PROJECT RUNWAY.....Season 11 Project Runway Recaps: Episode 2

SPiN-a-LICIOUS--A Photo Recap...

What Does Ping Pong...

 Academy Award Winning Actress Susan Sarandon...

NYC Nightlife...

Mel Gibson/Braveheart...

And Señor Frog's....

Have in common? Project Runway of course!!

On this week's second episode and challenge of Season 11 Project Runway--the designers and their respective teams--Dream Team and Team Keeping It Real, went to SPiN New York, a ping pong "social club".

 SPiN New York

 Project Runway Season 11 designers gather at SPiN New York to get their Challenge

In case you've been living under a "Nightlife" rock (I have!), I guess ping pong social clubs are the hottest thing since over-priced tapas and mini-sliders substituting actual real dinner plates. Somehow, Academy Award-winning actress Susan Sarandon owns this ping pong social club--SPiN.

 Special Guest Judge: Actress Susan Sarandon--Project Runway Season 11

Which leads me to my second enlightening moment while watching the episode: I didn't know Ms. Sarandon loved ping pong. But I digress...The Challenge this week was to design 4 looks/uniforms for the servers and "ball boys" of SPiN New York.  So, let's see the Best and Not-So-Much:

On top, Team Keeping It Real--Project Runway Season 11

 On the bottom, Dream Team--Project Runway Season 11

The Ball Boys:

Stanley Hudson--His design for the SPiN New York ball boy--the guy who picks up the balls off the floor (imagine that Thanksgiving dinner conversation to your mom and dad about what you moved out to NYC to do...)--He was praised by the judges for this look. It was a good look, fitting the requirements of looking slightly fashionable yet not costume-y or impractical. And at the same time sporty enough for the theme of the club and"butch" (read: STRAIGHT-looking, whatever that is) enough so the male staff doesn't bitch (do straight guys bitch?). Judge Zac Posen didn't like the drop crotch pants but I thought they were fine. These were HUGE last year with all the fashionista/hipster boys so it does bring an element of "fashion" into an otherwise non-exiting "uniform".

Richard Hallmarq and Joseph Aaron Segal--This was a "couple" collaboration with designers Joseph and Richard working on various items in this entire look. The best part of it is that they created a harness to hold the ball pick-up stick for the ball boy. This was quite ingenious--and it looked very cool as well. I wasn't a fan of the rest of the outfit, however. The t-shirt logo was FABULOUS but, that t-shirt was too tight. It's perfect if he was a waiter at Boxers--a gay NYC Sportsbar, but for SPiN? Not so mucheey. And the pants were kind of tacky--they looked like Karate pants with a bunch of lettering on them.

The Winning Outfit was this look above--designed and created by Daniel Esquivel and Layana Aguilar of the Winning Team Keeping It Real. This was cute and the model worked it OVERTIME with her "May I take your drink order please?" catwalk.

I have to admit that I wasn't a fan of the shrunken vest. The notched lapel/collar was a little wonky (cleaning/self-facing those curved edges is not easy!). I get what they were going for with the curved shapes but, I'm not sure it worked. And as far as having to mass produce that, it's not cost-effective. I'll be curious to know what this vest ended up looking like in reality (time to go to NYC and visit SPiN New York I guess!).

 Susan: This is a SKORT, darling...

But the skort was a great idea. The whole Susan Sarandon "I Have NOOOO idea what a skort was??" interaction was priceless. As I say in my MyLifetime.com Project Runway Blog Recap (below at end of this post): "Bless Her Heart".

Benjamin Mach and Matthew Arthur--Oh Dear! Look what we have here. I admit, that the way the episode was going--and the editing--was leading me to think "I bet the kilt outfit WINS!". But alas, nope, it was at the bottom and--once I finally came to my senses--I realized, rightly so. What ball boy/server at a NYC "social club" would wear this?? Unless...

 It was a social club with a "Mel Gibson/Braveheart" theme and it was run by Marc Jacobs.

Benjamin Mach and Cindy Marlatt: This look was a yawn. A secretary-bored-to-an-inch-of-her-life yawn.

But it was James Martinez' time to go--he made a tank top and board short outfit--that was supposed to be for the SPiN New York ball boy and/or server but....

 It was better suited for the waitstaff at Señor Frog's in Cabo

With all that as an Intro...now, it's time to read my FULL RECAP of this episode of Project Runway Season 11:

A Runway SPiN-Off

Dream Team vs. Team Keeping It Real: this is the premise of Season 11 "Project Runway." Sixteen designers split up into two teams and every challenge this season is promised to be a Team Challenge-with one winner and one loser. Team Keeping It Real had the highest scores last week with "Mustache Daniel" coming out on top and Dream Team at the bottom losing sewing-deficient "Hot Glue-Loving Emily." Nina described her outfit as the worst made garment in "Project Runway" history. PS: I wonder if Emily is adding that accomplishment to her bio or Wiki page?

Oh Cindy...

Now that the "Team Twist" novelty has worn off and the "Oh No, Not Teams!" shrieks have subsided, reality is setting in. One of the designers who was at the bottom last week—"Funeral Director Cindy"—feels like her team may see her as the weakest link, even though you could tell she doesn’t quite understand why. PS: did she see what she created? It always strikes me as both naïve and unrealistic when I hear some of these designers and their self-assessment of where they think they are on the "Project Runway" contestant totem pole within a season.

Ball Happy Heidi

Back at Parsons, Heidi greets the teams, congratulating them for "making it." All I want a say is, "GURL, they’ve only had ONE CHALLENGE; simmer down on the effusive words; let them get through FIVE more without beating each other up and then we’ll talk." Heidi tells them they are to meet Tim at 23rd and Park Avenue.

Ping Pong Couture

The designers arrive at SPiN NYC, a Ping Pong Social Club owned by actress Susan Sarandon. A) I had no idea there was such a thing; I am so LATE on what's HOT in the NYC night scene. B) I had no idea Susan Sarandon loved ping pong. Tim gives them their Challenge: to create five uniforms for the club—three female server outfits and one for a "ball boy"—the boy who gathers the ping pong balls from the floor. That may not be quite how my friends...

To continue reading my RECAP, Click HERE !