Project Runway

Zanna Roberts Rassi introduces everyone to 16 new designers who will be competing against each other on Project Runway Season 11.

After just meeting each other for the first time, the designers are placed in two teams of eight and told that they will be designing in teams for the entire season. For the first challenge, the designers must create unique and individual looks inspired by NYC. They are judged on how well they do as a team...and the team is only as strong as it's weakest link.

The two teams are tasked with designing new uniforms for the popular nightclub/ping pong club Spin. The winning design will be worn by Spin employees. Susan Sarandon appears as a guest judge.

The teams are presented with the challenge and privilege of designing a look for Heidi to wear in her ad campaign and for press events while promoting her new fragrance "Surprise". Two designers win the challenge.

The designers are tasked with the Unconventional Materials Challenge. Two of Project Runway's favorite challenges, the flower store and the hardware store, are combined for the ultimate "hard and soft" challenge. Also, the teams get a bit of a shake-up when two members leave one team and one member leaves another. The legendary Bette Midler serves as a guest judge.

The large teams dissolve, and the designers are now asked to work in pairs. The teams must make two looks-one red carpet and one performance-for country music star Miranda Lambert.

The designers must work in teams of two to create looks for "mature" women, who also serve as their clients and models for this challenge. Joan and Melissa Rivers guest judge.

Before the challenge begins, the designers are asked to re-pick their teams. Then, in teams of two, the designers are tasked with making a prom dress out of duct tape. In addition to the Runway, they are also judged on their work by a group of high school students, whose votes factor into their final score. Two designers are eliminated.

Regrouping once again, the judges decide which designers they would like to see work together, and the teams are separated into two teams of four. The designers must make cohesive looks for the male dance troupe Thunder From Down Under. Not only must they execute menswear, but their designs must be able to "tear away" onstage as part of their performance.

In new teams of twos and threes, the designers make a ready-to-wear look for Lord and Taylor, inspired by their famous rose design. The winning design is manufactured and sold at Lord and Taylor for Spring 2013.

In pairs again, the designers use HP technology and inspiration drawn from the Guggenheim Museum to create two looks: one avant-garde and a second ready-to-wear piece. They are also able to design their fabric for this challenge.

After working in teams all season, the designers are relieved when they receive the news that they will now be working on their own. However, some of the eliminated designers return to act as assistants and help the competitors complete their look. For this challenge, the designers must make a Spring 2013 editorial look to be worn by actress Jordana Brewster and featured in Marie Claire.

The remaining designers are paired with new assistants and each sent to a European fashion capital: Paris, Barcelona, London, and Berlin. One unlucky designer stays in NYC. The designers must draw inspiration from their city, as well as purchase their materials there. Upon returning to NYC, they must create a look that will prove they have what it takes to design a collection for Fashion Week.

The few designers left say goodbye to NYC and return to their respective hometowns to begin working on their final collections. Tim Gunn travels to visit the designers and assess their progress. In the end, all four remaining designers must present their three best pieces to the judging panel, as the judges are left to decide who will move on to show at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week.

It's the moment of truth for the remaining designers as they each present their final collections to an eager audience at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. One designer is named the winner of Project Runway Season 11, and the rest are unfortunately out.

All of the designers get to meet with each other one more time to talk about their experiences while on Project Runway Season 11. The designers seize the opportunity to celebrate the winner and iron out any issues that may need resolving. While their discussion gets heated at times, their time together is revealing and cathartic for everybody.