“Making the Cut” premiered its third season on Amazon Prime on August 19 with 10 designers competing to become the next great global brand: Emily Bargeron from Georgia, Curtis Cassell from Brooklyn, Rafael Chaouiche from Brazil, Georgia Hardinge from London, Sienna Li from China, Jeanette Limas from Philadelphia, Markantoine Lynch-Boisvert from Montreal, Gabriella Meyer from Chicago, Ciara Chyanne Morgan from Los Angeles, and Yannik Zamboni from Switzerland. The winner will receive $1 million to invest in their brand, a mentorship with Amazon Fashion, and the opportunity to sell a collection through Amazon’s online “Making the Cut” store. So who made a strong first impression in “Evening Wear” and who failed to make the cut?
“I think this is the best bunch yet,” says host and head judge Heidi Klum of the contestants in the episode’s opening. And co-host and mentor Tim Gunn is excited to shoot the season in Los Angeles, “the birthplace of American fashion.” We’re then introduced to the designers as they fly in from all around the country and the world. Curtis walks into the workroom feeling like it’s “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” — and he’s Charlie of course. Jeanette would very much like to be adopted by Tim. And then there’s Rafael, who is traveling outside of Brazil for the first time in his life and only started learning English a couple of months before the show.
But it turns out the competition was already well underway by the time the designers landed in LA. That’s because the first assignment was a take-home test.
Two weeks before arriving for the official start of the show, the designers were tasked with creating two evening wear looks to represent their brands. “Evening wear is meant to ensure that whoever is wearing it stands out in a crowd,” Tim explains.
Emily planned to interpret the assignment through her ’60s and ’70s era, Woodstock-inspired hippie chic; she has stores in Savannah selling just those kind of free-spirited designs. Yannik would use this as an opportunity to subvert gender roles. But for Ciara and Gabriella, it was their first time designing evening wear. The show zooms in a little more on Ciara, who explains that she grew up in the underprivileged neighborhood of Watts in LA but would end up becoming the first in her family to receive a four-year college degree and the first to own a successful business. She has already proved she can make the most of what she’s given, so a million bucks would go a long way.
But just because the designers did most of their work at home, that doesn’t mean they won’t get any feedback before sashaying their looks down the runway on Rodeo Drive.
Georgia is first up, and the designers are off to a good start because Tim thinks her sculptural women’s wear is “remarkable” with its look like spiraling metal. Emily is all about making memories and associating those memories with a garment, hence her use of multiple layered vintage scarves for her skirt, though she wisely says, “I will do whatever Tim says,” if he thinks she needs to make changes.
Jeanette is taking a big swing. Because she feels like she has put up a wall that’s holding her back, she wants her look to represent the crumbling of that wall, so she creates a unique crumbling texture using a flour paste, which Tim thinks is a “beautiful” technique. Yannak is also going big or going home. He’s more conceptual in his designs, and his concept for one of his looks is to deconstruct a suit to reconfigure the jacket as the skirt and pants as the top. The idea doesn’t seem to bother Tim, though he is worried that part of the dress is too revealing. Yannik doesn’t mind a risque runway, though. At least we know his looks won’t be boring.
Markantoine is another designer for whom evening wear isn’t his forte, but Tim likes that he is making the challenge his own with one “Canadian tuxedo” and a puffer coat evening gown. One of Gabriella’s designs has a Mandarin collar that “finishes it beautifully.” Curtis’s looks have “impeccable” construction, and Tim is “intrigued” by his gender-blending nonbinary designs. Sienna’s says her emphasis is “timeless beauty” as opposed to trends; her brand is “classic romance with a modern sensibility,” and Tim thinks that’s “beautiful.”
One designer who leaves Tim concerned is Ciara; her plan is to subvert the idea of evening wear by creating easy, effortless green pants and a top, but Tim worries it’s not elegant or elevated enough to fit the assignment. That’s enough to send Ciara down a spiral of self-doubt. She initially plans to take Tim’s advice and replace her pants with a bold sequined skirt, but then she realizes that that’s exactly what she didn’t want to do with this challenge. Eventually she decides to stick to her guns and go with her initial plan in order to stay true to her brand, but there’s a fine line between being true to yourself and being stubborn. It’s always a big risk not to take Tim’s advice.
Designer Jeremy Scott and actress Nicole Richie are back as judges while season two “Making the Cut” winner Andrea Pitter is relieved to be in attendance as a spectator and not as a contestant. The show starts with Rafael’s two looks, which go over well with the judges: they love the pink burlap butterfly jacket over sequins, and they appreciate the cohesion with the second accessible look, though I personally think the second look is less flattering with its flowing green fabric draped awkwardly over a sequined top.
