Metta made a really good point last season that it was a mistake when the judges dismissed the contestants who were making weirder, more avant garde clothes in favor of letting all the somewhat talented but rather boring designers stay. I think the judges must read our blog (har har) because they are definitely rewarding risk and cutting the boring fat.
Let's look at episode one:
I betcha all the other contestants thought Ping (the resident "I don't use mannequins - I just throw fabrics on my head" crazy designer) was in the bottom three when she was summoned to stay on the stage for judging. Nope! She was in the TOP three, and I get it. This is a weird draping look that wouldn't work hanging on the rack at Macy's, but it's definitely fashion:
And here is the losing dress:
This dress was not the "ugliest" out there, but it was poorly sewn and it's a bit blah.
Here was a dress that I thought should have been in the bottom:
Now let's look at Episode 2 and you'll see a continuation on the judges favoring risk rather than boredom.
This time Ping was in the bottom:
This dress was a hot mess. What you can't see in the above image is that the poor model's bare ass is almost entirely exposed when the garment is viewed from behind. It's a bad fit, to say the least, and poorly executed. But the shape is innovative, if not pretty. They let Ping stay and instead kicked out Pamela for this little number:
This dress fit poorly, and it was boring, and that was enough for the judges to say "aufweidersehen." They had complemented Pamela on her brilliant execution of dying the fabrics, the celebrated her transformation of burlap into a faux-denim, and they even remarked on the skill of her sewing (the stitching can look perfect even when the fit is off). However, when pressed for who they wanted to see more from, they decided to pass on one of a handful of the mousy cocktail clan and hope for more poise from Ping's future designs.
As for my favorite right now? That'd probably be Amy. Look at the awesome skirt she did for the potato sack challenge!:
