The fresh faces will be asked to do things like make a ball gown from cardboard boxes or construct a bathing suit from the clothes off their backs. One by one contestants will be eliminated until America's next big designer is crowned, having passed each test with flying (and usually bright or unique) colors.
But what happens when the winner is let loose in the world of fashion and entertainment with no editors to cut out the parts that aren't so glamorous?
There aren't any Tim Gunns or Heidi Klums to help out in the real world, according to both Jay McCarroll and Chloe Dao, the winners of Seasons 1 and 2 of "Project Runway."
"I guess I thought there was going to be more assistance but … I was a story. I was turned into a product," said the outspoken and never-camera (or tape recorder)-shy McCarroll.
He says he basically partied for a year after his big win.
Freelance costume designer Chris, 44, has created looks for clients, including Cirque du Soleil and Madonna. The San Francisco native credits Christian Dior and John Galliano as some of his major influences and loves anything brightly colored. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
"I just tried to network and meet people and figure out what the hell I wanted out of it," McCarroll said.
Fair enough, but wasn't he supposed to be America's next Ralph Lauren? Maybe not.
Though Christian may be young, at 21 years old, he's the youngest of season four's contestants -- he's got a good bit of design experience under his belt. The Maryland native graduated from the Baltimore School for the Arts and broadened his worldview at the American Intercontinental University in London. In 2005, he showed a small collection at London Fashion Week. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
McCarroll is doing plenty now: He just finished a documentary about the design process and he's working on a fashion line for QVC. But when he showed his line at Bryant Park during New York's Fashion Week, he didn't exactly make a splash. In fact, in his words it was simply "a blip."
But McCarroll doesn't seem resentful.
"I now just want to put out products, but I don't want to do it in a fashion show format. I just want to get it to the customer."
No fashion shows? For the "Project Runway" winner? It seems the expected path post-reality success just wasn't for him.
Twenty-six-year-old Jillian is a rising star in the design world. While at the Parsons School of Design, she won the CFDA scholarship award and was selected to design the Perrier girl uniform. The Long Islander is currently developing her own label while lending her design expertise to other companies. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
Niche Success, but No Superstars
The story is similar with Season 2. After winning, Dao went back to Houston, back to the boutique Lot 8 that she owned before the show. Her prize money is still in the bank because, she says, her store was already doing well.
Fashion design runs in Kevin's blood. This first generation Italian-American learned how to sew from his aunt Ida Lasusa and went on to study at New York's Fashion Institute of Technology, where he won the Menswear Designer of the Year grant. He now serves as the head designer and partner of the clothing lines Kevin Christiana and Kjeans. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
Though she says "the show pretty much changed my life," her life doesn't seem to have changed all that much. Not surprisingly, her sales soared in the year after her win, but after that she says things died down.
She is, however, also doing a line for QVC, which she acknowledges wouldn't have happened were it not for the show. After, as McCarroll pointed out, "the customer that watches QVC is the customer that watches 'Project Runway.'"
"I'm thankful for my 15 minutes of fame, but I had my power before," Dao said.
She, too, has found a niche and is successful in the fashion business. But America's next great designer she is not.
Kit, aka Christina, infuses her world travels into her clothing designs. The 26-year-old was born in Los Angeles but left the West Coast to study at the Polimoda Institute of Fashion Design and Marketing in Florence, Italy. She created her own line, Kit Pistol, in 2004. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
Bagging Fashion for Entertainment
Other breakout stars, though not the winners, have used the "Project Runway" platform to explore different ventures. Nick Verros (Season 2) has moved further into the entertainment industry, playing fashion consultant for pop-culture channel E! and noted employer to the D-list celebrity Vh1.
