Is there anything more awesome than seeing college students reach their dreams before they even get their diploma? I’ll answer for you, no. And that’s why we’re so excited to be sponsoring the Styleta Student Design Challenge. It’s an opportunity for student designers to get their fashion designs in front of tons of people. So with no further ado, we present the top 8 finalists and their designs!

initiating the gallery...

Sigh. I think I’m drooling.

How many times have I tried their look but always walked out the door looking like a clown? (Actually, on second thought, let’s not talk about the amount of times I’ve done that.) The truth is, no matter how hard I try, I never look like Mary-Kate or Ashley. It’s such a letdown. And while some people think their style is beyond bizarre-o, I happen to think they know more about fashion than half the “fashion designers” out there (are you reading, Lauren Conrad?).

This is why I was super excited when I found out they were creating a line for JCPenney. After all, clothing from The Row and Elizabeth and James are way too much weight on the wallet. Plus, did you hear about their genius marketing strategy for the new line, which they call Olsenboye? The twins traveled through New York City on a hot pink bus, showing off their line and handing out cupcakes! I repeat, a hot pink truck with cupcakes! I. Want. Their. Lives. But seriously, though.

So since I couldn’t be in the Big Apple for the trucks, I decided to bake a dozen cupcakes and look at Olsenboye online.

The cupcakes were great, but the line for JCP? Well…not so much. I hate to say anything negative about my terrific two-some (who once coined my favorite catch-phrase: “You got it, dude!”),  but this line does not do their brilliance justice! Sure, the line has a couple of cute over-sized tees, stylish flannel shirts and blazers, but it pretty much ends there. And “there” still looks cheap and watered down.

Am I missing something? Where are the grandpa-styled cardigans that we see the twins prancing around in? What about some trendy leggings or vintage necklaces that we just need to add to our collection?

I know that this line will never be as luxe as their others or even close to anything they wear, but I also know it’s possible to create something a lot better than this on a small budget. Even the Mossimo line at Target has more options! This just seems like an insult; like MK and Ashley just signed their names away without giving those of us on a budget a second thought. We may not be able to afford a $300 shirt, but that doesn’t mean we want to look like wanna-be trend-setters.

I was pumped to be able to dress like Mary-Kate and Ashley for a good price, but now I’m just even more broken up than when I (majorly) fail at putting my own pieces together in an attempt to pull of their boho-chic look. I hate to say it, really I do, but this line is no better than Lauren Conrad’s attempt at designing for Kohls.

In fact, I’m not sure it’s much better than her attempt at writing a novel, either.

I was wrong.

Miss Nordstrom had swindled me into signing up for the real deal. Luckily, I only charged a good $110 to my new card (that’s sarcasm), however, in an effort to ensure that I never get myself into this kind of debt debacle again, I decided to stick to buying from people who understand what it means to be a struggling artist (er, writer, whatevs). So, I turned to the online shopping portal Etsy – my favorite place to spend time (& cash) on the internet.

For those of you who have been living under a rock (or without an internet connection or penchant for online purchasing), here’s some quick Etsy 411:

“Etsy is a website that provides the general public with a way to buy and sell handmade items as well as vintage items and craft supplies.” (Thanks, Wikipedia!) Basically, the site is chock full of handmade/eccentric goodies – from vintage handbags to hand sewn dresses, created by regular people like you (or the craftier version of you). A lot of the designers on Etsy keep it eco-friendly, too, which def gets a thumbs up from me.

But, if you’re a first time Etsy-peruser, it can be a little intimidating. So I’m here to break it down for you & showcase five of my favorite E-fashionistas. I found five sites that not only offer swoon-worthy threads, but are safe for your wallet (or Mom’s Visa bill).

1) Every Little Counts . Okay, okay. Screen-printed tees are a dime a dozen. But I’m a sucker for romance, and I lurrve the creative sayings that adorn these breezy tees & tanks, like “Feel Like Making Love,” “A Violent, Sensual, Sensitive Girl” and “I can’t fight this feeling.” Adorbs.

