Project Rami! Weeks 9 and 10

Hello, dear readers, and welcome again to Project Rami!

Various busy events in our lives, including the dispatch of our dear friend Hector Bouvier to al-Misr (that's Egypt for you gringos), and the return of our own lovely al-FallaHa from the homeland, have prohibited us from reporting recently on the adventures of our Rami. Nevertheless, we only have two weeks with which to update you, as last week aired, unfortunately, a repeat of the previous week's episode.

Now on to the previous new episode. The ladies and, uh, "ladies" were taken on a field trip, which had them shaking in their Prada shoes. Fortunately they were not taken to a garbage dump (as you may remember took place in a season long ago and far away-- last year) but to a warehouse full of Levi's jeans, in which they were instructed to grab as many denim items as possible in order to design an iconic yet fashion-forward look. Our clever boy ran around grabbing as many pairs of dark denim as possible, knowing it would help him convey the sophisticated look he loves. And it paid off! Rami's design (at right) was gorgeous, and certainly the one we'd most like to wear. And we'd rock it! (This is the royal we, of course, as our Prince of Kabob wouldn't be caught dead in anything resembling a skirt.) The zippered detail is gorgeous and unique (I'm surprised nobody else thought of that, but that's one reason why Rami is so good, I guess!) and the buttons give a very subtle pseudo-nautical touch that is light enough to remain classic. Also, the consistency in the color and texture makes it look classy and quite high-end. We think our boy should have won, but instead the judges picked... Ricky?! This wasn't completely out of left field as his strapless tube dress, with button detailing down the center and a generous ruffle at the bottom, was indeed very cute and could be considered iconic. But I don't know, as far as fashion goes, Rami's just stood out more. Though I do give Ricky props for nearly giving Christian an aneurysm with his surprise win! The auf went to Victorya, no surprise, for her embarrassment of a "coat" (really, I could sew some scraps of denim onto a jean jacket too, girl). We're gonna show it here on the left because it's really just too bad... needless to say, we're not too upset to break up the Sullen Sisters, though now Jillian has to frown and furrow her brow all alone...

Regarding this week's episode, we'd like to convey this message to Rami: draping is not for spandex, and draping is definitely not for wrestling! Yes, friends, wrestling. The challenge this week was to create a look for a professional female wrestler to wear in the ring based on her personal taste-- and, um, the fact that pro wrestling is incredibly tacky. Chris almost cried tears of joy, as to him, this was the next best thing to dressing a drag queen (which they initially suspected the challenge would be about). Our BFF Tim Gunn, meanwhile, good-naturedly called himself "grandpa" while attempting to climb into the ring in his impeccible suit. What a sweetie!

Poor Rami was a little frustrated with this challenge, as someone who is accustomed to designing high-end outfits and sophisticated eveningwear might be. And we really felt for him, and didn't mind his choice of hot pink spandex, either-- the girl looked like a Barbie doll, so what else would be more appropriate? But when we saw him starting to drape that fabric over the shoulder of the dress form, we wanted to scream-- and would have, if our mouths hadn't been full of brownie at the moment (oops). Rami, please! No more draping, at least until you get to do an evening look again. We don't want to see you go!

Fortunately, our boy did not go, as his look turned out all right after all (at right) and other designers appeared to fare even worse. Sweet P, although she dramatically rescued her outfit at the last minute, managed to create something more suited for the boudoir than the ring. And Ricky, last week's unexpected winner, decided to make a bathing suit for Jennifer Lopez. Granted, his model, Layla, worked it to no end (girl has a head of hair we envy!) but unfortunately, could not conceal the fact that it was, um, not a wrestling outfit. And so, poor Ricky, we say auf to you. Now your tears can flow freely and in peace! The winner for this week was Chris, we are glad to report. Each week makes us more fond of him, and it is only fitting that someone who designs outrageous looks for drag queens and stage shows should win this tacky challenge. Plus, who didn't love it when he said his ideal superhero would "crush men between her enormous breasts"? Oh Chris!

And with that, friends, we conclude this week's Project Rami, looking forward to another week with our boy who has remained in the game thanks to his talent and tact (and, we'd like to think, maybe a little of Michael Kors' drooling over his muscular physique). Next week looks like it should be a good one, too, so don't miss it!

xoxo,
WMEG