trump, and "auf Wiedersehen!" is the new "You're Fired." (But wasn't the original reality one-liner "You are the weakest link...g'bye!"?)

Anyway, if you're even remotely into fashion-- scratch that, you don't even need to be into fashion to enjoy this show, the great personalities and group dynamic are enough to pull you in.

To give you the quick rundown, each week designers compete in a specific task (e.g. design an outfit using only supplies purchased at a flower shop; design an evening gown that Iman will wear to a red-carpet event), and the winner of the final challenge wins a mentorship with the Banana Republic design team, $100,000 to start their own line, a 2007 Saturn SkyRoadster (who knew Saturn made sports cars? It's not terrible, either.), and a full spread in Elle magazine featuring their original designs.

Here's a quick sampling of what they do: below are the three best designs from the "Garden Party" (flower shop-only) challenge:

Now that it's down to the final three in the ultimate face-off at Olympus Fashion Week in New York, I have to root for our Vietnamese gal Chloe Dao, though I actually like Daniel V. the best (if only because he is only 24 and it makes me completely jealous to think of how good he is at what he does) , and with the way things are going, I wouldn't be surprised if the over-exuberant Santino wows the judges come Fashion Week. The final challenge isn't airing for a couple weeks (Wed., March 1, 10 PM) , and before then it appears Bravo is running a PR marathon, so if you're feeling lazy and one of the lucky ones who gets Prez. day off (you don't actually have to be lucky, you just have to not be me), tune in to catch up on all the excitement!