There are so many aspects to the fashion industry. The designers, the retailers, the models, and of course the final products. I enjoy taking a look inside to see how some of these processes work. I am a huge fan of Project Runway. I enjoy watching the designers create their outfits, sometimes with unusual materials. It is fun to watch Tim Gunn offer his advice and watch the judges give their constructive criticism. Project Runway All Stars wasn’t quite as enjoyable without Nina Garcia, Heidi Klum, Michael Kors, and Tim Gunn but it was fun to watch Mondo win. I have also watched some episodes of America’s Next Top Model to see how the final photos turn out. Because of my interest in fashion themed reality shows, I decided to check out NBC’s new show Fashion Star. Elle Macpherson is the host, Jessica Simpson, Nicole Richie, and John Varvatos are the mentors. Fourteen designers are competing for the chance to win a multi-million dollar prize to launch their collections in three of America’s largest retailers: Macy’s, H&M and Saks Fifth Avenue. There are three representatives from these three stores who put in offers weekly for the designers featured pieces.
So here is how it works: each week there is a theme to the challenge and the designers create three pieces for the challenge. The mentors advise them as they create their designs and give them their input after the runway show. After the runway show the representatives from each store can bid on the three pieces shown and then they will be available for purchase online the night of the show and in the store the next day. If the designer gets a bit they are safe for the week. If they don’t get a bid, they could be eliminated.
Pros: it is fun to predict which outfits will get bids, there are some fun pieces that have been shown, and if you like what you see you can buy it in stores or online.
Cons: the host and mentors can be annoying at times and the runway shows are very cheesy (in the last show a woman was doing acrobatics in a hanging circle thing)
Check it out on NBC Tuesday nights at 10PM or watch it on demand. My favorite designer so far is Orly Shani, she has created some fun pieces!
Here is my favorite (you can zip off the top part to create a new piece):
Lifestyle of a Fashionista 