by Todd Betzold

It was the challenge that all the designers hate, but we as fans of Project Runway All Stars love to see: the unconventional challenge. The designers were told to head to the Christmas store and spend $350 on decorations and supplies and that is what they would use to make their looks this week. Casanova struggled with his final look last night and after two failed attempts, he came up with a recycled look of all the materials and supplies the other designers bought but did not use. As happy as he was to get a design for the runway, the judges were not impressed and he was sent home. Today he spoke to RealityWanted and other reporters in a conference call about his experiences on Project Runway All Stars.

Q. Todd, RealityWanted: You made two different dresses last night before sending the third one down the runway. What were your struggles with this challenge?
A. Casanova: I used to work with fabrics and patterns. Of course I can do something amazing out of unconventional items, but I need to do planning. During the competition, they reveal the challenge and you have 30 minutes to sketch, so clearly I don't have the time for planning. I spent my budget and I was trying to do something different and I got back to the workroom and I have nothing to work with. Everything I got was so Christmas, red and gold. When you are looking around and you see Anthony Ryan with the silver things and Laura Kathleen gets almost the same thing and Uli almost gets the same thing, so I was trying to go away from that color palette and be different.

Q. Todd, RealityWanted: What was your favorite challenge from this season?
A. Casanova: One of my favorite challenges was where you have interaction with the public. Where we had the picture. It was really nice to get feedback from the person. He is still chatting with me on Twitter and he feels so lucky I grabbed his picture and inspiration. I loved the look I made and one of my favorites.

Q. Todd, RealityWanted: Of the six designers left, are you rooting for anyone to win this season?
A. Casanova: I fell in love with Laura Kathleen. I know a lot of people think she is bitchy. I cannot say that. I got very close with Laura and also Uli. For me, whatever of those girls as a winner will make me very happy because I'm not in the competition any more.

Q. What was it that made you want to return to Project Runway?
A. Casanova: To be honest, one of the things I discovered while I was filming Season 8 was that I really want to get myself on TV. One of my major plans next year is to get myself on TV, so when I got the phone call from the producers to see if I was interested in doing All Stars, of course. It is like this second chance that anybody from the previous seasons wants and be on TV again and prove yourself and do better what you didn't do before.

Q. You became really close with Ivy on the show. Do you all keep in touch?
A. Casanova: We are not really staying in touch at this point. What happened is that we like to work together. I was not doing much at the time she was making a collection, so she hired some helpers and I decided to be her assistant. We only worked for like three or four weeks because right after we got hired to do the show. We've been very, very close the first month before filming All Stars, so that's why we were so close during the episodes. We still keep in touch now, but not as close as before because I'm not working with her right now.

Q. What can we expect to see next from you?
A. Casanova: I would love to be on TV, so that's what you can expect from me. I need to be out of the reality scene and try to do something else.

Q. What kind of TV show would you like to be on?
A. Casanova: I have no idea. Right after Season 8, I was on a TV show in Miami and I did enjoy it. As much as I don't speak English well, I do enjoy English television. I would do reality again, but I would rather do something different, something away from fashion. Maybe surviving on an island.

Q. Does that mean you want to move away from being a fashion designer?
A. Casanova: No, no, no. I will die as a fashion designer, but I can do something else. I do believe I am attached with needles and threads, but I can do something else. I will do fashion for the rest of my life. I will keep myself designing, but I also want to do something else. If I can show I can dance, I will do it. If I can show that I can survive, I will do it. Fashion is the only thing I know how to do really well, no matter what my results were on the show.

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

(Image courtesy of Lifetime)

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