Laura Bennett Really Steps In It This Time.

In a move certain to have thousands of high-strung mommies calling for her head on a platter, Laura writes of her skepticism regarding peanut allergies in her latest Daily Beast column:

"Our children are now taught that a classmate might die right in front of them if they bring PB&J for lunch. Where were these kids when we were in school?

A Massachusetts school district recently evacuated a school bus of ten-year-old passengers after a stray peanut was found on the floor. Not an unclaimed backpack that could contain a bomb, not a mysterious white powdered substance—a peanut. There are parents with legitimate concerns, but I also believe there are a few people needlessly involved in the peanut panic. Here in New York City, the land of Alpha Parenting, every now and then I encounter a parent who is determined to have a child who is special in some way—any way—that keeps them dependent. What better way to have a child strapped to you for life than to have a life-threatening allergy? It’s a kind of Munchausen’s by Peanut."

Also, if you happen to be home this afternoon, you'll be able to catch Laura in a pre-taped segment on Oprah. Our girl's made it to the big time!

[Photo: Thedailybeast]]

Source: Sandwiches That Kill [TheDailyBeast]


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Laura Bennett Dressed to Kilt

Laura Bennett attends the 7th annual "Dressed To Kilt" charity fashion show
at M2 Lounge in New York City.

Laura sent us a picture of the dress on her dress form last week. She loved it and so did we. We can't help thinking a "Dress to Kilt" challenge would be perfect for that TV show called Project Runway that we all used to watch. Remember that show?

Although we have to say, seeing it on her, we think she could have ditched the sporran. A little too clunky and literal. Love all the feathers, though.


[Photos: WireImage/Projectrungay.blogspot.com]


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Top 10 PR Bryant Park Looks: 4, 3, 2

Number 4: Leanne Marshall



This breathtaking and unique wedding gown was so stunning that it may just have been the look that made the judges' decision for them. With its body-hugging bodice and tiered, petal-pleated skirt, this dress moved like a dream in person and stunned the crowd into silence at Bryant Park. A modern take on the wedding gown that fools the eye into thinking it's traditional, it is a perfect summation of Leanne's aesthetic and skills.

Number 3: Laura Bennett



No silent reaction on this one. The crowd erupted into applause when this dress came out and for good reason. It wasn't just that it was dramatic, it was exuberant and fun and the kind of dress just begging for a martini and a party to go along with it. A dress that fairly screams "urban sophistication." It's a very basic gown made memorable by the incredible hand beading and chartreuse belt, with the patented Bennett wit of having the beads arranged in such a way as to give the illusion that they were "reflecting" the color of the belt.

Number 2: Rami Kashou



We had a very tough time deciding where on the list this beautiful gown of antique gold lace should have gone. It almost made the number one spot, but in the end we decided on #2, albeit a very close #2. While part of us thinks it could have used some slight editing around the shoulders and neckline, the bottom line is, this was another dress that stunned the crowd into gasps when it came out. We cannot reiterate enough how pictures simply don't do this dress justice. In person, it not only moves beautifully, but the light picks up the slight metallic sheen better, allowing everyone to see the incredible skill it took to put it together.


[Photos: Getty Images/firstVIEW]

Top Ten PR Looks of All Time: 7, 6, and 5

Let's get crackin', bitches!

Number 7

Season 3: Episode 5 - "Iconic Statement"
Designed by Mychael Knight
Model: Nazri Segaro

Come on, could there be any doubt? This was the look that finally got the S3 judges to sit up and take notice of Mychael - and rightfully so. A perfect storm of designer, model and muse resulted in this flawless hot pink hot shorts number inspired by Pam Grier. A dead-on sexy look coupled with some feminine touches and the restraint to let the color and the silhouette do most of the work.

Number 6

Season 3: Episode 6 - "Waste Not, Want Not"
Designed by Laura Bennett
Model: Camilla Barungi

Again, could there be any doubt? Easily the most memorable outfit from Laura's competition pile. Everyone mentions this dress when they mention Laura.It wasn't just that she made a dress out of peanut sacks that looked like it could have been hanging on the racks at a high-end store, nor was it the witty "For Nuts Only" left on the skirt. No, what made it stand out is that it's simply a chic, stylish design that works no matter what material was used. This is a dress that women see and want to wear.


