Chloe Dao at Fashion Houston 2010

Bird on a dress.

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Chloe Dao Bridal 2010

Project Runway Season 2 winner Chloe Dao has released her Bridal 2010 collection.

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T LOunge

Flirtinis for everyone!

El Tubo, Peru, courtesy of Fabulon

Darlings, the bar is once again open and once again fabulous. Before we're face down in the peanuts, let's take care of some business.

Congrats to last week's winner of a gorgeous Emmett McCarthy coat, Tiffany! Tiffany was one of eight people who correctly guessed all six of the top and bottom three and her name was the one we pulled out of our T Lo bag.

This week's prize comes courtesy of Season 2 winner Chloe Dao. Miss Chloe has graciously offered her top selling top, called "Scarlet."

Gorgeous and sexy!

What do you have to do to win this stylish top? Why, you only have to guess the top and bottom three in tonight's episode, is all. Remember, you get three guesses and you have to include an email address in your entries.

To help you guess, check out this preview of tonight's episode, which apparently has THE BIGGEST LIE IN PROJECT RUNWAY HISTORY! Will the world ever be the same again?



1) Pick the top 3 and bottom 3 designers of Episode 5.
2) You can have up to 3 entries in the contest.
3) If more than one person picks correctly, we'll pull the winning name out of a bag.
4) You must post your email address so we can contact you if you won.
5) No entries will be accepted once the show starts.



[Video: myLifetime.com - Photos: planetfabulon.com/chloedao.com]



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Top Ten Project Runway Bryant Park Looks: 10, 9, 8

Darlings, this list couldn't have been any easier to put together. We didn't even have to review the collections to come up with our picks. Within about 5 minutes, we had come up with 10+ looks and then it took another 5 minutes to put them in order.

Before anyone asks, we will not be doing a bottom ten for Bryant Park. Even though we could easily come up with a list, that strikes us as a little cruel. The BP collections represent months of hard work for someone hoping for their big break. It's bad enough for them that they didn't win; it would just be mean to put their work on a "Worst 10" list. Of course we ARE going to do a bottom ten competition list, because we have to do SOMETHING to retain our bitch cred.

Anyway, on with the show. We think you're going to be a little surprised with some of our picks.


Number 10: Kara Janx


One of the tragedies of Season 2 was that Kara Janx made it to Bryant Park with a collection that almost certainly could have won, except she was there as a decoy, meaning she was ineligible. This gorgeous teal and bronze gown was, if you can believe it, her surprise 13th look, the one the producers sprung on the designers at the very last minute. We absolutely love the colors on this dress. It flows and moves beautifully and the fit is perfection.

Number 9: Jillian Lewis


We went against the grain when it came to picking the winner for Season 4. It seemed like almost everyone came down in either the Rami or the Christian camp, but we were alone out in the wilderness, yelling "Jillian! Jillian! Jillian!" Alas, no one heard us. In a collection of very wearable, but stylish separates, this look stood out the most to us. That skirt is gorgeous and beautifully executed. The top is very basic, but that only serves the look better as it allows that beautiful scarf and quirky hat to top off the look dramatically.


Number 8: Chloe Dao


We were, again, out in the wilderness when it came to Chloe's finale collection. It seemed like almost no one liked her statement-making looks and the most common complaint seemed to be "It looked like upholstery." Maybe for some of the others, but this sleek, beautifully fitted gown (with some slight issues in the seams) in "Chloe Blue" was elegant and, once she turned around, sexy and dramatic. It may just have been the look that made the judges' decision for them.

[Photos: Getty Images/FirstVIEW]

Top Ten PR Looks of All Time

Darlings, we've been talking about doing this for what seems like years and the other day, we found ourselves on the way into New York with nothing to do on the train but bicker, so we chose this as the topic to bicker about.

Joking aside, it was ridiculously easy. We don't know about anybody else, but when we think "Top 10 looks," these were all no-brainers. It took us all of ten minutes to come up with a list. Bear in mind that these are the top ten competition looks. We're not including anything shown by any of the designers in Bryant Park. No, we were looking at the stuff that was thrown together in 2 days on 50 bucks.

This is, of course, highly subjective. If you think we missed one or that we chose one that shouldn't be anywhere near the top 10, let's hear it. After all, the whole point to top 10 lists is to spur conversation. What's in your Top 10?

So without further ado, let's start the countdown.

