31.07.08 :: 'make it work, and holla at cha boy!'

before we dive right in to last night's episode, there's a 900-lb gorilla in the room—albeit a pink one—that no one from the cast seems to be talking about. we must discuss this right away.

last night's episode of project runway, episode 3, entitled "bright lights/big city," opened with a suspiciously brief interview with designer daniel feld saying that he missed his "roomie" wesley nault, who was auf'ed after last week's challenge.

what this blogger didn't realize until this morning was that according to an article written last thursday by people magazine and then later picked up by reality tv world (and then picked up by everyone else with a blog site, a pulse, and an internet connection), nault, 23, confirmed that he may have been auf'ed by heidi and the other judges, but that he's still in with fellow season 5 designer feld, 25.

people mag quotes nault as saying: "we met on the show. and we tried to keep it very professional on the show because we were both there for our careers, and we didn't expect this to come out of it. but i'm really happy."

the article goes on to say that speculation about the relationship began online after online fashion bloggers—the uber-sleuths that they are—noted that both designers listed that they were "in a relationship" on their myspace pages. oh, and at the top of their "top friends lists?" each other. wesley is daniel's top friend, and daniel is wesley's. ok? mystery solved. moving on...

last night's episode had the remaining 14 designers—or, as i lovingly like to refer to them: 5 girls, 8 real girls, and 1 straight guy—doning rain ponchos and rubber boots and riding atop a stacked nyc tour bus for a "night out on the town," hosted by mentor tim gunn. stops were made at columbus circle, times square, ny public library, and greenwich village. at each stop, a small grouping of designers armed with digital cameras were dropped off to take photos of inspirational new york city nightlife that would later be used as each designers' muse for their outfits.

kenley won last night. in my humble opinion, as talented as i think kenley is, i thought her dress was just "ok." gunn tended to agree, as he writes in his blog about the decision:

"i'm happy for [kenley], but i'm still scratching my head over her design. the judges described her look as "ungaro meets lacroix" and they were right, but is that a good thing? the silhouette channeled ungaro, while the textiles—a riotous green print and strawberry-to-grape ombred tulle—evoked lacroix. i thought it looked very costumey, too costumey, and even [episode 3 guest judge] sandra bernhard stated, 'i have difficulties with this look. I don't get it.' admittedly, this look isn't for everyone! kenley, congratulations on your win and on your immunity for the next challenge."

kenley: you have won this challenge.	emily: you are out. auf wiedersehen.

auf'ed last night was emily. i thought that, again, even as talented as she is, her look was most unfortunate. and i truly think she probably should have taken the advice of mentor gunn to take the dress to another level. gunn writes:

"i was concerned about [emily's] look from the moment of my first visit to her workspace. the black sheath was constructed with some problematic darts at the hips, and the multicolored flounces of ruffled fabric were awkwardly placed and looked like a stuck on afterthought. she was confident that her design was strong enough to survive the possibility of a runway pummeling. regrettably, the design didn't."

overall, lonestarsteve has to tell you that so far lonestarsteve has been really, really impressed with all of the designers. there is one designer, however, that lonestarsteve has problems watching. in fact, lonestarsteve predicts he may be auf'ed next. can you guess to whom lonestarsteve might be referring? hmmmm? lonestarsteve ... lonestarsteve ... lonestarsteve?

watch out, mr. suede. suede could just be next...

posted by lonestarsteve on thu 31.07.08 7:19 AM

i've been having a bit of a rough go of things lately, heathwise, so to help lift my spirits i've been trying to concentrate on the positive. a lot of the positive in my life comes from music. lately i've gotten my itunes and ipod whipped back into shape and amassed quite a new collection of albums from various artists, some from my past, some new to me.

one band in particular i've been jamming to lately i saw a while back (apr. 23) on david letterman. (it's funny looking at the video now because i realize just how horse the lead singer was at the time. they must have had a string of gigs before doing letterman.)

they are called tokyo police club and their second album, elephant shell, i am completely in love with.

tpc is a very young, canadian indie rock band hailing from newmarket, ontario. tpc band members—all early twentysomethings—are: vocalist and bassist dave monks, guitarist and percussionist josh hook, keyboardist and vocalist graham wright, and drummer greg alsop.

monks once described the band's sound as "wide-eyed post-punk with a tendency to get over-excited." that description fits.

wright wrote a recent blog entry about elephant shell...