Number 5

Season 1: Episode 8 - "Postal Uniform Challenge"
Designed by Kara Saun
Model: Jenny Toth

It's been a long time since we sang the praises of Kara Saun, but this outfit still stands out foremost in our minds among her competition work. Why? Put it this way: She designed this almost 5 years ago as a postal uniform for a female client and yet it's so perfect and so stylish, that we, two non-females who don't work for the Post Office, would love to have this outfit even today. That's a designer with a broad appeal and a long-term point of view.


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

Project Halloween

Laura's got her latest Daily Beast column up and it's all about her favorite holiday and what a horrible mother she is. Tidbits:

"I had to cancel all of my appointments today because I put in pair of freaky contact lenses last night for a Halloween party, and I can’t get them out. These lenses white out my eyes entirely except for a small black spot in the center, which I see through. They are a very clever design; imagine a white donut painted on a contact lens, and the effect is ultra creepy.

[...]

Wearing latex is quite ritualistic. These garments are quite difficult to get into, and there is an entire process needed to make it happen. First you need to cover your body with baby powder, and powder the inside of the garment as well. Then you step into it and sort of roll it up, hoping you get it in the proper place, because it is very difficult to reposition. Once you have the garment on, it is covered in the baby powder both inside and out, so it essentially has to be polished. My boys do this job, and are always happy to help. Each boy, armed with a handful of silicone, rubs me down until I shine like a brand new sex toy in a Times Square window (before Disney took over Times Square). I can only wonder what lasting affects this activity will have on their sexuality, but I figure they will end up in therapy for one reason or another anyway. We take Halloween very seriously in this family, so to my boys; their mother dressing like Frankenstein’s Dominatrix is par for the course."

Did you think she didn't send us pics? Darlings, of course she did!




These people just aren't right.

Tonight is Laura and Peter's Halloween party. We can remember viewing her bio video for season 3 and saying "We WILL be invited to the next one." This was before we even met her. And yes, we were invited to this one and planned on going as Nina and Michael, but goddammotherfuckershitpissdamnhell, we are swamped with work and other obligations this week and we had to call her yesterday to cancel.

We'll just have to settle for this glimpse into her decorations and costume from Bravo:



We have to say, that video does a pretty good job of capturing the chaos of their home. It's pretty much exactly like that every visit we ever had with her.


[Photos: Courtesy of Laura Bennett - Video: Bravotv.com]

Judging the Judge: Laura

LONG before you heard about it, we heard straight from the clotheshorse's mouth that Laura was going to be judging one of the challenges. "Does this mean I'm going to be in one of those 'Judging the Judges' posts?" she asked in an email. "No," we replied, "But it does mean you're sitting your ass down for an interview." And so we did.

So, what was like being a judge this time as opposed to a contestant?
Oh my god, it’s so much easier being a judge but it’s kind of sad because on the judges’ side of the runway everyone is so casual and ‘Hi!’ Gossiping and all that kind of shit. In the chairs, on the other side you know how they feel. You know that to them it’s like a life changing thing.

But I was still gossiping and stuff. All Heidi cared about was her macrobiotic salad from Angelica Kitchen. "Is it here yet?’ ‘Is my salad here yet?"

So, was it difficult making a decision knowing that you were going to send someone home?
No, because in the end, I don’t know much about the personalities, I just went based on clothing, and I went based on the clothing on that challenge right there in front of me.

You don’t see any sort of portfolio on them? You don’t see any of their past work?
No.

So, you’re basically judging based on what you see right there in front of you?
Right, so the guest judge only sees what's there and you see it for the first time when it walks out on the runway, just like it looks on television.

And no music…
No music. The music gets patched in after.

And what did you think of the work in general?
It was great. First of all, they told me that it was the best work of the season yet. And second of all, it was one of those challenges that tend to push designers the same way our recycling challenge did; when you’re forced to use materials that you’re not comfortable with. That’s when the best and the worst are going to rise.

It’s definitely easier being a judge than it is being a contestant.

Why?
Because you don’t feel the pressure. It’s not like a life changing thing that’s happening to you at the moment. You’re not putting your heart out there for everyone to love or crush, you have no idea which one is going to be. It’s easier than I thought it would be. There really are clear, for me personally, there really were clear winners and losers and the things that were wrong I completely understood what the problem was and had no problem sort of verbalizing it. And the things that were right I was able to say, it looks great because… I really found that I was able to express the reason behind my particular feelings about the clothing.