Wild Yannik is next with his suit-dress deconstruction. Heidi and Nicole like it, and I’m on board too. His second look is a man in a dress; Heidi admires the courage of that, and Nicole loves how it’s styled with sneakers, though I don’t think the shape is all that memorable or flattering. Ciara is next with her two looks, the ones Tim was worried about. Tim seems onboard with them now, but the judges are less certain. Heidi loves the first color combo, but Jeremy doesn’t think Ciara handled the unforgiving satin fabric well enough. And the second look lacks drama; Jeremy wants to see tables flipping over.
Curtis is next: a male model in a sheer shirt with a train and then a female model in a nicely tailored suit. Both are hits with the judges, who appreciate the elegance and the color choice. I love them too, though I definitely couldn’t pull off that sheer shirt. Gabriella also has a male model for her runway look: he’s got a corset over a blazer. I admire the chutzpah, though it’s not my cup of tea personally. I like her second look, a dress with similar colors, but Jeremy doesn’t think it’s in line with the first look, and he’s not particularly excited by it.
Jeanette’s crunchy flour dress has “sublime” proportions, according to Tim. The judges can’t figure out what the fabric is, but they’re intrigued. They also like the second dress, though they don’t think it’s executed in as flattering a way. Emily’s next with her two-piece hippie ensemble. Jeremy likes that it’s a two-piece, but it doesn’t feel like evening wear to him. Nicole adds, “It does scream daytime to me” with its rainbow ombre skirt. Heidi likes the second jumpsuit look more (so do I), but Nicole and Jeremy don’t like the “cheap”-looking waistband.
Gabriella’s two metallic looks are perhaps my favorites of the runway show. They’re like liquid the way they flow and catch the light with their spiraling details. Nicole thinks the first look is “beautiful” and eye-catching. And the second look creates an optical illusion like the model is wearing a bustier. Markantoine’s puffer gown is a big hit with the judges; they love the drama, but Jeremy thinks the accessible is “underwhelming” (I like both, but maybe that’s because the accessible look is something I could probably get away with).
Dreamy Sienna brings out the classic elegance of her two gowns. Heidi thinks the first is “beautiful” and Nicole loves the color. “She looks like she belongs in ‘Alice in Wonderland,'” Nicole says admiringly. The judges think the second look is “luxe” too. “I love Sienna,” Nicole adds. “Me too!” says Jeremy. Classic elegance for the win! Though Heidi’s snap judgment is that Rafael should win the assignment. My personal faves are Gabriella and Curtis.
It’s time for the contestants to learn their fates. The judges call out five of the 10 designers for individual critiques, starting with Rafael, who we already know was popular with the judges. Heidi calls him a showstopper who gave her the kind of loud and flashy looks she wanted. Jeremy loved the texture. And Nicole could feel Rafael’s passion for his country and culture. He’s making the cut!
Next is Curtis. The judges praise him for two great, cohesive looks that brought the drama with that sheer shirt. He is also making the cut! Sienna is last to get a positive review from the panel. Jeremy loves the sculptural quality of the designs. Heidi thought the first look was like a dream. And Nicole appreciated the message that you can project strength without sacrificing femininity. Not only does Sienna make the cut, she’s also the winner of the “Evening Wear” assignment ! “This is a big step for me to sell my clothing in the future,” says Sienna. “This is truly unbelievable.” (Watch our interview with Sienna below.)
Though she wasn’t one of the top designers, Jeanette still impressed the judges enough to get a special shout-out when they asked her to explain the technique behind her crackling flour dress.
Time for the bad news. Ciara was the first to get raked over the coals, though it was a somewhat gentle raking for a designer in the bottom two, which is probably a testament to how strong all the looks were in this first challenge. Heidi and Nicole actually loved the first look, though Jeremy thought it had fit issues and mistakes in the handling of the fabric. The big problem for both of them is that the two looks weren’t cohesive. Nicole thought they were designed for two different women. However, Nicole is impressed by Ciara’s pitch that her idea of evening wear is effortless and chic, so she joins the other two judges in agreeing that Ciara makes the cut!
But poor Emily isn’t so lucky. Heidi admires her eye for texture and color, and she liked the jumpsuit, but she wanted more vision. Nicole thought the ’60s and ’70s inspiration were on the edge of costumey, and they were way too daytime for an evening wear challenge. Jeremy didn’t feel the urgency in either of the designs. Again, the criticisms are fairly measured — sounds more like a C+ than an outright failing grade — but the judges still decide that Emily does not make the cut . She appeals to them to give her a second chance, but none of the judges budge.
“I’m disappointed that they didn’t see my vision,” Emily says in her exit interview. “I hate that I have to leave. I’m going to use this feedback to push myself and grow my brand. I will continue to create and design and show what I can do to the world. It’s just a bummer that I don’t get to do it here.”
Do you think the right person was eliminated and that the right person won the assignment? Vote in our polls below, and discuss in the comments.
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