Grammy Awards Provide Inspiration and Put Local Designer in Final Three

Wow, said Tim Gunn, when he saw Wendy Pepper's show-stopping, orange, two-piece dress for the Grammy Award Challenge on Project Runway, Bravo Network's competition to find the best new American designer.

Gunn is the Chair of the Department of Fashion Design for the justifiably famous Parson's School of Design in New York City. Parsons partnered with Bravo to create Project Runway, and, if anyone knows what deserves a "Wow," its Gunn.

Once again, the Middleburg designer understood the brief and created an impeccable design, a delightful, flirty, two-piece dress for interviewer Nancy O'Dell to wear that would compliment her lovely legs, hide her bulky microphone equipment and not compete with the gowns worn by the many stars she would interview as they arrived for the 2005 Grammy Award Show.

"This is a beautifully proportioned garment," said Gunn. "It's just right. Wendy. You're going on to Fashion Week as one of the Final Three!"

It is important to note, that of all the design challenges to date, Wendy has won the two most market- and customer-driven challenges. Anyone who has commissioned and worn her designs understands why. She has ultimate respect for her client and brings a deep intelligence and sense of style to every garment she creates.

The Big Win

No one knows better than Wendy that making it to the Final Three is The Big Win.

Each of these three designers will create a collection to be shown at Fashion Week in New York. Although one of the three will be chosen best of class, the distinct differences in the style and target market of each of the Final Three make it abundantly clear that the Bravo Network intends for each of them to go on to tremendously successful careers.

The Final Three designers include Kara Saun, the Hollywood costume designer, Jay McCarrol, the brilliant teenage-to-twentysomething designer and Wendy, the "I want to wear that…" designer of elegant, sexy, classically beautiful and modern garments.

Although one of these will eventually be chosen as the best of the 2005 class, one can see the Bravo Network producers at work. They want each of these three designers to become tremendously successful. They have a terrific mix of talent to achieve exactly that: Kara and Jay have tremendous appeal for the twenty-something shopper who shops often and has a low-to-middle price range. With her win for the Grammy challenge, Wendy swept through this market territory but she also and absolutely owns the thirty-to-eighty market with her understanding of the female desire to be attractive, gracious, elegant, powerful and in control.

Now Wendy has an opportunity to illustrate her understanding of her market in a named collection on the runway on which every American designer must show to be successful.

What Next

It is impossible not to wonder whether or not these talented individuals had any idea when they auditioned for Project Runway that they were giving up all control of their image and personality to the Bravo Network.

Television is not only competitive, it is a cutthroat business and the foundation of all successful reality and competition shows today is that the contestants forego all rights to their image as edited and produced by the network.

Surely, Austin Scarlett, who channels the young Yves St. Laurent, had no idea he would be mocked universally for lack of originality. His immense talent has been compromised ruthlessly by film editors who brutally chop the hundreds of hours of footage as they create each 22-minute show. He has been positioned as a prissy, neurotic who enjoys the hair and make-up artists more than any of the models. Did he ever imagine this would be the outcome?

Did Kara realize she would be encouraged to take the Hollywood image too far? It seems that this fabulously creative and original talent is being moved more and more closely to a role the Project Runway producers have shaped for her. Hopefully, she will step back and re-connect with the market in the Fashion Week Show.

Jay seems to be open to almost anything. He is a remarkably talented designer whom the Washington Post's Fashion Editor Robin Givhan could not help describing as gay and a former pornographer. Sadly for Jay, he is a brilliant designer who simply has not been able to break through with the judges as the Project Runway show has progressed. He is, without question, the one designer who moves farthest forward toward the future with each brief.

Wendy

For Wendy, the future is clear.

Northern Virginia is growth territory, and the picture is not always pretty. Technology and manufacturing companies find the proximity to Federal Washington seductive, and, if the seduction is not enough, the powers that be court them as if there is no other category of business they would welcome.

Branded fashion is a tremendously viable and attractive business in any geography. It provides jobs at all levels, upper demographic appeal, blue ribbon investors, global reach and brand values that can only be fully understood if one is familiar with Ralph Lauren.

The establishment of a branded fashion business in Middleburg, Virginia that employs seamstresses, machine operators, weavers, managers, marketers, event and destination managers and more would nicely balance the unbridled growth county neighbors are suffering.

Bon Chance, Wendy! But, in reality, you've already won big for Middleburg.