‘Making the Cut’ episode 8 recap: In ‘Brand Evolution,’ the designers fought to make the final three, but did the judges get it right?
“Making the Cut” is nearing the home stretch, and in episode eight, “Brand Evolution,” the final four fashion designers left in the running were cut down to the top three. But to make the cut this time, they had to prove not only that their fashion brands are worthy of winning, but that their brands have been refined by the experience of competing on the show. So who demonstrated their artistic growth to Heidi Klum, Tim Gunn and the judges, and who missed out after coming so close to the final round? Read on for our recap with all our minute-by-minute hot takes on the “Making the Cut” semifinals.
0:54 — The final four — Jonny Cota, Sander Bos, Megan Smith and Esther Perbandt — join Heidi and Tim at a teahouse. Hats off, kids, and no elbows on the table! But slurping is encouraged; it’s a sign of enjoyment. “Apologies,” says Tim. “I haven’t mastered my slurping.” But after that moment of levity, Tim tells them about their most important assignment yet, which will determine the final three. The first assignment was a brand snapshot, and now this collection will show the judges how the experience of this show has helped them grow. They need to make at least two looks, but they can create as many as four. Yikes, but they’ll have the benefit of two seamstresses each — with them in the design studio, and it’s about time we got to see them do their work! Megan feels like the underdog because she’s the only one who hasn’t won an assignment yet while Jonny, Sander and Esther have all won two apiece, “but I feel like this is my time,” she says.
4:17 — Sander is planning on three looks representing his past, present and future and how he has juggled his avant garde style with learning how to be more accessible to the buying public. Esther is also going with three looks that blend materials, shapes and forms; she has discovered her femininity on the show, so she’ll create a flowing look. Jonny also wants to show how he has developed more femininity, so he’s going to transform his looks from the first assignment while creating a third womenswear look to complete the trio. And Megan? Yep, she’s also doing three looks. She wants to show the refinement she’s been known for along with the edginess that she has developed throughout the show. So you’ve got a couple of masculine-style designers trying to be more feminine, a more feminine-style designer going more masculine, and Sander doing Sander.
8:00 — The designers have a third helper in addition to their seamstresses: a translator because the seamstresses don’t speak English. Working with a team is new territory for young Sander, but Esther feels completely at ease working that way since that’s how she usually conducts her business. Esther is even going to use a color other than black for the second time. I mean, it’s white, but it’s still a creative stretch for her.
10:08 — Jonny is going all the way into the realm of feminine with a sheer pink dress. Watch out, though. The very first designer who was eliminated, Jasmine Chong, went home because of a pretty much see-through dress. And his model plans are up in the air since one of the female models he was looking forward to dressing is unavailable, so he decides to pivot by putting one of his male models in the dress. “I’m gonna own this situation … I’m talking about my femininity, talking about gender doesn’t matter. Well prove it — show it on the runway.” His male model will get the sheer, silk, pleated dress, and I love that idea. Shades of non-binary model DD from “Project Runway” this year.
15:03 — Sander goes through his to-do list: “Dress still needs to be done, top still needs to be done, skirts still need to be done, fitting, Tim Talk, winning a million dollars, rich husband, mansion — plan!” He’d better make the finale because it would be boring without him.
DAY TWO
20:00 — I appreciate Esther’s approach to team-building: she lets her seamstresses know she values their work and she wants to get their input and find out how much time they’ll need so they’ll really be part of the process.
20:21 — Tim Talks time, starting with Esther. He likes her white shirt, says it’s accessible but also fashion. And he thinks her “Top Three” t-shirt idea is a hoot; she tells him she wants to stop holding back and making herself small. Boast away, Esther! And tell that to the judges; crying might help too. With Sander, though, Tim is “perplexed” by his color combos: one pink fabric is “insipid, sweet and weak.” However, Sander’s like, “But he doesn’t need to wear it.” Uh-oh, another rebellion against Tim? Nope, Sander ultimately decides to ditch the pink.
23:01 — Jonny is second-guessing his male sheer-dress look, but Tim encourages him to push for that wow reaction from the judges. “You don’t want to play it safe, and you don’t want to go crazy,” Tim tells him. But Tim is less encouraged by Megan’s use of alligator leather, which he thinks is “arbitrary.” It’s hard and tough, while the rest of the design is ethereal. She needs to do more with that material: go all-in, or not at all. “You’re the only designer in this room who doesn’t have a winning look,” Tim reminds her, and of course she doesn’t need to be reminded of that. She’s emotional, and understandably so. Literally no one else in that room has as much to prove as she does. But he tells the designers at the end how impressed he is by all their collections. No one has weak work, which is going to make it tougher to send one of them home.
28:19 — Esther has “basically finished all the three looks” on day two, while Jonny has only finished one and a half pieces and still has five to go. It’s a tough decision, but Jonny decides to cut it down to two looks instead of three. He’d better be keeping the silk dress for his male model. Esther credits her quick work to her team of seamstresses helping her out. Pitch for season two: bring the seamstresses on-screen for the whole competition. I like seeing that partnership instead of watching tech packs come back with sewing magically done (or mysteriously not done).
DAY OF THE FASHION SHOW
30:20 — Jonny is still debating whether to do two looks or three. He doesn’t want the judges to criticize him for not pushing himself as far as his competitors, so he’s sticking with three looks. I think he might be overestimating how much the judges would hold that against him. If he finished all his looks that’s great, but two polished and perfect looks would beat three half-finished looks any day of the week. The good news for him is Esther is giving him help since she’s finished with her work; Megan isn’t thrilled with that tag-team effort. “I don’t think it’s fair that I worked that hard and he doesn’t,” she says. I’m of two minds about that: I like when designers help each other, but if Megan goes home as a result, she has every right to be pissed.
34:43 — ESTHER: Her mini-collection comes out first. Judge Joseph Altuzarra loves the movement of her accessible look, and Naomi appreciates the versatility. Heidi admires the chutzpah of the “Top Three” shirt on the second look. And Naomi Campbell is impressed by the defined waist of the third dress.
35:46 — SANDER: Naomi isn’t into the zipper on the back of the first green runway look. Joseph loves the surprise of the bows on the back of the second runway design. And after the accessible outfit, Joseph and Chiara Ferragni both think he has balanced his experimental aesthetic with more commercial execution — get you a man who can do both.
36:37 — MEGAN: Joseph loves her new style of tailoring on display. Heidi feels like she has been inspired by Esther. But Heidi thinks the second look is messy with its mix of fabrics. I like it, though. And Heidi likes the white accessible dress Megan closes her collection with. Sounds like they’re on the fence, and with only four designers, that could be enough for her to go home.
37:39 — JONNY: His accessible look “doesn’t fit right” to Naomi, and Heidi isn’t a fan either. The first runway look is well-executed, but the judges think it’s overly familiar. “I have that jacket,” they all say. Well, I don’t. And the final runway look, that sheer silk men’s dress, is Chiara’s favorite of this collection, but Joseph and Naomi think the Cota-branded bag across the front gets in the way of the dress. Naomi and Heidi are disappointed. I have a feeling he’s going home.
JUDGING
40:32 — Esther gets a great critique to start. Heidi loved everything, especially the blouse, which felt brand new to her, the beautifully shaped jacket and amazing dress. Naomi sees “strength” and “integrity.” Joseph thought the collection was “emotional” and solidified her belief in herself. Esther not only makes the cut, she’s the winner of this assignment, which makes three victories for her out of eight episodes. Not bad going into the finals.
43:25 — Sander is next. Joseph empathizes with his journey because he used to make leather catsuits with cone cups, and Sander is super excited to hear that he’s not the only avant garde weirdo in the room — and I say that in a completely weirdo-positive way. Naomi wants Sander to retain his signature humor. And I think he has the best pitch for his brand when he says that with his bold, playful creativity, “I don’t represent the now, I represent the future.” Unsurprisingly, he makes the cut. So now it’s down to whether Megan or Jonny is eliminated.
45:40 — I like Megan’s pitch to the judges of how she knows what women want and this show has taught her to embrace her own voice, to give all of her instead of just some of her. Joseph thought the presentation showed growth, but the edgy look he liked the most felt more like an Esther or Jonny piece, but Naomi doesn’t agree with that assessment. Joseph still isn’t sure about the central idea of Megan’s brand. But if nothing else, Megan is by far the best advocate for her own product.
48:03 — From Jonny’s collection, Naomi didn’t get the idea of the newfound softness he was trying to convey. She thinks the first look was a lot of been there, done that. She loved the dress, though she reiterates that she didn’t care for the bag across the front. And Heidi again points out that she bought the second jacket two years ago. I would ask what stores she’s shopping in, but I probably couldn’t afford it. Jonny also makes a good pitch for himself, arguing that he started with limited pattern-making and sewing skills, but has thrived. I think he should have emphasized that in the one assignment where he was almost eliminated, “Haute Couture,” he learned so much from the judges that he blew them away on subsequent challenges. So if they give him another chance he can take their notes with his clear brand identity and win the finale.
51:07 — The judges do some final deliberations with the designers out of the room. Indeed, Joseph points out that Jonny is more of a brand, while Megan has the right experience and hustle. Naomi isn’t looking forward to the tears when they deliver the verdict. The result … Johnny makes the cut, and Megan is eliminated.
53:28 — “You’re going to do so well,” Naomi tells Megan. In her exit interview Megan says, “We’ve all come close to things that we want and not quite get them.” Sad to see her go, but I understand the judges’ decision. I too feel like Jonny had a clearer, more unified point of view, but Megan was arguably more consistent.
54:48 — “Do you think these designers know what’s coming next?” asks Heidi when the top three are out of the room. “No, I don’t think they have a clue,” says Tim. Looks like Jonny, Esther and Sander are in for a surprise.
Next week the designers will make pop-up shops as well as collections with 12 to 14 looks. And the pop-up shop will decide the final two who get to participate in the final fashion show. Who do you think will win? And who should win?