2) Sandmaiden. Sandmaiden is a little pricey, but the designs are unique and are made from all-natural fibers. Plus the clothes are SO. UNBELIEVABLY.COMFORTABLE. Not kidding. Just check out these little beauties and imagine how wonderful that organic cotton jersey blend would feel draped over your achy bod the morning after a night of heavy drinking. Even better? You’ll be the only girl on campus with one, since most pieces on the site are one -of-a-kind designs.

3) Maiden Rapture Vintage Okay, the goods in this shop aren’t all handmade, but who doesn’t love vintage cardigans, dresses, blazers and accessories? This site makes it easy peezy to find the perfect unique piece from the 50’s, 60’s or 70’s to add to your wardrobe. I’m obsessed with blazers and plaid lately, and I found plenty in this shop. And the prices are totes affordable.

4) Sarah Seven Made from recycled vintage and natural fabrics, Sarah Seven concocts clothes worth coveting (and saving beer money for). The shop offers dresses, skirts and shirts in “vintage-inspired” designs with a modern spin. Each piece is custom designed (you provide your measurements and bra size), so you know you’re getting a perfectly unique, tailored fit every time. Even if you don’t snag yourself a darling dress, the site is totally worth checking out just for the awesome photography. I want to believe that Miss Sarah Seven herself is the girl in the nerdy (yet somehow chic) green glasses, but I think that’s just because I’m sitting here wearing my coke-bottle glasses & feeling lonely. Oh — and 5% of each purchase is donated to charities. Cool.

5) 75Rabbit For the patchouli-applying hippie that exists in every college student, enter 75Rabbit. With “far out” designs & duds made from recycled pre-used fabrics, what’s not to adore? The only catch: The shop lists only one page of items at the moment. But the prices are reasonable & where the hell else are you going to find a flattering and totally unique dress with John Lennon’s face on it?! Nowhere.

I’ve shared some of my faves – now it’s your turn! Where do you shop on Etsy?

Is bitchiness contagious, cuz Jordana definitely caught it.

So it’s finally time for Fashion Week. Fashion Week that happened a year ago, but a big moment for those designers who made it through, nonetheless. It’s been a long journey. 12 challenges and ots of lost talent along the way (we’re talking mostly to you, Ra’Mon!). But after last night’s episode, I can honestly say that those judges finally did some good…er…judging.

So let’s give a big thanks to Cindy Crawford. You go, girl. And, DAMN, you look good.

Last night’s challenge was to find some inspiration at L.A.’s Getty Center. I’m not quite sure what that place was or what the purpose of it is, but the mayor was quite proud of it so I went along for the ride. Each designer could choose anything in there to inspire a look and then go to it.

I’m not sure what happened along the way, but it seems that Christopher must have taken a wrong turn somewhere and ended up at a David’s Bridal booth at the Renaissance Fair. The “dress” he put together was heavy, ugly and pretty infuriating if you ask me. And you’re reading this post, so you definitely asked.

"Why'd I get stuck with the weird guy?"

As Chris was constructing this monstrosity, he confessed: “I know my place…I’m the wacky, weird guy.”

No, Christopher, you’re the mentally and stylistically challenged guy who somehow snuck by this far and took a spot from someone who really deserved it. Hell, even Nicolas deserved to make it further than you and he made these. Your sense of style is non-existent, and you’re far too literal with your designing. Really? You drew green flowers on your dress to represent the moss? Welcome to 4th grade, Chris.

And then there’s Jordana. Between her emotional ups and downs (one minute she’s Meana Irina’s BBFF [bitchy BFF] and the next she’s sobbing from some spiritual moment with a painting) she finds her inspiration in a Monet. Or was it a vagina? Because from here it looks a lot like a vagina. A big vagina dress.

"It's like a pencil in a hallway...."

Don’t tell you don’t see it. I saw it the moment that girl came strutting down the runway. And I think the judges saw it, too. Hence their decision. With Paris Hilton doing her thing at Fashion Week, there isn’t room for any more giant vaginas in Bryant Park.

Zing!

