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Cheers: How Green Was My Runway

080724projectrunway_portman.jpg
Natalie Portman by Barbara Nitke/Bravo Photo
Cheers to Project Runway for proving that green is always in. Heidi Klum's reality show admirably asked its designers to create cocktail dresses using environmentally responsible textiles. And who better to serve as guest judge than Natalie Portman, an activist who recently launched a vegan shoe collection? (She must've learned how to work with natural materials from the wooden scripts she was given for the Star Wars flicks.) But seriously, Portman's comments were smart and incisive — not for nothing did she go to Harvard.

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Posted by Bruce Fretts
Jul 23, 2008 11:12 PM
The idea was good, the execution...not so much. I believe it was a huge mistake to allow the models to choose the fabric for their dresses. We saw the results. Had they let them all go together with the designers, we would have seen a much different array of fabrics and probably a different person would have been "out". Frankly, the majority of the dresses were UGLY.
Posted by chattypatra
Jul 24, 2008 3:31 AM
I agree, chattypatra. That shiny brown fabric was the biggest mistake, and the sad thing is that it wasn't even the designers' mistake.

I thought that there were dresses that were very pretty (LOVED the winning dress) but the repetition of fabrics really killed it. Didn't the models want to look unique? Why did they all grab the same thing?

My prediction is that the biker chick's refusal to step outside her leather box is going to send her packing soon.
Posted by Dianora
Jul 24, 2008 8:22 AM
I love this show but allowing the models to shop for them was really awful. So unfair to the designers. If the object is to find and showcase the best designer this was a bad way to go. Aside from choosing bad fabrics, some of them barely had enough fabric.
Posted by Buffy Freak
Jul 24, 2008 8:46 AM
Can't say I agree with you, Bruce. Though the idea of designing green was certainly admirable, I thought the whole episode was mishandled. Why not showcase the gorgeous possibilities of eco-friendly fabrics, instead of one or two hideous satins picked out by (admittedly not fashion-designer) models? Also, though I ADORE her acting, Natalie Portman brought ... not so much to the judging. I sort of felt bad for her, actually; she seemed utterly overwhelmed. Not a Runway highpoint for me!
Posted by Nina Hämmerling Smith
Jul 24, 2008 10:07 AM
I agree that they had two challenges here--either of which would have been good on its own (although the models did need a little more direction--the show could have AT LEAST given them a list of essentials like "buy a minimum of 3 yards of fabric so your designer has some play"). Like the episode, however, this Cheer is suffering from trying to do too many things at once--it's a jeer for the overly complicated challenge that made way too many demands on the designers, but I agree it is a cheer for Natalie Portman's performance as a judge.
Posted by ftzp
Jul 24, 2008 11:29 AM
I can't stand Natalie Portman. She's smart but her acting is highly over-rated. Her appearance ruined the whole show for me. Sorry... :|
Posted by geordigirl
Jul 24, 2008 12:56 PM
Natalie Portman's shoes are NOT green. They are vegan and cruelty-free towards animals, but they are made of plastic. PLASTIC! That's not green, folks!
Posted by tanderman
Jul 24, 2008 2:37 PM
While I was excited by the challenge, the models shouldn't have gotten to shop for fabric. Most of them admitted that they knew nothing about fabrics, and therefore they had all picked out matching fabrics, and stuck the designers with fabrics that were horribly uneasy to work with. If the designers would've done the shopping, I think the outcome would have been quite different, in a good way. I didn't agree with the choice of the winning dress, and I didn't really agree with the losing dress either. Well, I'll just hope next week goes better!

Current Favorite: Daniel...The dress he made was adorable! Last week's was too.

BTW: Stella needs to learn that not every challenge is going to be something that is in her comfort zone. It really bugged me that she completely ignored what her model asked for and just did what she wanted. She's awfully lucky her model liked what she ended up with...
Posted by Lostie_44
Jul 24, 2008 2:40 PM
I agree with a previous poster - overpriced "designer" plastic shoes are not necessarily environmenttally friendly. The manufacturing and disposal of such man-made textiles generally create more toxins than organic materials. Based on her outfit, I think Natalie mistakenly thought this episode was showcasing green-colored cocktail dresses. Go Crimson!
Posted by AHinNY
Jul 24, 2008 3:11 PM
I thought "vegan shoes" meant footwear that doesn't eat animal products. I stand corrected.
Posted by Bruce Fretts
Jul 24, 2008 3:24 PM
Natalie Portman RUINED the show for someone?! Seriously? What's wrong with you? I thought she was great, but even if she wasn't I hardly think it ruined the episode....
Posted by mattyp783
Jul 24, 2008 5:38 PM
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