I know you've all been waiting a very long time for this. Not only do you find out who WON this year's Designer Superstar Challenge, you also get to find out which one of the final three contestants had such curiously long toes they lived with the nickname Thumper. It is Maryana. Such a curse. I mean really, to have both those looks AND long slender toes? I'm not sure how she gets through the day. I'm sure she'd be jealous of what are often referred to as my "sausage" toes. Yup.
So, I'll bet you want to know all about how we got to this point in the competition and how the final day went. The truth is, I can barely remember a thing. I do remember that by the final day our craft (snack) table had been reduced to a box on the floor with some partially eaten carrots in it. OH! I almost forgot. When everyone had finished with the challenges and we all went back to the swinging penthouse in the sky for the judges final decision I decided to do some snooping. I found one of the bedrooms had a Country Home Magazine in it. So someone's keeping a dirty little secret. All this time one of the contestants was a closet country decor lover. The scandal that it could have caused if it was found out. I also found out our contestants were kind of messy and losing their hair. Their bathroom floor and pretty much every other surface, was covered with enough weave material to keep Tyra Banks going for years. Ick. I had to go into the bathroom to, well... you know... go to the bathroom. Remember now, this is on the 49th floor of a condo made entirely of glass. The toilet is pushed right up against the wall–the glass wall. All I could think was, "this is really weird" and "boy, once I flush, it's a long way down". Turns out our makeup artist Lisa used the same bathroom and had exactly the same thoughts. Oh, and you may have noticed all of the roses our set decorators Olivia and Tara had strewn around in the final elimination. There were hundreds of them. After I left for the night, about five remained. What girl doesn't like an armful of slightly wilted white roses?
And before I leave you for this year, I wanted to mention a comment I overheard just after Anna announced the winner. She went up to Bruno privately and said, "Most people have to learn to be a designer. You Bruno, were born to be one." Congratulations Bruno.
March 20, 2007Top of Page
I've finally been able to spend enough time with the contestants to feel like I'm getting to know them a little. Here is what I've learned so far:
- Ambrose for those of you who are wondering is exactly the same in real life as he is on camera. Which is a good thing. I realize he's now gone, but I wanted to mention him.
- Bruno is a lawyer. I only found that out today. He left the big city and lawyering to have a more peaceful life in a small town.
- Yamina is wiggly. She might just be the most twitchy person I've ever met. I tease Yamina because I like her and she's fun.
- Penny is probably the toughest of the final contestants to get to know, because she's unflappable. Always, always on an even keel. I believe you could set Penny's fingernails on fire and she would calmly blow them out and resume what she was doing.
- Maryana, as you can see yourself, is smart, beautiful and nice. I hate Maryana. Not really. But it just doesn't seem fair. Why does she also have to be NICE??? Like the first two assets aren't enough for one person.
Speaking of nice people, if I heard it once, I heard it a bazillion times on this shoot. "Peter Fallico is SOOOO nice." And he is. All of the contestants loved him. Everyone involved in the shoot loved him. It was kind of eerie actually. In terms of today's challenge, in defense of Yamina, I would like to say that although her interview with Peter might have been a train wreck, she handled it well, laughed it off and in turn it was very entertaining.
In keeping with the theme of the challenge, creating a magazine cover, I asked today's judges what their favourite magazines were.
Peter Fallico -
ReadyMade
Anna Simone -
Domus
Suzanne Dimma -
Travel & Leisure
Jeff Andrews -
Vanity Fair
I would like at this point to give the only honest answer and admit my favourite magazine is
People. Speaking of favourites, the three designers I thought would be in the final, are. Can you guess which one of them has the nickname Thumper because they apparently have extraordinarily long toes? Freakish, finger-like toes, they could knit with? Come back next week and I'll tell you who it is.
March 13, 2007Top of Page
I may as well start off this blog by just telling you right off the bat that I didn't steal anything today. The chairs were too big for me to smuggle.
This chair challenge was funny. All of the contestants seemed to be perplexed by the fact that none of their mannequins matched their chairs. That was kind of the point; to redesign the chairs to match the mannequin, their pretend client. If the chair already looked like something the pretend client would have, then it wouldn't be much of a challenge would it? Because of the challenge and what it revolved around, the judges and I got to talking about our favourite chairs. My favourite chair in my house is an antique wood framed chair in tufted mustard velvet. Suzanne says her favourite chair is a Bentwood chair by Cherner. Anna's is a flat, black leather tufted seat. And Jeff? Jeff's favourite chair is one he found in the laundry room of his condo building. Something someone left behind after moving out. A black leather and teak swivel chair. For free! See? It always pays to keep your eyes open and your fingers sticky. He made off with the laundry room chair in no time.