Anyways, let’s get to the good stuff. Well, the better stuff, at least. Everyone’s designs looked a hot mess this challenge, but it’s good to see the judges still made the right choice when it came to sending the top 3 to Fashion Week. Althea, Carol Hannah and Irina (even if she’s a giant bitch) have been consistent throughout the season. They all have a unique style and, being that I was betting on Althea from the beginning, I can’t wait to see what these girls bring to the Big Apple.

Well, besides Irina’s ‘tude, Carol Hannah’s nervous laugh and the nipples that inevitably show in all of Althea’s designs.

Wow, I’m actually excited to watch next week! Who ever thought that was possible?!

The Final 4. Plus two dudes who are lucky to be there.

That’s it. I am d-u-n-z-o with Project Runway. DUNZO! I love me some Heidi Klum and I think Althea is fantastic, but I refuse to support a show that I just can’t connect to anymore. If you haven’t watched this week’s episode (and you still care what is happening in this snoozefest they call Season Six) I would stop reading now. Cuz I’m about to get angry.

Ok, it’s pretty obvious that the girls are running the show this season. The judges got rid of the only guy with talent (Ra’Mon) a long time ago and it’s pretty much been a battle of the ugly for the dudes since then. Everyone knows Althea and (Meana) Irina will be showing a final collection sometime soon.  And the third spot will most likely be goin’ to Carol Hannah (and her annoying nervous laugh).

But the guys. Oy. Let’s break it all down for ya:

Christopher:
Yeah, I really thought he was the underdog/dark horse in the beginning too. Sure, I hated his facial hair and the weird rings he sometimes wears on his index finger, but I let it go cuz I figured he was using all his creative energy on his designs. But now I know he just has no taste. At all.

Bottom line: Christopher blows. Big chunks. Hard. And we’re standing there holding his neck beard back. He’s terrible and does NOT understand women at all. Especially in last night’s challenge:

“Yes, please put a lot of extra bulk around my thighs so I can’t sit in the dress and I look like one of Cinderella’s evil step-sisters. Awesome.”

He seems to think that he keeps sneaking by because he’s “meant to be there,” but the truth is, there’s just always someone there who does a little worse than him. And he should really give those people a big, fat thank you gift. Just not a dress; that would just be rude.

Logan:
He’s hot.

Ok, so Logan isn’t very good, but he’s mighty good to look at. Even in those silver pants. And, yeah, his design last night was pretty effing awful/so bad not even Tila Tequila would wear it, but worse than Chris’s hot leafy mess?

And this is where the judges and I disagree. And I get angry. Yes, angry enough to pause the DVR, walk into my kitchen, grab a few Reese’s cups and resume watching. I mean I get it – Logan was bad. Logan has never won a challenge. Logan is bow-legged.

But LOGAN IS HOT. Why keep the guy who’s always making big, ugly ball gowny things (and don’t forget the beard!) and get rid of the one reason I’ve been watching all season?

WTF, Heidi/Nick/Nina/Other chick? WHAT. THE. EFF?

I’m really at odds with the judges this season and I just don’t know how much I can care anymore. Poor eliminations, paired with that absurd outfit Heidi was sporting last night, really has me questioning their fashion knowledge and abilities to judge at all. We need Michael Kors back. BRING HIM BACK.

Oh, and one more thing: If Christopher and his 30 yards of crap are not gone next week we’re gonna have a coup on our hands. I’m talking to you, Heidi Klum (and your pink, ruffly shirt)!

And homegirl sure knows how to make a faux fur vest. That thing was gorgeous. Although I might be biased considering it was a blustery 38 degrees and rainy when I got home last night. But, still, I wanted to make Irina my new BFF and cozy up inside that vest until April. Or, in the Midwest, July.

But, and there’s always a but, Irina is a big, fat bitch. She’s arrogant, she’s mean, she’s judgmental….and just like 40% of the girls in my high school. The girls I gave the finger to as I pulled out of the parking lot that last day and swore never to see again. The girls who pretend to be confident only to cover up some raging insecurity. Perhaps Irina hates the annoying way she talks? Or she was on the flag team in high school and never got over it?

I don’t know, but she’s a cold-hearted snake.

