by Lindsay Strouse

Drum roll, please! After weeks of drama, tears and fabulous designs, we've finally arrived at the Project Runway Season 8 Finale. Who will walk away with the title of best fashion designer-Gretchen, Andy or Mondo?

It's one day before the runway finale and the final three are soaking in their last moments at the Hilton Hotel. They receive a note at breakfast saying there are several special guests waiting for them-whataya know, it's the eliminated contestants! Oh, how I've missed you, Casanova.

We look into Andy, Mondo and Gretchen's journey throughout the show and pay tribute to all their highs and lows. The eliminated contestants reminisce over their time on the show and what their life has been like since they left.

Tears are unleashed early when Heidi asks the contestants about Gretchen's image of "bitch" on the show. Several of the designers claim it isn't just a television persona-that's her in real life. Fortunately for Gretchen, Michael C. is there to defend her.

We remember the moment Mondo and Michael C. teamed up for the first time and the surprising relationship that evolved from the partnership. The judges tell the contestants how happy they are about the close-knit relationships that have been created during the show and how uncommon it has been over previous seasons.

A compilation video is shown highlighting the best moments of the season (that's right-I'm talking about Tim and his passion for wooly balls). After some laughs, we return back to the tears and see how much hard work, dedication and exhaustion is involved in the competition.

Gretchen, Mondo and Andy head back to the workroom to finish up their collections. Out of their eleven looks, they must choose ten pieces to show in the final runway show. All of the designers are at a strong point, yet they all have alterations and changes to be made.

They head down to the Garnier salon to create fabulous hair designs, styling, head pieces and accessories. Next, they do their final fittings on their models so they can tweak and make sure everything is perfect. Two of Mondo's models didn't show up, so he has some last minute decisions to figure out.

After 13 challenges, Mondo, Gretchen and Andy finally head over to Lincoln Center for the final runway show at New York Fashion Week.

Mondo gets even more stressed out when he finds out his collection's order was not what he originally wanted and another model didn't show up, forcing him to use an alternate model.

After attending Fashion Week in September, I'm interested to see how the collections will come off on television. Heidi opens the show by introducing Nina Garcia, Michael Kors and guest judge, Jessica Simpson.

Despite the thousands of worries I'm sure were running through the designers' minds, the show went off without a hitch. The collections were beautiful, and I must say, I'm very proud of what the designers put out.

After the celebrities and the cameras leave the scene, the designers return to Parsons to hear what the judges have to say about their work. The judges take time to talk and debate about the collections before deciding on the winner. Over all previous decisions, I have never seen the judges so split on their decision. 

So who is it? Wild and zany Mondo? Metallic and structured Andy? Or bohemian and natural Gretchen?

And the winner is...Gretchen! 

After all the incredible talent shown this season, I can't imagine what kind of designers we'll see on Project Runway next season!

(Photo by Lindsay Strouse)

Follow Lindsay at twitter.com/LindsayStrouse