'Project Runway All-Stars' Finale Part 2 recap: Mondo Guerra wins (2024)

Barbara Nitke"Project Runway All-Stars" Season 1 winner Mondo Guerra.

It took 10 more challenges and a final collection, all created over four months of angst, uncertainty and self-examination, but Mondo Guerra finally won a "Project Runway" winner's title – something he should have had in Season 8 – when he was declared the winner of "Project Runway All-Stars" on Lifetime on Thursday night.

In the "Project Runway All-Stars" season finale, Mondo presented a cohesive, superbly crafted, super creative collection of six designs that cemented his status as one of the best, if not the best, designers over 10 seasons of "Project Runway" and "Project Runway All-Stars."

And while co-finalists Austin Scarlett, the runner-up, and Michael Costello, the third place finisher, presented outstanding collections for the finale at Gotham Hall in New York City, Mondo presented the most cohesive combination of ideas, taste, skill and talent.

During the judges' discussion of the collections, Georgina Chapman said that it should come down to this: "Who has the best ideas?" And that's why Mondo and Austin finished one-two. They had, and have had throughout the season, the best ideas. Mondo's ideas, I think, had the edge over Austin's in being fresher, more fashion-forward, more capable of moving forward in different directions of both fashion and commercial success.

View full sizeBarbara NitkeMondo Guerra's first design from his finale collection.

View full sizeBarbara NitkeMondo Guerra's second design from his finale collection.

View full sizeBarbara NitkeMondo Guerra's third design from his finale collection.

View full sizeBarbara NitkeMondo Guerra's fourth design from his finale collection.

View full sizeBarbara NitkeMondo Guerra's fifth design from his finale collection.

View full sizeBarbara NitkeMondo Guerra's sixth design from his finale collection.

"Mondo, you have an incredible talent, complete with all the highs and lows of being a creative person," host and judge Angela Lindvall said to Mondo just before he won.

And to think that Mondo created his finale collection from this starting point: "I feel dead inside." That's what he said to Michael in the early stages of Part 1 of the two-part finale.

But that inner turmoil is no doubt part of Mondo's success story. Like so many artists through history, his creativity is tempered by the pressures and expectations that come at him from all directions, and an inner darkness that he is able to overcome through that spark of creative talent that is overwhelming in its intensity.

"This experience has literally made me crazy," Mondo said in Part 1 of the finale. He went with that thought and created a collection titled "Therapy." For any woman looking to boost her wardrobe, Mondo's designs indeed would be therapeutic. His Rohrschach test-inspired print incorporated into a knee-length dress was nothing short of spectacular (see his fifth design in the photos above).

Mondo's prize includes a spread in Marie Claire magazine, a stint as guest editor at the publication, $100,000 in technology and office space from HP, a cash prize of $100,000 from L'Oreal Paris and space to sell his fashion at 42 Neiman Marcus stores across the United States.

Michael and Austin won consolation prizes – a weekend trip for two to Paris.

View full sizeBarbara NitkeAustin Scarlett's third design from his finale collection.

View full sizeBarbara NitkeAustin Scarlett's fourth design from his finale collection.

View full sizeBarbara NitkeAustin Scarlett's sixth design from his finale collection.

View full sizeBarbara NitkeMichael Costello's fourth design from his finale collection.

View full sizeBarbara NitkeMichael Costello's fifth design from his finale collection.

View full sizeBarbara NitkeMichael Costello's sixth design from his finale collection.

Sampling of judges' comments:

Austin:

Georgina: "... most artistic ... he's an ideas machine ..."
Isaac Mizrahi: "... if Austin got his hands on a really good stylist, there's no telling how far he could go."
Guest judge Tommy Hilfiger: "... I thought the last dress was phenomenal, but didn't think it fit into the collection ..."
Guest judge Ken Downing of Neiman Marcus: "... I wish he could have zeroed in on a couple of ideas ..."

Mondo:

Angela: "... I felt like I saw more of Mondo ..."
Georgina: "... he's a master at mixing fabrics ..."
Isaac: "... what he does with fabrics really is smart ..."
Tommy: "... I was amazed at the workmanship ... very modern ..."
Ken: "... when he's restrained, I think there are some really strong pieces ..."

Michael:

Georgina: "... Michael had too much of a commercial head on ..."
Isaac: "... those clothes did not come together enough in a sophisticated way ..."
Tommy: "... I think it was more commercial ..."
Ken: "... I could see those clothes going into the store and out the door ..."

Finale thoughts:

If "Project Runway All-Stars" was simply a platform to give Mondo an opportunity to win the title he should have won on Season 8 of "Project Runway,' then the program was a success. Mission accomplished, we got that out of the way, and let's bid "All-Stars" a fond farewell. Forever.

But if this is something Lifetime wants to do it again, they need to take a serious look at what they presented. For example, there's no way all of this season's competitors were "All-Stars." No need to name names, but some really just weren't that good. When you come down to it, this wasn't so much an all-stars competition but a losers bracket.

I'm sure it was difficult for the producers to get all the designers they might have wanted to compete, but it would be more convincing if more of the competitors had been finalists or super-talented designers who bombed out early for whatever reason during their season.

Barbara Nitke"Project Runway All-Stars" Season 1 winner Mondo Guerra.