What I remember most about this challenge is actually my dress. I loved my dress. I felt very Mary Kate or Ashley Olsen in it. They have great style. Really. So do both of our female judges. They also have a lifestyle that makes talking clothing with either of them very depressing. Case in point, these are actual conversations I've had with both Suzanne and Anna.
Karen: "Anna! I love your boots! Where did you get them?"
Anna: "Thank you, I got them in Italy."
Karen: "I sometimes eat spaghetti."
OR
Karen: "Suzanne! Your sweater is beautiful, where did you get it?"
Suzanne: "Thank you. I got it in Paris, just last week!"
Karen: "I have Moulin Rouge on DVD."
So, just for the record, because I can't help myself, I admitted to them both that my dress was from Le Chateau. But I said it with a french accent, so I think I may have fooled them. They both loved the dress. I can't say as much for poor Ambroses chair. As much as we all loved him I don't think anyone liked that chair. Not even Ambrose.
March 06, 2007Top of Page
Have I mentioned the rocks yet? I don't think so. Okay, so while we shoot Designer Superstar Challenge I'm put up in a hotel near where we're shooting because the hours are so long, and evidently some people suspect if I have to drive further than 10 minutes to work, I'm likely to be late–smart people. So I have been staying at a "spa" hotel during the series. It's the kind of hotel where people speak quietly and there are Zen rooms to calm you. You know. It's nothing like home. It's relaxing. So, part of their "thing" is to turn down your bed at night, close the curtains and put on quiet jazz music. They also put something on your pillow. A candy you say? A chocolate perhaps? No. It's a rock. They put a small rock on your pillow every night. I'm not sure why, but they do. I'm also not sure why I LOVED the rock. I couldn't get enough of the rocks. I'm not afraid to tell you that I took to stealing the rocks. Yes, I would sneak down the hallways, quietly chase after housekeeping, wait for them to go into another room (thus leaving their rock filled carts outside) and I would steal a rock. One day it would be moonstone, another it might be quartz. It didn't matter. I just wanted a free rock. I now have 14 small rocks in my lingerie drawer. There's a lot of room in there because I don't own any actual lingerie. Suzanne Dimma always suggests people start collections they can showcase. WHAMMO! I have an instant collection. Thanks to Suzanne Dimma and her suggestion that led me into a life of crime.
Speaking of coat racks, sort of, how 'bout that coat rack challenge? I have to say I was really impressed with the thought that Mariana put into her flower coat rack. It was a great idea to have come up with on the spot. Out of curiosity I asked all of the contestants where they put their coats at home. Predictably, they all said in the closet. Not a single rebel among them. Unless you count Ambrose who claims he just throws his coat in the backyard. I do not believe him. I also can't believe that after four challenges I still have no idea who is going to win this thing. I do however, think I know who the final three will be. I'll let you know if I was right!
Febuary 27, 2007Top of Page
I'm at a bit of a loss for words here. The third challenge for the designers this year was the window dressing challenge. It was all shot at Ontario Paint and Wallpaper in downtown Toronto. It's a family run business that's been in the same building for nearly 100 years. They were the only place around with eight windows all in a row that would let us take over their store for the day. And we DID take over–eight contestants, countless crew members, producers, and the director all marching in and out of the store for hours on end. They gave us all the freedom we wanted and all the materials we needed. The owners and staff could not have been nicer. I even commented to my boyfriend that night on the phone how great they all were. So it was shocking and heart wrenching to watch the news just two weeks after the challenge was shot. Ontario Paint and Wallpaper burned to the ground in one of the worst fires in recent Toronto history. One hundred and seventy firefighters in all were called to the seven alarm fire. The remnants of the building that were left had to be demolished the next morning because of safety concerns. I know I speak for everyone involved in the shoot when I say how sorry I am. The good news is the owner is planning to rebuild on the very same site that has been home to the store since 1913. Good luck.