Like fellow contestant Jillian, 39-year-old Marion graduated from the Parsons School of Design with high honors. The Texas native won the prestigious silver and gold thimble awards while attending school. These days, Marion is working on his own clothing line, which has been featured in magazines, including Harper's Bazaar and Cosmopolitan. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
Daniel Vosovic (Season 2) is publishing his first book next year, which he says is a photo collection of the design process. He has also designed uniforms for a new hotel chain NYLO, along with luggage and handbags, all of which will be sold in boutiques inside the hotels.
These are good opportunities for young people interested in
fashion. But the "Project Runway" alumni have not exploded onto the
scene, frequented the red carpet or dressed Klum and her peers as was
expected after the show.
Forty-two-year-old Elisa doesn't just express herself through fashion. The Texas designer also sculpts, draws and paints and earned a Master of Fine Arts in Combined Media from the University of Arizona, Tucson. After 13 years in New York, Elisa recently retreated to the calm of Sante Fe, N.M. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
Garcia says she has occasionally featured pieces by contestants in her magazine, Elle, but admits that she does not personally wear any of their designs. When asked why none of the winners or other contestants have become fashion superstars, she said that "Project Runway" is "a microcosm of what happens in the fashion world. … There are designers that do well and [then] fade into anonymity … but it's the same issues, it's the same competitiveness."
Style and market director for Interview magazine J. Errico says that it's up to the contestants to make what they can out of their "Project Runway" appearances. He says people like Garcia and frequent guest judge Michael Kors lend credibility to the show and to the contestants.
Thirty-one-year-old Rami discovered his love of fashion in his hometown of Ramallah, in the West Bank, where he was often asked to design clothing for socialites. Rami left the Middle East in 1996 and came to the United States, where he found that celebrities appreciated his designs as much as his countrymen did. Rami has dressed stars, including Jessica Alba, Fergie, Tyra Banks and Lindsay Lohan. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
"A lot of these kids don't have the opportunity to walk into magazines and say, 'these are my clothes,' or [the money to] get representation, so this is a way to get stuff out there," he said. But, he added, "You can't have one collection and come back three seasons later and expect people to be waiting for you."
Errico says the contestants can have great careers in fashion … just not with their own labels. After all, there are dozens of designers behind each big designer label.
McCarroll says that he essentially spent the years after his win trying to figure out what he really wanted to do within the fashion industry, and it ended up being exactly what he wanted before he went on the show. He is a professor at Philadelphia University teaching a design drawing class, and he says Philadelphia, not New York or L.A., is better for him. It's what he can handle.
So while the "Project Runway" winners haven't found great success, it seems they have succeeded in finding their places in fashion -- even if their not on the runway.
Ricky, 35, credits his fashion expertise to his mom, who showed him how to sew at a young age in their Escondido, Calif., home. He began to make clothes at the age of 9, but he really started learning the trade when he began studying dance and costume design at California State University, Long Beach. After graduating, Ricky moved to New York to pursue a career in dance before helping launch Vera Wang's lingerie line and then embarking on his own line. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
Though San Francisco native Simone was born a California girl, she came into her own as a designer in Paris, where she attended the Parsons School of Design and assisted a courtier. When the 32-year-old returned to the United States after her Parisian stint, she got to work designing pieces and styling clients. Simone is currently developing TS Bloom, her collection of women's wear made of organic and surplus fabrics. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
Unlike many of his fellow contestants, 30-year-old Steven doesn't have any formal design training. He works in the Exhibits and Collections Department at the Museum of Science and Industry in his hometown, Chicago, and designs on his own, creating women's day wear out of natural fabrics. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
Born in South Korea, 34-year-old Victorya grew up in Virginia with a mother who encouraged her creative side. She spent six months in Paris, soaking up the culture before returning to the United States to work in fashion. She's currently designing for her label, na"be. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
Sweet P, aka Kathleen, hails from Los Angeles, where she got her nickname riding in an all girl motorcycle club called the Hells Belles. She started making her own club outfits while attending the Los Angeles Trade Technical College and soon turned them into a line. Sweet P is currently working on her first formal collection, which will be available in February 2008. (Mitch Haaseth/NBC Universal)
