We Love Project Runway: Ep. 1

Clearly the Aesthetes adore Project Runway. What's not to love with Tim Gunn, the ridiculous challenges, Heidi Klum's syntax, Nick Verreos, Jay McIntyre, Santino... We have been awaiting this latest season with much excitement. We feel like we've been reunited with a long lost love and not surprisingly we have an observation or three about the first episode.

Observations

Victorya's dress was the cutest from a "what people are willing to wear right now" perspective.

Chris and Jack could be interesting wild cards even though they didn't elicit much attention from the panel this week.

Where did Ricky get his amazing collection of hats that should belong to the Village People?

Intensely Hilarious Quotes

"People can be fantastic designers but if you haven't modeled you don't know the first thing" - Carmen

"That flower is so M.O.B." - Michael Kors (because we had been using the phrase Mother of the Bride SO much lately that we were DYING for an acronym).

Predictions

Rami will function as this season's Kara Saun and will repeat the pretty yet pedestrian toga garment ad infinitum.


Simone represents the first of many designers who will be Auf'd in favor of Elisa who has been specifically cast to bring the crazy this season.

We will be watching.

L is for My-God-This-Show-Is-Amazing.

So, as un-chic as this pronouncement is, I just have to let it out.

I love TV.

I do. I can't help it. Now that the words DVR, Netflix and Samsung 720p Flat Panel LCD HDTV have entered both mine and Betsy's lexicon, it can occasionally be hard to find an excuse to leave the apartment. And while we would both love to be those people that focus their living room furniture around a fresh citrus arrangement or a functional AND aesthetically pleasing wood, ceramic or natural steel sculpture, we tend to fall prey to moving pictures. My bad.

However, this is not all bad. In the context of this blog, it can be useful. One ridiculously fantastic example of this is The L-Word.

If you haven't heard of this Showtime series, you might still be trying to dig out from under than rock that has blotted out the sun on your planet for the past 4 years. But even if you HAVE heard about it, you may have never seen it. Let us tell you, it's never too late. Again... there's Netflix.

The fodder for AQoT on this series is virtually infinite... from food to fashion to design, there's so much to say, and more importantly, much more to learn.

In an effort to avoid writing a book on the subject, let's just talk about Jennifer Beals' character, Bette Porter. (Oh yeah, in case you were wondering what happened to J. Beals after Flashdance... now you know.)



Okay, so she's a self-righteous bitch. Whatever. Once we come to terms with that, we realize that Bette is a paragon of style and taste. She has been rocking the styles that we have come to admire, and she was doing it years before we even knew it was a good idea. She's a contemporary museum director turned art school dean, so she surrounds herself in smart, cutting-edge design, without falling into the hole of modern, attractive, but painfully pedestrian choices (maybe one day we'll talk about the Eames chair and ottoman). While with all the sharp edges, her house might be a deathtrap for her daughter, Angelica, her design aesthetic is impeccable. As for fashion, she does the power-lesbian thing like she was born to do it... which I suppose she was. The secretary blouse (in all positive, and no tragic frumpy versions) has been a part of her wardrobe for the past two seasons. The Jil Sander suit she wore throughout seasons one and two was paired with a variety of classic and cutting edge tops and accessories, testifying to the versatility of a classic wardrobe stable.

Good moves, Bette, that's all we're saying.

The Skin-ny

It seems as if leather has popped up as a trend these days. Clearly we’re far beyond the leather jacket, which though oft misused, is nonetheless an American staple. We’re not just talking about the fits like a glove and still nonexistent pair of leather pants we’ve coveted since we were 15 and have yet to discover in actual existence. We’re talking leather skirts (the Olsen twins strike again)


and several leather dresses we’ve seen at the "cheap & chic "chains like Zara and H&M.


On preliminary examination, this trend will be fleeting with high dry cleaning bills and a lack of breathability. We’re also a bit concerned that this whole faux-rocker thing has gone a bit too far (penchants for guitar hero notwithstanding). Faux-rocker to the Aesthetes is Ashlee Simpson, Uncle Jesse from Full House, and Justin Bobby. Actually nothing says faux rocker better than Justin Bobby in a full-on signature Justin Bobby beanie.

