by Todd Betzold

 

It was do or die last night for the four remaining designers on Project Runway All Stars...do make a great design and you are in the finals...don't make a great design and you are going home one show away from the finals. No one wanted to go home and you could see that as the nerves were working overtime last night. With her refusal to accept criticism being an issue, Kenley Collins was sent home one week shy of the finals. Today she spoke briefly with RealityWanted and other reporters in a conference call about her journey on Project Runway All Stars.

 

Q. What made you decide to return to Project Runway?
A. Kenley: I thought it would be a good opportunity to get myself back out there and I wanted to kinda have fun with it this time around.

 

Q. Can you talk about fabric selection? That was an interesting pattern you chose last night with the feathers.
A. Kenley: I loved the print...it just jumped out at me. We were in her fabric warehouse and it really caught my eye. I was in there for a long time and nothing else really caught my eye except for that print. I'm a big print girl...that's what I'm all about, so I wasn't going to use a mediocre print next to that print...I'm all about the print and I loved that one.

 

Q. Can you tell us how it feels to get so close to the end and not make it to the finals?
A. Kenley: Yeah, it was a bummer (laughs). You work so hard, non-stop, zero sleep or barely any sleep and you don't make it, so it's going to be disappointing for anyone that goes through that process.

 

Q. What's your fashion pet peeve?
A. Kenley: My fashion pet peeve...I don't like it when girls dress really slutty.

 

Q. Standing up there, did you think Michael was going to go home instead of you?
A. Kenley: I really wasn't sure. I was hoping it was going to be me, but I had this feeling, even the previous night that there was going to have to be someone to go and it probably might be me, so I prepared myself.

 

Q. What can we expect to see next from you?
A. Kenley: I just put a Turner Classic Movies interview up on my Twitter. I'm working with a lot of cosmetic companies...working on lipsticks and stuff like that. I have a band, Jetblack Bullseye, and we're playing at The Knitting Factory and it's predicted to be a sold out show, it's almost sold out...I'm doing a lot with music. I took a long break from design and that's one of the reasons why I wanted to do this show...I wanted to get back into design because I was out of it for about a year.

 

Q. Todd, RealityWanted: From all the challenges this season, which one was your favorite to do?
A. Kenley: I liked the lighting challenge...it was cool because it's something I have never done before...it was fun.

 

Q. Todd, RealityWanted: With the finals coming up, is there anyone you will be rooting for now?
A. Kenley: Austin.

 

Q. How did you like working with Joanna versus Tim as a mentor?
A. Kenley: I love working with Joanna. She's an editor of a fashion magazine...that's the best opinion. As a designer you want an editorial opinion.

 

Q. Do you think if you would have added the keyhole detail it would have made any difference?
A. Kenley: No.

 

Q. You said you're rooting for Austin, but can you talk about the strengths of the final three?
A. Kenley: I think Austin's strengths are very feminine and material, I think Mondo's strengths are his prints and I think Michael's strength is draping.

 

Q. The first Project Runway, can you talk about how that affected your career and do you think doing this now will have a positive affect on your fashion? Do you think you'll get more work out of it?
A. Kenley: I don't think it will have a negative effect, it will only be a positive. Yeah, I'll get more work out of it, absolutely...that's one of the reasons why I did it.

 

Project Runway All Stars airs Thursdays at 9/8c on Lifetime.

 

(Image courtesy of Lifetime)

 

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