The Fashion Show 104 "The Shoe Must Go On" Recap

The Fashion Show, Bravo
Episode 104: The Shoe Must Go On”
Original Airdate: Thursday, May 28, 2009

The fourth episode of The Fashion Show on Bravo focused on shoes and how fashion can be expressed by what you wear on your feet.

Laura Brown from Harper Bazaar magazine tells the remaining contestants they will be doing a special mini-challenge. Elizabeth Olsen from OlsenHaus explains how they will use eco-friendly materials to make a stylish shoe.

This challenge doesn’t give them very much time to create their design. I kinda feel for them because it seems so rushed. Reco is making a short boot with fringe and thinks Andrew’s fringe design is a copy of his. Merlin has bows on his shoes. It’s Reco’s team versus Lidia’s team. Reco’s team wins thanks to Johnny R. having the best design. The judges didn’t like Reco’s Halloween color choices for his design.

A version of Johnny’s winning look will be available on Bravo TV.

The main competition in this episode is actually pretty cool. First, the contestants are taken to Bergdorf Goodman where they have a limited amount of time to pick the perfect shoe – one of those shoes you just have to buy even though you don’t have anything that goes with it. The challenge is for the designers to come up with a look to go with the perfect shoe.

Everyone picks a shoe in the time frame except for Angel. Host/judge Isaac Mizrahi picks a red, white and blue pair for her. She’s less than thrilled, which turns out pretty ironic. Oh, and they get to work as individuals, not as teams. Everyone is excited about the possibilities.

Lidia has a great idea for a dress but gets over her head because she doesn’t really have the time to do the detail work the dress needs.

Daniella’s dress is probably my favorite. It’s part leather and looks like something that would be in a fashion magazine.

Anna and Daniella notice that Andrew’s pleating detail for his dress look like the same pleats Anna did on her skirt a few weeks ago. But honestly, the dress isn’t anywhere the same.

Angel decides to do a white shirt dress that is pretty neat and goes well with her patriotic-looking shoes.

Reco is still pretty full of himself and thinks his short black dress design will win, hands down. In fact, while everyone is still finishing up, he takes a nap. He even had extra time to make a special head accessory for his dress.

At the fashion show, the dresses were quite impressive overall with Isaac claiming it was the best ever. The fan favorite seems to be Reco’s dress. Host/judge Kelly Rowland LOVES it.

Merlin’s dress is a little too out there for me, but I liked Keith’s floral look.

The top three designs were Angel, Daniella and Reco, with 90 percent of the audience thinking Reco’s dress was fashion forward. His shoes and head accessory do go well with the dress. Angel’s dress is called a great summer Hamptons’ dress.” Turns out her design is actually two shirts in one, and you can flip the shirts. It’s like you wrapped a shirt around your waist while wearing a white shirt. Hmmm.

Reco is the winner and, of course, is beside himself. A version of his dress will be available on Bravo TV.

In the bottom two are Andrew and Lidia. The judges think Lidia’s idea was good, but she didn’t execute it well. She said she needed more time, and stresses that she quit her job to be on the show. They call Andrew’s lack-of-color design “boring” and I agree. He thinks it was a good choice. Andrew is elminated.

Coming up next week on The Fashion Show, the designers have to work with real women – who do not have figures like the models they are currently using. From the previews, it looks like the designers aren’t happy with this challenge. I think it will be funny to watch.

Bravo Photos: Barbara Nitke. The top three designs, from top, Reco’s little black dress, Angel’s white shirt dress and Daniella’s design.