The finale! They were "tasked" (Tim's word) with creating a 10-look collection for a runway show. They also needed to pitch a business plan to Christine Beauchamp, giving her an overview of their plans for the million dollars.
They had a visit from Andrea Pitter, winner of M the C season 2. She encouraged them to show who they are with their shows. Tim showed up and said emphatically that he was not there to do critiques - - he was there to "buoy them up." Tim said he had never been more excited for a show. And why would he lie?
Georgia was the first to make her pitch to Beauchamp. Beauchamp asked her how she would keep from being one note. I didn't quite understand Georgia's answer, something about different washes on denim. Beauchamp said later that her point of view is maybe a little too traditional.
Yannik said he was "crazy nervous" about his pitch. He said it was the ninth time he was making a pitch like this - - the previous eight were in Switzerland and the answer was always No. Nein. I thought Yannik made a much stronger pitch, just because he was more engaging and looked at Beauchamp more. She asked him how he felt about working with colors and he said he was excited about the idea.
Rafael was wearing the prettiest lilac colored blouse. Which would look like a dream on ME. I'll have that in a men's medium tall, please.
He was the only one of the three who didn't read his pitch off a tablet, which is especially impressive given that speaking English is so new to him. Beauchamp asked how he would extend his brand into a more casual attitude. He said he was starting to explore that arena and felt great about it. Beauchamp said later that he would benefit the most from a mentorship but that his brand was the most risky. Really?
And then the finale fashion show! Rafael went first. He explained that his collection was inspired by Los Angeles itself. His collection was exuberant and a bit outrageous. Nicole and Heidi were fighting over who would wear which pieces.
I wasn't into Georgia's collection, it was odd but also a little tentative, like she wasn't fully committed. Heidi's comment on one look: "I like the hair." Ouch. Another comment from Heidi: "I'm not mad at that." Beauchamp said this about the final royal blue sculptural gown: "I was more excited about that in the store than I am on the runway." Again, ouch. A Band-Aid in aisle three, please.
As Tim said, Yannik did something that no one else on earth would do. Some of his pieces were very wearable, some were like Barbarella On Acid. Totally out there but really not for the everyday customer.
The judges decided to talk with the designers again. They spoke with Georgia first - - they loved the impact of the opening look but felt like some of the pieces were too ordinary. She was not the winner. She said she had learned a lot and would take those lessons back to London. She was especially excited to see her baby son.
Rafael was so convincing in his talk, he spoke about how his clothes evoke emotion and excitement and jeez, they sure do.
Nicole said that Yannik's show got better and better and better. Yannik said that his brand was very forward thinking in its vision and also in its sustainability.
Jeremy chose Yannik. Nicole chose Yannik. And so did Heidi! The winner was Yannik! I could not have been more shocked. On Project Runway the top two designers were often a choice between art and clothes and that was clearly the choice here. Heidi said that Beauchamp wanted to mentor Rafael and that his collection would be sold on Amazon. I think he'll be a success. But I have to say that Yannik really touched me with his emotion. He's clearly the most visionary of the designers we saw and the judges responded to that.
Comments