by Gina Scarpa

Last night, on The Fashion Show, the designers were thrown a curveball when they were asked to design a garment from the everyday woman.  Keith ended up with a model with a small bust and no curves.  The judges felt that his design did not do anything to accentuate her figure and he landed in the bottom three.  He was eliminated from the competition and today, spoke to RealityWanted in an exclusive interview.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Tell us a little bit about your design experience, prior to coming on the show?
A. Keith: I studied in London at the London College of Fashion.  I worked for Perry Ellis, Ralph Lauren, and for the past three years I’ve had my own label. 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: How did you end up becoming a part of The Fashion Show?
A. Keith: I was approached by GenArt, who I had been somewhat affiliated with through other programs and projects.  They asked me if I would be interested in auditioning for the show because they thought I’d be a good candidate.  Because of timing and other issues regarding Fashion Week, I really didn’t have very much time so I actually turned it down.  We had some further conversations and they explained the timing and then I signed on board.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Who stood out to you as immediate threats or your biggest competition this season?
A. Keith: I knew that Reco was going to be a threat because his sewing skills were just above and beyond most people that I’ve met.  He’d finish the entire thing is a matter of hours and everyone’s jaws would be on the floor.  As far as designers go whose designs I respected, there was Markus.  I’ve had the privilege seeing his work outside of the show.  He is extremely gifted.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: What do you think was the biggest problem with your design this week?
A. Keith: I think the problem with what I designed was the fit.  Within the confines of a competition like this, it’s kind of like driving a car that you can’t put into reverse.  You just have to keep going.  I just had to go into rescue mode where I was trying to make all of the necessary adjustments that I could.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: There were mixed reactions to having models there were everyday women.  Daniella seemed overly frustrated while Angel said that a good designer can design for any body.  What was your take?
A. Keith: As we all know, I didn’t have the everyday woman.  I had someone who was almost a model.  I think that it’s absolutely important to be able to design for every woman.  I think what Daniella was trying to say is that, as designers, when we design, we start from a place of designing a size 4 which then gets scaled up or down.  To start from a larger size is a difficult place to begin for someone who doesn’t have experience.  I hope that’s what she was trying to express.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Were you surprised that you were the one to go home on last night’s episode?
A. Keith: After watching it, I was very surprised.  When you’re living it, it’s one thing but when you watch it, you’re like, “What?!”

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: When you watch the episodes back, are there things you saw that you perhaps weren't aware of?
A. Keith: Every time you watch someone say something behind your back or you hear someone say something slightly negative, those moments are always startling.  You have to take a breath and put yourself in their shoes and realize it was a hard place to be.

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: What is in the future for you and do you think being on The Fashion Show will help your career?
A. Keith: I plan to continue on with my business as I did before the show started.  My collections are my life.  As far as the show itself, I think that all press is good press.  It probably brought a wider range of attention to my brand.  That’s what I hope is the result of the show.  I’m working on my Spring/Summer 2010 collection now.  I’ll be taking part in Paws For Style, which is a great doggy charity/fashion show.  I’ll be dressing Hoda Kotb from The Today Show and she’ll be walking my dog down the runway.  Fashion Week is quickly approaching and Boston is doing their own mini-fashion week so I’ll be headlining there as well as being part of New York.


The Fashion Show airs Thursday nights at 10pm ET on Bravo.

(Image courtesy of Bravo)

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