Have you been watching the show?
Yes. I’m a big fan.

Who’s your favorite?
I like Korto. I think she’s very talented and I understand that as reality television her personality is not one of those that…what I’ve seen of her work on the season, I think it’s very her but there’s variety in it. I think her volume and silhouette is something sort of unique. I really like her work. I think that she’s so quiet; she doesn’t make good reality television.

Not like Stella.
No, not like Stella.

Did you get any reactions from the designers when they saw that you’re going to be one of the judges?
They were pretty shell shocked sitting there in the chairs, I mean, you could tell by then that they were tired; after a few challenges you really start to get worn down and nervous.

And when was that shot?
I was there at noon and it did start shortly after I arrived. They probably got to the workroom at seven or eight and by one their garment was on the runway.

And you’re pleased with the winner and the loser?
Oh, absolutely. For me, it was clearly between Korto and Leanne. They both had beautiful garments. Leanne, you could tell that she was so nervous the whole time she was on the runway. She knew she took a risk and when you take a risk it can go either way. It looked amazing but just as easily someone could’ve said ‘that makes her hips look huge’ but she placed it in such a way that it almost looked like huge hip bones as opposed to huge hip fat. It was a risk and when you take a risk, it pays off. You can’t beat that. Korto’s coat was beautiful, so for me, it was very close between the two of them but because of the risk factor in Leanne’s we gave it to her.

It’s interesting that you said Korto is your favorite designer but you still voted for Leanne at the end, as the winner. That’s good judging.
I was basing it on what was in front of me. And you have to remember that when I was judging I hadn’t seen all her work. I only saw the work that was on the runway that day.

It was a toss-up. If the other judges had leaned one way or the other I would’ve been happy to give it to either one of them. Now as far as loser, it was very clear to me which of the two was lower.

We were surprised that Stella was on the bottom. You’d think that kind of challenge that...
Right. You just gave her leather. Use the leather. It didn’t have that rock-and-roll thing going on, she tried to do something more elegant she shouldn’t have but I hope that she sticks out and makes it farther.

Based on what was on that runway, there was no doubt that Keith's was the clear loser. Now that I’ve seen the season, I’m at peace with my vote. I remember Keith kept claiming ‘but I’m cutting edge’. He did something that looked very Mallware, looked very everyday Mall. There was no clear idea. I’ll try this here, I’ll try that there. There was no overall concept or idea.

And Blayne?
Blayne had an idea, he just executed it strangely. As a matter of fact, he made this move and he did it in a weak way that you couldn’t tell if it was a mistake or if it was a deliberate move.

What was the deal with that "Excuse me?" you threw at Keith?
Editing. At some point I said "Excuse me" because he mumbled so much I couldn't hear what he was saying but they edited it to look like I was arguing with him.

So, how did it feel to be back at Parsons?
Everyone was nice. It wasn’t scary. I didn’t have some sort of post-traumatic stress syndrome or anything like that. Michael Kors is always very chatty, very nice to me and he always compliments me. He said “I talked about you the other day. I said you were my favorite.” And Tim Gunn is always nice. Tim Gunn complimented me on sort of the constructive qualities of my criticism and how I was able to use appropriate language to talk about the designs.

Many of our readers thought they picked you to be the judge because of the recycling challenge and although you haven’t won that challenge, everybody remembers your dress.
I was called as the judge at eleven asking me if I could be there at twelve because Nina wasn’t feeling well. It wasn’t like "Oh, Laura, she’s so fabulous; we have to have her back." The truth is that I live ten blocks from Parsons and I could be there on short notice. And Fern stepped in for Nina the next day.

What was Rachel Zoe like?
She had a person doing her hair the whole time. I think her critique was OK. She knows about clothes.

She doesn’t know how to dress people.
She does if they’re going to a 70s party.

All her clients dress exactly like her.
That would be like if I tried to be a stylist. I would dress everybody in a black dress. This is why I would never be a stylist. I would have all these mini Lauras.


