SH: Hello. How are you.
BPR: Congratulations on making it all the way to the finale!
SH: I know - what an honor. Honestly I am very proud - what an honor.
BPR: You won the most challenges, and you were certainly a favorite. Did you feel like a favorite?
SH: Honestly no. I just tackled one challenge at a time. I am an analytical thinker and I was just always working things out in my head. "How much time will this take?" "How can I accomplish this?" If we were on a team, I just wanted to keep the team on track.
BPR: Which is your favorite look from your collection?
SH: The white one with the gold embroidery and beading.
BPR: Right off the bat, I just have to ask - why didn't you finish your garments before you arrived in New York?
SH: When Tim came to see what I was doing I said that I would finish everything up he said, "Don't finish it all. You will have time and you will have help. Wait until you have fittings." So that's what I was thinking. Everything was organized. Everything was cut and prepped and interfaced. It just had to be put together.
BPR: Did you watch last night's episode?
SH: Yes.
BPR: Was there anything that we didn't see, that you wish we had?
SH: Well, at the end of the day, I take responsibility for my collection and I did procrastinate. You didn't see any interaction between Richard and I because he just didn't help. He wasn't feeling well and he was asleep. I wish they showed a little more of how Michelle helped me, Daniel helped me, Sam helped me... I really wish you had seen more of my relationship with Michelle, we have become very close friends. I just went up to visit her. I wish they had shown more of our relationship. She has the biggest heart, she is all girl. She is really great.
BPR: I can't remember the designers ever getting $10,000 and four months to create a collection - that was very generous. What did you spend most of the budget on?
SH: All of it on my materials basically. I did have one snafu where I sent somethings out to be dyed and about $1000 worth of the fabric was ruined. I also planned to do some hats, but didn't have enough budget after the dye incident. I wanted to spend my budget on luxurious materials. I spent every dime. The belts were all custom. I had them crafted from metal and dipped.
BPR: As you worked on the collection did you have to keep your day job, or did you work full time on the collection?
SH: I had to keep my day job. I work in production and they are long days. Usually 14-hour days for 3 weeks at a time. I worked on the collection on my days off and when I got home. I had to take the work because I had to pay my bills! Also when you are in a union, you have to work to pay your insurance.
BPR: Are you working on any shows that we would recognize?
SH: I do a lot of car commercials. I have worked on a Geico commercial, Target commercials, Desperate Housewives, Criminal Minds, Private Practice, Pushing Daisies...
BPR: Have you watched the previous seasons of Project Runway?
SH: Some, of course, but not all. I get home late...
BPR: But you knew what you were getting into...
SH: Oh yes of course.
BPR: Which was your favorite challenge?
SH: The hard and soft challenge. You just could not see all of the thought and the work that went into that design. There was an entire structure underneath, layers and layers and it was very heavy, but when the model walked, it just looked effortless. I think that got lost in tv land.
BPR: Who is your best friend from the cast?
SH: My best friend was Matt Arthur. I just got off the phone with him. We text all day. He came to my house. Also Michelle. She stayed with me last weekend...I just can't express....I mean I am a loner. I don't meet a lot of people. This has forced me out my shell. I had to really look in the mirror and decide okay, there are these people here, I have to work with them and love them or not - and they are all so lovely.
BPR: What are you working on now?
SH: Actually I just did two back-to-back productions and today is my first day off. I have been designing and trying to find some sample-makers. I have been meeting other designers. They have hooked me up with sample makers. I have just been creating like crazy. I have probably done four collections since the show. It's completely different from what I did on the show.
BPR: Please keep us posted.
SH: I will.
BPR: Stanley, we are almost out of time, is there anything else you would like to say to your fans?
SH: This has been like a journey to me. My favorite book is The Wizard of Oz. This experience was like landing in Oz and everything is in technicolor. Dorothy had to go through this whole thing just to get home and at the end of it, she learned that it was not just about getting home. It was about the journey. This has really opened me up. I mean, these lovely people call me and they care about me. It has been like a rebirth or a reawakening for me. I just feel so happy.
BPR: Thank you!
SH: Thank you!