Number 10


Season 2: Episode 7 - "On Thin Ice"
Designed by Chloe Dao
Model: Grace Kelsey

We'll never understand why Sasha Cohen picked Zulema's toothpaste monstrosity over this. Her whiny complaint was "It looks like a Christmas tree." Shyeah! If Christmas trees were FABULOUS! We though this was a beautiful, unique look, perfectly executed. Going light on the sparkle kept it classy.

Number 9


Season 4: Episode 8 - "En Garde!"
Designed by Jillian Lewis and Victorya Hong
Model: Jacqueline Miranne

Season 4 wasn't exactly known for the exuberant personalities of the designers, nor were the teamups anything but embarassingly tense. However, these two happy-go-lucky gals put aside any rivalry and knocked out a stunningly beautiful, striking coat that was all Dr. Zhivago on the top and Petticoat Junction on the bottom. The pink plaid made a perfect counterpoint to the almost sinister black.


Number 8


Season 3: Episode 7 - "Everyday Woman"
Designed by Uli Herzner
Model: Judy G. (Kayne's mother)

While we were in NY, we of course stopped by Laura's and the conversation drifted to this list. When we got to this look, she was adamant. "Definitely. That one has to be on the list." This was a perfect example of a designer melding her aesthetic to the task and the client at hand. It still has Uli's trademark flowy, Miami Beach feel, but it's appropriate for the client and more importantly, incredibly flattering. Whenever we hear competitors whine over the fact that they have to dress a non-size-2 woman, we think of this look, which proved not only that it can be done, but that it can be done fabulously and stylishly.

What? Did you think we were gonna do all ten at once? Silly kittens.



[Photo: Barbara Nitke/Bravotv.com - Screencaps: projectrungay.blogspot.com]

Jay McCarroll on QVC

Got a little note from Jaysus reminding us that he's on QVC tomorrow night (along with Chloe Dao):

"my tentative scheduled time is 10pm but you could tell your
audience to tune in between 9 pm and 11pm.

they can also log onto qvc to
order around the same time, 9ish.

the line will feature a checkerboard
topper coat, like the one shown in the documentary film "eleven minutes".
that is available in a grey version and a berry version."

"there is a striped cowl neck sweater with pockets available in a grey/black version, a berry version, and a teal version. there is a circle pattern quilted ski vest available in a fuchsia with a turquoise lining and a turquoise with
black lining. there is a silk blend scoop neck 3/4 sleeve sweater with
ombred bangles and beads available in a winter white version, a fuchsia
version, and a turquoise version. a colorful circle print silk tunic, and
a pair of stretch sateen trousers with a double front pocket detail
available in black and burgundy.

can you please mention that these items are available, as with all qvc
items, in xs through 3x. thanks!

all my best!
xox. j"

WOULD IT KILL ANY OF THESE BITCHES TO THROW US A BONE AND DO A LITTLE MENSWEAR? We're so jealous of you bitches. Get your credit cards ready!

"FASHION DESIGNER GALLERY Monday, July 21, 2008
08:00 - 12:00 AM ET Get a sneak peek at the latest designer fashions for Fall, 2008 during Our Fall Fashion Designer Gallery. Tune in at 8pm ET for 4 hours of all brand-new styles from some of fashion’s most esteemed designers, including Bradley Bayou, George Simonton, Chloe Dao, Dennis Basso, Jay McCarroll and more as they share the collections they’ve created especially for QVC. Plus, we’ll present a special collection of brand-new Signature Selection items - designs that epitomize the signature style of these popular designers. And you’ll make no payments and accrue no finance charges until November, 2008 when you shop with your QCard®. Some restrictions apply. Only QVC can bring you the new fall collections of so many of today’s hottest designers during our Fall Fashion Designer Gallery."


Fashion Designer Gallery [QVC]
[Photos: Trawtopia/NY Magazine]

Dao Jonesing

We haven't checked in with Miss Chloe for a while, kittens. Let's rectify that. Craft Magazine recently went on a Chloe-guided tour of her new design studio. Check it (and note that it's appropriately painted in "Chloe Dao Blue") :


She's adorable, no? And what a fabulous space. Loving some of the designs that she showed too. Very pretty and girly.


More from Craft:

"She designs most of the clothing in her boutique and works hands on throughout the production process from cutting all the fabric and more. We got a chance to be the first to see Chloe's new design studio where she shows us the designs and clothing for her new upcoming wholesale line. Can you believe she used to work in her mom's kitchen and dining room? She was gracious enough to be filmed in her sweats and no makeup, since she and her employees had just completed the Houston AIDS walk that morning."


Her store is gorgeous. We had no idea it was so huge. Now you know where that prize money went.