[Screencaps: Projectrungay.blogspot.com]


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Lorenzo in Magic Happy Land

So we're thinking you want to hear the story behind this:


Once upon a time, there was a vicious little queen named Lorenzo. Lorenzo obsessively checked any google alerts to see whatever his favorite Project Runway people were doing. One day, a message arrived that alerted little Lorenzo that his FAVORITEST judge EVER would be magically appearing in the fantasy land known as Sak's shoe department to promote her book The One Hundred. Lorenzo jumped up and down and clapped his hands. Then he called his favorite princess, Laura Bennett.

"Nina's at Sak's this week. You have to go with me."

"Why?"

"Because if I walk in with you, I won't have to wait in line."

Lorenzo is, as we said, a vicious little queen, but also a deviously smart one.


So Lorenzo got on the magic train and left poor Tom behind to sweep the ash out of the fireplaces and scrub the stairs in the back tower. Tom cried salty tears but Lorenzo didn't care. He had a train to catch.

When he arrived at Laura's castle, she was uncharacteristically naïve about the whole thing. "You know we're going to have to wait on line with everyone else, right?" "Oh please. The minute we get off the elevator and one of those shoe department fags see you, I guarantee they'll wave us right up."

As the doors on the elevator opened to reveal the magical shoe department, Laura's eyes glazed over and she wandered over to look at the pretty things for her feet. Lorenzo stood vigil. "Laura!" he hissed. "Don't wander off!"

There was Nina sitting at her little table in a pool of light as scores of lesser people waited in line for a chance to be silently judged by her. Behind her, just as Lorenzo predicted, was a shoe department fag. Said fag looked up and saw Laura Bennett. His eyes went wide, his mouth formed a perfect little "o" and he flapped his hands wildly in excitement. Laura saw none of this as the siren call of the shoes held her attention. Shoe fag leaned in and whispered to Nina. Lorenzo hissed again "Laura! Nina will raise her head in exactly 2 seconds and look in your direction! Stand still!" And thus it came to pass. Nina looked up, her lovely face broke into a grin, and she jumped up, held her arms wide as if to embrace her across the length of the Sak's shoe department and called out "LAURA!"

Lorenzo was right again. Lorenzo is always right about these things, you see.

Shoe fag hustled Laura and Lorenzo right over to Nina and right past the scores of lesser people waiting in line, who whispered excitedly at the sight of the Princess of New York. Nina gave Laura a big hug and was genuinely thrilled to see her there.

As the princess and la princesa gabbed and caught up with each other, Lorenzo grabbed shoe fag and hissed in his ear "Look! I got her in here, now you make sure I get 2 minutes alone with Nina!" Shoe fag, sensing another of his high-strung, somewhat dangerous sisters in the intense Lorenzo, nodded his assent and shuffled Nina, Laura and Lorenzo behind a screen. Where they lived happily ever after for the next 3 minutes. The end.

Seriously (although it did happen exactly like that), Nina was as sweet as she could be. She really was thrilled to see Laura - and Laura was thrilled to see her - and she really was very gracious to Lorenzo. She said she reads the blog whenever she needs a good laugh (yes!). She is small and delicate-looking in person and like so many latin women, exceedingly feminine in her mannerisms. Lorenzo complimented her on her beautiful dress by Roland Mouret and fabulous shoes by Azzedine Alaïa. He chatted with her briefly about her book and the beautiful illustrations by Ruben Toledo and she talked about how much she loves his work as a fashion illustrator.

Of course, lots of people wanted Laura's picture and complimented her on her new hair. We love the look on her but she said Peter hates it. Tell Peter how wrong he is, kittens!

Oh, and one other thing.

Don't they look like brother and sister? Convince Lorenzo that he has to be Nina Garcia for Halloween. All he needs is the wig! And some eyebrow shaping.

More pics:







[Photos: Projectrungay.blogspot.com/WireImage]

Laurology

Okay, we admit it.

When we saw where Laura was heading, we were underwhelmed. Granted, "wow the judges" is about as articulate a design challenge as "make something pretty," but we were afraid that "doing what I do, better than I've ever done it," while plucky, probably wasn't what the judges wanted to see.

On the one hand, we were right; on the other hand, so was Laura. She didn't win it, but it seemed that she made a conscious choice to produce something that she knew would get her to OFW and lo and behold, it did. Her mama didn't raise no fool.

As for the dress, it's beautiful and probably one of the most perfectly executed garments in all 3 seasons of the show. While we agreed somewhat with the judges that Laura needs to widen her point of view slightly, we also think they overstated the point.

