Project Runway: Who Will Be the Final Three?

The biggest and burning question in TV land is not when will the writer's strike end but who will be Project Runway's top three designers? Devotees of the show (including this writer) are wondering and even worrying - yes worrying - if any of their favorites will get the chance to show a full collection . Which designers will eventually join the ranks of Jay McCarroll, Chloe Dao and Jeffrey Sebelia?

So far Season 4 is coming down to the wire. Lesser designers have been weeded out. These include Simone and Marion from the first two episodes. The dry witted Steven has left, as did Jack who unfortunately had to leave the show because of health reasons. This last is sad because he had the talent to carry himself perhaps to the final four or even three designers. Carmen and Elisa have both been "aufed" but let's face it here, they deserved it. Carmen sent a slip shod half finished creation down the runway in the Men's Wear challenge while Elisa channeled her other worldly side and lost in the Candy Challenge. Then again I can't imagine her making a whole designer collection using spit (ewwwww!!!!!) as a fabric marker and not using a tape measure to accurately measure hems and lengths.

Chris March was "aufed" during the Trendsetter Episode for bring back the Joan Crawford look in a bad way. He came back as Jack's replacement two episodes later as Jack's replacement. Thank heavens for that. He's got a great laugh and personality (besides he's like Hagrid to Christian's Harry Potter). Thankfully this second chance let him show his true talent such as designing that ultra sexy caged wild cat inspired costume for the Lady Wrestler episode.

Also out are Kevin, Kit, Victorya and Ricky. Kevin left at the end of the Prom Dress "What A Girl Wants " episode. He made the mistake of turning an innocent teen into looking like a seasoned call girl. He did have a great idea with his David Beckham flavored suit during the men's wear challenge (despite what Heidi had said). He also had a great sense of humor which is sorely missed. Kit was voted off during the "En Garde" episode. She and Ricky created a concoction that was far from avant garde. It looked like someone took their granny's quilt and tented it. It made well known Italian designer. Alberta Ferretti cringe and compare it to Scarlet O'Hara's famous curtain dress - but in a really bad way. Ouch! The next one "aufed" was the ever talented Victorya. This was a major surprise because her work was consistent and professional looking. She wowed the judges twice with winning the Sarah Jessica Parker and prom dress challenges. She had the same determination and grit as did Kara Saun, one of the final three contestants from Season 1. She got too intense on the denim challenge and reworked a jeans jacket and skirt into a bulky and unfashionable trench. Ricky won that challenge with his lingerie inspired strapless (complete with his model rocking the Amy Winehouse look and 'do). Unfortunately his luck didn't stretch into the next that featured those rough and tumble babes from the WWE. His design was nothing more than a Versace bathing suit covered with a "disco smock" to quote top judge, designer, Michael Kors.

This leaves five designers, the aforementioned Chris Sweet P , Christian, Rami and Jillian. Chris won the last challenge. Does he have the talent to hold out until the end? This would be great because he's a likeable guy and you want to see him succeed. The problem is will he? Sweet P is the only one left who has yet to win a challenge. She should have in "What A Girl Wants" Her gown transformed a gawky Catholic high school girl into a red carpet starlet. It was elegant and restrained , with very few embellishments. She has proven to be a good designer when it comes to working in teams. Her dress outshone Rami's strange design in the "En Garde" challenge and she helped Elisa become one of the top teams in the Sarah Jessica Parker challenge. Yet she has made some mistakes and has appeared in the bottom two more than a couple of times. She may design something out of this world or she may create a perfect flop. She keeps wavering from haute couture to California kooky.

Christian will definitely make it to the top three. He may be only twenty one but he's got this amazing talent (that he's annoyingly well aware of ). He apprenticed under fashion giants Vivienne Westwood and Alex Mc Queen in London. Cool Britannia has definitely influenced his way of designing as seen in his amazing confection in the "En Garde" challenge. The whole design was nothing short of breathtaking and he truly created a runway worthy gown. The other challenge that he won the early on "What's The Skinny episode" taking a plus sized outfit and turning it into catwalk sleek (this is the episode that did in the dry witted Steven - who had a large size wedding dress to work with and only used it in bits and pieces). His work has landed him often in the top two or three for most episodes The prom challenge one was one of the ones that almost got kicked off thanks to a run in with a difficult teen diva. Another top contender is Jillian. She is the low key but intense Parsons grad who worked for Ralph Lauren. She won the Trendsetter Episode with her cool designs of turning fashion flops into hot trendy clothing. Her work is always impeccable with the judges loving her eye for detail and her meticulously wrought outfits. She is very much in the vein of Daniel Vosovic, one of Season 2's final three . Both know how to create a sophisticated look that's high style and glamour. The last designer is the highly successful Rami. This Palestinian born designer is in a league of his own. He already has a star studded clientele (think Jessica Alba, Tyra Banks and Penelope Cruz too, just to name a few) that will undoubtedly grow bigger after he's finished with Project Runway. He came into the contest winning the first challenge with his signature draped dress and wowed the judges again with the Candy Challenge by creating a cute fantasy outfit using wrappers. He will definitely be in the final three and possibly might even be Season 4's winner.

So that's this writer's pick for the show's final three designers. Their work has always stands out making them the perfect candidates for Bryant Park. The next big question is who will be winning one?