And how cool is this:

"This was dress featured in Chloe's runway show for Project Runway (Fall 2006) and is prominently placed in her boutique. Another version of the dress is also displayed in the Smithsonian Museum in Washington D.C."



God, we forgot how gorgeous this dress was. We're curious about how it wound up in the Smithsonian.

Anyway, there's your Dao fix for the weekend. We're looking forward to seeing more of the line she's working on. Chloe Doll, call us!

[Video: Crazftzine.com - Photos: Courtesy of Natalie Zee Drieu/FirstView]

Adventures in QVC Land

So there we were, sitting around being fabulous last night as we are wont to do, when our BlackBerries lit up with an email from Laura. "We're on our way to QVC now. How about we stop in Philly on the way and meet for dinner? We'll be there in an hour." Our response?





Duh.

We were going to take them to one of those upscale Mexican places near us, but unfortunately, they were closed and we wound up at Cafe NOLA, the local New Orleans-inspired eatery. Laura, ever the New Orleans girl at heart, sat down at the table, saw a bug, smacked it, flicked its carcass away and said "Well, I know they're authentic if there are bugs on the table."

We spent dinner talking about her upcoming appearance on QVC, complimenting her on her hair and makeup like the good gays that we are, and dishing about Project Runway, which we always do when we're together.

It was funny and strange being on our own turf with Laura and Peter and watching the locals gawp at her wide-eyed. Our waiter (gay, bien sur) asked for a picture and Laura of course obliged. When we hauled out our camera to take a shot for ourselves, the batteries died. Peter, ever the mad scientist, pulled the batteries out and plopped them in his coffee to warm them up. We thought that was gross and not a little crazy, but wouldn't you know it? The camera worked fine for the rest of the night. A little tip from Bad Daddy to you. When your batteries die, order a cup of coffee.

As we walked them back to the car (followed by a wide-eyed girl whispering frantically into her phone) we all decided on the spur of the moment that Laura needed her posse with her on this important occasion and we would have to drop everything to ride out into the wilds of suburban Philadelphia to QVC headquarters.

We gotta say, QVC headquarters is like the Cathedral of Capitalism. The place is HUGE and impressive-looking. Once we got our guest tags (Laura gave our names and for the rest of the night, we wore tags identifying us as "Tom Bennett," "Lorenzo Bennett," and "Peter Bennett"), we were ushered to the green room. Honestly, we would never want to work there because getting from point A to point B is the equivalent of walking about ten city blocks.

After we passed BOB FUCKING MACKIE in the hallway, we headed in to the green room, which is disappointingly, not green.


Laura and the QVCettes.

The green room was kinda fascinating. There's a big screen TV on the wall where you can watch what's being aired at that moment with a graph laid over it indicating how many calls are coming in. If the on-air designer or host isn't wowing people, the graph immediately plummets. Put out a couple models and suddenly it spikes. Neutral colors? Fall. Bright colors? Rise. It's scary how they've got it down to such a precise science.

It was EXTREMELY DIFFICULT for us to watch models walk up and down a runway onscreen and NOT yell out our assessments. After all, we were surrounded not only by QVC employees, but friends of the on-air designer. Believe us, there were a couple times we looked at each other from across the room and used our married-for-twelve-years telepathy ("Ohmigod, that's HIDEOUS." "I know, right?" "Did you feed the cats before we left?" "I thought you did!")


QVC hostess Lisa Robertson came back to go over Laura's collection and discuss what points they wanted to hit on air. Lorenzo, ever the starfucker, lost it. "Ohmigod, you're fabulous! I have to take a picture." Laura laughed and said "Lisa, these are my gays." Lisa laughed loudly and said "Hey, every girl needs her gays!" Lisa gushed over the high quality of Laura's work (we agree of course). The fabrics and the construction are impeccable. After they conferred on the collection, the discussion turned to false eyelashes and they compared notes on their favorite brands and techniques.


Bad Mommy and Bad Daddy get it on while Tom pretends not to notice.

We had over an hour to kill before Laura would be called to set, so we spent the time looking at computer screens and noting the astonishingly high level of sales going on. Suddenly a familiar voice rang out. "Well hello, Miss Bennett."


CHLOE!

We knew she was scheduled for the same week, but we had no idea she was going to be there that night. She, of course, had no idea we were going to be there either and when she turned and noticed us, she said in shock "OhmiGOD, you guys are EVERYWHERE!"


