It's a good thing Portland decided to get behind Seth Aaron on this season of Project Runway, because things are really looking up for him. Even if I personally don't like his habit of putting zippers and studs all over everything he touches (and seriously, black nail polish? really?) he can, as my co-observer Dave pointed out, "tailor like a motherfucker." This week's challenge was a team challenge, and Seth Aaron paired up with team-leader Emilio. They were to create one day and one evening look per team, based on a burough of New York—and yes, the designers who did Chinatown put chopsticks in their model's hair. Emilio and Seth Aaron did Harlem, which resulted in this terribly unfortunate hat and extremely overwrought but well-executed Canadian tuxedo (the jacket even has tails... shudder):

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Here's Seth's take on the challenge:

NO WAY DUDE, THE ZIPPER WAS YOUR IDEA?? Ugh. Winner and loser after the break.

DING! DING! DING!

Seth Aaron and Emilio both won the challenge. It's worth checking out Emilio's thoughts on choosing Seth Aaron as his partner (because he didn't want Seth Aaron to do Harlem) but knew he could channel his strengths:

The thing about this stage of the show is that there aren't many truly bad, utter train wrecks. The talent's been whittled down to those who have a basic ability to operate under the show's extreme working conditions, and people are starting to find their flow. Nonetheless, Amy had to go after she and Jonathan presented their over-complicated and hastily finished looks based on the Upper East Side:

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For a second when this first came out I thought they'd gotten away with it, but if you scan this from top to bottom it gets worse and worse. I hate the dress-y fish-fin panels, and there was some kind of bullshitty sash thing going on in back.

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I really didn't think this was that bad. The judges' main complaint seemed to be that the waist was too tight (?). I certainly wouldn't be caught dead in it, but I could definitely see it on some UES rich eccentric, like an East Coast version of Shelly Long's character in Troop Beverly Hills. She didn't really seem too broken up about it, though. Sweet Jonathan cried for her:

(And woah did you peep Molly Sims??? Could that woman look any more shellacked?) Anyhoo, stay tuned for next week, whether you're watching at home or at the Tanker, followed by a special Wrap-Up by guest Wrapper-Upper Dave Bow!