Although, I guess you can’t totally fault this girl for the things she says. She’s kinda like Kanye (minus the whole Hennessey thing); she is simply saying what everyone else is thinking. And maybe if she was a bit wittier in her insults (a la Michael Kors) we wouldn’t care who she was talking smack about.

And we all know there is plenty of smack to be talked with some of these designers.

I mean, let’s be honest here – Christopher’s frock (the only term that can be used to describe it) looked like a leftover from that Western costume challenge. And Nikolas’s little “Grecian get-up” looked more “Charlotte Russe attempts workwear” than “I’m going to eat some feta on the beach and then rub oil on a six-packed Greek god.” Come on, Nikolas – who wears suit pants in Greece?

Who wears pants at all?

But I do feel bad for weirdo Nikolas. I get that his look was about as appropriate for Greece as my giant blinging Jewish star was for the county fair I went to, but could you imagine losing to….this?

It’s like the time my friend chose our sober roommate as her beer pong partner over me. Like, for real? Her? She’s drinking water! I’m the beer pong CHAMPION.

Oh wait – sorry. Got lost in my thoughts there for a second. Back to that thing Christopher sent down the runway. Really, Chris? We sacrificed Ra’Mon for a Little House on the Prarie dress paired with some unfortunate wedges? I shoulda known a man with a super skinny beard thing could never be trusted in fashion.

P.S. If Althea doesn’t win this entire competition I’ll eat my shoe. Not one of my new pairs of pumps, mind you, but maybe an old pair of Converse. That girl is GOOD.

But nowadays, it seems like any celeb with some cash and spare time on their hands can slap a few pieces together and call it a collection. And while some lines knock it out of the park (why hello there, L.A.M.B.!), a vast majority fall more in the category of utter hot mess. Below is a sampling of the messiest of the hot messes.

5) The Kardashians: DASH – Oh, Kardashians. Kim becomes famous (?) by hanging out with Paris, nailing Ray J on tape, and having a mega huge ass, and the rest of the family rides on the coattails of her, um, success. Taking this into consideration, I suppose the Kardashian sisters’ line DASH makes sense; tacky, trashy, cookie-cutter and distinctly substandard, DASH looks very much like the $4.99 rack at Forever 21, only the items cost anywhere from 11 to 250 times as much. But I heard that every item is sprinkled with magical butt-expanding powder, so maybe that’s where the mark-up comes in.

4) Travis Barker: Famous Stars and Straps – I don’t like ghetto style. Baby Phat, Ed Hardy, gold tribal embellishments on jeans, air-brush aesthetics, ew. No thank you. But while a line may not suit my tastes personally, I’ll still give it props for being good for what it is (insert a nod to Apple Bottoms). Unfortunately, Travis Barker’s Famous Stars and Straps has the double issue of going for an aesthetic that is inherently fug and is badly done. From an uninspired/outdated logo that’s plastered on EVERYTHING to graphics that scream seventh grade, Famous is the clothing equivalent of the suburbs: generic, boring, and painfully white trying to front like it’s fly.

3) Beyonce: House of Dereon – I remember the first time the truly horrendous designs of the House of Dereon were brought to my attention. Destiny’s Child was still together and the ladies were walking the red carpet at some event, all of them wearing matching green and gold gowns that barely looked classy enough to be worn at the Adult Movie Awards. “Damn,” I thought, “What designer conned them in to wearing those hideous get ups?” Answer: Beyonce’s mom. Since then, Tina Knowles, with the help of her daughter Ms. Fierce, have created season after season of high-end frocks and streetwear that seem to be based on the idea that anything worth doing is worth overdoing. Belts, sequins, ruffles, florals, leopard prints, seams, studs, pockets, buckles, zippers, fur; these ladies rock it all… to the point where pieces look like an explosion at the Jo-Anne Fabrics store. An ugly explosion. An ugly expensive explosion. Boo.

