Our fashion critic reviews the winning looks of “Making the Cut”: “a little gadget”

[ad_1]

The following story contains spoilers from the fifth and sixth episodes of Amazon Making the Cut Season 2. Read our recap of last week’s episodes here.

Compared to last year’s inaugural season, the second installment of “Making the Cut” was a low-energy and less exciting affair. It could have something to do with the smaller pool of competitors (10 instead of 12) or the fact that designers competing for $ 1 million and an Amazon Fashion mentor are cloistered in a Malibu fashion bubble instead. to travel the world between challenges. Whatever the reason, that’s definitely no longer the case: The second season hits the back of the eight-episode arc with some serious high-stakes rework.

Episode 5: Welcome to “Upside Downsable”

The challenge of Episode 5 was to create two looks: an avant-garde haute couture runway look and an accessible version of it, with denim at the heart of the collection. “We want you to get big, really big,” co-host and judge Heidi Klum told the remaining six contestants. The payoff would also be significant, as the winning look would be co-branded with Levi Strauss & Co., who not only supplied the design studio with bolts of workwear fabric and an assortment of sundries, trims and accessories. buttons, but would also help determine the winner thanks to input from Karyn Hillman, Levi’s senior vice president and product manager. The designers had two days to create their two-look collections, which would be presented in a carnival-themed context.

One of the more ambitious looks came from Raf Swiader, who took direct inspiration from the marquee decor, particularly the ferris wheel’s ironwork infrastructure on site, resulting in a cage sleeve top ensemble. , bustier and full skirt that had defined Jean Paul Gaultier vibrations. This might have put him in the running to win his first challenge but for a bustier that the judges felt sagged where he should have been boosted.

The story continues

Another standout look from the episode came from the still strong Andrea Pitter, who used bubble jackets from her childhood as the starting point for a combination of a denim tube top and dress that hugged the curves of the hips, Created new dramas on each arm with double bubble leg of mutton sleeves, inflated to the floor and featuring a built-in satchel / utility pocket between the shoulder blades. The judges were visibly and audibly impressed, as was her accessible look, a denim jumpsuit with an off-the-shoulder bodice, puffed sleeves and generously flared legs. Ultimately, however, the hampering effect of the runway look’s tight skirt scuttled her chance to win a challenge.

Like Pitter, Gary Graham took Klum’s ‘go big’ advice to heart for his edgy runway look, a dull olive and black voluminous double-breasted coat with geometric sheer mesh inserts that managed to riffle on. both the nostalgic the quilted atmosphere of its brand DNA and the boldly patterned carnival decor pieces at the same time. Her accessible look featured a high-waisted, not quite knee-length dress that took even more direct inspiration from accessories, thanks to a four-pointed star design pulled from a chipping wood panel and the whole thing. and photo-printed on light colored denim. But it was the piece worn over it that took Graham’s look to the next level: a Levi’s denim trucker jacket deconstructed and transformed into a roomy two-pocket cocoon coat / shawl hybrid that, at the top of the track, was deconstructed. the model pulled out, turned around and shrugged.

” Go on ! Economical in the event of a pandemic, I love it! Judge and model Winnie Harlow said after the transition. “Give me two jackets in one, that’s what I need!” “

“It’s not reversible, it’s ‘upside down’,” added fellow judge Jeremy Scott from Moschino. “It’s brilliant.”

When the judges asked him to share his inspiration for the challenge, Graham’s explanation was as over the top as the clothes. “By the sting [sic] with my thumbs something mean comes this way, “he said, holding both arms out like he was saying an incantation.” Carnies, time travel and HG Wells, these are all themes that are part of this collection. Levi’s is the perfect company for time travel: from the beginning of American history to the present until the future when we’re all gone, Levi’s will always be there. “

Graham’s witchcraft on the track earned him his second victory (he landed his first in Episode 1) and put him face to face with the only other winner of two challenges of the season, Joshua Scacheri. This tension lasted for a few minutes before things got even more “upside down” and Scacheri was kicked out of the bubble for a Notting Hill carnival and a punk-inspired collection in ’90s London that the judges have. felt they were not up to the occasion.

The takeaway: While Graham’s deconstructed Levi’s trucker jacket ($ 200) is definitely a two-in-one “inside out” affair for the avant-garde ensemble, it also looks a little whimsical. However, her ruched waist carnival dress ($ 74.90) makes it seem like she exists in the past, present, and future at the same time, making her the most affordable time travel ticket. of the market.

Episode 6: Not Always a Bridesmaid

“These days, as in-person fashion shows dwindle, video campaigns are even more important in promoting your brand and its message,” co-host Tim Gunn told The Last Five at the start of Episode 6, paving the way for a marketing theme. challenge that would require each participant to create two looks and work with a videographer to create a video ad campaign to promote their brand. The videos and looks would be featured in a movie-themed runway show with guest judge Shiona Turini (celebrity stylist, costume designer and brand consultant) joining Klum, Scott and Harlow.

As with Episode 2’s social media challenge, the winning strategy would be to grab attention, grab attention, and turn heads. But judges were also looking for video clips that telegraphed and reinforced the brand’s identity through visual cues. Failure on the first front proved fatal for Raf Swiader’s chances and failure on the second did Lucie Brochard. The two were ultimately sent off to race, making it the second double elimination of the season.

It wasn’t the only double in the episode, thanks to the judges’ decision to pick a pair of winners. One was Graham, who won his second straight challenge and third overall challenge for a pair of looks featuring abstract hand-painted details on white fabric featured in a letter to self-themed video. younger (with a model doing a poetry voiceover). In another change, the judges ruled that Graham’s runway look, a high-neck, puff-sleeve linen top and a matching midi skirt would be the one to fall in the MTC online store instead of the accessible look that paired a short-sleeved shirt. blouse with black pants featuring a white tuxedo side stripe.

While Graham’s clothes, video, and winning streak were all impressive, the episode’s most satisfying victory went to Pitter, also run throughout the season, who performed two super chic versions of the coat. belted camel color. The runway version featured a high, rolled-up collar enhanced with a pair of sporty stripes (one black and one white); it fell to mid-thigh with a pair of generous bow-shaped pleats at each hip and was teamed with a crisp black beret and a pair of black lace pants. The accessible version of the coat polished up the details, lowering the length to mid-calf, adding a shawl collar and extending the stripes across the front shoulders and along the yellow of the back to give the cozy coat an athleisure touch.

Pitter, aware of how a failure to think visually cost him dearly in Episode 2, made up for that with a Friendship-Through-Fashion-themed campaign video that reached out to the judges instantly and without a word. “I loved Andrea’s video,” guest judge Turini told her fellow judges. “I thought he had such great energy [and] a sense of love and community which is important to set you apart from other designers right now. “

“I’m not a bridesmaid anymore,” the Brooklyn-based bridal wear designer said with an enthusiastic laugh at the end of the episode. “This time I’m the bride!

The takeaway: While it’s hard not to like everything Gary Graham has sent to the runway and to the MTC store this season, including the paint-stained top ($ 59.90) and skirt ( $ 84.90), Pitter’s comfortable and sporty camel-colored coat ($ 119.90) and stretch-jersey cowl neck dress ($ 69.90) are must-haves in this episode.

Take-Home Bonus: Even though last week’s Episode 4 didn’t produce a winning look designed by the contestants, it turns out some wisdom wearable a t-shirt ($ 21.99 ) and a sweatshirt ($ 35.99) printed with an excerpt from the Scott episode – highlighting the ‘fashion is passion’ speech. They can be found, along with other TCM t-shirts, tote bags and pillows, on the show’s merchandise page.

This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.

[ad_2]