Back to the Runway

Let's all exhale; last night's Project Runway debut on Lifetime didn't suck! In fact, it was good. Save a startling/annoying emotional episode ya done good, Lifetime.

The contestants appear to be the ragtag group of kooks, normals, gays, free-spirits and blondes typical of PR seasons past. The first challenge was boring but I guess they have to play up the red carpet and celebrity factor now that they're in L.A. (Side note: didn't Tim Gun look oddly nervous when he was announcing the challenge? Maybe the smog was getting to him.) I'm sure all the contestants breathed a sigh of relief that their first task wasn't going to involve making a garment out of curtains or palm tree leaves or something. Except Malvin, aka "I'm soooo androgynous" who claims he doesn't care about red carpets or watch TV. Get over yourself and get haircut.

The drama, served on a silver platter, came from Johnny the recovering crystal meth addict. The intensity and pressure of competition was just too much for him and he had to go and take a moment. And cry. Tim Gunn comes to alleviate his fears of being a failure, Johhny wipes the mascara from his face and gets back to work. He turned out something quite decent that the judges liked. If I had tried out for PR but didn't make it and saw some fool crying that he couldn't take the heat before the first stitch was even sewn I'd probably throw my shoe at the TV.

The Runway. Ah the runway. Goddess Heidi steps out to introduce the judges and all is right with the world again. While I applaud Lifetime's success in capturing the "feel" of the show for the most part, it's definitely obvious that Bravo has a higher airbrushing budget. Michael had bags under his eyes I never saw on Bravo and Nina looked almost old, albeit still chic and radiant. But Heidi, Michael and Nina looked like tens next to the surprise guest judge. Yup Lindsay Lohan took a break from peddling spray tan to offer her expert opinion on red carpet looks. God she looked terrible. I'm not even referring to her weight but her face? Not the face of a 22 year old. It's the face of a 45 year old haggard divorcee who's on 3 pack a day habit. Have a glass of water, Linds.

The looks were good, if not that exciting. My favorite was Nicolas's funky LBD with the woven silver design.


The winner was Ra'mon, whose gown was interesting, pretty and elegant all the way around. Great first effort. If it's any indicator of what's to come, I'd say he's going to make it to the top three easily.


Now for the loser. I'm so proud of the judges for voting Ari off even though what she made was technically more innovative than Mitchell's see-through miu miu or Qrystil's tacky Lisa Frank-inspired mess. Ari straight-up didn't give a shiz. I'll forgive her for not sketching but she ignored the challenge, did whatever she wanted, and made up some half-ass explanation. What I did find amusing was her uncanny resemblance to Samantha Ronson, Linds's DJ gf. Coincidence?

A solid beginning to what looks like will be a good, fun season.

Sometimes I Just Get Excited

Here are some reasons why:
Blueprint 3 track list. Drops 9/11. But you knew that.

Top Chef Las Vegas premieres tonight. No more snake lady Gael Greene or ol' Dead Eyes Choi. It's just Padma, Tom, the real Gail, and brand new cheftestants, the way God intended it to be. Today is a holiday. In fact I may take tomorrow off to celebrate.

It's hot outside. Really hot and I love it.

The September Issue is out in theatres in less than 10 days. Rachel Zoe once said in an interview that if she could re-style any movie it would be The Devil Wears Prada because "real people who work in fashion don't dress like that." There's a connection there somewhere. (Photo courtesy of GlamBuzz)

I'm only partly excited about this but Project Runway LA premieres this Thursday. I'm holding off judgment until the first episode.

Love > Time

On Friday I saw the much-anticipated (at least in my circles) book to film adaptation of The Time Traveler's Wife. The book is one of the most heartbreaking novels I have ever read. If you're not sobbing inconsolably by the end you're a robot. Naturally I was eager to find out if the film was as much of a tearjerker as the book.


Rachel McAdams plays Clare, the female lead -- an obvious choice but nonetheless, a great one. I always say this but her biggest strength as an actress and what separates her from the ScarJos and Amy Adams's is that she has the ability to play 15 or 45. She should win the Oscar for Best Facial Expressions. Also, they should create that category. Opposite McAdams is Eric Bana as Henry, the Time Traveler. Bana's performance is shaky and he seems disoriented but given that his character time travels involuntarily and winds up naked in strange places, I guess he nailed it!

The film is directed beautifully despite the fact the ending gets twisted a bit (won't go any further lest I spoil it). As a viewer you're pretty sure this isn't going to end well but still understand why Clare and Henry would want to try and live like any another other couple. There are a few gaping holes in the story -- dude, he time travels -- but you're able to shrug them off pretty easily.

It's a tender, sad movie that is well done enough to avoid being cheesy (ahem, The Notebook) or just all-out ridiculous. If you've read the book it's a must-see and if you haven't, it's still not a bad way to spend your evening. BRING TISSUES.

Real Life Rogers and Pongos

Here's a cute and silly NY Times Well Blog post about dogs resembling their owners. Every time I notice this on the sidewalks it cracks me up. The classic example is, of course, Roger and Pongo from the underrated and shockingly disturbing Disney classic 101 Dalmatians. Take a gander at my faves:






You can scan the whole slideshow.

Weekend Warrior

I had a great weekend enjoying many of the activities of which I am fond: hanging out with high school friends, doing laundry, sitting around, and riding bikes. Amrit is in town visiting his sisters so I met up them on the Upper East Side for drinks and a later supper at Beyoglu, a Turkish restaurant I'd been wanting to try. Much to the table's dismay they had run out of the two dishes everyone was planning on ordering: Iskender Kebab (thinly sliced lamb baked with tomato sauce and a garlicky yogurt atop pita bread - flavor explosion central) and Doner Kebab. Despite this majorly bad news, we decided to stay because it was nearing 10pm and everyone was hungry. The food was good but I definitely want to reserve my final judgment for when I can actually eat what I want. Food aside it was awesome seeing Amrit, one of my closest friends from home.

Saturday I did huge batch of laundry and lounged. Most weekends I'm worrying about what really fun thing to do or see next and don't allow myself to just be (I know -- poor me). But this weekend I consciously kept open. That night Arif and I went to a great Italian restaurant in Soho, Il Corallo Trattoria. Fresh, tasty pasta for pennies. The service is so-so but with such well-priced, good food we didn't mind too much.

Sunday was our "active" day. We took a long walk then headed to Hudson Urban Bicycles, an awesome bike rental shop and checked out two beach cruisers for the afternoon. We made our way uptown along the Hudson bike path. I had a slight altercation with an older lady who refused to get out of the way even after I rang my bell (twice!). But other than that, it was a great way to spend the Sunday.