2) Elizabeth Hurley: Beach – So now you know – Elizabeth Hurley makes clothes. But, uh, you’re not missing out on much. Hurley’s resort wear line Beach is pretty much a carbon copy of every Newport News catalog since 1998; we’re talking dumpy Indian-inspired Mandarin-collared kaftans, terry cloth hoodies, a-line polka dot dresses with fringy dangly ball trim…you know, sh*t your mom would wear at the beach over her ruffle-skirted bathing suit. However, as Elizabeth Hurley is one of the hottest people on the planet and is married to a multi-millionaire Indian prince or something, I’m guessing something as trivial as a god-f**king-awful clothing line won’t really set her back much.

1) Tara Reid: Mantra – Candy-bright colors, synthetic fabrics, those plastic Rose Art beads you used to make necklaces out of when you were a kid, and Tara Reid. That pretty much covers it.

Life in prison for this fashionable felon.

President-Elect Obama loves YouTube!

Paula might be leaving American Idol.

Is Kim Kardashian really engaged?

Hulk Hogan & Co. are a bunch of douches.

Anderson Cooper watches Real Housewives of Atlanta.

ESPN is stereotyping your school.

Makeup trends for the holiday season.

It’s a hard-knock life for your RA.

The idiot’s guide to networking.

If there’s one thing I already knew, it’s that when you’re the poor, unpopular kid on the Upper East Side, your life will be a continuous cycle of being walked over, speaking your mind, putting your foot in your mouth, and then being magically forgiven and allowed to advance to the next round.

Did you miss last night’s episode? Let me fill you in.

Within the first minute of GG, Nate mentions the inevitable party that will tangle everyone up in some drama that will continue to be played out next week.

Other expected GG staples: Catherine and Nate talk money; Serena and Dan are together but have issues (did I miss them deciding to be a “secret” couple?); and Jenny has some great ideas for her fashion internship, but she’s a lowly intern and isn’t allowed to have opinions.

The best thing about the first half? The mini gossip girls who approach Dan and throw in their two cents. If you missed it, two tweeny-bopping brunettes are on Dan’s side, and one tweeny-bopping blond is on team S. The blond asks Serena how she can kiss Dan, knowing his tongue has been in Georgina’s mouth, which seems a bit much when you consider the girs were, what, 11? The tweensters were obviously comic relief, but for some reason their opinions caused an awkward rift between S and Lonely Boy…which I was over by the next commercial.

The real hotness revolves around Chuck and Blair for the third consecutive week. Chuck, like most high school boys, has a string of call girls filing in and out of his room, but can’t seem to perform. Dr. Ruth–I mean, Serena–suggests it’s because all he really cares about is B., which prompts Chuck to seek out a tryst with Blair so he can use her as “sexual Drain-o” to unclog his pipes.

At the party, Chuck and Blair have their weekly sexual-tension infused interaction, which started out pretty hot, but then got a little creepy…but still pretty hot. (Editor’s Note: SO hot.) Here’s another question: why can’t Blair, last season’s token virgin, suddenly go without sex? I mean, she was with Nate since freaking kindergarten and kept her chastity belt on, but now she’s like a dog in heat around Marcus. Which, of course, our favorite Duchess, Catherine, can smell immediately.

Now, it’s time to learn our life lessons from the crew. Nate really likes Vanessa, but Vanessa discovers his affair with Catherine. Dear Nate, when someone you like asks you if you are sleeping with a cougar, don’t justify it with, “She’s giving me money.” Horny Blair invites Marcus upstairs, only to finally lock lips with Chuck. Dear Blair, when your boyfriend walks in on you making out with someone else, the excuse, “I thought he was you,” won’t fly.

Of course, this is Gossip Girl world, so Vanessa likes Nate even more, and Marcus is finally ready to nail Blair.

Oh, in the meantime, Jenny got fired by Mrs. Waldorf, then rehired. Because that’s what Jenny does. And Serena and Dan broke up, but they really still love each other. Because that’s what Serena and Dan do. And Catherine “doesn’t like to share her toys. Especially when she’s paid for them.” So she blackmails Vanessa to leave Nate alone. Because that’s what rich, horny cougars who get to ride Chace Crawford do.

Gossip Girl. Everything you missed in high school, wrapped into 42 minutes of Monday night television. I love it.