If we haven't said it before, Chloe is VERY pretty in person (and her boyfriend? HOTTIE McHOTHOT). Not that she's not pretty on camera, but she's surprisingly glamorous-looking when you meet her (and tiny, but that's not surprising) . This was her fifth time at the QVC rodeo and she admitted that she's still as nervous as she was the first time she did it (although you'd never know it looking at her on-camera). She gave Laura some advice, they traded notes and gossip on PR-related stuff and then Laura was ushered off to the set, our well wishes trailing her.

We had some time to kill before Laura's set, so we sat around talking about who we think is going to win this season. We won't give anything away, but Chloe was surprised by our pick and we were surprised by hers, although in retrospect, it makes sense. Her pick is the closest to her own style.

Then, they announced Laura and we all shushed each other to watch. It is NERVE-RACKING watching your friend sell her wares on camera with a graph laid over her indicating how well she's doing. Tom said it was like being on the floor of the stock exchange but Chloe more accurately said it was like watching a horse race. Bad Daddy sat in front of the computers the whole time tracking the sales.

It was cute, because the QVCettes were watching with us and oohing and aahing over Laura's collection. In fact, one of them whipped out her phone to order the wrap sweater right there. Unfortunately, the color she wanted sold out before she could order one. Chloe was murmuring encouragement and expressing admiration for several of the designs, including the wrap sweater and the silk blouse. "Are all those buttons functional? DAAAAMN."

She, of course, did fabulously and we all applauded her when she came back after her set. Ever the self-critic, it was all "Did I stand up straight?" "Did I talk enough?" "How are the numbers?"

Our opinion? For a first-time designer working at a fairly high price point for QVC, the numbers were fantastic. Several of the QVCettes agreed. There are still pieces online at QVC's site. We can't link directly to them, but just go there and do a search on Laura Bennett - and Chloe Dao, too. Chloe's collection was adorable and she also has pieces available online.

After that, we said our goodnights and stumbled home at one a.m. We do it all for you, kittens.

Oh, who are we kidding? We do it all for US. It was a blast.

[Photos: Project RunGay]

Out Gunned.

Out Magazine put big old mess Marc Jacobs on the cover, but as in life, it's what's inside that counts. First, an interview with Tim Gunn.


So you didn't grow up fixated on fashion?
I was fixated on architecture and interiors, which of course had everybody worried. I had a really butch father — so butch I thought maybe he was a closet case. He was an FBI agent and a sports lover, and the only sport I could even participate in was swimming, because it was nice and clean and you didn’t sweat.

On politics:
Who on Capitol Hill needs Tim Gunn's Guide to Style most?
Laura Bush. Oh, my God!

On Project Runway:
You have no influence over the judges?
None. It keeps me an honest man. I have no interaction with them at all, but that doesn't mean they don't drive me to total despair.
And how do they do that?
How do the judges drive me to total despair? By smoking crack! By making decisions I can't fathom.


On his show:
You're quick to point out that Guide to Style isn't a typical makeover show.
I'm not a fashion Svengali. I don't throw clothes at you and tell you if you wear these things, all your fashion foibles will go away. I'm a fashion therapist.

On his personal life:
How's your romantic life?
I haven’t been in a relationship since 1982. God, that sounds pathetic. But I was so severely hurt that I’ve never, ever gotten over it. I was so madly and desperately in love that I didn’t see the end coming. It was a routine night on the couch watching television, and he turned to me and just said, 'I don’t have the patience for you. I can’t do this anymore.' After nine years. I still remember leaving his apartment, driving down Rock Creek Parkway in Washington, D.C., thinking, Maybe I’ll just drive right off the bridge.


Then they followed up with their favorite PR alums by making them pose for a dorky picture. Emmett says they had to "make it work" with tin foil, whatever that means.

Starting Your Week with Delicious Dish.

New York Magazine has an eye-opening article about what happens to Bravo reality show contestants after their 15 minutes are up. We were really happy to read this because it contains stuff that we'd been hearing for a while but didn't have the right to publish ourselves. Bravo doesn't come off that great here and Heidi has a real bitchquote at the end.

Some choice bits (but you really need to read the whole thing):

Jay:
“I haven’t been living anywhere for two years,” he says. “I sleep at other people’s houses. I sleep here if I’m drunk.”

“I have a fucking gazillion e-mails from all over the world from people asking, Why isn’t your stuff out there?” says Jay. “Yet financially, I have no way to get them a product because I got pushed out of a boat and into the ocean, as if, Oh, you can survive now.”

(Photo: Jessica Wynne)

Andrae:
"Today, he still sews the odd custom dress for $1,500, and he teaches too, but he makes a fair chunk of his money doing gigs that exploit his reality-show fame, like hosting events at gay bars in Pittsburgh. He knows this won’t last. “I tell everyone I’m not a star,” he says. “I’m a brown dwarf.”