"second albums are difficult. you’re supposed to ‘grow’ or ‘mature’, but you’re also supposed to ‘honour your roots’. i think i understand the dreaded sophomore slump now. it's what happens when you try to please everyone. we have no idea how to please anyone except ourselves, and thats what we’ve done with elephant shell. i don’t know how you’ll feel about it. but i’ll tell you how i feel about it. bear in mind that i am just the keyboardist, so you can take whatever i say with a grain of salt.

"[our first album,] a lesson in crime was was a record for friday nights. it was the record you would throw on at the party with twenty of your friends, the record that everyone could get up and dance to. it was quick and immediate and to the point. but when the party's over, and you’re giving a ride home to the girl you have a crush on, thats when you put elephant shell on. it's the record that you listen to when you’re driving around town in the dark, wondering if she likes you, wondering if you should have tried to flirt more, or less.

"so many of my favorite records still give me that nostalgic feeling, the feeling of falling in love with girls and with music and with life. maybe thats stupid. it sure looks stupid, now that i type it out. but it really is how i feel, and elephant shell makes me feel the same way.

"don’t worry, we haven’t gone sappy on you. you can still dance to this record. greg's still bringing the sweet beats. you can still turn it the hell up and blast it from your car. i hope you do those things. at the end of the day, its just a record, and you can listen to it however you want. but it means a lot to me, and i hope it means something to you, too."

i like almost ever song on the album, but my favorite song by far is in a cave. enjoy.

posted by lonestarsteve on wed 30.07.08 8:25 AM

the pattern of greatness continued last night with episode 2 of season 5 of one of my most favoritest shows in the whole wide world—the show that dare not speaketh its own name—and let me just tell you, it's not easy being green.

or let's just say that it wasn't so easy for wesley. so sorry to see him go. such wonderful eye candy. but looks and youth aren't everything, right stella?

so, last night's challenge was entitled "grass is always greener" and enlisted the help of brilliant young actress natalie portman to judge the remaining 15 designers' use of environmentally conscious fabrics to make cocktail dresses for their own models. catch was that it was the models themselves who went to new york fabric outlet, mode, to choose and purchase materials. bad idea.

winning the challenge was none other than 37-year-old suede from seven hills, ohio. suede goes only by his first name, which i'm sure is his real christian name, and he'll be the first to tell you so. in third-person, no less.

auf'd was none other than our boy wesley, a 23-year-old wunderkind from blackstone, massachusetts. nina garcia said of his design: "shiny, tight, and short is the quickest way ot look cheap." thanks for the tip, nina. i'll have to remember that.

and thanks for the memories, wesley. upon his departure, designers' mentor tim gunn was quoted as saying: "wesley, we barely got to know you, and we're going to miss you. i'm going to have to ask you to go clean out your workspace. and don't even think about stopping by the TRESemme hair studio or the L'Oreal makeup room for a 5-finger discount, you hear me? don't test me, boy. i know more polysyllabic words than your sweet, young mind could ever wrap itself around, and i'm not averse to utilizing them. don't make me have to caucus with the producers. i just didn't get your dress. it didn't 'wow' nina, and you bored the other judges. besides, you didn't mitigate what i told you to mitigate, and you didn't make it work. in the end, it was a lot of look."

suede: your dress will be sold on bluefly.com.	wesley: your dress will be sold on barfly.com.

wesley took the whole thing in stride and was extremely mature. i guess he's going to have to put his love affair with fellow designer daniel on hold. ah, young love. ain't it grand?

shiny...	tight...	and short.

unlike seasons of the past, bravo tv has provided a preview "teaser" for each episode on its web site. i've replicated the list below. a bit of a spoiler alert, by the way, which is so unusual for the show and for bravo to do.

