So … the Project Runway Season 5 Finale Fashion Show took place at The Tent in Bryant Park on the last day of New York Fashion Week yesterday morning which is making it difficult for those of us who wish to remain unspoiled before the finale show actually airs on TV in a few weeks. In order to do my best to not spoil anything for fans of the show who wish to remain unspoiled, I’ll keep all info that I unwittingly learned about yesterday’s show (it’s not much, since I’m trying to remain unspoiled, but there is some info I can pass along for those of you who are interested) behind the cut. Here are a few pics of the Project Runway mentor (Tim Gunn) and judges (Heidi Klum, Nina Garcia & Michael Kors) at yesterday’s show:

After the cut see a great pic of the finale judges (including the person who filled in for the celebrity guest judge who had to pull out due to a mysterious “injury”) and find out who showed at yesterday’s finale show … (more…)

Entertainment Weekly magazine is reporting that the 6th season of Project Runway, the first at its new network Lifetime TV, is being delayed for a few months and instead of rushing to premiere this year in November has decided to premiere next January to fit in with the regular Project Runway yearly TV season schedule:

In a surprise development, Lifetime has confirmed that it won’t debut the sixth season of Project Runway until January so it has more time to promote the show that it swiped from Bravo last spring. It had been expected the show would debut on its new network sometime this autumn. “With this move, the series will resume its traditional cycle of two seasons per year,” according to a Lifetime spokeperson. “We look forward to ringing in the New Year by giving Project Runway loyal fans a superlative season six with Heidi, Tim, Nina, and Michael. The new date and time will be announced soon.” The news comes as a lawsuit over the rights to Project Runway continues to wind its way through the New York courts … One source familiar with the lawsuit believes the delay (the show had been set to debut sometime in late fall) has less to do with the ongoing litigation and more to do with Lifetime’s inability to get the production together for an autumn start. Bunim-Murray Productions, the company behind The Real World, is now producing Runway since Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz of Magical Elves left the show when it moved networks. A Lifetime insider, however, says production is on schedule and the new cycle has already been cast.

As much as I was really looking forward to having 3 seasons of Project Runway all in the same year (season 4 aired earlier this year, season 5 is currently airing now and season 6 would’ve begun airing in November, according to reports) I think this is a smart move. More time to promote the show on Lifetime’s part is very integral to the success of the migration. I wish I could believe that the new cycle “has already been cast” but I’m not sure about that. I’m also very worried that Bunim-Murray Productions is taking over … no offense to them but they’ve been in this biz for so long, I doubt they will be able to come up with a fresh new look for the show. At best, I think they’re gonna just try to copy the look created by Magical Elves Productions … which isn’t a good thing necessarily. In the end, tho, more time means more chance that they will somehow get “it” right. Here’s hoping …

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Elle magazine Editor at Large, soon-to-be Fashion Director for Marie Clare magazine and Project Runway judge, Nina Garcia was on hand at Saks Fifth Avenue in NYC last night for an in-store book signing/release party for her new book The One Hundred: A Guide to the Pieces Every Stylish Woman Must Own. Here are a few pics from Nina’s in-store appearance last night:

Aww, Nina looks great … I’m so glad to hear that she is keeping herself bizzy in between gigs at Elle magazine and Marie Claire magazine in addition to her work on Project Runway. I’m also very excited about this new book especially since Miss Nina very graciously gave both Pink is the new Blog and Jossip shout-outs as 2 of her fave websites …

… quite an honor, indeed. I’ve yet to read The One Hundred but I deffo plan to … her first book, The Little Black Book of Style, was a really great, informative read. Nina Garcia rules, y’all … and she’s got great taste :)

[Photo credit: Bauer-Griffin]

The lovely Ms. Nina Garcia, who is currently still one of the main judges on Project Runway, has reportedly started the initial moving in process into her new digs at her new magazine, Marie Claire. You may recall that back in April it was reported that Nina would be exiting her post at Elle magazine at some point this year and we now know that her official first day at Marie Claire will be September 2 … but that doesn’t mean she can’t get in a bit of prep work at her new place of employment before hand, right?

Though Nina Garcia serves as editor at large at Elle through season five of “Project Runway,” it seems she’s already getting a head start on her fashion director duties at Marie Claire. Her new gig officially begins Sept. 2, but sources close to the magazine say Garcia has already moved into her office, the former digs of Tracy Taylor, who was dismissed in May to make way for Garcia. The “Project Runway” judge also is said to be conducting “run-throughs” for fashion shoots for the January issue. Sources said Garcia’s requests for high-end designer wares to be featured in fashion spreads can at times be at odds with Marie Claire’s more mass-market sensibilities. A spokeswoman for Marie Claire said, “Nina is on contract with Elle that prohibits her from working for Marie Claire before Sept. 1. She has been in the office only to work out her travel schedule for the European fashion shows this fall.” Garcia’s move to Marie Claire happened before the “Project Runway” judge finalized her contract to appear on the show’s sixth edition, which will air on Lifetime instead of Bravo. On Friday, a Weinstein Co. spokeswoman confirmed Garcia has re-upped, meaning all of the principals — herself, Michael Kors, Tim Gunn and Heidi Klum — will move to Lifetime with the reality program. Does that mean Marie Claire has been confirmed as the official magazine partner? Sources close to the show say the deal has been done, but the Weinstein spokeswoman declined to confirm Friday.

Seriously, Nina Garcia is one of my fave parts of Project Runway so I’m glad to know that she will still be on board with the show even after it moves to Lifetime. I’m pretty confident that Nina will do well at Marie Claire … she strikes me as a very able magazine person and will prolly soon become a great asset to the mag. I wish her much luck on her new endeavor and look forward to watching her work her magic for Marie Claire.

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Bravo TV has *finally* unveiled the cast of Project Runway Season 5 just 2 days ahead of the show’s premiere on Wednesday night. In previous seasons, Bravo did everything they could to promote and build hype for their most successful competitive reality TV show, releasing photos and bios of the designers weeks ahead of the season’s premiere. It appears that since this 5th season is the last on Bravo (it will move to Lifetime in the Fall for the next season) they seem uninterested in hyping up a show that will be leaving their network at the end of this season. In any event, the new cast of Project Runway has finally been announced … here is a promo photo of the assembled cast of designers and new promo images for the PR judges Heidi Klum, Tim Gunn, Michael Kors and Nina Garcia:

Now, I know that some of you may be waiting until the show’s premiere on Wednesday night to meet the new cast of designers but for those of you who are anxious to get your first look at who’s in competition this season, read on. After the jump, meet the cast … (more…)