Faux Royalty Looks Great On Jonathan Rhys Meyers

Before The Tudors, Mr. Rhys Meyers (Mr. Meyers? Mr. J.R. Meyers? Eh, let's go with J.R.) had amassed an impressive performance CV... but other than Velvet Goldmine and Bend It Like Beckham, we were hard-pressed to sing the appropriately specified praises of this actor. Then came The Tudors, and everything changed. His face was instantly recognizable, a quality not lost on the fashion industry, not to mention every postered surface in New York City.



We don't know about you, but in the past, J.R. seemed a bit manorexic. While the gaunt and vapid thing may have temporarily worked for Kate Moss and Mary Kate, it never worked for you. Your recent project didn't necessarily force burgers down your throat, but it created a context for the body type that was less stylish, more skeletal. One thing the Tudors were good at... staying warm with layers... and if putting a layer of linen under a layer of cotton under a layer of animal skin under a layer of crushed velvet is what works for you, then amen. You don't have the weight issue that Henry VIII is chronicled in paintings as having, and luckily, it doesn't seem like you have a sweating issue.

So while your past is a bit gaussian blur for us, we're thrilled that a career move finally matched the one look you have. If pseudo-oppressive heirarchies and fashion-forward Renaissance-wear is your thing, that's just fine with us because, J.R., faux royalty looks great on you.

Dear Stylist: Roadkill Edition

Dear Stylist,

When will you fail to amaze us with your questionable choices? We realize that Kate Bosworth and Zhang Ziyi recently attended some sort of soiree in China and perhaps there are some deviating cultural norms at play here but seriously, what is that Chinchilla? Did you not notice that Ms. Ziyi looks like she's actually holding the dead animal she just skinned to fashion this garment? Ms. Bosworth looks like a late edition Cruella De Vil and if one wants to model themselves after a Disney character, we suggest Esmeralda, she really knew how to work the peasant blouse trend.

We're not really politically anti-fur here, we just think it looks gross 9 out of 10 times. Take for example Britney Spears. Does she not look like she skinned her little dog Bit-Bit and is wearing her as a shrug.


Perhaps there's ways to wear fur, in fact, there are certain people who may be able pull it off:

1. Sarah Jessica Parker circa SATC seasons 1 and 2 because there was a time when she could pull off that sense of whimsical risk taking.

2. Nicole Kidman because she's just regal and Nordic-looking enough to accessorize a fur coat with a nice viking helmet.

3. Mary Kate Olsen because the poor little thing looks just about cold enough to drape anything over her bony little shoulders.

Aside from the above mentioned we ask you to please refrain from this growing and disturbing use of fur.

Yours truly,

The Aesthetes

A Doomed Spinoff Looks Great on Kate Walsh

We generally love Grey's Anatomy. We love the bad acting, the ridiculous plotlines, McWhatever. We thought we'd love Addison Montgomery Shepherd's spinoff series Private Practice. And secretly, we do but we're also predicting its imminent demise, mostly due to the presence of Taye Diggs.

However, Kate Walsh looks amazing lately. Amazing.


Bravo Kate for uncovering the perfect black pants. This outfit screams ideal proportions and we love the use of the red shoe. A red shoe is not an easy accessory, in fact, we're going to issue a please don't try this at home on that one.

In another example of a woman who really knows how to pick the right shoe, note the above almost nude pair. We think this is modern and sleek as well as a great match with the leather jacket and feminine dress. Ms. Walsh looks much younger than her 40 years and has come a long way from her one CSI guest appearance as a transvestite.

So what if private practice won't be to Grey's Anatomy what A Different World was to the Cosby Show. Ms. Walsh, you can rest easy that you will eventually be able to join the Rachel Bilson I'm hotter than my other unemployed former co-stars club because a doomed spinoff looks great on you.

Shake It Off Hilary Don't Be So Yesterday

We've noticed a disturbing trend. It seems like Hilary Duff is a diva in training. A very specific diva in training.



If someone told us we were going to morph into Mariah Carey we'd start making some serious life changes faster than you can say box office opening weekend of Glitter.