Saturday, August 23, 2008

PR: Drag Queens! Part V

Next to Leanne's, this was my favorite look of the night, Terri's design for Acid Betty:

Photobucket

Futuristic samurai! A lot of people complained about the strings. Terri boned (har) the corset with the yellow strings, using Japanese-style knotwork, then had them hang long instead of cutting them off. I think it's fucking awesome-looking. And the way she covered that boot with matching fabric was genius. The whole outfit has a kind of barely-finished look to it, but if she had the time to really do it properly and edit a little, it would be perfection.


Aaaand with that, some decidedly non-perfection:

Photobucket

UGH. Thank you, PR producers, for finally letting Daniel off the hook. He was so wrong for the show, didn't belong there, and probably missed his new boyfriend (he and Wesley are still together, great for them!). For all of his yacking about his impeccable high-end tastes, we saw none of it in his clothing. All he did was whine about how whatever the challenge called for, it didn't fit his aesthetic. Poor kid. Hell, poor US for having to listen to him for five weeks.

This dress actually looked really pretty in the workroom and moved beautifully on the runway. The problem is that it is not, by any stretch of the imagination, drag. It's a pretty, slightly tacky sundress/gown. And that's it. Anida Greenkard is a hot Latina character, and needed something big and showy and VOOM! She didn't get it. There were also some basic fit problems - the asymmetrical drop-waist made her right hip bulge out in a weird way. Daniel, these may be "women's" dresses, but you are still putting them on a man's body!


And now... the WINNER!

The Straight Guy takes it! Awesome work, Joe!

Photobucket

This was absolutely perfect for Varla Jean Merman, and it looked better on the runway than it does in the photo. Joe managed to make a beautifully form-fitting, junk-hiding, adorably-themed outfit that Varla loved so much I bet she wanted to wear it home. Girl WORKED it on that runway! Some folks thought Leanne or Terri should have won, and I could go with that too, but when you add up design, fit, construction, and how happy the client was, then Joe really is the clear winner.

Congratulations, Joe! You were nervous about designing for a drag queen, but you knocked it right out of the park and made Varla extremely happy.

No comments: