Compared with last season, what did you do differently?
Well, I insisted on a bit more air time. The mentoring process is so important and you will see more of it. I spent more time with each designer. I think I became a bit more involved emotionally with the designer.
There is a wider range of designers this season and really, feel like I became closer to them this season.
What does it take to stand out as a designer?
It takes an element of bravery and it takes the ability to surprise. It also takes the ability to make sure that every garment is carrying your signature in it. Everything has to be cohesive and it has to feel like something you have done.
You can say that about all the really good designers.
You look for a signature style and the bravery that it takes to create that, and then to stick with it.
How do the challenges compare to last season?
I think the challenges are much stronger this season. After the first season aired, we had people clamoring to be on. The second season I feel that the talent is much stronger. It was pretty good first time around, but this time it really is stronger. It really does feel like a post-graduate program.
So you see a real degree of grown-up commerciality that I think was missing in the first season.
One of our challenges was to design a dress that could be sold in the high street, and it is just fantastic and you just know that the winning design, you just know it is going to sell out.
I hear tell that there is an eco-friendly challenge...
Yes, this involves everyone going up onto the Highline in New York and making designs with these really extraordinary sustainable fabrics. Also, the way that they are printed is also very eco-friendly.
Do you wear any "green" fashions yourself?
Well, I wear quite a lot of vintage and and a lot of recycled fashions. I try when I can. I'm not perfect but, it is something I am very conscious of. All consumers are thinking about this. How much water went into this pair of jeans? Who actually produced this pair of jeans? I feel that there is a much higher level of consciousness about this than there used to be.
Any pressure to be like Tim Gunn? To have catchphrases?
No. Not really. I mean Tim is such a one-off. No one can be like Tim. I mean I am on the show like I am in real life. I am very direct, very straightforward. I say pretty much what I think - as I think Tim does, but we are very very different? And I think I have had sex more recently than Tim.
Are you doing the after-show with Isaac again?
I don't know. It has not been decided. You know we only decided to that halfway through the season last time. Perhaps that will happen again.
Did you every want to be a designer yourself?
As a child I endlessly designed clothes. I had pages and pages and pages of truly horrible designs. I was fascinated by drawing, but I was better at writing. I was channeled in that direction. I was never good enough to become a designer. Every now and then I have the opportunity to design something that I would like and I really love doing it.
As a mentor, do you hold the designers to the same high standards that you hold in your editor position?
I try to be flexible depending upon what people need. Some people in the room, just needed to bounce ideas off someone. Some designers needed more specific direction. There was a sort of range of advice that was needed in the room. There are some who actually wanted to talk about the shape of the garment and the silhouette and wanted very specific input.
After the show wrapped, I would notes from the designers, saying that I had been helpful. So it has been a very rewarding process.
Will you bring Nina Garcia over with you to Cosmo?
Well, Nina is very happy at Marie Claire I think she will stay there. However, I think there will be new things that we will be doing at Cosmo.
Would you like to see Cosmo involved in Project Runway in the future?
Well, I love to watch fashion on television and I hope that Cosmo will be involved in a television project, but I feel that Marie Claire is so associated with Project Runway and I am sure that the new editor will want to keep the association.
What is more important in a Project Runway design - execution or creativity?
I think it depends on the challenge. In some of the challenges, you just need to be able to execute really well. Especially for the commercial challenges when you know the item will be for sale in the American High street.
There are other challenges where creativity is more important. We have a seasonal challenge where there was one design where the top was brilliant and the bottom was an absolute disaster. So I think it is a combination, depending on the challenge.
On the All-Star season, do you think that the designers arrive with something to prove?
Yes. You know we have, I think, four designers who were runners-up and they really had something to prove. They were very upset that they haven't won their season. Also, they have been able to watch themselves on the show and they understand where they have gone wrong. So they come back with less concern with the other people in the room and more focus on their designs.
Also, the prize is enormous and I will say that the last five designers standing were extremely focused on winning the prize. It is a life-changing prize for any one of them.
I was delighted to see Wendy Pepper in the season two cast. Who were you delighted to see in the season cast?
Well I was delighted to see Emilio. I always thought he was good. You know he was nominated for a Tony Award for the costume design for Porgy and Bess.
I was excited to see Josh back because he is such a character.
I always felt that Ivy didn't come across as strongly as she could have.
I was very pleased to see Laura Kathleen. I know that she and Nina clashed a lot. I felt like she deserved another chance.
I was happy to see Casanova and of course, Casanova and Ivy were incredibly surprised to see one another. They of course know each other and didn't know that they were cast until they saw each other.
It was also great to see Uli. I think she had three or four years are really working away and honing her craft. It was great to see her again.
Have you ever worn a garment worn by a Project Runway designer?
Yes, I have and I would like to wear more.
Which designer?
It's a challenge from this season, so I can't give it away. When the season is over I will wear it in my editor's note.
What are the most important qualities of an successful designer?
The ability to combine creativity and commerce. When you look at the major designers, you see the ability to do that.
They should understand how women want to feel when they put on clothes - the transformative power of clothes.
Designers should be able to think really creatively but they should also understand what will sell.