Now on to how the day went. I can tell you it was rainy and cold. The craft table on this day was set up in the most elegant manner, befitting those who make their living in the ever so glamorous entertainment industry. It was in the back of a van. Because of the weather the most popular craft item today was hot coffee. You know how some people will only eat organic? Well, I'm kind of the same. I hate to sound like a snob, and like I'm so particular about things but I'll only drink Tim Horton's coffee. I don't know what the back of the van coffee was, but it wasn't Tim Hortons. However, due to the fact that I was cold and wet, the lukewarm, brownish liquid was delightful. The contestants never got to taste it. Not a single one of them took a break. It was work, work, work. I noticed a few of them even took their high heels off. THAT faithful viewers can only mean one thing. Things are starting to get serious.
Febuary 20, 2007Top of Page
Well, another day another challenge. Before everyone got started today I asked the contestants which judge they were most afraid of (like I didn't know the answer). They all said Anna. Smart. Anna could eat them for lunch. Luckily she didn't. Instead she opted for the two bite brownies on the snack table. That's the thing about television. There's always a huge snack table. At least it's huge at the beginning of the shoot. As we make our way through the days and thus the budget, it seems to get smaller and smaller. And the snack table isn't called the snack table. It's called the "craft table". I don't know why. There are absolutely no glitter or pipe cleaners to be found on it.
Today's challenge for the contestants was propping shelves. They were given a wide array of stuff to choose from. Stuff I couldn't have done anything with, except maybe stare at it. The contestants didn't seem to have too many problems with it. Of course, that's not what the judges said. I don't know about you, but I'd look at a shelf and think "hmm... that's nice... that looks good." And then the judges would rip it apart. Evidently I know absolutely NOTHING about design. It's kind of embarrassing. Hosting I do know about. And for the first time in Designer Superstar Challenge history, the contestants will have to do an "on-air" challenge every day. I was disgusted and appalled by how well they all did their first time up. How am I supposed to tell people how this job of mine isn't as easy as it looks if apparently anyone can do it? Hmmm? AND they're doing it wearing high heels, even though I have repeatedly told them to wear sensible shoes because their feet will hurt after a week of 14 hour days in heels. Please note: neither Bruno nor Ambrose are wearing high heels, although I don't think that's because of my advice... I sense its personal preference.
By the way, by the end of the first day last year I had picked who I thought the winner would be. And I was right. I still have no idea who it will be this year. It could be anyone. We'll see what the next challenge brings. I'll bet it brings high heels and an even greater fear of Anna.
p.s. If you noticed a cute little vintage green planter/vase type thing during the propping challenge I thought I should confess. I stole it. It is now in my bathroom, on a shelf, with other things, probably arranged in exactly the wrong way.
Febuary 13, 2007Top of Page
Welcome back to another year of Designer Superstar Challenge!
When last we spoke, I had just stolen a bunch of sticks. (During last year's final challenge, I saw the opportunity to make off with some very long, decorative sticks a designer was throwing out) I would just like to let you all know, I still have the sticks.
This year I stole a few other things. More on that in later blogs.
I met the contestants this year, exactly as you see it on television. I surprised them in their brand new accommodation. A $6.5 million dollar loft on the 49th floor of a downtown Toronto complex. Yes. $6.5 million dollars. It was the same condo used for the taping of last years Much Music VJ Search. It seems while no one can afford to buy the apartment, several television shows are willing to rent it. And while it was a stunning, STUNNING place to shoot, and I'm sure live, it wasn't always the luxurious, party in the sky it seemed to be for our contestants. I mean, for one thing, imagine being dumped in a strange city, in a strange (albeit mammoth) condo with a bunch of strange people. I'd rather eat a wool sweater. And because of our somewhat limited budget we had to scrimp where we could. The contestants always had wine available to them but they had to sleep on blow up air mattresses. That leaked. A lot. To their credit, I never heard a single contestant complain about it. Not to me anyway. Perhaps it was all the wine.
The first night, when I met the contestants, everyone was extremely excited (they didn't know about the air mattresses yet) and were all looking forward to the challenges to come. My only word of advice for them was to wear sensible shoes. Not a single one did. I vowed to never give them advice again. Not even that super, special secret advice about how to fold a dinner napkin into a chicken. Nope. They were on their own. And as you saw, the first challenge didn't go very well for one contestant. But that was to be expected. I mean it is a competition, and someone has to be the first eliminated. So that was sad. On the upside, at the end of the day the rest of the contestants got to go back to their palatial estate in the sky. To blow up their air mattresses.
January 22, 2007Top of Page