For one, up to now, Laura has not had any professional experience in fashion, which means she's never produced a collection. That she is focussed on a particular aesthetic right now doesn't necessarily mean that she only has one point of view.

Second, we started thinking about it and realized she's not as repetitive as some (including us) have been saying. Look at what she's produced during the competition:

For all the talk from the Duchess of never wanting to see another one from her again, she only ever produced two garments with what could be called "plunging" necklines. Looking at her garments all together like this, it's interesting how much it looks like a collection. She has a concise point of view and there are certain design elements she returns to again and again (lace, beading, "exuberant" collars), but she doesn't make the same dress over and over and she doesn't design only for herself.

As a point of comparison, look at Uli's competition work:

There 's a hell of a lot more similarity of form going on there. Ironically, even though this grouping is far more repetitive, it somehow looks less like a collection than Laura's does. We don't mean to be ragging on Uli. She also has a strong point of view that she executes masterfully, so it's practically inevitable that she and Laura get compared so often.

It struck us that part of the reason the "narrow" placard gets hung on Laura's neck has as much to do with what she wore during the competition as it did with what she produced for the competition.

That's a consequence of having a strong point of view and the force of personality to consistently and fabulously express it, which our girl has in spades. Right Laura?

"Fuck, yeah!"

Fabulous Mommy Loves the Gays!

"OUTzone: Any favorite "Runway" blogs? "

"Project Rungay. When they’re on, they’re really on. They’re so cute, those boys. It’s funny, because I get recognized on the street nowadays. People stop me and I answer their questions and I take my picture with them and then one day, I said to myself, "You know, these guys are so funny, and they spend all these hours a day, promoting the show, and in turn, promoting me, I should contact them."

MWAH! Love you, girl! Now pop out that baby so we can go out for drinks!

Read Laura's fabulous OUTzone interview here.

Bad Mommy vs. The Angry Little Peanut.

Ruh-roh.

"But when they returned for their group show at Bryant Park, fellow contestant Laura Bennett accused Sebelia of cheating."

Don't you love it when fashion bitches get all, y'know...bitchy?

Fabulous Mommy

"How’d you meet your husband, Peter Shelton?

At a dinner party. I must have been the hot babe in the room at the ripe old age of 32 or something."

Read the NYMAG interview here.

The Epitome of "Workin' It."

We just had to post this.

How fabulous is this bitch? We especially love the Post-It note carefully placed under the heel to protect the leather on her vintage LV.

Is there anyone who could question our love for this woman?

Laura's collection

More pictures here and here.

GO ON, GIRL!!

Big, fat Sally-Field-style tears were shed at 10:58 EST last night in the PRGay living room.

Our girl won. She FINALLY won.

For a dress that we only liked.

Don't get us wrong, it's pretty. It's also, as per usual, well-made and we're as happy as the judges were to see her make something that she herself wouldn't wear. She used her fabric choices well, because at first glance, they looked more appropriate for widow's weeds than on a youthful cocktail dress. And big ol' kudos to the fabulous Camilla for sashaying that thing down the runway like she was at a party for single young billionaires and in the market for a husband.

One nitpicky thing that we didn't like was the way the lace extends past the under-fabric all around the neckline. It looked like scallopped edging and gave it an uncharacteristically (for Laura) homemade feel to it.

Still, it's a cute dress and Laura was long overdue for a win. The "Sad Mommy" edit was pure setup and we figured she was going to win it when the first tear was shed.

We were once again with friends watching the show. Here's the difference between straight women and gay men. When Laura cried, all the women in our living room were like "Awww....sweet. That humanizes her." or "It's the hormones."

We, on the other hand, were all, "WHO MADE MY BITCH CRY! They need to get their ASSES BEAT! C'mere, girl. Let's go shopping."

No more salt and pepper shakers!

Laura Honey? Are you in there?

"I never dress down. I think that when you're 42 years old and you have 5 children, it's a slippery slope to sweatpants and a minivan, so I just don't go there."

Oh, Honey. We had a feeling those words were going to come back to bite you in the ass. All you need is a cigarette dangling from your lips and a Pabst Blue Ribbon in one hand and you could tell people you're Laura's trailer park cousin. In fact, that's the explanation we're going with because we refuse to believe that's you.