Austin:
"Austin Scarlett, the young Quentin Crisp from the first season of Project Runway, says he was approached about a role on Heather Graham’s short-lived sitcom, Emily’s Reasons Why Not. Today he wonders if he should have mulled it over. “Because I don’t think you should turn down work that much,” he says. “That’s one of my continuing struggles, being considered a reality-TV, you know, star.” I ask if he’s ever done TV gigs he’s come to regret. “Yeeeeeeeees,” he says. “Battle of the Network Reality Stars.” Shortly afterward, he appeared on a reality reunion show on Bravo, too. “I felt so cheap and tawdry,” he says. “They gave me $500, and I was like, Keep the money. It was just part of my confusion, grasping for the next thing.”

Nick:
“When they asked me why I wanted to be on Project Runway,” says Nick Verreos, 40, who made the fetching Barbie dress from Season Two (it sold for $1,700 on projectrunway.com), “I said I wanted to use it as a trampoline. Because I knew I was doing fierce stuff, but nobody was noticing.”

Santino:
“No one wanted to interview Chloe,” Santino says. “I’m sure I did like 500 percent more interviews. That’s what I won.”

"I crack myself up by saying, It’s lucky that I turn things down so that Nick has stuff to do,” says Santino."

“Between Heidi and Michael Kors and Nina Garcia, the judges were like a three-headed monster,” he says. “They all basically have the same point of view. I mean, have one avant-garde person who has an art-as-fashion approach, rather than fashion-as-commerce approach.” Then, of course, he made an almost perversely beautiful collection for Fashion Week, and the judges said there wasn’t enough of him in it. “And it’s like, Really?” he asks. “Gee, that’s funny, because I made this shit!”

Laura:
"When Laura, hugely popular with fans, failed to notify the network she’d signed a contract to host a style show on MSN.com, they called and demanded an explanation. “And I said, ‘So what do you have to offer me?’ ” she says. (She’s now in talks with Bravo about doing something for its Website and iVillage.)"

UPDATE: "Is Jay McCarroll Homeless? He Sure Said So (and So Did His Publicist)." Read it here.

Ripping the Collections: Chloe, Part Two

The good news: We almost-love everything in the second half of her collection!
Tha bad news: That means this is going to be a really boring post!

Gorgeous. Our second-favorite look in the whole collection.

Love the lace peeking out from the hem, the unusually placed seams, the keyhole, the color, the proportion. Near-perfect look.

The only slight criticism we have is that the bust doesn't seem as well-fitted as it should be.

Like bordering on love.

We wish she had spread out some of these more subdued looking pieces instead of slamming us with all that pink and gold all at once.

The only thing we don't respond well to is that shrug, which has a flimsy, fussy quality to it. And is it us or does that thing look... crooked somehow?

Another like bordering on love. This is a good example of why we don't particularly like the color story in this collection. The colors are all too...what's the word? Well, the word that comes to mind is "unsophisticated." They're so crayola, so basic.

We do like this design, but the fit on this thing is all kinds of wonky. It almost looks like she's wearing something a size larger than she is. And we do like the cutout in the back but we think she went a little too far with it.

We still don't love her prints, but we like this better than that green and pink one.

It's another fairly basic dress, but it's pretty, the trim bumps it up, and like almost everything else in the collection, it's well-made and well-fitted.

We do hate her styling choices, though. Every model has the same lop-sided hairstyle.

Again, we wish she had rethought the order of the looks because it's odd that she would have two similar dresses walking down the runway one after the other.

We go back and forth on this one, mainly because of our unlove for the print, but the shrug makes the look here.

Grace, you fabulous Amazon. We LOVE this one. Absolutely gorge.

See, THIS is a more sophisticated blue than that crayon blue she had earlier. We wish she had done the entire collection in shades like this instead of the blinding pinks, golds and blues.

The proportions on this look are perfect and the beautiful placement of the seams and cutout on the back take what could have been a basic dress and bumped it up to something unusual, striking and beautiful.

Despite the previously stated problems we had with this collection, all in all, it was dramatic and memorable and demonstrated a high level of craftsmanship as well as an expert's understanding of how to make fabric look beautiful on a woman's body. Was it for everyone? Clearly not, but in our view it was the unmistakable winner of season 2. Whether you agree with the judges or not, the fact of the matter is, Chloe had the best post-show career of any contestant. She's going places and isn't that what the whole competition's about?

Tomorrow: The stunning collection of Kara Janx.


[Photos: FirstView]


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