Episode 4: "A Suitable Twist"

In Week 4, the other designers on "Project Runway" are beginning to take notice of Hawaii designer Kini Zamora’s technical expertise and speed.

The designers start their day at Red Robin, where, after a pep talk on transformations, they are greeted by waiters dressed in drab to downright ugly suits. A plaid suit is the one fashion statement.

The suits provide the fabric and inspiration for their challenge to create a stylish women’s ensemble.

Last week’s winner Sandhya Garg gets to choose her suit first. Usually, the first one to make a selection would choose the next designer, and on and on down the line until the last suit is claimed. The twist is that Garg is tasked with assigning the suits to each designer and Hernan Lander is panicked because they don’t get along. Naturally, he hates the polyester suit she selected for him, foreshadowing the show’s outcome.

Zamora is assigned one of the better suits, a pinstripe number that could provide a nice graphic element and bold statement when transformed. He creates a warrior woman dress with bold sleeve and cutout details. During his critique session, mentor Tim Gunn says they should call him "Speedy" because of his quick work.

Later, while the other designers are all pressed for time, Zamora relaxes in the lounge with two hours to spare.

His speed is even better appreciated when taking in his final work, which fits his model like a glove, with matching stripes throughout. Anyone who sews knows this is a bit of a puzzle, cutting the fabric in a way that allows the stripes to line up. It’s even more impressive when considering that because the fabric came from a suit, there was only a limited quantity and not much room for error.

Even so, judges were torn between his structured look and Amanda Valentine’s boho maxi. In the end, repeat contestant Valentine was deemed the winner, and even though a lot of work may have gone into the fringe she created, this is something she put out just two episodes ago, whereas I have never known Zamora to repeat himself. This could be a blessing and a curse as the day may come when the judges warn, "I don’t know who you are as a designer."

Fans seem to agree that Zamora should have been the victor. In the "Rate the Runway" portion of the show’s website, as of Tuesday Valentine’s look had won a low 2.77 rating versus Zamora’s, at 4.33.

And Lander made his exit.

The next episode of "Project Runway" airs at 7 p.m. Thursday on Lifetime. The designers will dress show host Heidi Klum. If you miss an episode, visit www.honolulupulse.com/fashiontribe for a recap.