	episode 1, aired july 16 "let's start from the beginning" in the first episode of the emmy-nominated creative competition series, the 16 designers are forced to think outside the box and construct an outfit from unconventional materials. guest judge: austin scarlett
	episode 2, aired july 23 "grass is always greener" the designers are forced to think green in the second episode of project runway—with the help of their trusted model. guest judge: natalie portman
	episode 3, airs july 30 "bright lights/big city" when the sun sets over the big apple, the real fashion of new york comes to life. the designers use the city as their muse. guest judge: sandra bernhard
	episode 4, airs august 6 "rings of glory" it's time to learn who deserves the gold. the contestants must design an outfit for the world's largest sporting competition, inspired by one of its most decorated participants. guest judge: apolo ohno
	episode 5, airs august 13 "welcome to the jungle" the workplace can be a jungle. inspired by a hit tv show, the project runway designers help working women dress the part. guest judge: brooke shields
	episode 6, airs august 20 "good queen fun" in this sixth episode of bravo's project runway, the designers let loose when a queen drops by for the day. guest judge: rupaul
	episode 7, airs august 27 "fashion that drives you" fashion doesn't always have to be conventional. the remaining designers get revved up for their materials in this challenge. guest judge: rachel zoe
	episode 8, airs september 3 "double-o fashion" the contestants must create a look inspired by the fall collection of a fashion icon of this decade. guest judge: diane von furstenberg
	episode 9, airs september 10 "what's your sign?" the designers team up to create a garment around the astrological sign of their partner. the designers are taken off-site to receive inspiration from the stars. guest judge: francisco costa
	episode 10, airs september 17 "transformation" growing up is hard to do, but the designers get their own lesson in sophistication as they help reinvent college-aged women for entry into the working world. guest judge: cynthia rowley
	episode 11, airs september 24 "rock n' runway" the designers tune in to their musical side for a musical genre challenge. guest judge: ll cool j
	episode 12, airs october 1 "nature calls" drawing inspiration from nature, the remaining designers head to the great outdoors to design an outfit of their choosing. guest judge: tba
	episode 13, airs october 8 "finale, part i" it's down to the final thread as the designers prepare to take to the tents to compete in a two-part finale to determine who will be the next winner of project runway. guest judge: tba
	episode 14, airs october 15 "finale, part ii" with every last stitch in place, it's time to discover who has made the final cut on bravo's project runway. guest judge: tba

posted by lonestarsteve on thu 24.07.08 7:41 AM

i've only been back at work now for one day since my trip to the great white north, and already i need a vacation. the trip went well, though. i think the powers-that-be were happy with the turnout, anyway.

good thing project runway season 5 has started, giving me good reason to live. i wasn't able to view the premier episode last wednesday while in canada. go figure that bravo for the u.s. doesn't air up there. such conceded bastards, those canadians, eh? what a bunch of hosers. that's all i'm sayin'.

top 10 things that "steve needs..."

... to find a squirrel hitman.
... a big ol' life insurance policy.
... sleep.
... the money.
... it.
... help.
... and greeds.
... to stop grand-standing with his smoke-and-mirror shows and focus on business development, alliances, and affordability.
... a hurricane.
... a shave (and therapy).

truer words have never been spoken

posted by lonestarsteve on tue 22.07.08 7:53 AM

despite the u.s. dollar losing its value by the day, never underestimate the magical healing power of a good, serious bout of retail therapy, especially when it's been one of those months. you know what i'm talking about? i thought you might.

posted by lonestarsteve on tue 08.07.08 7:05 AM

f*ck me pumps	f*ck me at the pump

posted by lonestarsteve on wed 02.07.08 6:16 AM

i'm feeling like such a debbie downer lately...

you're enjoying your day
everything's going your way
then along comes debbie downer

always there to tell you 'bout a new disease
a car accident or killer bees
you'll beg her to spare you, "debbie, please!"
but you can't stop debbie downer!

top 6 debbie downer good time-thwarters:

001 :: "ever since they found mad cow disease in the u.s., i'm not taking any chances. it can live in your body for years before it ravages your brain."

002 :: "wow, you guys, disney world really is fun. it makes me feel like a kid again. i mean, the time before my 2-year stint at children's hospital."

003 :: "speaking of heat, if this greenhouse effect keeps up we'll all be living underwater."

004 :: "by the way, it's official… i can't have children!"

005 :: "slather up the sunscreen… i had a mole looked at recently and the doctor told me that due to the extent of its irregular borders i'm flirting with a melanoma."

006 :: feline a.i.d.s. is the no. 1 killer of domestic cats."

posted by lonestarsteve on tue 01.07.08 8:11 AM